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1 Samuel 14:3

Old Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does 1 Samuel 14:3 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “and Ahijah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod`s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of Jehovah in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

and Ahijah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod`s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of Jehovah in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone.
1 Samuel 14:3 — American Standard Version

Context — 1 Samuel 14

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
1Now it fell upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said unto the young man that bare his armor, Come, and let us go over to the Philistines` garrison, that is on yonder side. But he told not his father.
2And Saul abode in the uttermost part of Gibeah under the pomegranate-tree which is in Migron: and the people that were with him were about six hundred men;
3and Ahijah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod`s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of Jehovah in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone.
4And between the passes, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the Philistines` garrison, there was a rocky crag on the one side, and a rocky crag on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.
5The one crag rose up on the north in front of Michmash, and the other on the south in front of Geba.
6And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armor, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that Jehovah will work for us; for there is no restraint to Jehovah to save by many or by few.
← 1 Samuel 14:21 Samuel 14:4 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And Ahiah the son of Ahitub, Ichabod’s brother, etc.] Ichabod was the child that Phinehas’s wife bore prematurely on hearing the news of the ark being taken and of the death of her husband and father-in-law, which name she gave him on that account, and died; (see <090419>1 Samuel 4:19-22), he, it seems, had an elder brother, called Ahitub, who died young, and this Ahiah was the son of him; for not he, but Ahitub, was Ichabod’s brother: the son of Phinehas; so Ichabod was: the son of Eli; so Phinehas was: the Lord’s priest in Shiloh; this refers not to Ahiah for he was not now priest in Shiloh, which was destroyed: and besides, he was now in the camp of Saul; but to Eli, who when living…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Whether “Ahiah” or “Ahijah” is the same person as “Ahimelech the son of Ahitub” (see the marginal reference), or whether Ahimelech was the brother or son of Ahijah, and his successor in the priesthood, it is impossible to say certainly. Most probably “Ahijah” and “Ahimilech” are variations of the same name; the latter element in each alone being different, מלך melek (king) being substituted for the divine name יה yâhh. Compare “Eliakim” and “Jehoiakim” 2 Kings 23:34, “Eliab” and “Eliel” 1Ch 6:27, 1 Chronicles 6:34. This fragment of a genealogy is a very valuable help to the chronology. The grandson of Phinehas, the son of Eli, was now High Priest; and Samuel, who was probably a few years…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Ahiah - The same who is called Abimelech, Sa1 22:9, Sa1 22:11, Sa1 22:20, the high - priest, who was here to attend upon the ark which was brought thither, Sa1 14:18. Ephod - The high - priest's ephod, wherein the Urim and Thummim was. 1 Kings (1 Samuel) 14:4”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“14:3 Ahijah the priest was an adviser who could give Saul divine guidance through the ephod (14:18-19; see also 2:18 and corresponding study note; 23:9-10). • son of Eli: Saul, the rejected king (13:13-14), kept in his company a priest from the rejected priesthood (2:27-36). • Ichabod: See 4:21.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Ahiah: Sa1 22:9-12, Sa1 22:20, called Ahimelech. Ichabod's: Sa1 4:21 wearing: Sa1 2:28; Exo 28:26-32 1 Kings (1 Samuel) 14:4”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification