Abijah

Morrish Bible Dictionary

1. Son and successor of Rehoboam, king of Judah. He began to reign in the eighteenth year of Jeroboam, king of Israel (B.C. 958) and reigned three years. He walked in the sin of his father Rehoboam, but for David's sake he was placed on the throne, that, as Jehovah had said, David might have 'a light alway before me in Jerusalem.'  1 Kings 11:36;  1 Kings 15:4 . "There waswarbetween Abijah and Jeroboam," and Abijah by a patriotic address to Israel sought to recover the ten tribes. This could not be; for the rupture in the kingdom had been brought about by God on account of their wickedness. Nevertheless Abijah trusted in Jehovah while he did not fail to rebuke Israel touching the golden calves they had erected. God smote Jeroboam and all Israel, and there fell 500,000 chosen men of Israel. Abijah also took the cities of Bethel, Jeshanah and Ephrain; and Jeroboam was not able to recover strength all the days of Abijah.  2 Chronicles 13 . In the above war Israel had 800,000 chosen men, and Judah 400,000. These numbers, together with the number slain, have been much called in question by critics, who say they ought to be 80,000 and 40,000, and 50,000 slain; which numbers are to be found in some of the early Latin copies and also in some early copies of Josephus. But the numbers in the Hebrew scriptures must have the preference: and what is there improbable in the numbers when we compare them with the number of men 'that drew sword' when David last numbered the people?  1 Chronicles 21:5 . Israel had 1,100,000; Judah had 470,000 and this was without Levi and Benjamin, who were not counted. This was about fifty years before the battle, ample time (notwithstanding the loss at the pestilence that followed the numbering) for a large increase. In  2 Samuel 24:9 , the number of fighting men in Israel is given as only 800,000. It is supposed that this does not include the standing army, which according to  1 Chronicles 27:1 , amounted to 24,000 x12 = 288,000, which with its officers would be about 300,000, and this added to 800,000 = 1,100,000. On the other hand, the fighting men of Judah are in Samuel said to be 500,000. David may have had 30,000 with him at Jerusalem, from whence Joab went out, which may be here included, but which are not included in  1 Chronicles 21:5 .

Abijah 'waxed mighty and married fourteen wives;' which may have been a snare to him.  2 Chronicles 13:1-22 . He is called Abijam in  1 Kings 14:31;  1 Kings 15:1-8; and ABIA in  1 Chronicles 3:10;  Matthew 1:7 .

2. Son of Jeroboam I., king of Israel. His mother disguised herself and went to Ahijah the prophet to inquire whether her child should recover from his sickness. Jehovah revealed to the prophet who it was that came to him, and he told out to the mother the heavy judgement that should befall her husband and his house; but because there was "some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel" in Abijah, he should come to his grave peacefully. In mercy he was taken from the coming judgement. As his mother came to the threshold of the door the child died.  1 Kings 14:1-17 .

3. Descendant of Eleazar who gave his name to the eighth of the twenty-four courses of priests.  1 Chronicles 24:10 . The same is called ABIA in  Luke 1:5 .

4. Daughter of Zechariah and mother of Hezekiah  2 Chronicles 29:1 : contracted into ABI in2Kings 18:2.

5. One ormore of the priests who returned from the captivity, one of whom sealed the covenant.  Nehemiah 10:7;  Nehemiah 12:4   17

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

("father of Jehovah," i.e. one whose will is that of God), or ABIJAM  1 Kings 15:1;  2 Chronicles 13:1 (called Abijah in Chronicles, not in Kings, because in the former his character is not represented as contrary to Jah's will, as it is in the latter; Abia in  Matthew 1:7).

1. Son and successor of Rehoboam, king of Judah (Clinton, 959 s.c.; Hales, 973); in the 18th year of Jeroboam I of Israel ( 1 Kings 14:31;  2 Chronicles 12:16). He endeavored to recover the ten tribes to Judah, and made war on Jeroboam. His speech on mount Zemaraim in mount Ephraim, before the battle, urged on Jeroboam the justice of his cause, that God had given the kingdom to David and his sons forever "by a covenant of salt," and that Judah had the regular temple service and priesthood, whereas Israel had made golden calves their idols, and had cast out the priests; therefore "fight not ye against the Lord God of your fathers, for ye shall not prosper" (2 Chronicles 13).

