Beriah
Beriah was born to Ephraim after his other sons were killed by the men of Gath.
Biography
Beriah was a son born to Ephraim following the traumatic death of his other sons, who were killed in a cattle raid by the men of Gath (1 Chronicles 7:20–23). The name Beriah is explained by the text itself as commemorating misfortune: "because disaster had come upon his house" (1 Chronicles 7:23). His birth came as a consolation to the grieving patriarch Ephraim, who had mourned his slain sons for many days. Beriah's descendants became a recognized clan within the tribe of Ephraim, and he is listed as an ancestor of the tribal genealogy that ultimately reaches Joshua. His story is thus inseparable from the grief of his father and the resilience of a family that continued despite catastrophic loss.
Significance
Beriah's birth narrative is one of Scripture's quiet testimonies to hope emerging from grief. His very name enshrines sorrow, yet his birth signified that life, and God's purposes, would continue for Ephraim's line despite devastating tragedy. The pattern of loss followed by renewal is a recurring motif in biblical theology: from Abraham and Sarah's barrenness to Israel's own cycles of judgment and restoration. Beriah's place in the genealogy leading to Joshua, who led Israel into the Promised Land, transforms his birth from a footnote in tragedy into a link in God's providential chain. His story teaches that God's purposes persist through and beyond human suffering.
Verse Appearances (1)
1Chr
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Individualised Proper Names with all References (TIPNR). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]