Kohen Kohen (, ; , ، Arabic كاهن , Kahen) is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic Priest#Judaism, priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. They are traditionally believed, and halakha, halakhically required, to ...

Eleazar Eleazar (; ) or Elazar was a priest in the Hebrew Bible, the second High Priest, succeeding his father Aaron after he died. He was a nephew of Moses. Biblical narrative Eleazar played a number of roles during the course of the Exodus, from ...

Aaron According to the Old Testament of the Bible, Aaron ( or ) was an Israelite prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of Moses. Information about Aaron comes exclusively from religious texts, such as the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament ...

High Priest of Israel In Judaism, the High Priest of Israel (, lit. ‘great priest’; Aramaic: ''Kahana Rabba'') was the head of the Israelite priesthood. He played a unique role in the worship conducted in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple in Jerusalem, ...

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

Solomon Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), Kingdom of Israel and Judah, according to the Hebrew Bible. The successor of his father David, he is described as having been the penultimate ...

Absalom Absalom ( , ), 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 siste ...

First Temple Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple (), was a biblical Temple in Jerusalem believed to have existed between the 10th and 6th centuries BCE. Its description is largely based on narratives in the Hebrew Bible, in which it was commis ...

Ezekiel Ezekiel, also spelled Ezechiel (; ; ), was an Israelite priest. The Book of Ezekiel, relating his visions and acts, is named after him. The Abrahamic religions acknowledge Ezekiel as a prophet. According to the narrative, Ezekiel prophesied ...

sons of Zadok The Sons of Zadok () or Zadokites is a lineage of priests (kohen, kohanim) descended from Zadok that is described in the prophecies of Ezekiel. Zadok himself was the first High Priest of Israel, high priest in Solomon's Temple (10th century BCE) ...

paganism Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. ''

Eleazar Eleazar (; ) or Elazar was a priest in the Hebrew Bible, the second High Priest, succeeding his father Aaron after he died. He was a nephew of Moses. Biblical narrative Eleazar played a number of roles during the course of the Exodus, from ...

the son of

Aaron According to the Old Testament of the Bible, Aaron ( or ) was an Israelite prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of Moses. Information about Aaron comes exclusively from religious texts, such as the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament ...

the

high priest The term "high priest" usually refers either to an individual who holds the office of ruler-priest, or to one who is the head of a religious organisation. Ancient Egypt In ancient Egypt, a high priest was the chief priest of any of the many god ...

. The lineage of Zadok is presented in the genealogy of

Ezra Ezra ( fl. fifth or fourth century BCE) is the main character of the Book of Ezra. According to the Hebrew Bible, he was an important Jewish scribe (''sofer'') and priest (''kohen'') in the early Second Temple period. In the Greek Septuagint, t ...

(his descendant) as being of ninth generation of direct patrilineal descent from

Phinehas According to the Hebrew Bible, Phinehas (also spelled Phineas, ; , ''Phinees'', ) was a priest during the Exodus. The grandson of Aaron and son of Eleazar, the High Priests (), he distinguished himself as a youth at Shittim with his zeal again ...

the son of Eleazar. A certain Zadok had been one of those who joined David at

Hebron Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...

and helped him win the crown of all

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, his house then including twenty-two captains.

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of pr ...

identifies this Zadok with the high priest of the same name. During the rebellion of Absalom, Zadok the priest is mentioned, as he and the

Levite Levites ( ; ) or Levi are Jewish males who claim patrilineal descent from the Tribe of Levi. The Tribe of Levi descended from Levi, the third son of Jacob and Leah. The surname ''Halevi'', which consists of the Hebrew definite article "" ''Ha-' ...

s wished to accompany the fleeing David and bring along the

Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant, also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, was a religious storage chest and relic held to be the most sacred object by the Israelites. Religious tradition describes it as a wooden storage chest decorat ...

, but the king instructed Zadok to remain at

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, where he and Abiathar could do him better service, so that it actually happened that

Ahimaaz Ahimaaz ( ''ʾĂḥīmaʿaṣ'', "My Brother Is Counselor") was son of the high priest Zadok. Ahimaaz first appears in the reign of King David (reigned c. 1000-962 BCE). During Absalom's revolt he remained faithful to David, and, along with Jon ...

, the son of Zadok, along with

Jonathan Jonathan may refer to: *Jonathan (name), a masculine given name Media * ''Jonathan'' (1970 film), a German film directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer * ''Jonathan'' (2016 film), a German film directed by Piotr J. Lewandowski * ''Jonathan'' (2018 ...

