The genealogy in this chapter covers the tribe of Benjamin. This tribe is given prominence because it is so closely related to Judah in terms of loyalty to the Kingdom of Judah and its geographic location. The city of Jerusalem was located in its territory. The Benjaminites formed part of the core group of returning exiles and were instrumental in the reconstruction of Jerusalem, the Lord’s temple, and the national identity. In addition, the theme of the Benjaminite history is that of hope through adversity. There are 4 incidents alluded to here that indicate calamities: deportation (6); divorce (8); King Saul’s death (31-33); and the warriors of Ulam who have fallen (40).
The Chronicler takes pains to remind his audience of the bad things that caused suffering and pain and that resulted in setbacks. The lesson is that the Lord stayed with Benjamin in the midst of these adversities and did not desert the people. He is the same God, so in the midst of the setback they are enduring now, the loss of their kingdom, they must realize that the Lord is still with them. And for us it is vital that we too understand this. We endure heartache and pain and we wonder why. We wonder where is God in this. Why doesn’t he step in and save us? The Jews who endured the Holocaust wondered the same thing. Many of them turned away from God and became atheists or agnostics. They could not believe that a loving, caring and all-powerful God would allow His own people to suffer so. Yet God does allow suffering for reasons He does not have to explain. Often the reasons deal with our sinfulness though not always. Rather than blame God we must take heart in the realization that He walks with us in the midst of our troubles. We should not expect life to be easy and we should ignore those preachers who insist that if we only had enough faith we would have no problems.
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