Bible Strands
1 Chronicles 4:31
Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susim, Beth-biri, and Shaaraim. These were their cities until the reign of David.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records a list of southern tribal settlements as part of a genealogical inventory, noting their administrative status prior to the establishment of the Davidic monarchy.
The words — "Beth-marcaboth" (בֵּית מַרְכָּבוֹת) literally denotes Marcaboth, and "Shaaraim" (שַׁעֲרַיִם) names a distinct fortified town in the same territorial cluster.
The thread — This list parallels the tribal allotment records in Joshua 19:5, which also enumerates Ziklag, Beth-marcaboth, and Hazar-susah as part of the southern inheritance.
Why it lands — The text establishes that these towns functioned as established communities before centralized royal administration, requiring the reader to track how territorial boundaries shifted under David's reign.
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 at Beth–marcaboth, and Hazar–susim, and at Beth–birei, and at Shaaraim. These were their cities unto the reign of David.
Cross-references
- Joshua 19:5 Ziklag, Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susah,