Kareah(careah)
“Bald, or bald head”
Summary
The father of Johanan and Jonathan, military leaders who supported Gedaliah, the Babylonian-appointed governor of Judah after the fall of Jerusalem.
☩Father of Johanan
Kareah (also spelled Careah in some translations) is known exclusively as the father of Johanan and Jonathan, who played significant roles in the turbulent period following the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon. His sons were among the military captains who came to Gedaliah at Mizpah after the Babylonian conquest, pledging their loyalty to the new governor appointed by Nebuchadnezzar. Johanan son of Kareah warned Gedaliah of Ishmael's plot to assassinate him, but the governor refused to believe the warning. After Ishmael murdered Gedaliah and fled, Johanan pursued him and rescued the captives he had taken, though Ishmael himself escaped to the Ammonites.
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Kareah," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. V (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Kareah," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. III (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.George Morrish, "Kareah," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).
- 4.F. N. Peloubet & M. A. Peloubet (ed.), "Kareah," in Smith's Bible Dictionary (Porter & Coates, 1884).