Geshur

Biblical Text

Geshur appears in the Old Testament as "Geshur," "the Geshurites," "the people of Geshur," and "Geshur in Syria" (literally "Geshur of Aram").

• Conquest and settlement accounts: According to Deuteronomy 3:14, Jair of the tribe of Manasseh took all the region of Argob as far as the borders of the Geshurites and the Maachathites. Joshua 12:5 and 13:11 likewise record that the territory of Og king of Bashan extended to the border of the Geshurites and the Maachathites. Joshua 13:13 records that Israel did not expel the Geshurites and the Maachathites, so they continued to live among the Israelites.
• Relationship with the house of David: According to 2 Samuel 3:3 and 1 Chronicles 3:2, the mother of Absalom, the third son born to David in Hebron, was Maacah, daughter of Talmai king of Geshur.
• Absalom's flight: After killing his half-brother Amnon, Absalom fled to his maternal grandfather, Talmai king of Geshur, and remained there for three years (2 Samuel 13:37–38). Afterward Joab went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 14:23). While preparing his rebellion, Absalom said that he had made a vow "while I abode at Geshur in Syria" (2 Samuel 15:8).
• Other references: 1 Chronicles 2:23 records that Geshur and Aram took the towns of Jair.

Background

Geshur appears to have been a small kingdom located north of the Bashan region east of the Jordan River, northeast of the Sea of Galilee. On the basis of the expression "Geshur in Syria" (literally "Geshur of Aram") in 2 Samuel 15:8, it is commonly understood to have been an Aramean kingdom. The location of its center has not been determined with certainty. Some archaeologists have proposed sites such as et-Tell, north of the Sea of Galilee (a site some identify with New Testament Bethsaida), as candidates for the center of the kingdom of Geshur, but scholars differ on the question.

The Southern Geshurites

Joshua 13:2 mentions "all Geshuri" alongside the territory of the Philistines, and 1 Samuel 27:8 records that while David was staying at Ziklag he raided the Geshurites, the Gezrites, and the Amalekites. These Geshurites appear to have lived in the south, between Philistia and Egypt. Scholars are divided on whether they were the same people as the northern kingdom of Geshur or a different group that shared the same name, though most regard them as distinct groups.

Significance in the Whole of Scripture

Geshur is one of the names that illustrate how Israel failed to take full possession of the land of Canaan and came to live among foreign peoples. In 2 Samuel 13–15, which recounts the tragedy of David's house, it also appears as Absalom's place of refuge and as part of the background to the story of his rebellion. The name Geshur does not appear in the New Testament.

Interpretations and Issues

Many commentaries interpret David's marriage to the daughter of the king of Geshur as a political marriage intended to secure an alliance with a neighboring kingdom. Some sermons also connect Absalom's time with his mother's family to his later rebellion. However, since the text neither explains the motive for the marriage nor describes Absalom's life in Geshur in detail, such interpretations should be read as inferences by interpreters rather than as statements of the text itself.