, the son of

Abiathar Abiathar ( ''ʾEḇyāṯār'', "father (of) abundance"/"abundant father"), in the Hebrew Bible, is a son of Ahimelech or Ahijah, Kohen Gadol, High Priest at Nob, Israel, Nob, the fourth in descent from Eli (Bible), Eli and the last of Eli's Ho ...

, brought the fleeing king a life saving message. In all these passages Zadok is mentioned in precedence to Abiathar. Zadok was also chief officer over the Aaronites. The term high priest is not used in the Hebrew scriptures from the time of Joshua until the reign of Joash. Both Zadok and Abiathar functioned in tandem as priests at the time of David's hasty exit from Jerusalem. When David first set up his cabinet, Zadok and

Abiathar Abiathar ( ''ʾEḇyāṯār'', "father (of) abundance"/"abundant father"), in the Hebrew Bible, is a son of Ahimelech or Ahijah, Kohen Gadol, High Priest at Nob, Israel, Nob, the fourth in descent from Eli (Bible), Eli and the last of Eli's Ho ...

, the son of

Ahimelech Ahimelech ( ''ʾĂḥīmeleḵ'', "my brother is king"/"brother of a king") was an Israelite priest and served as the grand priest of the town of Nob. In the Book of Samuel, he was described as the son of Ahitub and father of Abiathar (), ...

, were named as priests. On the suppression of the

Absalom Absalom ( , ), 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 siste ...

rebellion, King David sent Zadok and Abiathar to the elders of Judah, urging them to hasten to bring the monarch back. Subsequently, when

Adonijah According to 2 Samuel, Adonijah (, ''’Ǎḏōnīyyā''; "my lord is Yah") was the fourth son of King David. His mother was Haggith as recorded in the book of . Adonijah was born at Hebron during the long conflict between David and the House o ...

endeavored to secure the throne, Abiathar sided with him, leading king Solomon (David's son) to expel him from Jerusalem and reinforce the sole chief-priesthood of Zadok, who, along with

Nathan the Prophet Nathan ( 'given'; ) is a prophet in the Hebrew Bible. His actions are described in the Books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles (especially , ). Biblical accounts Nathan was a court prophet in the time of King David. He is introduced in and as ...

, supported King Solomon's accession to throne. In gratitude, Solomon appointed him sole high priest. Zadok also officiated at the

anointing Anointing is the ritual, ritual act of pouring aromatic oil over a person's head or entire body. By extension, the term is also applied to related acts of sprinkling, dousing, or smearing a person or object with any perfumed oil, milk, butter, ...

ceremony of Solomon as king. In Zadok is named as the leader of the priests who served "before the tabernacle of the Lord at the

high place High places (, singular ''bamā'') are simple hilltop installations with instruments of religion: platforms, altars, standing stones, and cairns are common. Along with open courtyard shrines and sacred trees or groves, they were some of the mos ...

that was at Gibeon", although he is later recorded as working alongside Ahimelech devising a schedule of priestly service to support David's preparations for the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Zadok's sons were

Ahimaaz Ahimaaz ( ''ʾĂḥīmaʿaṣ'', "My Brother Is Counselor") was son of the high priest Zadok. Ahimaaz first appears in the reign of King David (reigned c. 1000-962 BCE). During Absalom's revolt he remained faithful to David, and, along with Jon ...

and

Azariah Azariah ( ''‘Ǎzaryāh'', " Yah has helped") is the name of several people in the Hebrew Bible and Jewish history, including: * Abednego, the new name given to Azariah who is the companion of Daniel, Hananiah, and Mishael in the Book of Daniel ( ...

. His descendants who held the high priesthood up to the destruction of Solomon's Temple, the First Temple and, following the building of the second temple, resumed the high priesthood, as per Joshua the High Priest (along with

Ezra Ezra ( fl. fifth or fourth century BCE) is the main character of the Book of Ezra. According to the Hebrew Bible, he was an important Jewish scribe (''sofer'') and priest (''kohen'') in the early Second Temple period. In the Greek Septuagint, t ...

) being of Zadokite lineage.

