Lexical Summary Mered: Mered Original Word: מֶרֶד Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Mered The same as mered; Mered, an Israelite -- Mered. see HEBREW mered NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom marad Definition a man of Judah NASB Translation Mered (2). Brown-Driver-Briggs II. מֶ֫רֶד proper name, masculine name in Judah according to 1 Chronicles 4:17, מָ֑רֶד 1 Chronicles 4:18. ᵐ5 Πωραδ, Νωρωηλ, A Μωραδ, Μωρηδ, ᵐ5L Βαραδ, Μαρω. Topical Lexicon Occurrences and ContextMered appears twice, both in the genealogical record of Judah (1 Chronicles 4:17–18). He is listed among the sons of Ezrah, a Judahite clan leader, placing him within the wider Calebite family that supplied courageous figures to Israel’s history (compare Joshua 14:6–14). His brief notice sits in a section that traces how Judah’s descendants populated the southern hill country after the conquest. Family Ties and Marriages 1 Chronicles 4:17–18 distinguishes two wives: • Bithiah, “the daughter of Pharaoh” (Berean Standard Bible), an adopted Israelite by marriage. Bithiah’s three sons—Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah—are followed by a note that Ishbah became “the father of Eshtemoa.” The Judean wife’s sons—Jered, Heber, and Jekuthiel—likewise fathered Gedor, Soco, and Zanoah. Each of these names re-emerges as towns in Judah (Joshua 15:33, 15:34, 15:50; 1 Samuel 30:28), showing that Mered’s family seeded key settlements in the southwestern hill country and Shephelah. The Egyptian Princess Bithiah Bithiah is the only Pharaoh’s daughter expressly named in Scripture. Rabbinic tradition often identifies her with the princess who rescued Moses (Exodus 2:5–10), suggesting a powerful portrait of an Egyptian royal who turned from her ancestral gods to the covenant God of Israel. Whether or not that identification is historical, the Chronicler treats her as fully incorporated into Judah’s lineage. This underscores two themes: 1. The covenant welcomes outsiders who embrace the Lord (Ruth 2:12). Mered’s Legacy in Judah’s Territorial Expansion The sons of Mered are linked to six towns that later fell inside Davidic Judah. These settlements formed part of a defensive and agricultural network along trade routes toward the Philistine plain. Mered’s descendants therefore contributed to the stability and prosperity of Judah before and during the monarchy: • Eshtemoa became a Levitical city and a place David frequented (1 Samuel 30:28). The genealogical notice argues that Judah’s geographic footprint and spiritual heritage were built by families faithful to God’s purposes, even when those families included non-Israelite bloodlines. Theological Reflections 1. Covenant Inclusion. Mered’s marriage to Bithiah foreshadows the Gospel reality that faith, not ethnicity, grants entrance to God’s people (Galatians 3:8, 3:28). Practical Ministry Applications • Cross-Cultural Witness: Mered’s household models respectful, covenant-centered marriage across cultural lines, relevant for missionaries and multicultural congregations. Conclusion Though Mered occupies only two verses, his account weaves together themes of boundary-crossing grace, generational faithfulness, and territorial inheritance. By marrying an Egyptian princess who embraced Yahweh, and by fathering sons who established key Judean towns, Mered stands as a quiet but potent testimony that God’s purposes often advance through seemingly minor figures whose obedience creates lasting impact. Forms and Transliterations וּמֶ֖רֶד ומרד מָֽרֶד׃ מרד׃ mā·reḏ Mared māreḏ ū·me·reḏ uMered ūmereḏLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance 1 Chronicles 4:17 HEB: עֶזְרָ֔ה יֶ֥תֶר וּמֶ֖רֶד וְעֵ֣פֶר וְיָל֑וֹן NAS: [were] Jether, Mered, Epher KJV: [were], Jether, and Mered, and Epher, INT: of Ezrah Jether Mered Epher and Jalon 1 Chronicles 4:18 2 Occurrences |
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