Context No. 2603 of 4322 · 1 Chronicles

1 Chronicles 1:43-54: in context

43Now these are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before any king reigned over the children of Israel: Bela the son of Beor; and the name of his city was Dinhabah. 44Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place. 45Jobab died, and Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his place. 46Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who struck Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his place; and the name of his city was Avith. 47Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place. 48Samlah died, and Shaul of Rehoboth by the River reigned in his place. 49Shaul died, and Baal Hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his place. 50Baal Hanan died, and Hadad reigned in his place; and the name of his city was Pai. His wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab. 51Then Hadad died. The chiefs of Edom were: chief Timna, chief Aliah, chief Jetheth, 52chief Oholibamah, chief Elah, chief Pinon, 53chief Kenaz, chief Teman, chief Mibzar, 54chief Magdiel, and chief Iram. These are the chiefs of Edom.

Chronicles pauses to list the kings who reigned in Edom before Israel ever had a king. Bela reigned, then died; Jobab reigned in his place, then died; Husham, Hadad, Samlah, Shaul, one after another, each following the same brief formula: he reigned, and he died, and another reigned in his place. Then the list closes with the chiefs of Edom, more names, more forgotten men.

There is a quiet drumbeat under the list: and he died. King after king rises to power and vanishes, remembered now only as a name in a genealogy no one reads. Edom had its kings and its glory long before God's slower purpose came to fruition in Israel, and all of it passed. The lesson is not stated, but it hums beneath the names. The powers and rulers that seem so permanent in their moment all end the same way, replaced and forgotten, while God's patient purpose keeps moving. It is worth remembering when the kingdoms and powers of my own day feel like the whole story.

Do I overvalue the passing powers of the moment, forgetting they all end in the same line, and he died, while God's purpose alone endures?

Sources

1 Chronicles 1:43: Now these are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before any king reigned over the children of Israel.
1 Chronicles 1:44: Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place.
Psalm 146:3: Don't put your trust in princes, in a son of man in whom there is no help. His spirit departs, and he returns to the earth.