Lexical Summary
Yithream: Yithream
Original Word: יִתְרְעָם
Part of Speech: Proper Name Masculine
Transliteration: Yithr`am
Pronunciation: yith-reh-AM
Phonetic Spelling: (yith-reh-awm')
KJV: Ithream
NASB: Ithream
Word Origin: [from H3499 (יֶתֶר - Remnant) and H5971 (עַם - People)]
1. excellence of people
2. Jithream, a son of David
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
Ithream
From yether and am; excellence of people; Jithream, a son of David -- Ithream.
see HEBREW yether
see HEBREW am
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
yether and
amDefinitiona son of David
NASB TranslationIthream (2).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
2 Samuel 3:5 =
1 Chronicles 3:3, (), , etc.
Topical Lexicon
Biographical Context Ithream is named twice in Scripture, both times within genealogical summaries of King David’s household (2 Samuel 3:5; 1 Chronicles 3:3). He is the sixth son born to David during the seven-and-a-half-year reign in Hebron, and the only child attributed to Eglah, called there David’s “wife.” The Hebron setting situates his birth at the formative stage of David’s kingship, before the conquest of Jerusalem and the consolidation of all Israel under the Davidic throne.
Role in the Davidic Household
The catalog of David’s sons in Hebron records a deliberate order: Amnon, Kileab (also called Daniel), Absalom, Adonijah, Shephatiah, and Ithream. Each firstborn of a different wife highlights David’s political alliances with various clans and regions. Ithream’s placement as the final member of this list marks the completion of that early family circle. Unlike his elder half-brothers, Ithream is never mentioned in the later narratives that describe palace intrigue or struggles for succession. His silence in the historical record suggests either an early death or a life lived outside the contest for power, and thereby underscores the selective unfolding of God’s redemptive plan through the line that eventually centers on Solomon.
Scriptural Witness
“and the sixth was Ithream, by David’s wife Eglah. These were born to David in Hebron.” (2 Samuel 3:5)
“the sixth was Ithream by Eglah his wife. These were born to David in Hebron.” (1 Chronicles 3:3)
Both passages pair Ithream’s name with Eglah to emphasize legitimate birth within covenantal marriage, even amid a polygamous context that Scripture records but never condones. Their repetition in Samuel (the narrative history) and Chronicles (the priestly genealogical record) affirms the consistency of the historical testimony.
Place in Redemptive History
Although Ithream himself does not occupy the foreground of biblical story, his inclusion serves several theological purposes:
• Authentication of Davidic lineage: The chronicling of every son born in Hebron verifies the rapid growth of the royal house and prepares the reader for the later rise of Solomon.
• Reminder of unfulfilled human expectation: Prominence by birth order did not guarantee a future on the throne; God’s elective purpose would pass over the elder sons, including Ithream, in favor of the son of promise.
• Portrait of covenant faithfulness: The chronicler’s care to list even lesser-known sons attests to the divine attention to every individual within the covenant community.
Lessons for Ministry Today
1. Faithfulness over fame. Ithream’s obscurity encourages believers who serve without public recognition; God records every name and deed (Malachi 3:16).
2. Sovereign choice. Human structures of primogeniture did not dictate God’s plan; ministry callings remain under divine prerogative, not merely lineage or position (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).
3. Family stewardship. David’s complex household foreshadows challenges that emerge when leaders neglect clear boundaries; modern ministry families are reminded to pursue biblical patterns of marriage and parenting (Ephesians 5:25-33; 6:4).
Summary
Ithream stands as a minor yet meaningful figure whose brief appearances secure the integrity of the Davidic record, witnessing to God’s meticulous providence in history and offering quiet encouragement to all who labor outside the spotlight yet within the sovereign purposes of the King.
Forms and Transliterations
יִתְרְעָ֔ם יִתְרְעָ֖ם יתרעם yiṯ·rə·‘ām yiṯrə‘ām yitreAm
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