Bible Strands
Genesis 36:12
Additionally, Timna, a concubine of Esau’s son Eliphaz, gave birth to Amalek. These are the grandsons of Esau’s wife Adah.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator continues Esau’s family record by listing the descendants of his son Eliphaz. This genealogical note appears within a broader catalog of Esau’s lineage and tribal leaders.
The words — פִילֶ֗גֶשׁ (pilegesh) denotes a concubine, a woman in a recognized but secondary marital status. וַ/תֵּ֥לֶד (vateled) means “and she bore,” marking the birth of Amalek to Timna.
The thread — The son Amalek becomes the progenitor of a hostile nation that attacks Israel at Rephidim (Exodus 17:8) and opposes them during the exodus (Deuteronomy 25:17). Genesis 14:7 also records the earlier conquest of Amalekite territory.
Why it lands — The text establishes the ancestral origin of a recurring adversary to Israel, grounding future conflicts in documented family lines. Readers must recognize how genealogical records trace the historical roots of national opposition.
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 Timna was concubine to Eliphaz Esau’s son; and she bare to Eliphaz Amalek: these were the sons of Adah Esau’s wife.
Cross-references
- Exodus 17:8 After this, the Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.
- Deuteronomy 25:17 Remember what the Amalekites did to you along your way from Egypt,
- Genesis 14:7 Then they turned back to invade En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and they conquered the whole territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.
- Genesis 36:22 The sons of Lotan were Hori and Hemam. Timna was Lotan’s sister.
- Numbers 24:18 Edom will become a possession, as will Seir, his enemy; but Israel will perform with valor.
- Deuteronomy 23:7 Do not despise an Edomite, for he is your brother. Do not despise an Egyptian, because you lived as a foreigner in his land.
- 1 Samuel 15:2 This is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘I witnessed what the Amalekites did to the Israelites when they opposed them on their way up from Egypt.
- 1 Chronicles 1:36 The sons of Eliphaz: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz; and by Timna, Amalek.