Original Word: בָּעֲרָא
Part of Speech: Proper Name Feminine
Transliteration: Ba`ara'
Pronunciation: bah-ah-RAH
Phonetic Spelling: (bah-ar-aw')
KJV: Baara
NASB: Baara
Word Origin: [from H1198 (בַּעַר - senseless)]

1. brutish

Baara

From ba'ar; brutish: Baara, an Israelitish woman -- Baara.

see HEBREW ba'ar

Word Origin
from baar
Definition
an Isr. woman
NASB Translation
Baara (1).

בַּעֲרָא proper name, feminine wife of a Benjamite 1 Chronicles 8:8.

Biblical Occurrence

Baara appears a single time in Scripture, embedded in the Benjaminite genealogy:

“Shaharaim fathered sons in the country of Moab after he had divorced his wives Hushim and Baara.” (1 Chronicles 8:8)

Historical and Genealogical Context

The Chronicler, writing after the exile, carefully traces tribal lineages to affirm Israel’s covenant identity. Shaharaim, a Benjamite, had relocated to Moab, probably during a famine or political unrest prior to David’s reign. The brief notice that he “divorced” (literally “sent away”) Hushim and Baara, then fathered sons by Hodesh, highlights both the dispersion of Benjamites and the intricate family structures produced by migration.

Baara’s mention situates her:
• Within Benjamin, Israel’s smallest but strategically placed tribe (1 Samuel 9:21).
• In Moab, exposing ongoing interaction—sometimes tense, sometimes peaceful—between Israel and her eastern neighbor (Ruth 1:1; 1 Samuel 22:3-4).
• In the house of Shaharaim, whose sons later return to the land and re-establish Benjaminite towns (1 Chronicles 8:28-32).

Covenant and Marital Themes

The Chronicler notes Shaharaim “sent away” his first wives. While the text gives no moral assessment, the narrative encourages readers to weigh covenant faithfulness. Malachi would later rebuke men who “deal treacherously with the wife of your youth” (Malachi 2:14). Baara’s quiet presence reminds us that the Lord records even those women whose marriages ended in dismissal; His eye is on every covenant broken or kept.

Moabite Connections and God’s Inclusive Providence

Moab repeatedly intersects Israel’s story—Lot’s descendants (Genesis 19:37), Ruth’s welcome into Judah (Ruth 4:13-22), and here a Benjaminite household dwelling in Moab. Baara’s life inside that cross-cultural setting foreshadows the wider salvation plan in which Gentile lands and people come under Yahweh’s rule (Isaiah 11:10; Romans 15:12).

Literary Significance

Chronicler genealogies often preserve otherwise lost details: obscure villages (1 Chronicles 4:32), trade guilds (4:21-23), even sidelined spouses (8:9). Baara’s solitary appearance underscores the inspired precision of Scripture. Nothing is filler; every syllable serves redemptive history, validating the faith community’s lineage after exile and strengthening trust in the text’s reliability (2 Timothy 3:16).

Ministry Implications

1. God counts the forgotten. Pastoral care should mirror His attention to those whose accounts seem small or painful.
2. Genealogies model thorough record-keeping for future generations, encouraging churches to preserve testimonies of God’s faithfulness.
3. Marital fidelity matters. The dismissal of Hushim and Baara, however commonplace in the ancient Near East, warns believers to honor lifelong covenant commitments (Matthew 19:4-6).
4. Mission extends beyond borders. Baara’s Moab setting anticipates the Gospel’s advance to “every nation” (Matthew 28:19), stirring today’s church toward cross-cultural evangelism.

Summary

Though mentioned only once, Baara stands as a witness to God’s meticulous remembrance, the complexity of Israel’s exile-era families, and the broader purpose of Scripture to weave every individual—named or unnamed—into the unfolding account of redemption.

בַּעֲרָ֖א בערא ba‘ărā ba·‘ă·rā baaRaInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts