Zabad his son, Shuthelah his son, and Ezer and Ele-ad: This verse continues the listing of the direct line of descendants which began with Ephraim in the previous verse. Zabad was the son of Tahath. Shuthelah was the son of Ephraim in verse 20, but the Shuthelah named here seems to be the son of Zabad. However, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch takes this mention of Shuthelah as a reference to Ephraim’s son mentioned in verse 20 and begins a new paragraph after the name Zabad, reading as follows: “Besides Shuthelah, Ephraim had two other sons named Ezer and Elead.”
The identity of Ezer and Ele-ad is not clear in the Hebrew. They could be sons of Ephraim or his descendants. Rather than leave the ambiguity of the Hebrew, Bible en français courant says “Ezer and Elead, two other sons of Ephraim.” Since only Shuthelah in verse 20 is the son of Ephraim, Good News Translation adds the words “Ephraim had two other sons besides Shuthelah” (similarly Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente). Compare also “Ephraim’s other sons Ezer and Elead” (Revised English Bible).
Whom the men of Gath who were born in the land slew: Who was killed by the people of Gath? The translation of this verse in Revised Standard Version seems to suggest that it was only Ezer and Elead who tried to steal cattle from the people of Gath, and not other descendants of Ephraim. Good News Translation clearly indicates that it was only Ezer and Elead who were killed (also Biblia Dios Habla Hoy). Compare also “(the two of) whom the men of Gath born in the land killed” (Braun). But the Hebrew text may be understood to mean that other descendants besides Ezer and Elead were also killed.
Gath is usually identified as one of the five Philistine cities along the Mediterranean coast. The word “Gittites” in Revised English Bible refers to the people of Gath. But since the town in this verse seems to be close to Ephraimite territory, some scholars associate it with the town of Gittaim (2 Sam 4.3), which means “Double Gath.” Gittaim may also be the same as the town of Gath mentioned in 1 Chr 8.13 since it was near Benjaminite territory at Aijalon. Gittaim was about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of Gath of the Philistines. The men of Gath who were born in the land were natives of the city of Gath and not people who had moved there. Translations of this clause include “the original inhabitants of the region of Gath” (Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente) and “some men who grew up in that city [Gath]” (New Century Version).
Because they came down to raid their cattle: Ezer and Elead came down from the hill country of Ephraim to the coastal area, if Gath is the Philistine city by that name. Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, and New Century Version omit any mention of downward direction. The Hebrew verb rendered raid is literally “take,” but the context shows that they came to “raid” (New Jerusalem Bible, An American Translation) or “steal” (New Century Version). The Hebrew noun translated cattle sometimes refers to land as property but usually refers to livestock as property (see the comments on 1 Chr 5.9). It can include both cattle and flocks of goats and sheep. Although many translations say “cattle” (New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible), or more generally “livestock” (Good News Translation, New American Bible), this word may also be translated “cows and sheep” (New Century Version).
Since this verse has a heavy load of information, it may be desirable in certain languages to break down the last part of the verse into two or more separate sentences. Two possible models are as follows: “Ezer and Elead were killed because they went to the town of Gath to steal cows and sheep. The men who killed them were born and grew up in that town” and “Some men of the town of Gath killed Ezer and Elead because they had gone there to steal those people’s livestock. The men who killed them had always lived in that town.”
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .