Remember Esau -
the twin brother of Jacob? Well chapter 36 of Genesis is all about him - his family line and the land that he lived. The land was called Edom, which means “red”, and it was located between the Dead Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba in what is known today as southwestern Jordan. Edom originally belonged to the Horite tribe, “but the people of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them and settled in their place, as Israel did to the land of their possession, which the Lord gave to them.” Deuteronomy 2:12 The Horites and Mt. Seir were first mentioned in Genesis 14 when “they were defeated by an alliance of kings who also defeated the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah.” Genesis 14:6 Apparently that did not last long, because the Horite clan continued to grow. The Horites are not mentioned again until chapter 36, when the scripture says, “These were the sons of Seir the Horite, who were living in the region: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer and Dishan. These sons of Seir in Edom were Horite chiefs.” Genesis 36:20-21 So I just learned that “Seir the Horite” simply means “Seir the cave dweller.” And I just realized that Mt.Seir is the mountain that the Israelites walking around several times when in the wilderness. The scripture says, “Then we turned and journeyed into the wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea, as the Lord told me. And for many days we traveled around Mount Seir. Then the Lord said to me, “You have been traveling around this mountain country long enough. Turn northward and command the people, “You are about to pass through the territory of your brothers, the people of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. So be very careful. Do not contend with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as for the sole of the foot to tread on, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession.” Deuteronomy 2:2-5 Also, I don’t know why - but the genealogy of Seir seems to be very important- the writer of Chronicles includes it when giving the genealogy from Adam to Abraham and from Abraham to Jacob. For some reason, after naming the sons of Isaac, the writer focuses his attention on the sons of Ishmael, the sons of Esau and the sons of Seir instead of writing about the sons of Jacob. Now we know that after Issac blessed Jacob and sent him to find a wife in Paddem Aram, Esau realized he should not have married a Canaanite woman - and he married two! So, he went to his uncle Ishmael, and took for himself an Ishmaelite wife. The scripture says, “Esau realized how displeased Isaac was with the Canaanite women; so he went to his uncle Ishmael, Isaac’s brother, and married his cousin Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, son of Abraham, in addition to the Hittite wives he already had.” Genesis 28:6-9 Perhaps that is why Ishmael and Esau and Seir are all tied into one - because their people are glued together by location and marriage? I don't know, do you? This has been a very interesting journey - I've learned a little more about the land of Edom. Have you?
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