Question:  Dear Greg,

            In 1 Chronicles 2:15, it states that David was the 7^th son of Jesse.  In 1 Samuel 17:12-14, David is stated to be the youngest of eight sons.  How is this to be resolved?

            Del

Answer:  Dear Del,

            As you note, 1 Samuel mentions seven brothers of David, with David being the eighth.  1 Chronicles 2:15 mentions seven including David.  1 Chronicles names all sons of Jesse, 1 Samuel does not.  We can only assume that the un-named son referred to in 1 Samuel may have died soon after the writing of 1 Samuel, and for some reason was not included in the list given in Chronicles.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht