4th Zerah: Who is Zerah? What are the Zerahites?

Note1:  This blog has some editing done to it from the first time I posted it, which I am pretty sure was at www.facebook.com/craig.nelson.hamiton

Note1:  Since the Bible is Chronological, it is thought that in the lineage to Darda, that Zerahites belong to several tribes in their life.  First, they are Edomite, having some Ishmaelite affiliations, next they are Judahite, next they are of the tribe of Simon, next they are of the tribe of Levi, next they are of the tribe of Ethiopia.

October 30, 2010 at 7:15 pm (This is the time and date of the note/blog posting to Facebook.)

Ethics of our Fathers 6:3 He who learns from his companion one section, or one canon, or one verse, or one word, (or) even one letter, is bound to do him honour; for thus we find with David king of Israel, who learned not from Achithophel but two things only, that he called him his master, his guide, and his acquaintance,

The Bible mentions several Zerahs, or does it?  Zerah’s name appears in many ancestries in not only the Torah, but the entire Tanach.  The Tanach is the Jewish Bible.  It does not include the New Testament.  This essay is purely speculative.

Genesis 36:16 is the first appearance of the name Zerah.  He is mentioned as the son of the Edomite, “Reuel.”

Genesis 36:13 And these are the sons of Reuel: Nahath, and Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These were the sons of Basemath Esau's wife.

That Esau took her as a wife indicates that Basemath was indeed of Abraham’s nation.  The Torah says that Basemath was the daughter of Ishmael (Genesis 36:3).  Ishmael was the firstborn of Abraham’s sons.  Basemath was also the wife of Esau.  That makes Zerah in the third generation.  First there was Esau, the brother of Jacob.  Next there was Reuel, the son of Esau.  Last there was Zerah, the son of Reuel, but was this an adoption?  Zerah is also the third generation from Jacob.  Generation one was Jacob.  Generation 2 was Judah.  In generation 3 was Zerah (Generation 38:30).  In fact, it is mentioned that Tamar bore Zerah (Genesis 38:27-30).  However, if this is the same Zerah, his earmarks were that he had affiliations with both the Edomites and the Ishmaelites.  What I suggest is that these two supposed Zerahs are the same person that became the clan of the Zerahites.  In fact, though Tamar bore Zerah, he was first mothered by Basemath.  But, Zerah carries the paternal Y chromosome of a Judahite conferring the scepter, but due to a conversion he was both an Edomite and a Judahite, and had associations with Ishmaelites.  That is that he was mothered by two tribes.  So far, I suggest all Zerahites are mothered by two tribes, both Ishmaelite and Judahite, and fathered by two tribes Edomite and Judahite.  Perhaps, mothered by Ishmaelites is not the correct word, rather it is that as an Edomite, Zerah first has affiliations with the Ishmaelites.

It is thought that the marks of an Edomite in today’s society might be such as joining the military.  In fact, my father showed military aptitude and served his nation as a Captain in the military elite Special Forces.  However, he also possessed some of the earmarks of Jacob as well, as he became a public school teacher.  The earmarks of Jacob would be study.  Furthermore, I possess the Y chromosome of a Regent, indicating the association of the scepter with my family.  Besides the Stewarts, the Hamilton’s are the second noblest clan in Scotland.  I mention this because several ancestries of mine go back to Zeus.  It is thought that Zeus is a fictional name for the Zerahites.

Additionally, Numbers 26:13 mentions a Zerah of the Israelite tribe of Simon.  This is thought to be a third conversion of Zerah, and it is a lifetime journey for each Zerahite to undergo slavery and a wondering in the desert, converting to the tribe of Simon shortly after slavery.  First a Zerahite is an Edomite, then he is also a Judahite, and then he is also of the tribe of Simon.  How can this be?  I reason that nation of Abraham intermingles.  In fact, I suggest that the nation of Abraham is in fact the inhabitants of the USA.  What Zerahites end up doing is starting to master Torah, and that this is the way of life for them.  This is not to say all Zerahites are righteous (Joshua 7:1).  Yet, this is not a call for all people to intermingle.  However, some intermingling is thought to be a part of the Torah.

