Abiathar Summary
STEPBible TIPNR
Abiathar, son of Ahimelech, was a high priest who served during the reigns of David and Solomon.
son of Ahimelech, the priest (1SA 22:20), counselor to David (1CH 27:34)
Lineage: God › Adam › Seth › Enos › Cainan › Mahalaleel › Jared › Enoch › Methuselah › Lamech › Noah › Shem › Arphaxad › Cainan › Salah › Eber › Peleg › Reu › Serug › Nahor › Terah › Abraham › Isaac › Jacob › Levi › Kohath › Amram › Aaron › Ithamar › Unnamed#1 › Unnamed#2 › Unnamed#3 › Unnamed#4 › Eli › Phinehas › Ahitub › Ahimelech › Abiathar
Names
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en
Abiathar
excellent father; father of the remnant
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en
Abiathar
· Also called · H54 G8 · 1SA 22:20 [my] father gives abundance or the father is preeminent
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he
אֶבְיָתָ֑ר
avəiyatar · H54 · 1SA 22:20 [my] father gives abundance or the father is preeminent
- he אֶבְיָתָר · H0054
- el Ἀβιαθάρ Abiathár · G8 · 1SA 22:20
- bg Авиатар
Mentioned in (29)
1 Sam 22:20
1 Sam 22:21
1 Sam 22:22
1 Sam 23:6
1 Sam 23:9
1 Sam 30:7
2 Sam 8:17
2 Sam 15:24
2 Sam 15:27
2 Sam 15:29
2 Sam 15:35
2 Sam 15:36
2 Sam 17:15
2 Sam 19:11
2 Sam 20:25
1 Kgs 1:7
1 Kgs 1:19
1 Kgs 1:25
1 Kgs 1:42
1 Kgs 2:22
1 Kgs 2:26
1 Kgs 2:27
1 Kgs 2:35
1 Kgs 4:4
1 Chr 15:11
1 Chr 18:16
1 Chr 24:6
1 Chr 27:34
Mark 2:26
SDA Books
Awaiting permission to publishLinked through an explicitly cited Bible passage
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Conditional birth estimate
Conditional birth bounds under generation assumptions; not attested parental ages, biological limits or a lifespan.
The anchors give incompatible conditional intervals. This calculation establishes no birth year.
Below are relatives with a selected birth year, the generations separating them, and the interval allowed by each anchor. Each relative’s page shows available dates and sources. The overall estimate uses the intersection of the allowed intervals.
| Relative / anchor year | Generations | Conditional interval |
|---|---|---|
| Eli · 1167 BC Ancestor |
4 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1087 BC – 987 BC |
| Aaron · 1573 BC Ancestor |
10 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1373 BC – 1123 BC |
| Amram · 1688 BC Ancestor |
11 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1468 BC – 1193 BC |
| Kohath · 1705 BC Ancestor |
12 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1465 BC – 1165 BC |
| Levi · 1748 BC Ancestor |
12 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1508 BC – 1208 BC |
| Jacob · 1835 BC Ancestor |
13 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1575 BC – 1250 BC |
| Isaac · 1895 BC Ancestor |
14 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1615 BC – 1265 BC |
| Rebekah · 1876 BC Ancestor |
14 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1596 BC – 1246 BC |
| Pharez · 1722 BC Ancestor |
14 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1442 BC – 1092 BC |
| Abraham · 1995 BC Ancestor |
15 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1695 BC – 1320 BC |
| Sarah · 1985 BC Ancestor |
15 20–45 years per generation |
c. 1685 BC – 1310 BC |
| Terah · 2125 BC Ancestor |
16 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1725 BC – 45 BC |
| Nahor · 2156 BC Ancestor |
17 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1731 BC – AD 55 |
| Haran · 2056 BC Ancestor |
17 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1631 BC – AD 155 |
| Serug · 2186 BC Ancestor |
18 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1736 BC – AD 155 |
| Reu · 2218 BC Ancestor |
19 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1743 BC – AD 253 |
| Peleg · 2248 BC Ancestor |
20 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1748 BC – AD 353 |
| Eber · 2282 BC Ancestor |
21 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1757 BC – AD 449 |
| Salah · 2312 BC Ancestor |
22 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1762 BC – AD 549 |
| Arphaxad · 2347 BC Ancestor |