Judah's appeal to God, in a crisis of the battle, when the enemy by an ambushment was both before and behind them, brought victory to their side; they took also Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephraim. 400,000 men are assigned to Abijah's army, 800,000 to Jeroboam's, of whom 500,000 fell. Kennicott thinks the numbers an error of transcribers for 40,000, 80,000, 50,000; and so Abarbanel. Elated by success, he multiplied his wives, like Solomon, and by his 14 wives had 22 sons and 16 daughters. Prosperity tempted him into the wickedness which is attributed to him in Kings; men may boast of temple privileges, yet love carnal practices ( Jeremiah 7:4-5). His reign lasted three years. His mother was Maachah ( 1 Kings 15:2), or Michaiah ( 2 Chronicles 13:2), doubtless named from her grandmother, Absalom's mother ( 2 Samuel 3:3). She was daughter of Uriel, of Gibeah, and granddaughter of Abishalom, or Absalom ( 1 Chronicles 11:20). "Daughter" in Scripture often means granddaughter, a generation being skipped. Abijah thus was descended from David on both father's and mother's side. Uriel had married Tamar, Absalom's beautiful daughter ( 2 Samuel 14:27).

2. Son of Jeroboam I, "in whom alone of Jeroboam's house some good thing was found toward the Lord God of Israel" ( 1 Kings 14:13); therefore, he alone was permitted to go down to the grave in peace. Jeroboam had sent his wife in disguise with a present to the prophet (See Ahijah (see). Blind with age, he yet knew her and announced the tidings, sad to her but honoring to her son. So Abijah died, and "all Israel mourned for him."

3.  1 Chronicles 24:10. Only four returned of the 24 courses of the priesthood, of which Abijah's course was not one ( Ezra 2:36-39;  Nehemiah 7:39-42;  Nehemiah 12:1). But the four were divided into the original 24, with the original names. Hence, Zacharias, father of John the Baptist, is described as "of the course of Abia" ( Luke 1:5).

4. Wife of Ahaz, and mother of good Hezekiah; perhaps a descendant of the Zechariah slain between the temple and the altar ( 2 Chronicles 24:21;  2 Chronicles 26:5;  2 Chronicles 29:1); certainly daughter of Zechariah, probably the one through whom Uzziah sought God.

Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament

ABIJAH ( אַבִיָה, Ἁβιά, ‘Jah is my father’: or more probably without the particularizing pronoun, ‘Jah is father’).—. Son of Rehoboam ( Matthew 1:7) by Maacah ( 2 Chronicles 11:20—see art. ‘Maacah’ No. 3 in Hastings’ B [Note: Dictionary of the Bible.] iii. 180). Abijah reigned over Judah from about b.c. 920, and the impressions made by him are given with some variety in  1 Kings 15:3 and by a later tradition in  2 Chronicles 13:4-22. His name is introduced by St. Matthew simply as a link in the pedigree, in which it is shown that Jesus was both of Jewish and of royal stock.

2. A descendant of Eleazar, son of Aaron. The name was attached to the eighth of the twenty-four courses into which the priests were alleged to have been divided by David ( 1 Chronicles 24:10). Members of only four courses seem to have returned from the Captivity ( Nehemiah 7:39-42,  Ezra 2:36-39;  Ezra 10:18-22). According to Jerus. [Note: Jerusalem.] Talm. [Note: Talmud.] Taanith , iv. 68, these men were divided into twenty-four courses with a view to restore the ancient arrangement. The authority for this statement is not of the best kind; but the statement itself is substantially confirmed by  Nehemiah 12:1-7, where twenty-two groups are referred to (in  Nehemiah 12:12-21 the number has fallen to twenty-one, and two of the courses are grouped under a single representative), and by  Ezra 8:2, where two other priestly families are mentioned. Slight changes were probably made in the classification during the process of the resettlement of the country; but by the time of the Chronicler the arrangement seems to have become fixed. The course of Abijah is not mentioned amongst those that returned from the Exile; but in one of the later rearrangements the name was attached to a course that afterwards included Zacharias ( Luke 1:5). Each course was on duty for a week at a time, but all were expected to officiate as needed at the three great annual festivals. It is not possible with our present materials to determine exactly how the various services were divided amongst the members of a course, or at what times in the year Zacharias would be on duty. Nor does his inclusion in the course of Abijah carry with it lineal descent through that line from Aaron.

