Ram

Biblical Record

The name Ram (Hebrew Ram) is understood to mean "high" or "exalted." Ram appears only in genealogies; Scripture contains no account of his life or deeds.

• Ruth 4:19: In the genealogy from Pharez to David, it is written, "And Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab."
• 1 Chronicles 2:9-10: Jerahmeel, Ram, and Chelubai are listed as the sons of Hezron, followed by the statement that Ram begat Amminadab. Because 1 Chronicles 2:25 identifies Jerahmeel as Hezron's firstborn, Ram was not the firstborn son.

Ram's father, Hezron, is recorded among those who went down into Egypt with Jacob (Genesis 46:12). Ram's grandson Nahshon was the leader of the tribe of Judah in the wilderness (Numbers 1:7), and Ram's granddaughter Elisheba became the wife of Aaron (Exodus 6:23). On the basis of these records, Ram is thought to have lived while the Israelites were sojourning in Egypt. Scholars differ on the precise dating.

Significance Within Scripture

Ram is a link in the royal line of the tribe of Judah that leads to David. The genealogy in Ruth 4:18-22 records ten generations from Pharez to David, in this order: Pharez, Hezron, Ram, Amminadab, Nahshon, Salmon, Boaz, Obed, Jesse, and David.

In the New Testament, Ram appears in the genealogy of Jesus Christ in Matthew 1:3-4: "and Esrom begat Aram; And Aram begat Aminadab." The Greek text spells his name Aram. Matthew arranges the generations from Abraham to David as a group of fourteen, and Ram belongs to this first group.

The genealogy in Luke 3:33 contains the corresponding position, but the manuscripts differ at this point. Some read Aram, others read Arni, and still others list two names, Admin and Arni. As a result, Korean Bible translations also render the name in this position differently.

Interpretive Issues

• Distinction from others named Ram: 1 Chronicles 2:25, 27 mentions a Ram who was the firstborn of Jerahmeel. He is a different person, a nephew of the Ram discussed in this article. In addition, Job 32:2 introduces Elihu as being "of the kindred of Ram," but whether this Ram is the same person as Ram the son of Hezron cannot be determined from the text alone.
• A line not through the firstborn: Some interpreters note that David's line descends through Ram rather than through the firstborn Jerahmeel. They connect this with the recurring biblical pattern of the choice of one other than the firstborn. The text itself, however, gives no reason.
• Embellishments: Scripture records nothing about Ram's character or deeds. Descriptions of him added in sermons or other writings should be recognized as imagination or inference from outside the text.

In the Korean Church

Ram is rarely the subject of a sermon in his own right. His name comes up chiefly in preaching on the genealogical passages of Matthew 1 or Ruth 4, and during reading through the Bible. In sermons on genealogies, he is sometimes cited along with others as an example of people who left behind only their names, with no recorded deeds, yet who were woven into God's history of redemption.

The New Korean Revised Version uses the name "Ram" in the Old Testament, while in Matthew it reads "Ram" together with "Aminadab," a spelling that differs from the Old Testament's "Amminadab." For this reason, Sunday schools and similar settings sometimes compare the spellings of the names when reading these passages.