MAACAIT or MAACHAH (ma'a-kah), (Heb. NI) p_, mah-ak-aw., depression).
1. A city and region at the foot of Mount Her mon, not far from Geshur, a district of Syria (Josh. xiii :13; 2 Sam. x:6, 8; t Chron. xix :7). Hence the adjacent portion of Syria is called Aram-Maacah, or Syria of Maachah (t Chron. xix :6). The Israelites seem to have considered this territory as included in their grant, but were never able to get possession of it (Josh. xiii:t3). In the time of David the small state had a king of its own, who contributed 1,000 men to the grand alliance of the Syrian nations against the Jewish monarch (2 Sam. x:6, 8). The lot of the half-tribe of Manasseh beyond the Jordan ex tended to this country, as had previously the dominion of Og, king of Bashan (Deut. iii:14; Josh. xii:5). The Gentile name is Maacathite, which is also put for the people (Deut. :14; Josh. xii :5 ; xiii ; 2 Kings xv :29). Near, or within the ancient lirnits of Maacah, was the town called for that reason Abel beth-Maacah. (See ABEL.) 2. The father of Achish, king of Gath (I Kings ii:39). (B. C. before tow.) 3. The father of Hanan, one of David's worth ies (1 Chron. xi:43). (B. C. before io46.) 4. The father of Shephatiah, the military chief of the Simeonites in the time of David (I Chron. xxvii:16). (B. C. before to14.) 5. A person whose sex does not appear ; one of the offspring of Nahor's concubine Reumah (Gen. xxii :24). (B. C. about 2o46.) 6. A concubine of Caleb (1 Chron. ii:48). (B.
C. before '656.) 7. Granddaughter of Benjamin, who was mar ried to Machir, son of Manasseh (I Chron. vii: 16). (B. C. after i856.) 8. Daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur, wife of David, and mother of Absalom (2 Sam. iii:3). In I Sam. xxvii :8 we read of David's invading the land of the Geshurites, and the Jewish com mentators allege that he then took the daughter of the king captive, and, in consequence of her great beauty, married her, after she had been made a proselyte according to the law in Deut.
xxi. But this is a gross mistake, for the Geshur invaded by David was to the south of Judah, whereas the Geshur over which Talmai ruled was to the north, and was regarded as part of Syria (2 Sam. xv :8). The fact appears to be that David, having married the daughter of this king, contracted an alliance with him, in order to strengthen his interest against Ishbosheth in those parts. (B. C. ro53.) 9. Daughter of Abishalom, wife of Rehoboam, and mother of Abijam (1 Kings xv :t, 2). In verse to we read that Asa's 'mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.' It is evi dent that here 'mother' is used in a loose sense, and means 'grandmother,' which the Maacah named in verse one must have been to the Asa of verse to. It therefore appears to be a great error to make two persons of them, as is done by Calmet and others. The Abishalom who was the father of this Maacah is called Absalom in 2 Chron. xi:20, 21, and is generally supposed by the Jews to have been Absalom the son of David; which seems not improbable, seeing that Reho boam's other two wives were of his father's fam ily (2 Chron. xi:18). Asa commenced his reforms by 'removing her from being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove' 0 Kings xv :13; 2 Chron. xv:t6). B. C. 973-953.
10. Wife of Jehiel and ancestress of king Saul (I Chron. viii:29; ix:35). B. C. about 1658. MAACATH (ma'a-kath). See MAACAH, I. MAACHATHI (ma-alea-thi), (Deut. iii:t4), MAACHATHITES (ma-ak'a-thites), (Hebrew singular with article, 'r.1.3P,F1, ham-mah-ak-aw thee', once, Josh. xiii:13, mah-ak-awth').
The inhabitants of the kingdom of Maacah, of Syria, or of Beth-maacah in Naphtali (Josh. xii; 5 ; 2 Sam. xxiii :34). Individual Maachathites are mentioned in 2 Sam. xxiii:34; Jer. x1:8; 2 Kings xxv :23; Chron. iv:19.