R. W. Moss.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

• 1Chronicles 7:8.
• 1Chronicles 2:24.
• The second son of Samuel (1Samuel 8:2; 1Chronicles 6:28). His conduct, along with that of his brother, as a judge in Beer-sheba, to which office his father had appointed him, led to popular discontent, and ultimately provoked the people to demand a royal form of government.
• A descendant of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, a chief of one of the twenty-four orders into which the priesthood was divided by David (1Chronicles 24:10). The order of Abijah was one of those which did not return from the Captivity ( Ezra 2:36-39;  Nehemiah 7:39-42;  12:1 ).
• The son of Rehoboam, whom he succeeded on the throne of Judah (1Chronicles 3:10). He is also called Abijam (1Kings 14:31; 15:1-8). He began his three years' reign (2Chronicles 12:16; 13:1,2) with a strenuous but unsuccessful effort to bring back the ten tribes to their allegiance. His address to "Jeroboam and all Israel," before encountering them in battle, is worthy of being specially noticed (2Chronicles 13:5-12). It was a very bloody battle, no fewer than 500,000 of the army of Israel having perished on the field. He is described as having walked "in all the sins of his father" (1Kings 15:3;  2 Chronicles 11:20-22 ). It is said in 1Kings 15:2 that "his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom;" but in 2Chronicles 13:2 we read, "his mother's name was Michaiah, the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah." The explanation is that Maachah is just a variation of the name Michaiah, and that Abishalom is probably the same as Absalom, the son of David. It is probable that "Uriel of Gibeah" married Tamar, the daughter of Absalom (2Samuel 14:27), and by her had Maachah. The word "daughter" in 1Kings 15:2 will thus, as it frequently elsewhere does, mean grand-daughter.
• A son of Jeroboam, the first king of Israel. On account of his severe illness when a youth, his father sent his wife to consult the prophet Ahijah regarding his recovery. The prophet, though blind with old age, knew the wife of Jeroboam as soon as she approached, and under a divine impulse he announced to her that inasmuch as in Abijah alone of all the house of Jeroboam there was found "some good thing toward the Lord," he only would come to his grave in peace. As his mother crossed the threshold of the door on her return, the youth died, and "all Israel mourned for him" (1Kings 14:1-18).
• The daughter of Zechariah (2Chronicles 29:1; Compare  Isaiah 8:2 ), and afterwards the wife of Ahaz. She is also called Abi (2Kings 18:2).
• One of the sons of Becher, the son of Benjamin (1Chronicles 7:8). "Abiah," A.V.

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

ABIJAH . 1 . Son and successor of Rehoboam (  2 Chronicles 13:1 ), also called Abijam (  1 Kings 14:31 ). The accounts of him in the Books of Kings and Chronicles are discrepant. The difference begins with the name of his mother, which 2 Ch. gives as Micaiah , daughter of Uriel of Gibeah, while 1Kings. makes her to have been Maacah , daughter of Abishalom. As the latter is also the name of Asa’s mother (  1 Kings 15:10 ,   2 Chronicles 15:16 ), there is probably some confusion in the text. Beyond this, the Book of Kings tells us only that he reigned three years, that he walked in the sins of his father, and that he had war with Jeroboam, king of Israel. 2 . Samuel’s second son (  1 Samuel 8:2 ). The RV [Note: Revised Version.] retains the spelling Abiah in   1 Chronicles 6:28 .   1 Chronicles 6:3 . A son of Jeroboam I. who died in childhood (  1 Kings 14:1-31 ). 4 . One of the ‘heads of fathers’ houses’ of the sons of Eleazar, who gave his name to the 8th of the 24 courses of priests (  1 Chronicles 24:3;   1 Chronicles 24:10 ,   2 Chronicles 8:14 ). To this course Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, belonged (  Luke 1:5 ). The name occurs also in the lists of priests who ‘went up with Zerubbabel’ (  Nehemiah 12:4 ), and of those who ‘sealed unto the covenant’ in the time of Nehemiah (  Nehemiah 10:7 ). 5 . A son of Becher, son of Benjamin,   1 Chronicles 7:8 .   1 Chronicles 7:6 . Wife of Hezron, eldest son of Perez, son of Judah,   1 Chronicles 2:24 , RV [Note: Revised Version.] Abiah. 7 . Wife of Ahaz, and mother of Hezekiah (  2 Chronicles 29:1 ), named Abi in   2 Kings 18:2 .

H. P. Smith.

People's Dictionary of the Bible

Abijah ( A-Bî'Jah ), Whose Father Is Jehovah. 1. A son of Jeroboam I., king of Israel, who died under interesting circumstances in early life.  1 Kings 14:1. See Jeroboam. 2. Abijah Or Abijam,  2 Chronicles 13:1, the son of Rehoboam and Michaiah, succeeded his father as king of Judah, b.c. 959. He made war against Jeroboam, king of Israel, for the purpose of getting back the kingship of the ten tribes, and defeated him, with a loss of 500,000 men. These figures are probably through a copyist's mistake made too large; the loss, it is likely, was not greater than 50,000. He began to reign in the eighteenth year of Jeroboam, and was succeeded by his son Asa in the twentieth year of Jeroboam, so that he reigned only a part of three years. The apparent contradiction in respect to the parentage of this person, as it is given in  1 Kings 15:2 and  2 Chronicles 13:2, may be explained by supposing that his mother Maachah (or Michaiah) was the daughter of Uriel and the granddaughter of Absalom, who is called Abishalom.  1 Kings 15:2. The term "daughter" is given in the Bible to other relatives than one's own child; E.G., to a niece, granddaughter, or great-granddaughter. 3. The head of one of the courses of priests,  1 Chronicles 24:10;  Nehemiah 12:17; termed Abia in  Luke 1:5. 4 The mother of Hezekiah,  2 Chronicles 29:1 : also called Abi in  2 Kings 18:2. 5. One of the priests who "sealed the covenant;" I.E., appended their seals unto it to signify that they were parties to it.  Nehemiah 10:7. 6. A priest who returned with Zerubbabel from Babylon.  Nehemiah 12:4;  Nehemiah 12:17.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Abi'a, Abi'ah, or Abi'jah. (My Father Is Jehovah).

1. Son and successor of Rehoboam on the throne of Judah.  1 Kings 4:21;  2 Chronicles 12:16. He is called Abai, Abiah, or Abijah in Chronicles, Abijam in Kings. He began to reign B.C. 959, and reigned three years. He endeavored to recover the kingdom of the Ten Tribes, and made war on Jeroboam. He was successful in battle, and took several of the cities of Israel. We are told that he walked in all the sins of Rehoboam.  1 Kings 14:23-24.

2. The second son of Samuel, called Abai, Abiah, Abija, or Abia, Course of in our version. See Abai, Abiah, Abijam, or Abia, Course of .

3. Son of Jeroboam I, king of Israel; died in his childhood.  1 Kings 14:1.

4. A descendant of Eleazar, who gave his name to the eighth of the 24 courses into which the priests were divided by David.  1 Chronicles 24:10;  2 Chronicles 8:14;  Nehemiah 12:4;  Nehemiah 12:17.

5. One of the priests who entered into a covenant with Nehemiah to walk in God's law,  Nehemiah 10:7, unless the name is rather that of a family, and the same with the preceding.

Holman Bible Dictionary

 1 Samuel 8:2-5).2 1 Kings 14:1-18).3 1 Kings 15:1 2 Chronicles 11:22 1 Kings 15:3 2 Chronicles 13:10 2 Chronicles 13:15-20 2 Chronicles 13:21 Matthew 1:7 4 1 Chronicles 2:24 5 1 Chronicles 7:8 6 1 Chronicles 24:10 7 Nehemiah 10:7 8 Nehemiah 12:4 Nehemiah 12:17 Luke 1:5 9 2 Chronicles 29:1AbiaAbiah

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

1. Called, in  Luke 1:5 , Abia; founder of a family among the posterity of Aaron. When David divided the priests into twenty-four courses, to perform the temple-service, in turn, the eighth class was called after him,  1 Chronicles 24:10 . To this class of course Zacharias belonged.

2. Son of Jeroboam, the first king of Israel. He died young, and much beloved and lamented, for in him there was found some good thing towards the Lord,  1 Kings 14:1-18

3. Son of Rehoboam, the first king of Judah; called in,  1 Kings 22:53 , Abijam. He came to the throne A.M. 3046, and reigned only three years. In war with Jeroboam he gained a signal victory,  2 Chronicles 13:1-22; yet he followed the evil example of his father. His mother Maachah, or Michaiah, was probably the granddaughter of Absalom,  1 Kings 15:2   2 Chronicles 11:20   13:2

4. The mother of King Hezekiah,  2 Chronicles 29:1 .

Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary

We meet with many of this name in Scripture: and it is not to be wondered at; for it is a very blessed one, compounded of Ab, Father, JAH, Lord, and I, my. Sweet appellation, when a child of God can say, JEHOVAH is my Father! For this is what the Lord himself provided for his people. "But I said, (said the Lord) how shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? And I said, Thou shalt call me my Father! and shalt not turn away from me." ( Jeremiah 3:19.) For the several persons in Scripture, called Abijah, I refer to the several chapters ( 1 Kings 14:1;  1 Chronicles 24:10;  2 Chronicles 29:1;  Nehemiah 10:7.)

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

the son of Jeroboam, the first king of the ten tribes, who died very young,  1 Kings 14:1 , &c. A.M. 3046.—

2. The son of Rehoboam, king of Judah, and of Maachah, the daughter of Uriel, who succeeded his father, A.M. 3046,   2 Chronicles 11:20;  2 Chronicles 13:2 , &c. The Rabbins reproach this monarch with neglecting to destroy the profane altar which Jeroboam had erected at Bethel; and with not suppressing the worship of the golden calves there after his victory over that prince.

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

(Heb. Abiyah', אֲבַיָּה Father [i.e. Possessor Or Worshipper ] Of Jehovah; also in the equivalent protracted form Abiya'hu, אֲבַיָּהוּ ,  2 Chronicles 13:20-21; Sept. and N.T. ‘Αβιά but ‘Αβία in  1 Kings 14:1;  Nehemiah 10:7; ‘Αβίας in  1 Chronicles 24:10;  Nehemiah 12:4;  Nehemiah 12:17; ‘Αβιού v. r. ‘Αβιούδ , in  1 Chronicles 7:8; Josephus, ‘Αβίας , Ant. 7:10, 3; Auth. Vers. ‘ "Abiah" in  1 Samuel 8:2;  1 Chronicles 2:24;  1 Chronicles 6:28;  1 Chronicles 7:8; "Abia" in  1 Chronicles 3:10;  Matthew 1:7;  Luke 1:5), the name of six men and two women. 1. A son of Becher, one of the sons of Benjamin ( 1 Chronicles 7:8). B.C. post 1856.

2. The daughter of Machir, who bore to Hezron a posthumous son, Ashur ( 1 Chronicles 2:24). B.C. cir. 1612.

3. The second son of Samuel ( 1 Samuel 8:2;  1 Chronicles 6:28). Being appointed by his father a judge in Beersheba, in connection with his brother, their corrupt administration induced such popular discontent as to provoke the elders to demand a royal form of government for Israel, B.C. 1093. (See Samuel).

