Reference: Abishai
American
A son of Zeruiah, David's sister, brother of Joab and Asahel, one of the bravest of David's mighty men, 1Ch 2:16, and always faithful to his royal uncle. He went with him alone to the tent of Saul, 1Sa 26:7-11; and was a leader in the war with Ish-bosheth, 2Sa 2.18,24, in the war with the Edomites, 1Ch 18:12-13, and with the Syrians and Ammonites,
2Sa 10:10. In a battle with the Philistines, he rescued David, and slew Ishbi-benob the giant, 2Sa 21:16-17. He lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, 2Sa 23:18; and was with David in the affairs of Shimei, Absalom, and Sheb, 2Sa 16:9; 18:2; 20:6-7.
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So David and Abishai came to the army [by] night, and {there was} Saul lying asleep in the encampment with his spear thrust into the ground near his head, and Abner and the army [were] lying all around him. Then Abishai said to David, "God has handed over your enemy into your hand today! So then, {please let me pin him to the ground with the spear} {one time}, and {I will not strike him twice}." read more. But David said to Abishai, "Do not destroy him! For who has stretched out his hand against Yahweh's anointed one and remained blameless?" And David said, "{As Yahweh lives}, {certainly} Yahweh will strike him, or his day will come and he will die, or he will go down in the battle and {perish}. {Yahweh forbid me} from stretching out my hand against Yahweh's anointed one! So then, please take the spear that [is] near his head and the jar of water, and let us go."
The rest of the army he placed into the hand of his brother Abishai, who {arranged them in battle lines} to meet the {Ammonites}.
Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please let me go over and take off his head."
David sent forth a third of the troops {under the command of Joab}, and a third {under the command of Abishai}, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and the remaining third {under the command of Ittai} the Gittite. And the king said to the troops, "I, even I, {will certainly go out} with you."
Then David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bicri will do us more harm than Absalom. You take the servants of your lord and pursue after him, lest he find fortified cities for himself and escape from us." Then the men of Joab, the Kerethites and the Pelethites, and all the mighty warriors went out after him; they went out from Jerusalem to pursue after Sheba the son of Bicri.
Now Yishbi in Nob, who [was] among the descendents of Raphah (now the weight of his spearhead [was] three hundredweight of bronze, and he [was] newly armed), said that he would kill David. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and he attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, "You shall not go out with us any longer to the battle, so that you do not quench the lamp of Israel."
Now Abishai the brother of Joab the son of Zeruiah [was] himself the leader of the thirty. He [was] wielding his spear against three hundred slain and {gained a name} among the thirty.
And their sisters [were] Zeruiah and Abigail. The sons of Zeruiah: Abishai, Joab, and Asahel, three.
And Abishai son of Zeruiah defeated eighteen thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt. And he put garrisons in Edom, and all Edom became servants to David. And Yahweh delivered David wherever he went.
Easton
father of (i.e., "desirous of") a gift, the eldest son of Zeruiah, David's sister. He was the brother of Joab and Asahel (2Sa 2:18; 1Ch 2:16). Abishai was the only one who accompanied David when he went to the camp of Saul and took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul's bolster (1Sa 26:5-12). He had the command of one of the three divisions of David's army at the battle with Absalom (2Sa 18:2,5,12). He slew the Philistine giant Ishbi-benob, who threatened David's life (2Sa 21:15-17). He was the chief of the second rank of the three "mighties" (2Sa 23:18-19; 1Ch 11:20-21); and on one occasion withstood 300 men, and slew them with his own spear (2Sa 23:18). Abishai is the name of the Semitic chief who offers gifts to the lord of Beni-Hassan. See illustration facing page 10.
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Then David got up and came to the place where Saul had encamped, and David saw the place where Saul [was] lying down, {as well as} Abner the son of Ner, the commander of his army. (Now Saul [was] lying in the encampment, and the army [was] encamping around him.) David answered and said to Ahimelech the Hittite and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah the brother of Joab, saying, "Who will go down with me to Saul, in the camp?" And Abishai said, "I will go down with you." read more. So David and Abishai came to the army [by] night, and {there was} Saul lying asleep in the encampment with his spear thrust into the ground near his head, and Abner and the army [were] lying all around him. Then Abishai said to David, "God has handed over your enemy into your hand today! So then, {please let me pin him to the ground with the spear} {one time}, and {I will not strike him twice}." But David said to Abishai, "Do not destroy him! For who has stretched out his hand against Yahweh's anointed one and remained blameless?" And David said, "{As Yahweh lives}, {certainly} Yahweh will strike him, or his day will come and he will die, or he will go down in the battle and {perish}. {Yahweh forbid me} from stretching out my hand against Yahweh's anointed one! So then, please take the spear that [is] near his head and the jar of water, and let us go." So David took the spear and the jar of water from [near] Saul's head, and they went [away]. {No one saw, no one knew, and no one awakened}, for all of them [were] sleeping because a deep sleep of Yahweh had fallen upon them.
