Amasa

An Ishmaelite, in the time of the United Monarchy · Arabia · named in 11 verses

the name means burden Strong's Lexicon

Amasa, the son of Jether and Abigail (David's sister), was a military commander who served under Absalom and later David, but was killed by Joab.

From Easton's Bible Dictionary

Burden. (1.) The son of Abigail, a sister of king David (1 Chr. 2:17; 2 Sam. 17:25). He was appointed by David to command the army in room of his cousin Joab (2 Sam. 19:13), who afterwards treacherously put him to death as a dangerous rival (2 Sam. 20:4-12).

Easton's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 1897 — public domain, quoted in full and unedited.

Family

Parents Abigail, Jether

From STEPBible's TIPNR genealogy data. A relationship the data marks uncertain is not shown here.

First named at 2 Samuel 17:25.

See Amasa in the family tree →

Verses that name Amasa

2 Samuel 17:25 Absalom had appointed Amasa over the army in place of Joab. Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra, the Ishmaelite who had married Abigail, the daughter of Nahash and sister of Zeruiah the mother of Joab.
2 Samuel 19:13 And say to Amasa, ‘Aren’t you my flesh and blood? May God punish me, and ever so severely, if from now on you are not the commander of my army in place of Joab!’”
2 Samuel 20:4 Then the king said to Amasa, “Summon the men of Judah to come to me within three days, and be here yourself.”
2 Samuel 20:5 So Amasa went to summon Judah, but he took longer than the time allotted him.
2 Samuel 20:8 And while they were at the great stone in Gibeon, Amasa joined them. Now Joab was dressed in military attire, with a dagger strapped to his belt. And as he stepped forward, he slipped the dagger from its sheath.
2 Samuel 20:9 “Are you well, my brother?” Joab asked Amasa. And with his right hand Joab grabbed Amasa by the beard to kiss him.
2 Samuel 20:10 Amasa was not on guard against the dagger in Joab’s hand, and Joab stabbed him in the stomach and spilled out his intestines on the ground. And Joab did not need to strike him again, for Amasa was dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba son of Bichri.
2 Samuel 20:12 But Amasa wallowed in his blood in the middle of the road, and when the man saw that all the troops were stopping there, he dragged the body off the road into a field and threw a garment over it.
1 Kings 2:5 Moreover, you know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me—what he did to Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether, the two commanders of the armies of Israel. He killed them in peacetime to avenge the blood of war. He stained with the blood of war the belt around his waist and the sandals on his feet.
1 Kings 2:32 The LORD will bring his bloodshed back upon his own head, for without the knowledge of my father David he struck down two men more righteous and better than he when he put to the sword Abner son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army.
1 Chronicles 2:17 Abigail was the mother of Amasa, whose father was Jether the Ishmaelite.