4. One of the descendants of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, and chief of one of the twenty-four courses or orders into which the whole body of the priesthood was divided by David ( 1 Chronicles 24:10), B.C. 1014. Of these the course of Abijah was the eighth. Only four of the courses returned from the captivity, of which that of Abijah was not one ( Ezra 2:36-39;  Nehemiah 7:39-42;  Nehemiah 12:1). But the four were divided into the original number of twenty-four, with the original names; and it hence happens that Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, is described as belonging to the course of Abijah ( Luke 1:5). (See Priest).

5. The second king of the separate kingdom of Judah, being the son of Rehoboam, and grandson of Solomon ( 1 Chronicles 3:10). He is also called ( 1 Kings 14:31;  1 Kings 15:1-8) ABIJAMI (See Abijami) (q.v.). He began to reign B.C. 956, in the eighteenth year of Jeroboam, king of Israel, and he reigned three years ( 2 Chronicles 12:16;  2 Chronicles 13:1-2). At the commencement of his reign, looking on the well-founded separation of the ten tribes from the house of David as rebellion, Abijah made a vigorous attempt to bring them back to their allegiance ( 2 Chronicles 13:3-19). In this he failed; although a signal victory over Jeroboam, who had double his force and much greater experience, enabled him to take several cities which had been held by Israel (see J. F. Bahrdt, De bello Abice et Jerob. Lips. 1760). The speech which Abijah addressed to the opposing army before the battle has been much admired (C. Simeon, Works, 4:96). It was well suited to its object, and exhibits correct notions of the theocratical institutions (Keil, Apolog. d. Chron. p. 336). His view of the political position of the ten tribes with respect to the house of David is, however, obviously erroneous, although such as a king of Judah was likely to take. The numbers reputed to have been present in this action are 800,000 on the side of Jeroboam, 400,000 on the side of Abijah, and 500,000 left dead on the field. Hales and others regard these extraordinary numbers as corruptions, and propose to reduce them to 80,000, 40,000, and 50,000 respectively, as in the Latin Vulgate of Sixtus V, and many earlier editions, and in the old Latin translation of Josephus; and probably also in his original Greek text, as is collected by De Vignoles from Abarbanel's charge against the historian of having made Jeroboam's loss no more than 50,000 men, contrary to the Hebrew text (Kennicott's Dissertations, 1:533; 2:201 sq., 564). See Number The book of Chronicles mentions nothing concerning Abijah adverse to the impressions which we receive from his conduct on this occasion; but in Kings we are told that "he walked in all the sins of his father" ( 1 Kings 15:3). He had fourteen wives, by whom he left twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters ( 2 Chronicles 13:20-22). Asa succeeded him ( 2 Chronicles 14:1;  Matthew 1:7). (See Judah).

There is a difficulty connected with the maternity of Abijah. In  1 Kings 15:2, we read, "His mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom" (comp.  2 Chronicles 11:20;  2 Chronicles 11:22); but in  2 Chronicles 13:2, "His mother's name was Michaiah, the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah." Maachah and Michaiah are variations of the same name; and Abishalom is in all likelihood Absalom, the son of David. The word ( בִּת ) rendered "daughter" (q.v.), is applied in the Bible not only to a man's child, but to his niece, granddaughter, or great-granddaughter. It is therefore possible that Uriel of Gibeah married Tamar, the beautiful daughter of Absalom ( 2 Samuel 14:27), and by her had Maachah, who was thus the daughter of Uriel and granddaughter of Absalom. (See Maachah).

6. A son of Jeroboam 1, king of Israel. His severe and threatening illness induced Jeroboam to send his wife with a present [ (See Gift) ] suited to the disguise in which she went, to consult the prophet Ahijah respecting his recovery. This prophet was the same who had, in the days of Solomon, foretold to Jeroboam his elevation to the throne of Israel. Though blind with age, he knew the disguised wife of Jeroboam, and was authorized, by the prophetic impulse that came upon him, to reveal to her that, because there was found in Abijah only, of all the house of Jeroboam, "some good thing toward the Lord," he only, of all that house, should come to his grave in peace, and be mourned in Israel (see S. C. Wilkes, Family Sermons, 12; C. Simeon, Works, 3, 385; T. Gataker, Sermons, pt. 2:291). Accordingly, when the mother returned home, the youth died as she crossed the threshold of the door. "And they buried him, and all Israel mourned for him" ( 1 Kings 14:1-18), B.C. cir. 782. (See Jeroboam).

