Mahalath

{{Short description|Third mentioned wife of Esau in the Book of Genesis}}

{{for|the wife of Rehoboam|Mahalath (wife of Rehoboam)}}

Mahalath was, according to the Bible, the third wife of Esau, daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth. Esau took Mahalath from the house of Ishmael to be his wife, after seeing that his Canaanite wives (Basemath and Judith) displeased his father, Isaac ({{bibleverse||Genesis|28:6-9}}).

Esau sought this union with a non-Canaanite, in an effort to reconcile his relationship with his parents,Easton, M. Illustrated Bible Dictionary, ({{ISBN|1596059478}}, {{ISBN|978-1-59605-947-4}} ), 2006, p.236Phillips, J. Exploring Genesis: an expository commentary, ({{ISBN|0825434882}}, {{ISBN|978-0-8254-3488-4}}), 2001, p. 284 namely with his father Isaac whose blessing he sought ({{bibleverse||Genesis|28:6-9|HE)}}). However, there is no record of his parents' approval for the union of Esau and Mahalath. She bore a son, Reuel, to Esau. ({{bibleverse||Genesis|36:4|HE)}})

In {{bibleverse||Genesis|36:2,3|HE)}}, on the other hand, Esau's three wives are differently named; his family is mentioned as consisting of two Canaanite wives, Adah, the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah, and a third: Bashemath, Ishmael's daughter. Some scholars equate the three wives mentioned in Genesis 26 and 28 with those mentioned in Genesis 36, in the following way:Phillips, J. Exploring Genesis: an expository commentary, ({{ISBN|0825434882}}, {{ISBN|978-0-8254-3488-4}}), 2001, p. 284

• Basemath ({{bibleverse||Genesis|26:34-35|HE)}}) = Adah ({{bibleverse||Genesis|36:2,3|HE)}}), the daughter of Elon the Hittite;
• Judith ({{bibleverse||Genesis|26:34-35|HE)}}) = Aholibamah ({{bibleverse||Genesis|36:2,3|HE)}}), also a Canaanite;
• Mahalath ({{bibleverse||Genesis|28:9|HE)}}) = Bashemath ({{bibleverse||Genesis|36:2,3|HE)}}), Esau's cousin and third wife, daughter of Ishmael

Nonetheless, other scholars dispute these connections.{{Cite journal|url=https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Reuven-Klein/publication/305724978_The_Wives_of_Esau/links/579d046e08ae80bf6ea485de/The-Wives-of-Esau.pdf|title=the Wives of Esau |author=Klein, Reuven Chaim|year=2014|journal=Jewish Bible Quarterly

|volume=42|issue=4|pages=211-220}} See Wives of Esau.