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1 Chronicles 8:40

in 1 Chronicles 8

Ulam was his firstborn, Jeush second, and Eliphelet third. The sons of Ulam were mighty men of valor, archers, and they had many sons and grandsons—150 in all. All these were the descendants of Benjamin.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV

ASV

And the sons of Ulam were mighty men of valor, archers, and had many sons, and sons’ sons, a hundred and fifty. All these were of the sons of Benjamin.

KJV

And the sons of Ulam were mighty men of valour, archers, and had many sons, and sons’ sons, an hundred and fifty. All these are of the sons of Benjamin.

This verse in 1 Chronicles 8

Commentary

8 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

The sons of Ulam were mighty men of valor - The Targum speaks honourably of them: “The sons of Ulam were mighty and strong men, subduing by wisdom their evil concupiscence, as men bend a bow; therefore they had many sons and grandsons.” Of the six sons of Azel, mentioned 1Ch 8:38, R. S. Jarchi says that their allegorical expositions were sufficient to load thirteen thousand camels! No doubt these were reputed to be deeply learned men. There was a time when the allegorizers and metaphor-men ranked very high among theologians, even in our own enlightened and critical country.

This site's exposition

the sons of Micah were

on 1 Chronicles 8:35-40

Micah's line runs six generations past him, Jehoadah to Azel, and Azel's own six sons are named individually rather than folded into a summary, an unusual density this late in a Benjamite roll. The record does not stop at Saul's death on Gilboa or at David's dynasty replacing his house; it keeps counting fathers and sons long after the kingdom left this family, evidence the compiler still held records for a line whose claim to the throne was long over. The chapter closes on Ulam's sons, archers and mighty men of valour a hundred and fifty strong, and Henry reads the note as praise for service rather than for rank, a family remembered for usefulness once the crown was gone from it.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices

A commentator

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)

Archers - Hebrew. that tread the bow; for the bows of steel, which these used, required great strength to bend them; which therefore they did by treading the bow with their feet, and pulling the string with both their hands.
And the sons of Ulam were mighty men of valour,....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

That is taken notice of concerning them which is more a man's praise than his pomp or wealth is, that they were qualified to serve their country.

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

They are Jasher, Jeshurun--just ones, and the memory of the just is blessed. Many of these we have reason to fear, came short of everlasting honour (for even the wicked kings of Judah come into the genealogy), yet the perpetuating of their names here was a figure of the writing of the names of all God's spiritual Israel in the Lamb's book of life.

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

mighty men of valour, archers--(see on Jud 20:16). Great strength as well as skill was requisite in ancient archery, as the bow, which was of steel, was bent by treading with the feet, and pulling the string with both hands.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

1 more voice on this verse

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Sons, and sons’ sons - This genealogy of the house of Saul appears by the number of the generations to belong probably to the time of Hezekiah (compare 1Ch 4:41). Ulam’s “sons’ sons” are in the 13th generation from Jonathan, as Hezekiah is in the 13th generation from David.

The words behind it

18 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • וַֽיִּהְי֣וּand they were

    vaiyihyuH19613559 times

  • בְנֵי־[the] sons of

    venei-H11214930 times

  • א֠וּלָםUlam

    ʾulomH1984 times

  • אֲנָשִׁ֨יםmen

    ʾanashimH582566 times

  • גִּבֹּרֵי־mighty of

    giborei-H1368158 times

  • חַ֜יִלstrength

    chayilH2428246 times

  • דֹּ֣רְכֵי[who] bent

    dorekheiH1869

  • קֶ֗שֶׁתa bow

    keshetH719876 times

  • וּמַרְבִּ֤יםand [who] had many

    umarbimH7235227 times

  • בָּנִים֙children

    banimH11214930 times

  • וּבְנֵ֣יand children of

    uveneiH11214930 times

  • בָנִ֔יםchildren

    vanimH11214930 times

  • מֵאָ֖הone hundred

    meahH3967581 times

  • וַחֲמִשִּׁ֑יםand fifty

    vachamishimH2572163 times

  • כָּל־all

    kol-H36055413 times

  • אֵ֖לֶּהthese

    ʾelehH428746 times

  • מִבְּנֵ֥י[were] of [the] descendants of

    mibeneiH11214930 times

  • בִנְיָמִֽן׃ פBenjamin

    vinyaminH1144166 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    1 Chronicles 12:2

    they were archers using both the right and left hands to sling stones and shoot arrows; and they were Saul’s kinsmen from Benjamin):

    it leads to

    • Judges 3:15

      And again they cried out to the LORD, and He raised up Ehud son of Gera, a left-handed Benjamite, as their deliverer. So they sent him with tribute to Eglon king of Moab.

    • Judges 20:16

      Among all these soldiers there were 700 select left-handers, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair without missing.

    • 1 Chronicles 12:29

      From Benjamin, the kinsmen of Saul: 3,000, most of whom had remained loyal to the house of Saul up to that time.

    • 1 Samuel 17:49

      Then David reached into his bag, took out a stone, and slung it, striking the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.

  • Through

    2 Chronicles 14:8

    Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah bearing large shields and spears, and 280,000 men from Benjamin bearing small shields and drawing the bow. All these were mighty men of valor.

    it leads to

    • 2 Chronicles 13:3

      Abijah went into battle with an army of 400,000 chosen men, while Jeroboam drew up in formation against him with 800,000 chosen and mighty men of valor.

    • 2 Chronicles 25:5

      Then Amaziah gathered the people of Judah and assigned them according to their families to commanders of thousands and of hundreds. And he numbered those twenty years of age or older throughout Judah and…

    • 2 Chronicles 17:14–19

      These are their numbers according to the houses of their fathers: From Judah, the commanders of thousands: Adnah the commander, and with him 300,000 mighty men of valor;

    • 2 Chronicles 11:1

      When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mobilized the house of Judah and Benjamin—180,000 chosen warriors—to fight against Israel and restore the kingdom to Rehoboam.

About 1 Chronicles

Cedars Are Cut Down for the Jerusalem Temple, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Cedars Are Cut Down for the Jerusalem Temple, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.