7. The daughter of Zechariah, and mother of King Hezekiah ( 2 Chronicles 29:1), and, consequently, the wife of Ahaz, whom she survived, and whom, if we may judge from the piety of her son, she excelled in moral character. She is elsewhere called by the shorter form of the name, ABI (See Abi) ( 2 Kings 18:2). B.C. 726. Her father, may have been the same with the Zechariah, the son of Jeberechiah, whom Isaiah took as a witness of his marriage with "the prophetess" ( Isaiah 8:2; comp.  2 Chronicles 26:5).

8. One of those (apparently priests) who affixed their signatures to the covenant made by Nehemiah ( Nehemiah 10:7), B.C. 410. He is probably the same (notwithstanding the great age this implies) who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel ( Nehemiah 12:4), B.C. 536, and who had a son named Zichri ( Nehemiah 12:17).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

a - bı̄´ja ( אביּהוּ ר אביּה , 'ăbhı̄yāh or 'ăbhı̄yāhū ( 2 Chronicles 13:20 ,  2 Chronicles 13:21 ), "my father is Yahweh," or "Yahweh is father"): The name of six or more men and two women in the Old Testament.

(1) The seventh son of Becher the son of Benjamin ( 1 Chronicles 7:8 ).

(2) The second son of the prophet Samuel ( 1 Samuel 8:2;  1 Chronicles 6:28 (  1 Chronicles 6:13 )).

(3) The eighth among "the holy captains and captains of God" appointed by lot by David in connection with the priestly courses ( 1 Chronicles 24:10 ). Compare "Zacharias of the course of Abijah" ( Luke 1:5 ).

(4) A son of Jeroboam I of Israel (1 Ki 14:1-18). The narrative describes his sickness and his mother's visit to the prophet Ahijah. He is spoken of as the one member of the house of Jeroboam in whom there was "found some good thing toward Yahweh." With his death the hope of the dynasty perished.

(5) The son and successor of Rehoboam king of Judah ( 1 Chronicles 3:10; 2 Ch 11:20 through 14:1). As to the variant name Abijam ( 1 Kings 14:31;  1 Kings 15:1 ,  1 Kings 15:7 ,  1 Kings 15:8 ) see Abijam .

The statements concerning Abijah's mother afford great opportunity for a person who is interested in finding discrepancies in the Bible narrative. She is said to have been Maacah the daughter of Absalom ( 1 Kings 15:2;  2 Chronicles 11:20 ,  2 Chronicles 11:21 ,  2 Chronicles 11:22 ). As more than 50 years elapsed between the adolescence of Absalom and the accession of Rehoboam, the suggestion at once emerges that she may have been Absalom's daughter in the sense of being his granddaughter. But Maacha the daughter of Absalom was the mother of Asa, Abijam's son and successor ( 1 Kings 15:10 ,  1 Kings 15:13;  2 Chronicles 15:16 ). Further we are explicitly told that Absalom had three sons and one daughter ( 2 Samuel 14:27 ). It is inferred that the three sons died young, inasmuch as Absalom before his death built him a monument because he had no son ( 2 Samuel 18:18 ). The daughter was distinguished for her beauty, but her name was Tamar, not Maacah. Finally, the narrative tells us that the name of Abijah's mother was "Micaiah the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah" ( 2 Chronicles 13:2 ).

