Topic
Firstborn; Firstling
30 passages cited, from 1 classic reference work.
These works date from 1915 and are in the public domain. They reflect the Protestant scholarship of their time: their history, archaeology and dates can be out of date, and where they interpret, other traditions read the text differently. The verses are shown in the King James Version, the wording these works were written against.
The verses
The passages the works cite, those cited by more of them first.
- Genesis 22:12ISBE
And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.
- Genesis 25:23ISBE
And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.
- Exodus 4:22ISBE
And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:
- Exodus 11:5ISBE
And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.
- Exodus 13:2ISBE
Sanctify unto me all the firstborn, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and of beast: it is mine.
- Exodus 13:13ISBE
And every firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb; and if thou wilt not redeem it, then thou shalt break his neck: and all the firstborn of man among thy children shalt thou redeem.
- Exodus 22:29–31ISBE
¶ Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me. Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou…
- Exodus 23:16ISBE
And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.
- Exodus 34:19ISBE
All that openeth the matrix is mine; and every firstling among thy cattle, whether ox or sheep, that is male.
- Exodus 34:20ISBE
But the firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb: and if thou redeem him not, then shalt thou break his neck. All the firstborn of thy sons thou shalt redeem. And none shall appear before me empty.
- Numbers 3:11–13ISBE
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the firstborn that openeth the matrix among the children of Israel: therefore the Levites shall be mine; Because all the…
- Numbers 3:15ISBE
Number the children of Levi after the house of their fathers, by their families: every male from a month old and upward shalt thou number them.
Show 18 more
- Numbers 3:45 ISBE
- Numbers 6:22–27 ISBE
- Numbers 18:16 ISBE
- Deuteronomy 21:15–17 ISBE
- 2 Kings 3:27 ISBE
- 2 Kings 16:3 ISBE
- 2 Kings 17:17 ISBE
- 2 Kings 21:6 ISBE
- Psalms 89:27 ISBE
- Jeremiah 7:31 ISBE
- Ezekiel 16:20 ISBE
- Ezekiel 23:37 ISBE
- Micah 6:7 ISBE
- Luke 2:27 ISBE
- Romans 8:29 ISBE
- Colossians 1:15 ISBE
- Colossians 1:16 ISBE
- Hebrews 1:6 ISBE
In the reference works
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915) · 31 references
furst'-born, furst'-ling (bekhor; prototokos):
The Hebrew word denotes the firstborn of human beings as well as of animals (Ex 11:5), while a word from the same root denotes first-fruits (Ex 23:16). All the data point to the conclusion that among the ancestors of the Hebrews the sacrifice of the firstborn was practiced, just as the firstlings of the flocks and the first-fruits of the produce of the earth were devoted to the deity. The narrative of the Moabite war records the sacrifice of the heir to the throne by Mesha, to Chemosh, the national god (2Ki 3:27). The barbarous custom must have become extinct at an early period in the religion of Israel (Ge 22:12). It was probably due to the influence of surrounding nations that the cruel practice was revived toward the close of the monarchical period (2Ki 16:3; 17:17; 21:6; Jer 7:31; Eze 16:20; 23:37; Mic 6:7). Jeremiah denies that the offering of human beings could have been an instruction from Yahweh (7:31; 19:5).
The prophetic conception of God had rendered such a doctrine inconceivable. Clear evidence of the spiritualization and humanizati0n of religion among the Israelites is furnished in the replacement, at an early stage, of the actual sacrifice of the firstborn by their dedication to the service of Yahweh. At a later stage the Levites were substituted for the firstborn. Just as the firstlings of unclean animals were redeemed with money (Ex 13:13; 34:20), for the dedication of the firstborn was substituted the consecration of the Levites to the service of the sanctuary (Nu 3:11-13,15). On the 30th day after birth the firstborn was brought to the priest by the father, who paid five shekels for the child's redemption from service in the temple (compare Lu 2:27; Mishna Bekhoroth viii.8). For that service the Levites were accepted in place of the redeemed firstborn (Nu 3:45). See note. According to Ex 22:29-31 the firstborn were to be given to Yahweh. (The firstborn of clean animals, if free from spot or blemish, were to be sacrificed after eight days, Nu 18:16 ff.) This allusion to the sacrifice of the firstborn as part of the religion of Yahweh has been variously explained. Some scholars suspect the text, but in all probability the verse means no more than similar references to the fact that the firstborn belonged to Yahweh (Ex 13:2; 34:19). The modifying clause, with regard to the redemption of the firstborn, has been omitted. The firstborn possessed definite privileges which were denied to other members of the family. The Law forbade the disinheriting of the firstborn (De 21:15-17). Such legislation, in polygamous times, was necessary to prevent a favorite wife from exercising undue influence over her husband in distributing his property, as in the case of Jacob (Ge 25:23). The oldest son's share was twice as large as that of any other son. When Elisha prayed for a double portion of Elijah's spirit, he simply wished to be considered the firstborn, i.e. the successor, of the dying prophet. Israel was Yahweh's firstborn (Ex 4:22 privileges. She occupied a unique position in virtue of the special relationship between Yahweh and the nation. In three passages (Ro 8:29; Col 1:15; Heb 1:6), Jesus Christ is the firstborn--among many brethren (Ro 8:29); of every creature (Col 1:16). This application of the term to Jesus Christ may be traced back to Ps 89:27 where the Davidic ruler, or perhaps the nation, is alluded to as the firstborn of Yahweh.
See CHILD; CIRCUMCISION; FIRST-BEGOTTEN; PLAGUES OF EGYPT.
NOTE--The custom of redeeming the firstborn son is preserved among the Jews to this day. After thirty days the father invites the "Kohen," i.e. a supposed descendant of Aaron, to the house. The child is brought and shown to the "Kohen," and the father declares the mother of the child to be an Israelite. If she is a "Kohen," redemption is not necessary. The "Kohen" asks the father which he prefers, his child or the five shekels; the father answers that he prefers his son, and pays to the "Kohen" a sum equivalent to five shekels. After receiving the redemption-money, the "Kohen" puts his hands on the child's head and pronounces the Aaronite blessing (Nu 6:22-27).
T. Lewis
Texts: International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915), from the CrossWire SWORD modules (public domain). Verse references were parsed from the works' own markup and checked against the KJV verse list.