JUDGE OF ISRAEL · THE TRIBES OF ISRAEL

Jair. A Gileadite who judged twenty-two years; thirty sons on thirty ass colts.

LED ISRAELi

22 years No years BC in Scripture

TRIBE

Not stated (a Gileadite)

IN THE LINE

8th of 15

SCRIPTURE SAYS

“He had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havoth-jair…”

PROPHETS

None named

THE TRIBES OF ISRAEL: 15 RULERS MOSES → SAMUEL

THE CYCLE

Forgetting, oppression, a cry, a deliverer, rest

  • 1 · FORGOT GOD Scripture does not say.
  • 2 · OPPRESSED Scripture does not say.
  • 3 · CRIED OUT Scripture does not say.
  • 4 · DELIVERED "After him arose Jair, a Gileadite, and judged Israel twenty and two years." Judges 10:3
  • 5 · REST Scripture does not say.

SUCCESSION

Before and after

WHAT SCRIPTURE SAYS

What Scripture says of him

  • "He had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havoth-jair unto this day." Judges 10:4

EVENTS

Wars, works and turning points

UNDATED IN SCRIPTURE

THE LAND

The places Scripture names

The tribes of Israel · tribe of Not stated (a Gileadite). Only places Scripture names are shown, each where the Atlas puts it.

THE NATION

What the nation did

  • His thirty sons rode thirty ass colts and held thirty cities in Gilead. Judges 10:4

DATES DIFFER

When was it?

SCRIPTURE'S OWN NUMBERS

No years given

22 years of judging (Judges 10:3). No year BC is given.

Clans rather than individuals

Moore (1895)

Moore holds that most, if not all, of these names "appear to be those of clans rather than individuals", and that their years sit outside the book's chronological scheme.[20]

Individual judges over part of Israel

Keil (1865)

Keil treats them as judges in office one after another, and argues that Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon and Abdon were "not judges over all Israel".[1]

IN SCRIPTURE

Every passage

CHAPTERS · 4

Judges 10 Numbers 32 Deuteronomy 3 1 Chronicles 2

PASSAGES · 4

Judges 10:3–5 Numbers 32:41 Deuteronomy 3:14 1 Chronicles 2:22

WHAT SCRIPTURE DOES NOT SAY

  • Scripture names no enemy, battle, sin or rest for this judge: only the years judged, family and burial.
  • Judges does not name Jair's tribe; Gilead lay east of the Jordan.

IDENTIFICATIONS THIS PAGE RELIES ON

  • From the textThe site keeps the judge separate from "Jair the son of Manasseh" of Moses' time (jair-num-32-41), who also named towns Havoth-jair. Numbers 32:41 Judges 10:4

SOURCES

Where this page comes from

  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), pp. 276–286 (chronology of the judges).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), pp. 322–323 (Judges 5:25–27).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), pp. 357–358 (Judges 8:27).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), p. 373 (Judges 10:3–5).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), pp. 387–394 (Judges 11:34–40).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), p. 398 (Judges 12:8–10).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), pp. 156–157 (Joshua 15:13–19).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth (1872 printing of the 1865 translation) (1872), p. 208 (Joshua 19:50).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel (1872 printing of the 1866 translation) (1872), pp. 17–18 (1 Samuel 1:1).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel (1872 printing of the 1866 translation) (1872), p. 39 (1 Samuel 2:27–36).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel (1872 printing of the 1866 translation) (1872), p. 56 (1 Samuel 4:18).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel (1872 printing of the 1866 translation) (1872), pp. 117–118 (1 Samuel 12:11).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. Andrew Harper, Biblical Commentary on the Books of the Chronicles (1872), pp. 123–124 (1 Chronicles 6:28, Hebrew 6:13).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. Andrew Harper, Biblical Commentary on the Books of the Chronicles (1872), p. 165 (1 Chronicles 9:22).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch, vol. 2 (1872 printing) (1872), p. 87 (Exodus 18:24–27).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch, vol. 3 (1871 printing) (1871), pp. 71–72 and note (Numbers 11:24–30).
  • George Buchanan Gray, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Numbers (International Critical Commentary) (1903), pp. 113–115 (Numbers 11:25–29).
  • C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, tr. James Martin, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch, vol. 3 (1871 printing) (1871), p. 499 (Deuteronomy 33:4–5).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. xxxvii–xlii (Introduction §7, Chronology).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. xxviii–xxix (Introduction, the Minor Judges).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), p. 27 and notes (Judges 1:13).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. 66–67 (Judges 2:9).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. 107–108 (Judges 4, the two accounts).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. 113–114 (Judges 4:5).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. 231–232 (Judges 8:27).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. 274–275 (Judges 10:4).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), pp. 302–305 and note (Judges 11:39).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), p. 310 (Judges 12:8).
  • George Foot Moore, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Judges (International Critical Commentary) (1895), p. 311 (Judges 12:13–15, on 1 Samuel 12:11).
  • Edward Mack, in The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, "Chronology of the Old Testament" (1915), section VII (From the Disruption to the Exodus).
  • S. R. Driver, The Book of Exodus (Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges) (1911), p. xxx (Introduction §4).
  • James Henry Breasted, Ancient Records of Egypt, vol. III (1906), §617, p. 264 (Merneptah's Hymn of Victory).
  • Matthew Henry, An Exposition of the Old and New Testament, vol. 1 (Genesis to Deuteronomy) (1706), on Deuteronomy 33:5.
  • Julius Wellhausen, tr. J. S. Black and A. Menzies, Prolegomena to the History of Israel (1885), ch. VI (Chronicles), §III.2.

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