It is less difficult to combine all these statements into a consistent account than it would be to combine some pairs of them if taken by themselves. When all put together they make a luminous narrative, needing no help from conjectural theories of discrepant sources or textual errors. It is natural to understand that Tamar the daughter of Absalom married Uriel of Gibeah; that their daughter was Maacah, named for her great-grandmother ( 2 Samuel 3:3;  1 Chronicles 3:2 ); that Micaiah is a variant of Maacah, as Abijah is of Abijam. Maacah married Rehoboam, the parties being second cousins on the father's side; if they had been first cousins perhaps they would not have married. Very likely Solomon, through the marriage, hoped to conciliate an influential party in Israel which still held the name of Absalom in esteem; perhaps also he hoped to supplement the moderate abilities of Rehoboam by the great abilities of his wife. She was a brilliant woman, and Rehoboam's favorite ( 2 Chronicles 11:21 ). On Abijah's accession she held at court the influential position of king's mother; and she was so strong that she continued to hold it, when, after a brief reign, Abijah was succeeded by Asa; though it was a position from which Asa had the authority to depose her ( 1 Kings 15:13;  2 Chronicles 15:16 ).

The account in Chronicles deals mainly with a decisive victory which, it says, Abijah gained over northern Israel (2 Ch 13), he having 400,000 men and Jeroboam 800,000, of whom 500,000 were slain. It is clear that these numbers are artificial, and were so intended, whatever may be the key to their meaning. Abijah's speech before the battle presents the same view of the religious situation which is presented in Kings and Amos and Hosea, though with fuller priestly details. The orthodoxy of Abijah on this one occasion is not in conflict with the representation in Kings that he followed mainly the evil ways of his father Rehoboam. In Chronicles coarse luxury and the multiplying of wives are attributed to both father and son.

(6) A priest of Nehemiah's time, who sealed the covenant ( Nehemiah 10:7 ). Conjecturally the same with the one mentioned in  Nehemiah 12:4 ,  Nehemiah 12:17 .

(7) The wife of Judah's grandson Hezron, to whom was traced the origin of Tekoa ( 1 Chronicles 2:24 ).

(8) The mother of King Hezekiah ( 2 Chronicles 29:1 ), called Abi in 2 Ki. See Abi .

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

Abijah, 1

Abi´jah (See signif. in Abiah  2 Chronicles 13:1). He is also called Abijam (1 Kings 15). Abijah was the second king of the separate kingdom of Judah, being the son of Rehoboam, and grandson of Solomon. He began to reign B.C. 957, in the eighteenth year of Jeroboam, king of Israel; and he reigned three years. At the commencement of his reign Abijah made a vigorous attempt to bring back the ten tribes to their allegiance. In this he failed; although a signal victory over Jeroboam, who had double his force and much greater experience, enabled him to take several cities which had been held by Israel. The numbers reputed to have been present in this action are 800,000 on the side of Jeroboam, 400,000 on the side of Abijah, and 500,000 left dead on the field. The book of Chronicles mentions nothing concerning Abijah adverse to the favorable impressions which we receive from his conduct on this occasion; but in Kings we are told that 'he walked in all the sins of his father' ( 1 Kings 15:3). He had fourteen wives, by whom he left twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. Asa succeeded him.

Abijah, 2

Abijah, son of Jeroboam I, king of Israel. His severe and threatening illness induced Jeroboam to send his wife with a present, suited to the disguise in which she went, to consult the prophet Ahijah respecting his recovery. This prophet was the same who had, in the days of Solomon, foretold to Jeroboam his elevation to the throne of Israel. Though blind with age, he knew the disguised wife of Jeroboam, and was authorized, by the prophetic impulse that came upon him, to reveal to her that, because there was found in Abijah only, of all the house of Jeroboam, 'some good thing towards the Lord,' he only, of all that house, should come to his grave in peace, and be mourned in Israel. Accordingly, when the mother returned home, the youth died as she crossed the threshold of the door. 'And they buried him, and all Israel mourned for him' ( 1 Kings 14:1-18).

Abijah, 3

Abijah, one of the descendants of Eleazer, the son of Aaron, and chief of one of the twenty-four courses or orders into which the whole body of the priesthood was divided by David ( 1 Chronicles 24:10;  Luke 1:5). Of these the course of Abijah was the eighth.