Barzillai בַּרְזִלַּי
Grandfather of Michal's adopted sons.
Who is Barzillai in the Bible?
Barzillai the Meholathite was the grandfather of five sons whom Michal, the daughter of King Saul, had adopted (2 Samuel 21:8). These five sons were born to Adriel, Barzillai's son, and Michal raised them as her own. During a famine in Israel, these five descendants of Saul were handed over to the Gibeonites as part of an atonement for Saul's earlier mistreatment of that nation, and they were executed. Barzillai himself is mentioned only this one time in Scripture, serving primarily to establish the genealogical connection between Michal's adopted sons and Saul's royal line, illustrating the consequences of Saul's broken covenant with the Gibeonites.
Biography
Barzillai the Meholathite is briefly mentioned in 2Sa.21.8 as the grandfather of the five sons whom Michal, Saul's daughter, had adopted. These five sons, born to Adriel son of Barzillai, were among the seven descendants of Saul who were handed over to the Gibeonites to be executed as a form of atonement for Saul's earlier mistreatment of the Gibeonites. The passage does not provide any further information about Barzillai the Meholathite himself, and he is not mentioned elsewhere in the Bible. His inclusion in the text serves to identify the lineage of Michal's adopted sons and their connection to Saul's family.
Family
In Scripture
1 biblical book2 Samuel 1 verse
- 2 Samuel 21:8
"But the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons whom Rizpah daughter of Aiah had borne to Saul, as well as the five sons whom Merab daughter of Saul had borne to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite."
Names & Aliases
| Form | Language | Script | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Named | Hebrew | בַּרְזִלַּי | Barzillai , the name of three Israelites |