Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897)/Eleazar

Eleazar, God has helped. (1.) The third son of Aaron Ex 6:23 His wife, a daughter of Putiel, bore him Phinehas  Ex 6:25 After the death of Nadab and Abihu  Le 10:12 Nu 3:4 he was appointed to the charge of the sanctuary  Nu 3:32 On Mount Hor he was clothed with the sacred vestments, which Moses took from off his brother Aaron and put upon him as successor to his father in the high priest's office, which he held for more than twenty years  Nu 20:25-29 He took part with Moses in numbering the people  Nu 26:3,4 and assisted at the inauguration of Joshua. He assisted in the distribution of the land after the conquest Jos 14:1 The high-priesthood remained in his family till the time of Eli, into whose family it passed, till it was restored to the family of Eleazar in the person of Zadok  1Sa 2:35 comp. 1Ki 2:27 "And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him in a hill that pertained to Phinehas his son" Jos 24:33 The word here rendered "hill" is Gibeah, the name of several towns in Palestine which were generally on or near a hill. The words may be more suitably rendered, "They buried him in Gibeah of Phinehas", i.e., in the city of Phinehas, which has been identified, in accordance with Jewish and Samaritan traditions, with Kefr Ghuweirah='Awertah, about 7 miles north of Shiloh, and a few miles south-east of Nablus. "His tomb is still shown there, overshadowed by venerable terebinths." Others, however, have identified it with the village of Gaba or Gebena of Eusebius, the modern Khurbet Jibia, 5 miles north of Guphna towards Nablus.

(2.) An inhabitant of Kirjath-jearim who was "sanctified" to take charge of the ark, although not allowed to touch it, while it remained in the house of his father Abinadab 1Sa 7:1,2  comp. Nu 3:31 4:15

(3.) The son of Dodo the Ahohite, of the tribe of Benjamin, one of the three most eminent of David's thirty-seven heroes 1Ch 11:12 who broke through the Philistine host and brought him water from the well of Bethlehem  2Sa 23:9,16

(4.) A son of Phinehas associated with the priests in taking charge of the sacred vessels brought back to Jerusalem after the Exile Ezr 8:33

(5.) A Levite of the family of Merari 1Ch 23:21,22