At this point in Exodus Moses takes a break from the action and shares with us his and Aaron's family tree. I am not sure why this genealogy is inserted where we find it unless it's to show us the pause that takes place while Moses delays his return to Pharaoh. Or it could be that while this delay goes on we get to take a look at the genealogical qualifications of Moses and Aaron. They are born from what will later be known as the priestly tribe of Levi and in this qualifies them to shepherd the flock of Israel through the wilderness. In the Bible we sometimes find priests and prophets and apostles referred to as "shepherds" because they are leading flocks of believers. Today we'll see why Moses and Aaron are qualified, by genealogy, to shepherd the nation of Israel.
We back up and begin the genealogy with Jacob's three oldest sons. "Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron about the Israelites and about Pharaoh king of Egypt, and He commanded them to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. These were the heads of their families: The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel were Hanok and Pallu, Hezron and Karmi. These were the clans of Reuben." (Exodus 6:13-14) We don't yet find the term "tribe" used in Israel. In Exodus we see clans and chieftains.
"The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman. These were the clans of Simeon." (Exodus 6:15) Simeon was Jacob's second-oldest son.
Now we move on to Jacob's third-born son, Levi, the direct ancestor of Moses and Aaron. "These were the names of the sons of Levi according to their records: Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Levi lived 137 years." (Exodus 6:16) We will find the names of Levi's sons mentioned again later on the Bible because their descendants will be assigned specific tasks in the Lord's tabernacle after it has been constructed. Some scholars believe Levi lived longer than any of Jacob's sons although it's difficult to say for certain since the Bible only tells us the lifespans of Levi and Joseph. This could be because the two of them lived the longest (Levi 137 years, Joseph 110), but we really can't be sure of that.
Moses will mention the descendants of each of Levi's sons but he and Aaron are descended from the middle son, Kohath. "The sons of Gershon, by clans, were Libni and Shemei. The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. Kohath lived 133 years. The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. These were the clans of Levi according to their records." (Exodus 6:17-19)
Kohath's firstborn son, Amram, is the father of Moses and Aaron. "Amram married his father's sister Jochebed, who bore him Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years." (Exodus 6:20) Did Amram marry his aunt? The meaning of the word translated as "father's sister" (the Hebrew dodatho) is in dispute among Bible scholars, with some scholars thinking it simply means a close relation like a cousin. Yet in other places in the Old Testament this word clearly indicates the word "uncle" and here in Exodus 20 it may also be used to indicate "aunt". If Amram married his aunt then she is likely a much younger sister or half-sister of Amram's father. Just because she's his aunt doesn't mean Amram married a woman many years his senior. It's likely Jochebed was close in age to Amram or even younger. For example, I became an aunt not long after I turned a year old because my mother had me late in her childbearing years and my sister, who is 22 years my senior and was already married when I was born, had her first child the next year. So there's no need for us to picture the marriage of Amram and Jochebed as a May/December romance.
Moses backs up and gives us the descendants of his grandfather's other sons. "The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg and Zikri. The sons of Uzziel were Mishael, Elazaphan and Sithri." (Exodus 6:21-22) You're going to want to remember to name of Korah, for his descendants will rebel against the leadership of Moses.
We move back now to the descendants of Amram through his son Aaron. "Aaron married Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab and sister of Nahshon, and she bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar." (Exodus 6:23) One commentary I consulted states that Aaron's wife's name can be translated as "Elizabeth", for both "Elisheba" and "Elizabeth" mean "the oath of the Lord". The only other Elizabeth mentioned in the Bible is the cousin of Mary the mother of Jesus, and she is found in the book of Luke as the mother of John the Baptist. Aaron's wife's genealogy is given here because she is a descendant of Jacob's son Judah whose line will become the royal line of Israel.
Moses graciously speaks of the sons of Korah (his uncle) in our chapter although they later found his leadership over them so abhorrent. "The sons of Korah were Assir, Elkanah and Abiasaph. These were the Korahite clans." (Exodus 6:24) A great number of Korah's descendants will die in the rebellion of Numbers 16, not by the sword but through what appears to be both a natural disaster and a following plague, but by the time the book of Psalms is written we will find some of the descendants of Korah writing psalms and living in close fellowship with the Lord, so all is not lost for this particular family.
When the children of Israel leave Egypt and the priesthood from the line of Levi is established, Aaron will become high priest of Israel. Upon Aaron's death his son Eleazar inherits the role of high priest, so Moses takes care to tell us the beginning of the family line of Eleazar. "Eleazar son of Aaron married one of the daughters of Putiel, and she bore him Phinehas." (Exodus 6:25a) Phinehas will perform an action in Numbers 25 that turns a plague away from the nation of Israel.
"These were the heads of the Levite families, clan by clan. It was this Aaron to whom the Lord said, 'Bring the Israelites out of Egypt by their divisions.' They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing the Israelites out of Egypt---this same Moses and Aaron." (Exodus 6:25b-27)
And with verse 27 Moses brings us right back to where we left off on Saturday, with the Lord telling him to go back to Pharaoh and speak to him again, and when we pick up tomorrow that's what we will find Moses and Aaron doing.
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