16–24.
The Princes of the Tribes of Israel.
Six tribes which were accounted “sons” of Leah are given first, then six “sons,” actual or legal, of Rachel; whilst Zadok as chief of the priestly caste may be reckoned as standing in a category by himself, representative of the nation as a whole. Gad and Asher are omitted, for some reason not easy to discern, perhaps accidentally or because the traditional number of “twelve” tribes was complete in this list without them.
¹⁶Furthermore over the tribes of Israel: of the Reubenites was Eliezer the son of Zichri the ruler: of the Simeonites, Shephatiah the son of Maacah: ¹⁷of Levi, Hashabiah the son of Kemuel: of Aaron, Zadok:
17. Hashabiah] Perhaps the person mentioned in xxvi. 30. The name is common among Levites.
of Aaron, Zadok] compare xii. 27, 28.
¹⁸of Judah, Elihu[¹], one of the brethren of David: of Issachar, Omri the son of Michael: ¹⁹of Zebulun, Ishmaiah the son of Obadiah: of Naphtali, Jeremoth the son of Azriel: ²⁰of the children of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Azaziah: of the half tribe of Manasseh, Joel the son of Pedaiah:
[¹] In 1 Samuel xvi. 6, Eliab.
18. Elihu] Perhaps the “Eliab” of 1 Samuel xvi. 6; compare margin.
²¹of the half tribe of Manasseh in Gilead, Iddo the son of Zechariah: of Benjamin, Jaasiel the son of Abner: ²²of Dan, Azarel the son of Jeroham. These were the captains of the tribes of Israel.
21. Gilead] “Gilead” is strictly speaking the name of the district between the Jabbok and Moab, in which the tribes of Gad and Reuben dwelt. Here it is used less precisely to include Bashan, the district north-east of Jordan in which the half tribe of Manasseh lived: compare ii. 22, note.