Mahath
מַחַת/MAY-hath/
“Grasping or snatching”
Summary
Mahath was the name of two Kohathite Levites: an ancestor of the prophet Samuel, and a Temple official who served during King Hezekiah's reformation.
☩Ancestor of Samuel
The first Mahath was a Kohathite Levite, son of Amasai and father of Elkanah, appearing in the genealogy of the prophet Samuel. He may be the same person elsewhere called Ahimoth. He lived around 1375 BC in the period before Israel's monarchy.
Key verses:1 Chronicles 6:35
☩Official Under Hezekiah
Another Mahath, also a Kohathite, participated in King Hezekiah's reformation around 726 BC. He was among the Levites who cleansed the Temple after Ahaz's defilement of it, and was subsequently appointed one of the subordinate overseers of the sacred revenues and offerings under Conaniah and Shimei.
Key verses:2 Chronicles 29:122 Chronicles 31:13
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Mahath," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. V (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Mahath," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. III (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.F. N. Peloubet & M. A. Peloubet (ed.), "Mahath," in Smith's Bible Dictionary (Porter & Coates, 1884).