Genesis 36:33

33 When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah became the next king.

Genesis 36:33 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 36:33

And Bela died
How long he reigned is not known with any certainty, nor whether he left any sons behind him; if he did, they did not succeed him in the throne; for Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead:
this king some have thought to be the same with Job, and from whom one of the books of Scripture has its name; but neither their names, nor age, nor country agree: who this Jobab and his father Zerah were cannot be said: they seem to be of the same country in which Jobab reigned, since he is said to be of Bozrah, a famous city of Idumea, after spoken of in the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah and others, ( Isaiah 34:6 ) ( 63:1 ) ( Jeremiah 48:24 ) ( Jeremiah 49:13 Jeremiah 49:22 ) ( Amos 1:12 ) ( Micah 2:12 ) ; Jarchi takes it to be a city of Moab, and indeed it is sometimes placed in Moab, and sometimes in Edom, it being on the borders of both, and sometimes belonged to the one and sometimes to the other. According to Mr. Bedford F11, this king began his reign, A. M. 2135, so that the former king must have reigned about forty two years; which is a space of time he allows to each successor, taking them one with another, the particular and exact time of each reign he not being able to fix.


FOOTNOTES:

F11 Scripture Chronology, p. 327.

Genesis 36:33 In-Context

31 And these are the kings who ruled in Edom before there was a king in Israel:
32 Bela son of Beor was the king of Edom; the name of his city was Dinhabah.
33 When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah became the next king.
34 When Jobab died, he was followed by Hushan from the land of the Temanites.
35 When Hushan died, he was followed by Hadad son of Bedad; he was the king who defeated the Midianites in Moab; the name of his city was Avith.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.