35 Sheshan gave his daughter to Jarha his servant as wife; and she bore him Attai.
*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.
And Sheshan gave his daughter to Jarha his servant to wife,.... Having first given him his freedom, as the Targum premises; this daughter seems to be Ahlai, 1-Chronicles 2:31 which receives confirmation from Zabad, one of the descendants of this man, 1-Chronicles 2:36, being said to be the son of Ahlai, 1-Chronicles 11:41, that is, great-grandson:
and she bare him Attai; the genealogy of whose descendants is given to the end of 1-Chronicles 2:41, of whom no mention is made elsewhere, but of Zabad, as before observed; and, according to the Jews, it is given for the sake of Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, the last person mentioned in this genealogy; which Ishmael slew Gedaliah governor of Jerusalem, and is said to be of the seed royal, Jeremiah 41:1.
Sheshan gave his daughter to Jarha his servant to wife--The adoption and marriage of a foreign slave in the family where he is serving, is far from being a rare or extraordinary occurrence in Eastern countries. It is thought, however, by some to have been a connection not sanctioned by the law of Moses [MICHAELIS]. But this is not a well-founded objection, as the history of the Jews furnishes not a few examples of foreign proselytes in the same manner obtaining an inheritance in Israel; and doubtless Jarha had previously embraced the Jewish faith in place of the grovelling idolatries of his native Egypt. In such a case, therefore, there could be no legal difficulty. Being a foreign slave, he had no inheritance in a different tribe to injure by this connection; while his marriage with Sheshan's daughter led to his adoption into the tribe of Judah, as well as his becoming heir of the family property.
Jarha - Probably he was not only a proselyte, but an eminent man: else an Israelite would not have given him his only daughter.
*More commentary available at chapter level.