The Zadokite dynasty

In rabbinic literature

According to the Bible,

Aaron According to the Old Testament of the Bible, Aaron ( or ) was an Israelite prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of Moses. Information about Aaron comes exclusively from religious texts, such as the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament ...

received a perpetual priestly covenant by which his descendants, and only his descendants, would be priests. According to some commentaries, the priesthood was further restricted to descendants of Aaron's son

Eleazar Eleazar (; ) or Elazar was a priest in the Hebrew Bible, the second High Priest, succeeding his father Aaron after he died. He was a nephew of Moses. Biblical narrative Eleazar played a number of roles during the course of the Exodus, from ...

after Eleazar inherited Aaron's priestly robes (), and further restricted to descendants of Eleazar's son Pinchas after Pinchas performed his act of zealotry. Nevertheless, later on the high priesthood was held by Eli (biblical figure), Eli, a descendant of Itamar (Eleazar's brother). Torah commentators attribute this to Pinchas' later sins. But upon the sin of Eli's sons, Hophni and Phinehas, a "man of God" prophesied the extinction of their priesthood: This prophecy was fulfilled when Zadok, who was descended from Eleazar and Pinchas, was appointed as high priest.

History of Zadokites

Historical data show that the high-priesthood remained in the progeny of the Zadokites from the time of Zadok up until the rise of the Hasmoneans, in about 167 BCE. The descendants of Zadok increased in rank and influence, so that his son Azariah was one of the princes of Solomon () and

Ahimaaz Ahimaaz ( ''ʾĂḥīmaʿaṣ'', "My Brother Is Counselor") was son of the high priest Zadok. Ahimaaz first appears in the reign of King David (reigned c. 1000-962 BCE). During Absalom's revolt he remained faithful to David, and, along with Jon ...

, who married a daughter of Solomon, was probably another of Zadok's sons (). Either Zadok himself or his grandson was the ruler of the Aaronite priests (), and Jerusha, the mother of Jotham, is apparently termed the daughter of Zadok to emphasize her noble lineage, since her father may have been a descendant of the first Zadok (; ). The house of Zadok occupied the high priesthood through much of the Second Temple period, from Jehoshua ben Jehozadak after the Exile, down to Simon II (High Priest), Simon II (Simon the Just, much praised in Ben Sira 50), his eldest son Onias III, and his usurping second son Jason, who introduced the programme of Hellenisation that eventually led to the Maccabean Revolt. Josephus records that Onias IV went to Leontopolis (Heliopolis), Leontopolis in the Egyptian nome of Heliopolis (Ancient Egypt), Heliopolis with a significant following, and for lending military support to the Ptolemaic dynasty, Ptolemaic Pharaoh was given land to build List of Jewish temples, a rival temple to the Temple in Jerusalem, one in Jerusalem (although

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of pr ...

also ascribes this to Onias III, while dating the project so as to suggest Onias II). It has been suggested that Onias or members of his Zadokite house may have also founded the community at Qumran.

Other theories about Zadok

Cornelis de Vos - The Anointing of Solomon

Some have speculated that as Zadok does not appear in the text of Samuel until after the conquest of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, he was actually a Jebusite priest co-opted into the Israelite state religion. Harvard Divinity School Professor Frank Moore Cross refers to this theory as the "Jebusite Hypothesis", criticising it extensively, although he terms it the dominant view among contemporary scholars. Elsewhere in the Bible, the Jebusites are described in a manner that suggests that they worshipped the same God (El Elyon) as the Israelites, in the case of Melchizedek. Further support for this theory comes from the fact that other Jebusites or residents of pre-Israelite Jerusalem bore names invoking the principle or god Zedek (''Tzedek'') (see, for example, the names Melchizedek and Adonizedek). Under this theory the Aaronic lineage ascribed to Zadok (High Priest), Zadok is a later, anachronistic interpolation.

Other Zadoks

Abraham Geiger was of the opinion that the Sadducee ("Tzadoki" in Mishnaic pronunciation) sect of Judaism drew their name from Zadok, with the leaders of the sect proposed as the sons of Zadok. However, Rabbinic Judaism, Rabbinic sources describe the Sadducee and Boethusian groups have originated at the same time, with their founders, ''Zadok'' and ''Boethus'', both being students of Antigonus of Sokho (roughly 3rd century BCE). A Rabbi Zadok, one of the tannaim, is mentioned as saved in Talmud in connection with the destruction of the Second Temple.Talmud Bavli Gittin 56b

Patrilineal ancestry

As per 1 Chronicles chapter 6:

References

{{Authority control 10th-century BCE high priests of Israel People from the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy) Jebusites Books of Kings people

Hebrew Bible

The Zadokite dynasty

In rabbinic literature

History of Zadokites

Other theories about Zadok

Other Zadoks

Patrilineal ancestry

See also

References