Do Genesis 26:34 and Genesis 36:2-3 Contradict?

Do Genesis 26:34 & Genesis 36:2-3 Contradict?

In Genesis 26, it is written: "When Esau was forty years old he married Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite," (Genesis 26:34 NASB1995).

In Genesis 36, it is written: "Esau took his wives from the daughters of Canaan: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah and the granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite; also Basemath, Ishmael’s daughter, the sister of Nebaioth," (Genesis 36:2-3 NASB1995).

In Genesis 26, we read that Basemath is the daughter of Elon. In Genesis 36, we read that Adah is the daughter of Elon and that Basemath is the daughter of Ishmael. There are a few possible answers to this supposed contradiction. One possible answer is that Adah is just another name for Basemath (in Genesis 26) while the Basemath in Genesis 36 is a different Ishmael. This is possible as many people at this time had more than one name.

Paul was also called Saul (Acts 13:9), Mark was also called John (Acts 12:12), Sarah was called Sarai (Genesis 17:15), Abraham was also called Abram (Genesis 17:5), Jacob was also called Israel (Genesis 32:28), Peter was also called Cephas and Simon (John 1:42, Matthew 16:16-18). Normally, a person has more than one name due to either a change in meaning, such as with Abram to Abraham, or due to names being changed due to different languages. For example, Cephas is Aramaic, Peter is Greek, and Simon is Hebrew. Paul (or Paulus) is Latin while Saul is Hebrew. Even today we do this. The name "Henry" is "Enrique" in French. The name "John" becomes "Jean" in French while in German it becomes "Johannes". These are all the same name, just different based on the language being spoken.

As the ESV Study Bible notes: "The names of Esau's wives here—Adah, Oholibamah (v. 2), and Basemath (v. 3)—are not the same as those mentioned in 26:34 and 28:9. According to 26:34, Esau married Judith (the daughter of Beeri) Basemath (the daughter of Elon). According to 28:9, he later also married Mahalath (the daughter of Ishmael). No simple solution enables the two lists to be harmonized, although various possibilities exist: e.g., (1) Esau may have married more than three women; (2) the same woman may have been known by two different names (e.g., Basemath may also have been known as Adah; ... or (3) the same name may have been given to two separate women (Crossway 112). Just as there were several Marys in the Bible, there may have just been several Basemaths.

References:

ESV Study Bible. United States, Crossway, 2008

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