1The sons of Reuben, the eldest of Israel's sons. (He was, in fact, the first son born, but because he had committed incest with a wife of his father's the rank of the eldest was transferred to the sons of Joseph, Israel's son, who, however, could not be registered as the eldest son. 2Judah held the leading place among his brothers because he fathered a ruler, and the rank of the eldest was his, not Joseph's.) 3The sons of Reuben, the eldest of Israel's sons: Enoch, Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. 4The sons of Joel: his son Shemaiah, his son Gog, his son Shimei, 5his son Micah, his son Reaia, his son Baal, 6his son Beerah, whom Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria carried away into exile; he was a prince of the Reubenites. 7His kinsmen, family by family, as registered in their tribal lists: Jeiel the chief, Zechariah, 8Bela son of Azaz, son of Shema, son of Joel. They lived in Aroer, and their lands stretched as far as Nebo and Baal-meon. 9Eastwards they occupied territory as far as the edge of the desert which stretches from the river Euphrates, for they had large numbers of cattle in Gilead. 10During Saul's reign they made war on the Hagarites, whom they conquered, occupying their encampments over all the country east of Gilead.
11Adjoining them were the Gadites, occupying the district of Bashan as far as Salcah: 12Joel the chief; second in rank, Shapham; then Jaanai and Shaphat in Bashan. 13Their fellow-tribesmen belonged to the families of Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jachan, Zia and Heber, seven in all. 14These were the sons of Abihail son of Huri, son of Jaroah, son of Gilead, son of Michael, son of Jeshishai, son of Jahdo, son of Buz. 15Ahi son of Abdiel, son of Guni, was head of their family; 16they lived in Gilead, in Bashan and its villages, in all the common land of Sharon as far as it stretched. 17These registers were all compiled in the reigns of Jotham king of Judah and Jeroboam king of Israel.
18The sons of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh: of their fighting men armed with shield and sword, their archers and their battle-trained soldiers, forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty were ready for active service. 19They made war on the Hagarites, Jetur, Nephish, and Nodab. 20They were given help against them, for they cried to their God for help in the battle, and because they trusted him he listened to their prayer, and the Hagarites and all their allies surrendered to them . 21They drove off their cattle, fifty thousand camels, two hundred and fifty thousand sheep, and two thousand asses, and they took a hundred thousand captives.
22Many had been killed, for the war was of God's making, and they occupied the land instead of them until the exile.
23Half the tribe of Manasseh lived in the land from Bashan to Baalhermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon, and were numerous also in Lebanon. 24The heads of their families were: Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel, all men of ability and repute, heads of their families.
25But they sinned against the God of their fathers, and turned wantonly to worship the gods of the peoples whom God had destroyed before them. 26So the God of Israel stirred up Pul king of Assyria, that is Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and he carried into exile Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh. He took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river Gozan, where they are to this day.
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