1 Chronicles 2:51 Meaning and Explanation

The chronicler records Salma as the father, or founder, of Bethlehem, and Hareph as the father of Bethgader. Bethlehem shines out among these names, for it is the town of David and, in the fullness of time, the birthplace of the Messiah. The chronicler is tracing the very roots of that sacred town.

Bethlehem, here barely more than a name in a list, would become the place where God's promise reached its height. The prophet Micah declared that out of Bethlehem Ephratah would come the One to rule Israel, whose origins are from of old. The founding of Bethlehem recorded here is a hidden seed of the gospel. God was preparing, long in advance, the little town where heaven would touch earth in the birth of the Savior.