Carmi

Carmi is a personal name borne by more than one Old Testament figure. Two distinct genealogical lines carry the name: a son of Reuben listed among the heads of the Reubenite families, and a Judahite descended through Hezron whose son Achan is remembered as the trespasser at Ai.

Carmi the Reubenite

Carmi appears as the fourth-named son of Reuben in the migration roster of Jacob's house: "And the sons of Reuben: Hanoch, and Pallu, and Hezron, and Carmi" (Gen 46:9). The same four names recur when Exodus opens the Levitical genealogy by first surveying the older tribes: "These are the heads of their fathers' houses. The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, and Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the families of Reuben" (Ex 6:14). In both rosters Carmi is the head of one of the four Reubenite clans.

Carmi in the line of Judah

A second Carmi belongs to the tribe of Judah. The Chronicler lists him among the sons of Judah: "The sons of Judah: Perez, Hezron, and Carmi, and Hur, and Shobal" (1Ch 4:1). The same Judahite Carmi is the father of the man whose sin at Jericho cost Israel the first assault on Ai. When the trespass is announced, the genealogy is given in full: "Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the devoted thing" (Jos 7:1). The sequence is repeated when Achan is identified by lot: "Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken" (Jos 7:18). Chronicles preserves the same connection from the father's side, using the alternate spelling Achar: "And the sons of Carmi: Achar, the troubler of Israel, who committed a trespass in the devoted thing" (1Ch 2:7).