Geshur (Biblical Hebrew: גְּשׁוּר, romanized: Gəšūr) was a territory in the ancient Levant mentioned in the early books of the Hebrew Bible and possibly in several other ancient sources, located in the region of the modern-day Golan Heights. Some scholars suggest it was established as an independent city-state during the early Iron Age from the middle of the tenth century BCE, maintaining its autonomy for about a century until it was annexed in the third quarter of the eighth century by Tiglath-Pileser III, the king of Assyria.
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👉 Geshur in the context of Tamar (daughter of David)
Tamar (Hebrew: תָּמָר) was an Israelite princess. Born to David and Maacah, who was from Geshur, she was the only full sibling of Absalom. She is described in the Hebrew Bible as being exceptionally beautiful, as is her brother. In the narrative of 2 Samuel 13, she is raped by her paternal half-brother Amnon (born to David and Ahinoam, who was from Jezreel) before fleeing with torn robes to Absalom's house; David is angered by the incident, but does nothing, as Amnon is his heir apparent. Absalom, infuriated by the rape and David's inaction, keeps Tamar in his care and later assassinates Amnon to avenge her, subsequently fleeing to Geshur, which is ruled by his and Tamar's maternal grandfather Talmai. Three years later, he returns to Israel and leads an armed revolt against the House of David, but is killed by David's nephew and army commander Joab during the Battle of the Wood of Ephraim. Tamar is described as being left "a desolate woman in her brother's house" and the sole guardian of her orphaned niece, who is also named Tamar.
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Geshur in the context of Golan Heights
The Golan Heights, or simply the Golan, is a basaltic plateau at the southwest corner of Syria. It is bordered by the Yarmouk River in the south, the Sea of Galilee and Hula Valley in the west, the Anti-Lebanon mountains with Mount Hermon in the north and Wadi Raqqad in the east. It hosts vital water sources that feed the Hasbani River and the Jordan River. Two thirds of the area was depopulated and occupied by Israel following the 1967 Six-Day War and then effectively annexed in 1981. The international community largely considers the area Israeli-occupied Syrian territory. The United States recognized it as part of Israel in 2019 during the first Trump administration. In 2024, Israel occupied parts of the remaining one third of the area.
The earliest evidence of human habitation on the Golan dates to the Upper Paleolithic period. It was home to the biblical Geshur, and was later incorporated into Aram-Damascus, before being ruled by several foreign and domestic powers, including the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Itureans, Hasmoneans, Romans, Ghassanids, several caliphates, and the Mamluk Sultanate. It was ruled by the Ottoman Empire from the 16th century until its collapse, and subsequently became part of the French Mandate in Syria and the State of Damascus in 1923. When the mandate terminated in 1946, it became part of the newly independent Syrian Arab Republic, spanning about 1,800 km (690 sq mi).
Geshur in the context of Maacah
Maacah (or Maakah; Hebrew: מַעֲכָה Maʿăḵā, "crushed"; Maacha in the Codex Alexandrinus, Maachah in the KJV) is a non-gender-specific personal name used in the Bible to refer to a number of people.
- A child of Abraham's brother Nahor, son of Terah by his concubine Reumah. (Genesis 22:23,24)
- The wife of Machir, Manasseh's son. (1 Chronicles 7:15-16)
- One of the wives of Hezron's son Caleb. (1 Chronicles 2:48)
- A wife of David, and daughter of Talmai, King of Geshur (1 Chronicles 3:2), a near neighbor of the Maachathites. David fathered Absalom and Tamar by her.
- A King of Gath, to whose son, Achish, Shimei's servants fled early in Solomon's reign (1 Kings 2:39). About a half-century earlier than this event, David had fled to Achish, son of Maoch, King of Gath, with 600 men (1 Samuel 27:2). Still, the identification of Maacah is doubtful, though kinship is exceedingly probable.
- Granddaughter of Absalom, favorite wife of Rehoboam, mother of Abijah of Judah, and grandmother of Asa of Judah. She served as Gebirah for Asa until he deposed her for idolatry. (1 Kings 15:1-14, 2 Chronicles 11:20-22, 2 Chronicles 15:16)
- The wife of Yechiel. (1 Chronicles 8:29)
- The father of Hanan, who was a man in David's army. (1 Chronicles 11:43)
- The father of Shephatiah, an office man in David's time. (1 Chronicles 27:16)
Geshur in the context of Absalom
Absalom (Hebrew: אֲבִישָׁלֹֽום, romanized: ʾAḇīšālōm, lit. 'Father of Peace'), according to the Hebrew Bible, was an Israelite prince. Born to David and Maacah, who was from Geshur, he was the only full sibling of Tamar. He is described in the Hebrew Bible as being exceptionally beautiful, as is his sister. In the narrative of 2 Samuel 13, his sister Tamar takes refuge at his house after she is raped by their paternal half-brother Amnon (born to David and Ahinoam, who was from Jezreel); David is angered by the incident, but does nothing, as Amnon is his heir apparent. Infuriated by the rape and David's inaction, Absalom assassinates Amnon and subsequently flees to Geshur, which is ruled by his and Tamar's maternal grandfather Talmai.
Following three years in exile, he returns to Israel and rallies popular support against the House of David. A war ensues when Absalom's rebels mobilize at Hebron and begin fighting David's army in an attempt to overthrow him, but their revolt ends in failure when Absalom is killed by David's nephew and army commander Joab during the Battle of the Wood of Ephraim. In the aftermath of his death, Absalom's sister is described as being left "a desolate woman in her brother's house" and the sole guardian of his orphaned daughter, who is also named Tamar.