Reuel (son of Esau)

Biblical Record

Reuel was a son of Esau. He appears in the genealogy of Esau recorded in Genesis 36, and his mother was Esau's wife Bashemath (Genesis 36:4, 36:10). Genesis 36:3 identifies this Bashemath as "Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajoth." According to this record, Reuel was a grandson of Isaac on his father's side and a grandson of Ishmael on his mother's side. According to Genesis 36:5, Reuel was born in the land of Canaan, as were his half-brother Eliphaz and his younger brothers. Esau later took his household and moved to Mount Seir (Genesis 36:6–8).

Reuel had four sons: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah (Genesis 36:13). Genesis 36:17 calls them "the dukes that came of Reuel in the land of Edom." Here "duke" refers to a chief who led a tribe or clan. The same genealogy is repeated in 1 Chronicles 1:35 and 1:37, where the Korean Revised Version spells the name of the fourth son differently than it does in Genesis. Scripture records nothing further about Reuel's life or deeds.

Significance in the Bible

Genesis 36 sets out the descendants of "Esau, who is Edom" (Genesis 36:1), explaining the origins of the Edomite people. In this chapter Reuel appears as one of the lines from which the various clans of Edom descended. Reuel is not mentioned in the New Testament.

Interpretations and Debates

• Other individuals with the same name: Several people in the Bible bear the name Reuel. The Reuel of Exodus 2:18 and Numbers 10:29 (where the KJV spells it Raguel) is the Midianite father-in-law of Moses, commonly identified with Jethro. The Reuel of Numbers 2:14 is the father of Eliasaph, a leader of the tribe of Gad; in Numbers 1:14 and elsewhere his name is written "Deuel." The Reuel of 1 Chronicles 9:8 is a Benjamite. All of these are distinct from the son of Esau.
• Meaning of the name: The Hebrew name Reuel is generally understood to mean "friend of God."
• Descendants and the tradition concerning Job: Genesis 36:33 mentions an Edomite king, "Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah." An addition appended to the end of the Book of Job in the Septuagint preserves a tradition identifying Job with this Jobab, and some interpreters connect this Zerah with Reuel's son Zerah. The biblical text, however, does not say whether the two Zerahs are the same person or whether Job is Jobab.

In the Korean Church

Reuel is rarely treated on his own in sermons or Sunday school. His name is usually encountered while reading through the Bible, when one comes to the genealogies in Genesis 36 or 1 Chronicles 1.