These are the children of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah. This is Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness, as he fed the donkeys of Zibeon his father.
Parallel Translations
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These are the children of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah. This is Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness, as he fed the donkeys of Zibeon his father.
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And these are the children of Zibeon; both Ajah, and Anah: this was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his father.
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And these are the children of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah — this is Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his father.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Contradictions (2)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (7)
Passages linked to Genesis 36:24 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Leviticus 19:19 “ ‘You shall keep my statutes. “ ‘You shall not cross-breed different kinds of animals. “ ‘You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed; “ ‘Don’t wear a garment made of two kinds of material.
- Deuteronomy 2:10 (The Emim lived there before, a great and numerous people, and tall as the Anakim.
- 2 Samuel 13:29 The servants of Absalom did to Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king’s sons arose, and every man got up on his mule, and fled.
- 2 Samuel 18:9 Absalom happened to meet David’s servants. Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great oak, and his head caught hold of the oak, and he was taken up between the sky and earth; and the mule that was under him went on.
- 1 Kings 1:38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on king David’s mule, and brought him to Gihon.
- 1 Kings 1:44 The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they have caused him to ride on the king’s mule.
- 1 Kings 4:28 They also brought Barley and straw for the horses and swift steeds to the place where the officers were, each man according to his duty.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (13 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 24. This was that Anah that found the mules.…
24. This was that Anah that found the mules. Mules are the adulterous offspring of the horse and the ass. Moses says that Anah was the author of this connection. But I do not consider this as said in praise of his industry; for the Lord has not in vain distinguished the different kinds of animals from the beginning. But since the vanity of the flesh often solicits the children of this world, so that they apply their minds to superfluous matters, Moses marks this unnatural pursuit in Anah, who did not think it sufficient to have a great number of animals; but he must add to them a degenerate race produced by unnatural intercourse. Moreover, we learn hence, that there is more moderation among brute animals in following the law of nature, than in men, who invent vicious admixtures.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Who not contented with those kinds of beasts, which…
Who not contented with those kinds of beasts, which God had created, found out the monstrous generation of mules between the Ass and the mare.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Gen 36:24 And these [are] the children of Zibeon;…
Gen 36:24 And these [are] the children of Zibeon; both Ajah, and Anah: this [was that] Anah that found the mules in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his father.
Ver. 24. That found the mules.] By breeding different kinds together, contrary to Lev 19:19. Neither did the world, till then, want any perfect kind of creature; for the mule and the ass differ not, but only in degree. The Greeks call mules half-asses. {a} See here, saith one, {b} the busy curiosity of some men’s natures, given to new and strange inventions. So he that taught a parrot in Rome to repeat the Creed, every article in order, and by itself, distinctly. {c} Another, that painted the whole story of our Savour’s passion, both for persons and things, upon the nails of his own fingers. Had not he little to do, that learned to write a fair hand with his feet? Heidfeld saith he saw it with wonderment. And he {d} as little, that enclosed Homer’s Iliads written in a nut? which Cicero tells us he saw with his eyes. These were laborious toys, quae nec ignoranti nocent, nec scientem iuvant, as Seneca saith {e} of sophistry. Hard they are to come by; but of no use or worth: like an olive, or date stone; hard to crack the one, or cleave the other: but nothing, or nothing worth aught, when cracked or cloven, within either, {f} This same foolish wittiness Alexander wittily scoffed, when he gave a fellow only a bushel of peas, for his pains of throwing, every time, a pea upon a needle’s point, standing a pretty way off.
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{a} Hμιονους.
{b} Bp. Babington.
{c} Fuit olim psittacus Romae aureis centum comparatus, &c. - C. Rhodig., lib. ii. cap. 32.
{d} Maiolus, in Canic., coloq. 23.
{e} Sphinx Phil., p. 785.
