ABIJAH (Heb. Abiyyah and Abiyyahu, "Yah is.

See also:

• FATHER

father")  , a name borne by nine different persons mentioned in the Old Testament, of whom the most noteworthy are the following . (I) The son and successor of Rehoboam, king of Judah (2 Chron. xii. reigned about two years (918—915 B.C.) . The ac-counts of him in the books of Kings and Chronicles are very conflicting (compare r Kings xv . 2 and .2 Chron. xi.2o with 2 Chron. xiii.2) . The Chronicler tells us that he has drawn his facts from the Midrash (Commentary) of the prophet Iddo . This is perhaps sufficient to explain the character of the narrative . (2) The second sonof Samuel (I Sam. viii . 2; I Chron vi . 28 [13]) . He and his brother Joel judged at Beersheba . Their misconduct was made by the elders of Israel a pretext for demanding a king (I Sam. viii . 4) .

(3) A son of

Jeroboam I., king of Israel; he died young (1 Sings xiv. r if., 17), (4) Head of the eighth order of priests (1 Chron. xxiv . To), the order to which Zacharias, the father of . John the Baptist, belonged (Luke i . 5) . The alternative form Abijam is probably a mistake, though it is upheld by M . Jastrow .