Genesis 30:13

30:13 Leah said, “How happy I am, ¹  for women ²  will call me happy!” So she named him Asher. ³ 

Genesis 35:26

35:26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant, were Gad and Asher.

These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan Aram.

Genesis 49:20

49:20 Asher’s ⁴  food will be rich, ⁵ 

and he will provide delicacies ⁶  to royalty.

Numbers 1:13

1:13 from Asher, Pagiel son of Ocran;

Numbers 1:40-41

1:40 From the descendants of Asher: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 1:41 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Asher were 41,500.

Numbers 26:44-46

Asher

26:44 The Asherites by their families: from Imnah, the family of the Imnahites; from Ishvi, the family of the Ishvites; from Beriah, the family of the Beriahites. 26:45 From the Beriahites: from Heber, the family of the Heberites; from Malkiel, the family of the Malkielites. 26:46 Now the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah. ⁷ 

Deuteronomy 33:24

Blessing on Asher

33:24 Of Asher he said:

Asher is blessed with children,

may he be favored by his brothers

and may he dip his foot in olive oil. ⁸ 

Deuteronomy 33:1

Introduction to the Blessing of Moses

33:1 This is the blessing Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death.

Deuteronomy 2:2

2:2 At this point the Lord said to me,

Deuteronomy 2:1

The Journey from Kadesh Barnea to Moab

2:1 Then we turned and set out toward the desert land on the way to the Red Sea ⁹  just as the Lord told me to do, detouring around Mount Seir for a long time.

Deuteronomy 7:1

The Dispossession of Nonvassals

7:1 When the Lord your God brings you to the land that you are going to occupy and forces out many nations before you – Hittites, ¹⁰  Girgashites, ¹¹  Amorites, ¹²  Canaanites, ¹³  Perizzites, ¹⁴  Hivites, ¹⁵  and Jebusites, ¹⁶  seven ¹⁷  nations more numerous and powerful than you –

[30:13]  ¹ tn The Hebrew statement apparently means “with my happiness.”

[30:13]  ² tn Heb “daughters.”

[30:13]  ³ sn The name Asher (אָשֶׁר, ’asher) apparently means “happy one.” The name plays on the words used in the statement which appears earlier in the verse. Both the Hebrew noun and verb translated “happy” and “call me happy,” respectively, are derived from the same root as the name Asher.

[49:20]  ⁴ tc Heb “from Asher,” but the initial mem (מ) of the MT should probably be moved to the end of the preceding verse and taken as a plural ending on “heel.”

[49:20]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew word translated “rich,” when applied to products of the ground, means abundant in quantity and quality.

[49:20]  ⁶ tn The word translated “delicacies” refers to foods that were delightful, the kind fit for a king.

[26:46]  ⁷ tn Also mentioned in 1 Chr 7:30.

[33:24]  ⁸ sn Dip his foot in olive oil. This is a metaphor for prosperity, one especially apt in light of the abundance of olive groves in the area settled by Asher. The Hebrew term refers to olive oil, which symbolizes blessing in the OT. See R. Way, NIDOTTE 4:171-73.

[2:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “Reed Sea.” See note on the term “Red Sea” in Deut 1:40.

[7:1]  ¹⁰ sn Hittites. The center of Hittite power was in Anatolia (central modern Turkey). In the Late Bronze Age (1550-1200 b.c.) they were at their zenith, establishing outposts and colonies near and far. Some elements were obviously in Canaan at the time of the Conquest (1400-1350 b.c.).

[7:1]  ¹¹ sn Girgashites. These cannot be ethnically identified and are unknown outside the OT. They usually appear in such lists only when the intention is to have seven groups in all (see also the note on the word “seven” later in this verse).

[7:1]  ¹² sn Amorites. Originally from the upper Euphrates region (Amurru), the Amorites appear to have migrated into Canaan beginning in 2200 b.c. or thereabouts.

[7:1]  ¹³ sn Canaanites. These were the indigenous peoples of the land, going back to the beginning of recorded history (ca. 3000 b.c.). The OT identifies them as descendants of Ham (Gen 10:6), the only Hamites to have settled north and east of Egypt.

[7:1]  ¹⁴ sn Perizzites. This is probably a subgroup of Canaanites (Gen 13:7; 34:30).

[7:1]  ¹⁵ sn Hivites. These are usually thought to be the same as the Hurrians, a people well-known in ancient Near Eastern texts. They are likely identical to the Horites (see note on the term “Horites” in Deut 2:12).

[7:1]  ¹⁶ sn Jebusites. These inhabited the hill country, particularly in and about Jerusalem (cf. Num 13:29; Josh 15:8; 2 Sam 5:6; 24:16).

[7:1]  ¹⁷ sn Seven. This is an ideal number in the OT, one symbolizing fullness or completeness. Therefore, the intent of the text here is not to be precise and list all of Israel’s enemies but simply to state that Israel will have a full complement of foes to deal with. For other lists of Canaanites, some with fewer than seven peoples, see Exod 3:8; 13:5; 23:23, 28; 33:2; 34:11; Deut 20:17; Josh 3:10; 9:1; 24:11. Moreover, the “Table of Nations” (Gen 10:15-19) suggests that all of these (possibly excepting the Perizzites) were offspring of Canaan and therefore Canaanites.