Revision #11365
Eleazar (son of Abinadab)
Localized for English-speaking readers
Status: approved
Changes from the previous English revision
= ## Biblical Account
=
- Eleazar appears only in 1 Samuel 7:1. The Philistines fought against Israel and captured the ark of the covenant (1 Samuel 4). After suffering plagues, they sent the ark back to Beth-shemesh in Israelite territory (1 Samuel 5–6). At Beth-shemesh, too, men who looked into the ark died. The people of Beth-shemesh then sent messengers to Kiriath-jearim, asking its inhabitants to come and take the ark (1 Samuel 6:19–21).
+ Eleazar appears only in 1 Samuel 7:1. The Philistines fought against Israel and captured the ark of the covenant (1 Samuel 4). After suffering plagues, they sent the ark back to Beth-shemesh in Israelite territory (1 Samuel 5–6). At Beth-shemesh, too, men who looked into the ark died. The people of Beth-shemesh then sent messengers to Kiriath-jearim to have the ark taken away (1 Samuel 6:19–21).
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- The men of Kiriath-jearim brought the ark "into the house of Abinadab in the hill," and they "sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD." The next verse, 1 Samuel 7:2, records that the ark remained at Kiriath-jearim for twenty years. Scripture records nothing else about Eleazar's life, age, or death.
+ The men of Kiriath-jearim brought the ark "into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD" (1 Samuel 7:1). The following verse, 1 Samuel 7:2, records that the ark remained at Kiriath-jearim for twenty years. Scripture records nothing else about Eleazar's life, age, or death.
=
= ## Significance in Scripture
…
= ## Interpretations and Questions
=
- - **Name**: The Hebrew name is understood to mean "God has helped," and it is the same name as that of Aaron's son Eleazar. The Korean Revised Version and the New Korean Revised Version distinguish this figure by spelling his name differently in Korean (Eliasal rather than Eleazar). He is also a different person from the Eleazar of Matthew 1:15.
- - **Status**: The text does not say whether Eleazar was a Levite or a priest, and commentators are divided on the question. Some believe Abinadab's household was of Levitical descent, while others think the local inhabitants appointed a temporary custodian at a time when the priesthood was in disarray.
+ - **Name**: The Hebrew name is understood to mean "God has helped," and it is the same name as that of Aaron's son Eleazar. Korean Bible translations such as the Korean Revised Version and the New Korean Revised Version spell this figure's name differently in order to distinguish the two. He is also a different person from the Eleazar of Matthew 1:15.
+ - **Status**: The text does not say whether Eleazar was a Levite or a priest, and commentators are divided on the question. Some interpret Abinadab's household as having been of Levitical descent, while others see the local inhabitants as having appointed a temporary custodian at a time when the priesthood was in disarray.
= - **Relationship to Uzzah and Ahio**: Whether Eleazar was a brother of Uzzah and Ahio cannot be determined from the text. Some interpreters read "sons" in 2 Samuel 6:3 broadly, in the sense of descendants.
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= ## In the Korean Church
=
- Sermons or Sunday school lessons devoted specifically to Eleazar are reportedly rare. He is usually mentioned in discussions of the ark's movements, the death of Uzzah, and the blessing of the house of Obed-edom (2 Samuel 6).
+ In Korean churches, sermons and Sunday school lessons devoted specifically to Eleazar are reportedly rare. He is usually mentioned in discussions of the ark's movements, the death of Uzzah, and the blessing of the house of Obed-edom (2 Samuel 6).
Full revision
Eleazar was the son of Abinadab of Kiriath-jearim. He was consecrated to keep the ark of the covenant after it was returned by the Philistines, and he is mentioned only once in Scripture, in 1 Samuel 7:1.
Biblical Account
Eleazar appears only in 1 Samuel 7:1. The Philistines fought against Israel and captured the ark of the covenant (1 Samuel 4). After suffering plagues, they sent the ark back to Beth-shemesh in Israelite territory (1 Samuel 5–6). At Beth-shemesh, too, men who looked into the ark died. The people of Beth-shemesh then sent messengers to Kiriath-jearim to have the ark taken away (1 Samuel 6:19–21).
The men of Kiriath-jearim brought the ark "into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD" (1 Samuel 7:1). The following verse, 1 Samuel 7:2, records that the ark remained at Kiriath-jearim for twenty years. Scripture records nothing else about Eleazar's life, age, or death.
Significance in Scripture
Eleazar belonged to the household in whose care the ark of the covenant remained after its return from the Philistines and before David brought it to Jerusalem. When David later moved the ark, 2 Samuel 6:3 and 1 Chronicles 13:7 mention "the house of Abinadab" and his sons Uzzah and Ahio. Eleazar's name does not appear in these passages. The New Testament does not mention him.
Interpretations and Questions
- Name: The Hebrew name is understood to mean "God has helped," and it is the same name as that of Aaron's son Eleazar. Korean Bible translations such as the Korean Revised Version and the New Korean Revised Version spell this figure's name differently in order to distinguish the two. He is also a different person from the Eleazar of Matthew 1:15.
- Status: The text does not say whether Eleazar was a Levite or a priest, and commentators are divided on the question. Some interpret Abinadab's household as having been of Levitical descent, while others see the local inhabitants as having appointed a temporary custodian at a time when the priesthood was in disarray.
- Relationship to Uzzah and Ahio: Whether Eleazar was a brother of Uzzah and Ahio cannot be determined from the text. Some interpreters read "sons" in 2 Samuel 6:3 broadly, in the sense of descendants.
In the Korean Church
In Korean churches, sermons and Sunday school lessons devoted specifically to Eleazar are reportedly rare. He is usually mentioned in discussions of the ark's movements, the death of Uzzah, and the blessing of the house of Obed-edom (2 Samuel 6).