- verses
- 6
- first named
- Joshua 15:17
- last named
- 1 Chronicles 27:15
- period
- before Israel's Monarchy
- role
- Judge
Description
Who was Othniel?
Othniel was the son of Kenaz and the nephew of Caleb, one of the twelve spies sent by Moses to explore the land of Canaan (Jos.15.17; Jdg.1.13; 1Ch.4.13). He is described as the first judge of Israel, who delivered the people from the oppression of Cushan-Rishathaim, king of Mesopotamia (Jdg.3.9-10). Othniel's story begins when Caleb offers his daughter Achsah in marriage to whoever captures the city of Debir (also known as Kiriath-Sepher) (Jos.15.16; Jdg.1.12). Othniel successfully takes the city and marries Achsah (Jos.15.17; Jdg.1.13). Later, when the Israelites fall into sin and are oppressed by Cushan-Rishathaim, they cry out to the Lord for help (Jdg.3.8-9). God raises up Othniel as a deliverer, and the Spirit of the Lord comes upon him (Jdg.3.10). Othniel goes to war against Cushan-Rishathaim and prevails, bringing peace to the land for forty years until his death (Jdg.3.10-11). Othniel is also mentioned as the leader of the tribe of Judah during the reign of King David (1Ch.27.15).
Relations
Direct connections
Every entity the graph places in a stated relation with this one, grouped by the kind of link. Each relation is authored once and its inverse derived, so both ends always agree. Rows marked “registry” come from the identity spine rather than from a verse, and a row marked “which bearer is the source’s decision” is one where the name could have meant more than one person. The last group is not a relation at all — it counts the events two entities stand in together.
The 10 best-attested of 14 are drawn. All 14 are listed below.
Child of
- KenazregistryJoshua 15:17Judges 1:13Judges 3:9 +2
Father of
- Hathathregistry1 Chronicles 4:13
- Meonothairegistrywhich bearer is the source’s decision1 Chronicles 4:13
Sibling of
- Seraiahregistry, no verse
Spouse of
- Achsahregistry, no verse
Took part in
Stands in the same events as
Places
Where this happens
A person is placed by the events they take part in, and an event has to clear three things to place them: it must say where it happened, that place must be one the gazetteer can put a coordinate on, and the verse must report it rather than foretell, command or ask it. Nothing anchored here clears all three. Where the text names a setting no gazetteer surveys — a vineyard, a palace, a plot of ground — it is left off rather than guessed at; where a place is named only in a prophecy, the map does not draw what was said to be coming as though it had happened; and a place reached only through a relation is not inherited, because standing beside somebody is not being somewhere.
No verse Atlas has read as a report puts this person anywhere.
Not read yet
Read it
Where to read it
Every verse of the text carried here that names this entity — 6, across 3 books.
Onward
Where this page goes
Not the direct relations above — these are one hop further out, ranked so that a rare shared connection outweighs a common one. Descriptions by STEPBible TIPNR.
Where they appear
Chapter by chapter
Atlas's reading of each chapter this person appears in, in canonical order. One line per chapter, and each leads to the whole of it.
Sources