Israelite tribe; descended from Gad, son of Jacob.
Gad
Named in 55 verses across 11 books, first in Genesis 30:11.
גָּדGad
גָּדִיGad
ΓάδGad
The name means “a band; a troop.” Hitchcock's Bible Names, 1869
- Father
- Israel
- Mother
- Zilpah
- Brothers and sisters
- Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Dinah, Joseph, Benjamin
- People
- Tribe of Gad
About Gad Written by AI
Gad was one of the twelve tribes of Israel, named after Gad, the seventh son of Israel (or 'Jacob') and Zilpah, Leah's maidservant (Genesis 30:11). The tribe of Gad played a significant role throughout Israel's history. During the Exodus, the tribe of Gad was counted among the Israelites (Numbers 1:14) and was positioned on the south side of the tabernacle, along with the tribes of Reuben and Simeon (Numbers 2:14). The tribe of Gad, along with Reuben and half of Manasseh, settled in the region east of the Jordan River (Numbers 32; Joshua 13:24 to 28). They were known for their military prowess and bravery (1 Chronicles 12:8). The Gadites were among the first to help David when he was hiding from Saul (1 Chronicles 12:8 to 15). They also supported David during the census and the purchase of the threshing floor for the temple (2 Samuel 24:5; 1 Chronicles 21:2). The Gadites were blessed by Moses for their faithfulness and strength (Deuteronomy 33:20 to 21). The tribe of Gad was allotted cities and pasturelands in the region of Gilead (Joshua 13:24 to 28; 1 Chronicles 6:63). They, along with the other tribes east of the Jordan, built an altar as a witness to their unity with the rest of Israel (Joshua 22). The Gadites were among the first tribes to be taken into captivity by the Assyrians (1 Chronicles 5:26). In Ezekiel's vision of the restored Israel, the tribe of Gad is allotted a portion of land in the far north (Ezekiel 48:27 to 28). In the book of Revelation, Gad is mentioned as one of the tribes with 12,000 sealed servants of God (Revelation 7:5).
Drafted by an AI model for STEPBible's TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Check it against the verses below.
Easton's Bible Dictionary, 1897
This entry is on the name Gad, and may cover more than one person or place by that name.
Fortune; luck. (1.) Jacob’s seventh son, by Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid, and the brother of Asher (Gen. 30:11-13; 46:16, 18). In the Authorized Version of 30:11 the words, “A troop cometh: and she called,” etc., should rather be rendered, “In fortune [R.V., ‘Fortunate’]: and she called,” etc., or “Fortune cometh,” etc.
The tribe of Gad during the march through the wilderness had their place with Simeon and Reuben on the south side of the tabernacle (Num. 2:14). The tribes of Reuben and Gad continued all through their history to follow the pastoral pursuits of the patriarchs (Num. 32:1-5).
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The portion allotted to the tribe of Gad was on the east of Jordan, and comprehended the half of Gilead, a region of great beauty and fertility (Deut. 3:12), bounded on the east by the Arabian desert, on the west by the Jordan (Josh. 13:27), and on the north by the river Jabbok. It thus included the whole of the Jordan valley as far north as to the Sea of Galilee, where it narrowed almost to a point.
This tribe was fierce and warlike; they were “strong men of might, men of war for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, their faces the faces of lions, and like roes upon the mountains for swiftness” (1 Chr. 12:8; 5:19-22). Barzillai (2 Sam. 17:27) and Elijah (1 Kings 17:1) were of this tribe. It was carried into captivity at the same time as the other tribes of the northern kingdom by Tiglath-pileser (1 Chr. 5:26), and in the time of Jeremiah (49:1) their cities were inhabited by the Ammonites.
(2.) A prophet who joined David in the “hold,” and at whose advice he quitted it for the forest of Hareth (1 Chr. 29:29; 2 Chr. 29:25; 1 Sam. 22:5). Many years after we find mention made of him in connection with the punishment inflicted for numbering the people (2 Sam. 24:11-19; 1 Chr. 21:9-19). He wrote a book called the “Acts of David” (1 Chr. 29:29), and assisted in the arrangements for the musical services of the “house of God” (2 Chr. 29:25). He bore the title of “the king’s seer” (2 Sam. 24:11, 13; 1 Chr. 21:9).
M. G. Easton, Illustrated Bible Dictionary, third edition (1897), public domain, from CrossWire. Shown as written; its Scripture quotes are from older translations.
Where the Bible names him
- Genesis 30:11
Then Leah said, “How fortunate!” So she named him Gad.