Was my own personal Egypt, the darkest period of my life, my slavery, worth it?  I said, “No!  It wasn’t worth it.”  I even got angry at my parents for not having killed me and put me out of my misery.  However, as life has gone on, I have strived to achieve wellness, which I feel I have achieved (perhaps?) and life has become as the best dream of dreams.  I am not sure if it will always be this way, but since my mid 20s I have felt that I have made progress in achieving wellness, in part due to tremendous family support, and great medical care.

There are yet other occurrences of Zerah of the Bible, but not in the Torah.  The book of Ezra knows of a Zerahiah (7:1), whom had also converted to the tribe of Levi.  It is not clear if Zerahiah and Zerah are both Zerahites, and this is a place where I need more research. – After doing more research I have found that Zerahiah was a Zerahite, but that that he and Zerah are not the same person.  Also, there is a great deal of probability that Zerahiah was a patriarch of the Scots, of the priestly cast. -  This should be less of a surprise than it really is.  Jacob declares the tribe of Simon and Levites are a pair (Genesis 49:5), so it would be natural for such a conversion to take place.  Additionally, the book of Chronicles lets us know that the Zerahiah of Ezra was of the line of Aaron, and is thus a Cohenim, or a candidate for being the high priest (5:32).  Evidence of this would be obeying the command of a Cohen gadol to only marry virgins.

Yet another conversion is made to the Levite clan of Gershon (Chronicles 6:6).  What else would you expect from a politician other than affiliations with the various divisions of the clans of Abraham?  What I am suggesting is that the Zerahites that descend from Darda/Dara belong to the Levite caste, while those descended of Zerahiah of the Zerahites belong to the priestly caste.

2 Chronicles 14:8 lastly mentions “Zerah the Ethiopian.”  Perhaps, this individual was a Zerahite, as we know Zeus had African descendents through the Royal House of Thebes through Io, such that Pharaoh of the Book of Exodus was probably an African Zerahite, as the scepter of Judah is not reported to have been removed during the enslavement of the Israelites.  Zerah the Ethiopian was probably a descendant of Pharaoh, such that all the Israelites did not leave during the Exodus, but some of the tribe of Judah remained behind and ruled there.  All the attacking Ethiopians where mentioned as having been slain, but this is not to say that all the African Zerahites were on this military campaign.  This was during the kingship of Asa, which was after 1,000 BCE, but before CE.  Therefore, it should be understood that the word Zerah occurs over the course of thousands of years.  There was probably an original founding member.  However, this person was probably not Zerah the Ethiopian, but I wouldn’t rule it out.  Rather, Zerah should be thought of being as the Zerahites.  And, as they are not mentioned as having died in the JPS Bible, Zerahites are probably still around today.  It is thought that when in 167 BCE, when a statue of Zeus was placed in the Holy of Holies it mystically led to Zerahites also being considered Cohenim, and the changing of the name of Zerah to Zerahiah, as only the High Priest is permitted to enter this sacred place.  This radical change of Zerah to Zerahiah.  As a Zerahite, I do consider that it is likely that the Zerahites do have affiliation with Ethiopians, as I often feel like I fit in among Africans.

If the legends of Zeus are true, then we should also expect a Zerahite to have relations with Asians as well.  Zeus is recorded to have married Europa, an Asian.  This was a source for Asiatic nobility.  Though I believe most Ishmaelites are currently Muslim, I am currently unsure who the Asians are in the Torah.  This is a topic for further research.  Personally, I have had relationships with Asians most of my life, as well as some Africans, Jews and Ishmaelites.

Craig Hamilton First Kings 2:10 - And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David
November 19, 2010 at 4:40 pm

Craig Hamilton Note that in 1 Kings 2:10 “Fathers” is plural, suggesting that an individual can have more than one father.
November 19, 2010 at 4:41 pm

Craig Hamilton The word “Fathers” occurs 508 times in the JPS 1917 Translation.
November 19, 2010 at 4:41 pm