Nepheg

Biblical Record

Nepheg appears only once, in Exodus 6:21: "And the sons of Izhar; Korah, and Nepheg, and Zichri." The verse is part of the genealogy in Exodus 6:14-27, which traces in succession the lines of the tribes of Reuben, Simeon, and Levi before turning to the family of Moses and Aaron.

According to the same genealogy, Nepheg's father, Izhar, was a brother of Amram, the father of Moses and Aaron (Exodus 6:18, 20). Genealogically, then, Nepheg was a cousin of Moses and Aaron. Scripture says nothing about his deeds or his life.

Significance in the Bible

Nepheg belonged to the Kohathite branch of the Levites, and only his name has been preserved. His brother Korah is well known for his later rebellion against Moses and Aaron (Numbers 16). Nepheg, however, does not appear in the Numbers account, and the New Testament does not mention him.

Interpretation and Questions

In the Korean Revised Version, the name Nepheg also appears in 2 Samuel 5:15, 1 Chronicles 3:7, and 1 Chronicles 14:6. The Nepheg of those passages is a son born to David in Jerusalem and is therefore a different person from the subject of this article. The Hebrew name is sometimes interpreted as meaning "sprout," among other proposals, but no interpretation is settled. The text does not say whether Nepheg took part in Korah's rebellion.

In the Korean Church

Nepheg is rarely treated on his own in sermons or Sunday school. He is chiefly a name that readers encounter in the Exodus genealogy while reading through the Bible.