The three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab and Abishai and Asahel. Now Asahel [was] swift with his feet as one of the gazelles which [is] in the open field.
David sent forth a third of the troops {under the command of Joab}, and a third {under the command of Abishai}, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and the remaining third {under the command of Ittai} the Gittite. And the king said to the troops, "I, even I, {will certainly go out} with you."
The king ordered Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, "With respect to the young man Absalom, [deal] gently for me." And all the troops heard when the king ordered all of the commanders concerning the matter of Absalom.
The man said to Joab, "{Even if I felt the weight} of a thousand pieces of silver in my palms, I would not have sent my hand against the son of the king, for in our ears the king commanded you and Abishai and Ittai, 'Whoever you may be, protect the young man Absalom.'
There [was] war again for [the] Philistines with Israel, and David and his servants with him went down, and they fought [the] Philistines, and David grew weary. Now Yishbi in Nob, who [was] among the descendents of Raphah (now the weight of his spearhead [was] three hundredweight of bronze, and he [was] newly armed), said that he would kill David. read more. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and he attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, "You shall not go out with us any longer to the battle, so that you do not quench the lamp of Israel."
Now Abishai the brother of Joab the son of Zeruiah [was] himself the leader of the thirty. He [was] wielding his spear against three hundred slain and {gained a name} among the thirty.
Now Abishai the brother of Joab the son of Zeruiah [was] himself the leader of the thirty. He [was] wielding his spear against three hundred slain and {gained a name} among the thirty. Among the thirty, is it not that he [was] honored and became a commander for them? But he did not come up to the three
Fausets
("father of gifts".) Nephew of David by his sister Zeruiah; brother of Joab and Asahel. Joab was more of the experienced general, Abishai the devoted champion for David. Thus, when David proposed to Ahimelech the Hittite and Abishai the perilous visit to Saul's camp, Abishai instantly volunteered, reckless of personal danger. His impulsive nature needed occasional checking, in his zeal for David. We find the consistency of character maintained throughout the history; the same spirit prompting the request at Hachilah," Let me smite Saul" (1Sa 26:8), as subsequently at Bahurim, when Shimei cursed David, prompted his exclamation "Why should this dead dog curse my Lord the king? let me take off his head" (2Sa 16:9).
He commanded one third of David's army at the battle with Absalom (2 Samuel 18), and rescued David when waxing faint and in imminent peril from the giant Ishbi-benob (2Sa 21:15-17). In the same war probably he, as chief of the three "mighties," chivalrously broke through the Philistine host to procure water for David from the well of his native Bethlehem (2Sa 23:14-17). Once he withstood 300 and slew them with his spear. In 2Sa 8:13 the victory over the 15,000 Edomites or Syrians in the Valley of Salt is ascribed to David; in 1Ch 18:12, to Abishai. Probably the commander in chief was David, but the victory actually gained by Abishai.
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Then Abishai said to David, "God has handed over your enemy into your hand today! So then, {please let me pin him to the ground with the spear} {one time}, and {I will not strike him twice}."
Then Abishai said to David, "God has handed over your enemy into your hand today! So then, {please let me pin him to the ground with the spear} {one time}, and {I will not strike him twice}."
So David made a name for himself when he returned from defeating Aram in the Valley of Salt, eighteen thousand.
So David made a name for himself when he returned from defeating Aram in the Valley of Salt, eighteen thousand.
Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please let me go over and take off his head."
Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please let me go over and take off his head."
There [was] war again for [the] Philistines with Israel, and David and his servants with him went down, and they fought [the] Philistines, and David grew weary.
There [was] war again for [the] Philistines with Israel, and David and his servants with him went down, and they fought [the] Philistines, and David grew weary. Now Yishbi in Nob, who [was] among the descendents of Raphah (now the weight of his spearhead [was] three hundredweight of bronze, and he [was] newly armed), said that he would kill David.
Now Yishbi in Nob, who [was] among the descendents of Raphah (now the weight of his spearhead [was] three hundredweight of bronze, and he [was] newly armed), said that he would kill David. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and he attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, "You shall not go out with us any longer to the battle, so that you do not quench the lamp of Israel."
But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and he attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, "You shall not go out with us any longer to the battle, so that you do not quench the lamp of Israel."
Now at that time, David [was] in the stronghold, and a garrison of [the] Philistines [was] in Bethlehem at that [same] time
Now at that time, David [was] in the stronghold, and a garrison of [the] Philistines [was] in Bethlehem at that [same] time David {said longingly}, "{Oh that someone would bring me a drink} of water from the well of Bethlehem that [is] at the gate."
David {said longingly}, "{Oh that someone would bring me a drink} of water from the well of Bethlehem that [is] at the gate." So three of the mighty warriors broke into the camp of [the] Philistines, and they drew water from the well of Bethlehem that [was] at the gate, and they carried [it] and brought [it] to David. But he [was] not willing to drink it, but poured it out to Yahweh.