{f} Plin., lib. vii. cap. 12.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Mules; so most understand the word Jemim, which is…
Mules; so most understand the word Jemim, which is no where else used, and give this sense of it, that he found out the way of the generation of mules by the copulation of a horse and a mare. Others render it waters, that he found out some springs of water, which in those hot countries were rare and precious; or hot waters, some hot and medicinal springs. But the Chaldee renders it giants, and the Samaritan version Emims, a sort of giants mentioned Deu 2:10,11; who also were neighbours to the Horites here spoken of, as appears from Gen 14:5,6; and therefore might, according to the manner of those times, make inroads one upon another. So Jemim is put for Emim, either by an apocope of the first letter, or by the change of the Hebrew letter Jod into Aleph, both which are frequent among the Hebrews. And the sense is, that Anah the Horite found out the Emims; that is, he met with them, or came upon them suddenly, and smote them. In this sense the word finding is oft used, as Jdg 1:5; 1Sa 31:3; Psa 21:8; Isa 10:10.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain The children of Dishon are these,.... The last of…
The children of Dishon are these,.... The last of the seven sons of Seir, and who had two sons:
Uz and Aran; from the former of these the land of Uz, inhabited by the Edomites, had its name, Lam 4:21; some have taken this to be the country of Job, Job 1:1.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain This Anah was not only industrious in his business,…
This Anah was not only industrious in his business, but ingenious too, and successful, for he found mules, or, (as some read it) waters, hot baths in the wilderness. Those that are diligent in their business sometimes find more advantages than they expected.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 24. This was that Anah that found the…
Verse 24. This was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness] The words את הימם eth kaiyemim, here translated mules, has given rise to a great variety of conjectures and discordant opinions. St. Jerome, who renders it aquas calidas, warm springs, or hot baths, says there are as many opinions concerning it as there are commentators.
The Septuagint has τον Ιαμειν, which seems to be the name of a man; but this is expressed in a great variety of ways in different MSS. of that version.
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The Syriac renders it [Syriac] mayé, waters; the author of this version having read in the Hebrew copy from which he translated. מים mayim, waters, for ימם yemim, the two first letters being transposed.
Onkelos translates the word גבריא gibbaraiya, giants, or strong or powerful men.
The Samaritan text has [Samaritan] haaimim, and the Samaritan version [Samaritan] am aimai, the Emim, a warlike people, bordering upon the Horites.
The Targum of Jonathan ben Uzziel paraphrases the place thus: "This is the Anah who united the onager with the tame ass, and in process of time he found mules produced by them." R. D. Kimchi says, that "Zibeon was both the father and brother of Anah; and this Anah, intent on heterogeneous mixtures, caused asses and horses to copulate, and so produced mules." R. S. Jarchi is of the same opinion. See his comment on this place.
Bochart believes the Emim are meant; and argues forcibly,
1. That מצא matsa, he found, never signifies to invent, but rather the meeting with or happening on a thing which already exists.
2. That mules are never called ימם yemim in the Scriptures, but פרדים peradim.
3. That Anah fed ASSES only, not horses. And,
4. That there is no mention of mules in Palestine till the days of David.
From the whole he concludes that the Emim are meant, with whom Anah fought; and he brings many places of Scripture where the same form of expression, he or they found, signifies the onset to battle, Jdg 1:5; 1Sa 31:3; 1Kg 13:24; 2Ch 22:8; Nu 35:27; Ge 4:14; with many others. See the Hierozoicon, vol. i., cap. 21, p. 23S., edit. 1692.
Gusset, in Comment. Heb. Ling., examines what Bochart has asserted, and supposes that mules, not the Emim, were found by Anah.
Wagenseil would credit what Bochart has asserted, did not stronger reasons lead him to believe that the word means a sort of plant!
From the above opinions and versions the reader may choose which he likes best, or invent one for himself. My own opinion is, that mules were not known before the time of Anah; and that he was probably the first who coupled the mare and ass together to produce this mongrel, or the first who met with creatures of this race in some very secluded part of the wilderness. Is it not probable that from this Anah, or ענה enah, the Enetae derived at least their fabulous origin, whom Homer mentions as famous for their race of wild mules?
Παφλαγονων δ' ἡγειτο Πυλαιμενεος λασιον κηρ,
Εξ Ενετων, ὁθεν ἡμιονων γενος αγροτεραων.
IL., lib. ii., v. 852.
The Paphlagonians Pylaemenes rules,
Where rich HENETIA breeds her SAVAGE MULES.
POPE.