24 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1747 BC – AD 774 |
| Shem · 2447 BC Ancestor |
25 25–130 years per generation |
c. 1822 BC – AD 804 |
| Noah · 2948 BC Ancestor |
26 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2298 BC – AD 433 |
| Lamech · 3130 BC Ancestor |
27 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2455 BC – AD 381 |
| Methuselah · 3317 BC Ancestor |
28 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2617 BC – AD 324 |
| Enoch · 3382 BC Ancestor |
29 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2657 BC – AD 389 |
| Jared · 3544 BC Ancestor |
30 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2794 BC – AD 357 |
| Mahalaleel · 3609 BC Ancestor |
31 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2834 BC – AD 422 |
| Cainan · 3679 BC Ancestor |
32 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2879 BC – AD 482 |
| Cain · 4004 BC Ancestor |
32 25–130 years per generation |
c. 3204 BC – AD 157 |
| Enos · 3769 BC Ancestor |
33 25–130 years per generation |
c. 2944 BC – AD 522 |
| Adam · 4004 BC Ancestor |
33 25–130 years per generation |
c. 3179 BC – AD 287 |
| Eve · 4005 BC Ancestor |
33 25–130 years per generation |
c. 3180 BC – AD 286 |
| Seth · 3874 BC Ancestor |
34 25–130 years per generation |
c. 3024 BC – AD 547 |
Abiathar Article
STEPBible TIPNR
Abiathar was the son of Ahimelech, a priest at Nob. When King Saul ordered the execution of the priests at Nob, Abiathar was the only one who escaped and fled to David (1Sa 22:20-23). He brought with him the ephod, a sacred priestly garment used for seeking God's will (1Sa.23.6,9). Abiathar remained loyal to David throughout his reign, serving as one of his chief priests (2Sa.8.17; 15.24-36; 19.11; 20.25). However, near the end of David's life, Abiathar supported Adonijah's attempt to become king instead of Solomon (1Ki.1.7,19,25). When Solomon became king, he removed Abiathar from the priesthood, fulfilling the prophecy against the house of Eli (1Ki.2.26-27,35). Abiathar is also mentioned in the New Testament by Jesus, who referred to an incident during Abiathar's time as high priest (Mrk 2:26).
Abiathar Dictionary
Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897)
Father of abundance, or my father excels, the son of Ahimelech the high priest. He was the tenth high priest, and the fourth in descent from Eli. When his father was slain with the priests of Nob, he escaped, and bearing with him the ephod, he joined David, who was then in the cave of Adullam (1 Sam. 22:20-23; 23:6). He remained with David, and became priest of the party of which he was the leader (1 Sam. 30:7). When David ascended the throne of Judah, Abiathar was appointed high priest (1 Chr. 15:11; 1 Kings 2:26) and the “king’s companion” (1 Chr. 27:34). Meanwhile Zadok, of the house of Eleazar, had been made high priest. These appointments continued in force till the end of David’s reign (1 Kings 4:4). Abiathar was deposed (the sole historical instance of the deposition of a high priest) and banished to his home at Anathoth by Solomon, because he took part in the attempt to raise Adonijah to the throne. The priesthood thus passed from the house of Ithamar (1 Sam. 2:30-36; 1 Kings 1:19; 2:26, 27). Zadok now became sole high priest. In Mark 2:26, reference is made to an occurrence in “the days of Abiathar the high priest.” But from 1 Sam. 22, we learn explicitly that this event took place when Ahimelech, the father of Abiathar, was high priest. The apparent discrepancy is satisfactorily explained by interpreting the words in Mark as referring to the life-time of Abiathar, and not to the term of his holding the office of high priest. It is not implied in Mark that he was actual high priest at the time referred to. Others, however, think that the loaves belonged to Abiathar, who was at that time (Lev. 24:9) a priest, and that he either himself gave them to David, or persuaded his father to give them.
Sources: BibleData (CC BY 4.0, Abiathar_1) · STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0, Abiathar@1Sa.22.20-Mrk) · Theographic Bible Metadata (CC BY-SA 4.0, abiathar_20)