- Genesis 35:26
And the sons of Leah’s maidservant Zilpah were Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.
- Genesis 46:16
The sons of Gad: Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli.
- Genesis 49:19
Gad will be attacked by raiders, but he will attack their heels.
- Exodus 1:4
Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher.
- Numbers 1:14
from Gad, Eliasaph son of Deuel;
- Numbers 1:24
From the sons of Gad, according to the records of their clans and families, counting the names of all those twenty years of age or older who could serve in the army,
- Numbers 1:25
those registered to the tribe of Gad numbered 45,650.
- Numbers 2:14
Next will be the tribe of Gad. The leader of the Gadites is Eliasaph son of Deuel,
- Numbers 7:42
On the sixth day Eliasaph son of Deuel, the leader of the Gadites, drew near.
- Numbers 10:20
and Eliasaph son of Deuel was over the division of the tribe of Gad.
- Numbers 13:15
and from the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Machi.
- Numbers 26:15
These were the descendants of Gad by their clans: The Zephonite clan from Zephon, the Haggite clan from Haggi, the Shunite clan from Shuni,
- Numbers 26:18
These were the clans of Gad, and their registration numbered 40,500.
- Numbers 32:1
Now the Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large herds and flocks, surveyed the lands of Jazer and Gilead, and they saw that the region was suitable for livestock.
- Numbers 32:2
So the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the congregation, and said,
- Numbers 32:6
But Moses asked the Gadites and Reubenites, “Shall your brothers go to war while you sit here?
- Numbers 32:25
The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, “Your servants will do just as our lord commands.
- Numbers 32:29
And Moses said to them, “If the Gadites and Reubenites cross the Jordan with you, with every man armed for battle before the LORD, and the land is subdued before you, then you are to give them the land of Gilead as a possession.
- Numbers 32:31
The Gadites and Reubenites replied, “As the LORD has spoken to your servants, so we will do.
- Numbers 32:33
So Moses gave to the Gadites, to the Reubenites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the land including its cities and the territory surrounding them.
- Numbers 32:34
And the Gadites built up Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer,
- Numbers 34:14
For the tribes of the Reubenites and Gadites, along with the half-tribe of Manasseh, have already received their inheritance.
- Deuteronomy 27:13
And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal to deliver the curse: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.
- Deuteronomy 33:20
Concerning Gad he said: “Blessed is he who enlarges the domain of Gad! He lies down like a lion and tears off an arm or a head.
- Joshua 4:12
The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over before the Israelites, armed for battle as Moses had instructed them.
- Joshua 13:24
This is what Moses had given to the clans of the tribe of Gad:
- Joshua 13:28
This was the inheritance of the clans of the Gadites, including the cities and villages.
- Joshua 18:7
The Levites, however, have no portion among you, because their inheritance is the priesthood of the LORD. And Gad, Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh have already received the inheritance that Moses the servant of the LORD gave them beyond the Jordan to the east.”
- Joshua 20:8
And beyond the Jordan, east of Jericho, they designated Bezer on the wilderness plateau from the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan from the tribe of Manasseh.
- Joshua 21:7
And the descendants of Merari received twelve cities from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun.
- Joshua 21:38
And from the tribe of Gad they were given Ramoth in Gilead, a city of refuge for the manslayer, Mahanaim,
- Joshua 22:9
So the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh left the Israelites at Shiloh in the land of Canaan to return to their own land of Gilead, which they had acquired according to the command of the LORD through Moses.
- Joshua 22:10
And when they came to Geliloth near the Jordan in the land of Canaan, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an imposing altar there by the Jordan.
- Joshua 22:11
Then the Israelites received the report: “Behold, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar on the border of the land of Canaan, at Geliloth near the Jordan on the Israelite side.”
- Joshua 22:13
The Israelites sent Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest to the land of Gilead, to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
- Joshua 22:15
They went to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the land of Gilead and said to them,
- Joshua 22:21
Then the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered the leaders of the clans of Israel:
- Joshua 22:25
For the LORD has made the Jordan a border between us and you Reubenites and Gadites. You have no share in the LORD!’ So your descendants could cause ours to stop fearing the LORD.
- Joshua 22:30
When Phinehas the priest and the chiefs of the congregation—the heads of Israel’s clans who were with him—heard what the descendants of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh had to say, they were satisfied.
From STEPBible's TIPNR, Tyndale House Cambridge (CC BY 4.0): names, family, references and the AI written article. Verse text is the BSB.