1 Chronicles 3:1
Now these were the sons of David, which were born unto him in Hebron; the firstborn Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; the second Daniel, of Abigail the Carmelitess: Now these were the sons of David, which were born unto him in Hebron; the firstborn Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; the second Daniel, of Abigail the Carmelitess:
The opening nine chapters of 1 Chronicles are almost wholly filled with genealogies. The books of Chronicles and Kings are parallel books, with Chronicles giving more of the details of Judah while Kings deals with the ten-tribe division of the kingdom. This verse records David's family, naming the sons born to him in Hebron and naming their mothers. One of David's sons was named Daniel, showing that the name Daniel was not uncommon.
The verse belongs to genealogical records that preserve hereditary descent needed after the exile for assigning land and carrying out temple service. It is part of the carefully preserved genealogy of the tribe of Judah through which Christ came, showing the preservation of the records of God's children and the integrity of the tribes. The genealogies of Judah and Levi remained unbroken until Christ's first advent, since Jesus came from Judah and David's family and the Aaronic priesthood continued until it was superseded by Christ's priesthood. Its place in a carefully preserved genealogy illustrates that God keeps a faithful record of each person.
Such long records of names and chronology may seem dry and uninteresting and are not equally interesting or valuable to every person. Such records can hold knowledge for scholars and reveal the breadth of the Bible's purpose for people of different capacities. Beautiful gems crop out to illuminate the tedious records. The verse shows that one person can be firstborn by birth while the birthright and pre-eminence are given to another, explaining why Jesus is called the Firstborn of the dead because of His pre-eminence and because His offering and work bring others from the dead.