Person Old Testament
Reuel
Reuel was a son of Esau and Basemath, and he became a chief in the land of Edom. Mentioned in 6 verses across 2 books, first at Genesis 36:4.
Why it matters. Son of Esau and Basemath, a chief of Edom
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Reuel
Reuel was one of the sons of Esau, Jacob's brother, and Basemath, the daughter of Ishmael (Gen.36.4, 10, 13, 17; 1Ch.1.35, 37). He was born in Canaan before Esau moved his family to the hill country of Seir, which later became known as Edom (Gen.36.8-9). Reuel became one of the chiefs of Edom, indicating that he held a position of authority and influence among the Edomites (Gen.36.17; 1Ch.1.37). His sons were Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah (Gen.36.13, 17; 1Ch.1.37). The Edomites, descendants of Esau, lived in the region south of the Dead Sea and were often in conflict with the Israelites throughout their history. The mention of Reuel and his descendants in the genealogies of Esau demonstrates the fulfillment of God's promise to make Esau into a nation (Gen.25.23) and provides insight into the early history and leadership of the Edomites.
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
Connections
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Family
Family links from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0). Where the dataset marks an identification as uncertain, the mark is kept. Matthew and Luke give different genealogies for Jesus; see the Lineage page, which never merges them.
Appears in Scripture
Named in 6 verses across 2 books. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.