The Enetae or Henetae, who were a people contiguous to Paphlagonia, Cappadocia, and Galatia, might have derived their origin from this Anah, or Henah, out of which the ενετοι of the ancient Greek writers might have been formed; and according to Theophrastus, Strabo, and Plutarch, the first mules were seen among these people. See Ludov, De Dieu and Scheuchzer.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Gen 36:24. Found mules — As the Hebrew word,…
Gen 36:24. Found mules — As the Hebrew word, here rendered mules, occurs nowhere else in Scripture, it is difficult to ascertain the meaning of this passage. Various have been the conjectures concerning what it was that Anah found. Some render the word waters, or hot waters, and understand the meaning to be, that he found some springs of water which in those hot countries were both rare and valuable, or some hot and medicinal springs. But the Chaldee renders it giants, and the Samaritan version Emims, a sort of giants mentioned Deu 2:10-11, who were neighbours to the Horites, here spoken of, (Gen 14:5-6,) and therefore, according to the manner of those times, might make inroads upon them. It has been generally supposed, however, that our translators are right, and that, in keeping asses, he discovered the method of breeding mules; probably by accident.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Hot waters. Medicinal, (Menochius) like the springs at Bath,…
Hot waters. Medicinal, (Menochius) like the springs at Bath, &c. (Haydock) --- Hebrew hayemim, a word which some translate mules; others, the nation of that name; or the giants, Emeans, with whom he had perhaps some engagement, as Adad (ver. 35,) had with the Madianites, the particulars of which were then well known. The Septuagint and ancient versions retain the original word. It is used for a body of water. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain This was that Anah that found the mules in…
This was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness--The word "mules" is, in several ancient versions, rendered "water springs"; and this discovery of some remarkable fountain was sufficient, among a wandering or pastoral people, to entitle him to such a distinguishing notice.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 24. Zibeon] means “an hyaena.”
24. Zibeon] means “an hyaena.”
Anah] See note on Gen_36:2. Whether son or brother (Gen_36:20) of Zibeon, Anah stands for a clan.
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the hot springs] There must have been some well-known story about Anah and his discovery of certain hot springs, while he was, like Saul in 1 Samuel 9, searching for strayed asses. Hot springs are found not far from the pilgrim road to Mecca. The tradition probably claimed their possession for the clan of Anah.
The word for “hot springs” presented a difficulty. The A.V. and Luther render “mules,” and LXX makes it a proper name τὸν Ἰαμείν, while Targ. Onk. renders “the Emim”; but Lat. aquas calidas correctly.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (24) Anah that found the mules.—Mules is the traditional…
(24) Anah that found the mules.—Mules is the traditional rendering of the Jews; but as horses were at this date unknown in Palestine, Anah could not have discovered the art of crossing them with asses, and so producing mules. Jerome, moreover, says that “the word in Punic, a language allied to Hebrew, means hot springs;” and this translation is now generally adopted. Lange gives a list of hot springs in the Edomite region, of which those of Calirrhoe, “the stream of beauty,” in the Wady Zerka Maion, are probably those found by Anah.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And these are the children of Zibeon; both Ajah,…
And these are the children of Zibeon; both Ajah, (Gesenius)and Anah: the father-in-law of Esau (ver. 2)this was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness, neither invented the procreation of mules (Aben Ezra, Kimchi, Luther, Calvin, Willet, Clarke, Ainsworth, &c.), since am; does not signify to invent, but to light upon or discover (Keil), and there were no horses at that time in those regions (Michaelis), and it is not said that Anah was feeding his father"s horses and asses, but only asses (Rosenm nor overcame the giants (Onkelos, Samaritan, Bochart), which would have required (Gen_14:5; Deu_2:11) nor found out salt water (Oleaster, Percrius), a useful herb (Mais), or jIamein as a proper name (LXX); but discovered the warm springs, the apax legomenon, being now generally taken to mean aquce callidae (Vulgate, Dathius, Gesenius, Rosenm Hengstenberg, Keil, Kalisch, Murphy), of which there were venous in the vicinity, as, e.g., the springs of Callirrhoe in the Wady Zerka Maein, and those, in the Wady-el-Ahsa to the south-east of the Dead Sea, and those in the Wady Hamad between Kerek and the Dead Seaas he fed (literally, in his feeding) the asses of Zibeon his father. "The whirlpool of Karlsbad is said to have been discovered through a hound of Charles IV which pursued a stag into a hot spring, and attracted the huntsmen to the spot by its howling" (Keil in loco; cf. Tacitus, "Hist," 5:3).
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.