So three of the mighty warriors broke into the camp of [the] Philistines, and they drew water from the well of Bethlehem that [was] at the gate, and they carried [it] and brought [it] to David. But he [was] not willing to drink it, but poured it out to Yahweh. He said, "Far be it from me before Yahweh that I should do this. [Is this not] the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?" So he [was] not willing to drink it. These things the three mighty warriors did.
He said, "Far be it from me before Yahweh that I should do this. [Is this not] the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?" So he [was] not willing to drink it. These things the three mighty warriors did.
And Abishai son of Zeruiah defeated eighteen thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt.
And Abishai son of Zeruiah defeated eighteen thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt.
Hastings
Son of Zeruiah, David's step-sister (2Sa 17:25; 1Ch 2:16). His brothers were Joab and Asahel (2Sa 2:18). He was a hot-tempered, ruthless soldier. Accompanying David into Saul's camp, he would fain have killed the sleeper (1Sa 26:7). An editorial addition (2Sa 3:30) associates him with Joab in the blood-revenge taken on Abner. Abishai was second in command of the army (2Sa 10; 18), and if we make a slight necessary correction at 2Sa 23:18 f., we find that he was first of the famous thirty. He is credited with the slaughter of three hundred foes, and David once owed his life to Abishai's interposition (2Sa 23:18; 21:16 f.). Notwithstanding their relationship and their usefulness, there was a natural antipathy between the king and the two brothers (2Sa 3:39).
J. Taylor.
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So David and Abishai came to the army [by] night, and {there was} Saul lying asleep in the encampment with his spear thrust into the ground near his head, and Abner and the army [were] lying all around him.
The three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab and Abishai and Asahel. Now Asahel [was] swift with his feet as one of the gazelles which [is] in the open field.
So Joab and Abishai, his brother, killed Abner because he had killed Asahel, their brother, at Gibeon in the battle.
I [am] weak today even though anointed king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, [are] crueler than I [am]. May Yahweh pay them back for doing wickedness according to their [own] wickedness."
Absalom had appointed Amasa in place of Joab over the army. Now Amasa [was] the son of a man whose name [was] Ithra the Israelite, {who had married} Abigail the daughter of Nahash the sister of Zeruiah, the mother of Joab.
Now Yishbi in Nob, who [was] among the descendents of Raphah (now the weight of his spearhead [was] three hundredweight of bronze, and he [was] newly armed), said that he would kill David.
Now Abishai the brother of Joab the son of Zeruiah [was] himself the leader of the thirty. He [was] wielding his spear against three hundred slain and {gained a name} among the thirty.
Now Abishai the brother of Joab the son of Zeruiah [was] himself the leader of the thirty. He [was] wielding his spear against three hundred slain and {gained a name} among the thirty.
Morish
Abish'ai
Son of David's sister Zeruiah, and brother of Joab. He was one of David's officers and served him many years. He accompanied David into Saul's camp while he slept. 1Sa 26:6-9. With Joab he slew Abner. 2Sa 3:30. In his zeal for David he asked permission to slay Shimei. 2Sa 16:9; 19:21. In the rebellion of Absalom he commanded a third of David's army. 2Sa 18:2. He rescued David from Ishbi-benob the giant. 2Sa 21:17. He was captain of the second three of David's 'mighty men,' and slew three hundred men. 2Sa 23:18. To him is attributed the slaughter of eighteen thousand Syrians or Edomites in the valley of salt. 1Ch 18:12; 2Sa 8:13.
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David answered and said to Ahimelech the Hittite and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah the brother of Joab, saying, "Who will go down with me to Saul, in the camp?" And Abishai said, "I will go down with you." So David and Abishai came to the army [by] night, and {there was} Saul lying asleep in the encampment with his spear thrust into the ground near his head, and Abner and the army [were] lying all around him. read more. Then Abishai said to David, "God has handed over your enemy into your hand today! So then, {please let me pin him to the ground with the spear} {one time}, and {I will not strike him twice}." But David said to Abishai, "Do not destroy him! For who has stretched out his hand against Yahweh's anointed one and remained blameless?"
So Joab and Abishai, his brother, killed Abner because he had killed Asahel, their brother, at Gibeon in the battle.
Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please let me go over and take off his head."
David sent forth a third of the troops {under the command of Joab}, and a third {under the command of Abishai}, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and the remaining third {under the command of Ittai} the Gittite. And the king said to the troops, "I, even I, {will certainly go out} with you."
Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah responded and said, "Because of this, should not Shimei be put to death, for he cursed the anointed one of Yahweh?"
But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and he attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, "You shall not go out with us any longer to the battle, so that you do not quench the lamp of Israel."
Now Abishai the brother of Joab the son of Zeruiah [was] himself the leader of the thirty. He [was] wielding his spear against three hundred slain and {gained a name} among the thirty.
And Abishai son of Zeruiah defeated eighteen thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt.
Watsons
ABISHAI, the son of Zeruiah, David's sister, who was one of the most valiant men of his time, and one of the principal generals in David's armies.