Biblical Discrepancies - Esau's Wives
by Mike James
How many wives did Esau have? This is yet another seeming discrepancy in the Bible. A closer look and research will reveal the Bible is not creating a discrepancy.
First, let's look at the scriptures that address the various wives of Esau.
Genesis 26:34: And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith, the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite (KJV).
Genesis 28:9: Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife (KJV).
Genesis 36:2-3: Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; And Bashemath Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajoth (KJV).
Some believe Esau had six wives; some say five, and others say three.
One theory from biblical scholars Hengstenberg, Keil, and Lange is that when women married at this time in history, they received new names. So, if we go with this idea, Bashemath (Bashemath #2), Ishmael's daughter (Genesis 36:2-3) is the same as Mahalath (Genesis 28:9).
Adah, the daughter of Elon the Hittite (Genesis 36:2-3), is the same as Bashemath (Bashemath #1, Genesis 26:34).
Aholibamah, the daughter of Anah (Genesis 36:2-3), is the same as Judith (Genesis 26:34). In the NIV translation, Aholibamah is the granddaughter of Zibeon, not the daughter. Anah is also called "Beeri" ("man of the springs") because he found "warm springs" in the wilderness (see Genesis 36:24 NIV translation). The biblical scholars Feurst, Hengstenberg, Gesenius, Murphy, Keil, and Knobel all agree on Anah also being named Beeri.
Some might have concerns as to why Beeri is called a Hittite while Anah's father, Zibeon, is a Hivite. The father of Beeri (Anah) may have been a Hivite, but his mother could have been a Hittite. Both of these groups occupied the land of Canaan and intermingled.
Another possibility, according to the scholar Lange, is that "Hittite" defines the race, "Hivite" the tribe, and "Horite" ("cave dweller") the location Anah lived.
One other possibility is the three names differ by only one letter when written in Hebrew. The scholars Michaelis and Bertheau suspect an error in transcription.
Some don't believe Judith is Aholibamah, and they argue that Judith is not mentioned in Genesis 36:2-3 because she bore no children. Genesis 36:1 ("generations of Esau") is focused on the children (and their mothers) of Esau. I do think Judith and Aholibamah are the same.
When you look at all three scriptures once more, notice Genesis 26 mentions him taking two wives that were Hittites—the Hittites were Canaanites. Genesis 36 mentions two Canaanite wives. Remember, the Israelites were not supposed to get mixed up with the Canaanites because of religious differences. That may be why Esau then selects his third wife.
In Genesis 28:8-9, Esau may have taken a wife of Ishmael because Ishmael was a son (through Hagar) of his father. These verses tell us Issac was not happy that Esau had taken two wives from the Canaanites. In Genesis 28:6, Esau also probably figures out that he should not have married the Canaanite women.
Finally, keeping that in mind, it would appear Genesis 36 is now summarizing all three of Esau's wives with the new names being employed.
So, in my opinion, the first two verses (at the top) address how Esau originally chose his wives, and the last verse is compiling all of the wives. Three wives in all.
One last thing to point out here. Look back at when Esau marries the first two Canaanite wives in Genesis 26:34-35. Also note what the scripture says in verse 35, that these wives were a grief to the mind of Issac and Rebekah.
The next chapter (Genesis 27) tells us Jacob receives Esau's blessing from Issac. Did the choices of Esau anger Rebekah, so she helped Jacob fool Isaac into passing the blessing of Esau to Jacob? What is interesting is in Genesis 28:1, Isaac makes it clear to Jacob that he should not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Just another little interesting thing to think about in this well-known story.
Sources:
Alleged Discrepancies of the Bible, by John W. Haley, (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House), 1977, pp. 336-337.
"Genesis 26:34 – How Many Wives Did Esau Have?" Defending Inerrancy, https://defendinginerrancy.com/bible-solutions/Genesis_26.34.php
"What Do We Know about Esau's Wife(s) Basemath?" by Lori Stanley Roleveld, Christianity.com, December 13, 2022, https://www.christianity.com/wiki/bible/what-we-know-esaus-wives-basemath.html#google_vignette
"Esau's Wives – Cracking the Biblical Enigma," by Raphael Shuchat, The Jerusalem Post, November 4, 2021, https://www.jpost.com/judaism/esaus-wives-cracking-the-biblical-enigma-684063
"Esau's Wives," by Beth Lesch, AlphaBeta, November 18, 2021, https://www.alephbeta.org/blog/who-were-esaus-wives