Bible Strands
1 Chronicles 27:28
Baal-hanan the Gederite was in charge of the olive and sycamore trees in the foothills. Joash was in charge of the stores of olive oil.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Chronicler records David’s administrative structure for a post-exilic audience seeking to understand the historical foundation of Israel’s temple and kingdom systems. This verse documents the specific agricultural oversight assigned within that royal bureaucracy.
The words — The text notes שִׁקְמִים (shikmim), literally sycamore-fig trees, and שְׁפֵלָה (shephelah), meaning the foothills or lowland regions. These terms specify the exact crop and geographic zone under Baal-hanan’s jurisdiction.
The thread — The same geographic and botanical pairing appears in 1 Kings 10:27 and 2 Chronicles 1:15, where sycamore trees in the foothills are cited to illustrate the sheer abundance of royal resources.
Why it lands — The text records a precise division of labor for managing agricultural stores, showing how David’s kingdom organized resource extraction and storage. It asks the reader to recognize that biblical governance relied on systematic oversight rather than spontaneous provision.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And over the olive trees and the sycomore trees that were in the low plains was Baal–hanan the Gederite: and over the cellars of oil was Joash:
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 10:27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as abundant as sycamore in the foothills.
- 2 Chronicles 1:15 The king made silver and gold as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as abundant as sycamore in the foothills.
- 1 Kings 4:7 Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel to provide food for the king and his household. Each one would arrange provisions for one month of the year,
- 1 Kings 20:27 The Israelites also mobilized, gathered supplies, and marched out to meet them. The Israelites camped before them like two small flocks of goats, while the Arameans covered the countryside.