Person Old Testament
Abiel
Also known as Jeiel =ESV, NIV, LQ; Jehiel =KJV, Ner, father [ie re-founder] of, Gibeon
Abiel, also known as Jeiel, Ner, or Abigibeon (or '[re]-founder of Gibeon'), was the father of Kish and grandfather of King Saul. Mentioned in 6 verses across 2 books, first at 1 Samuel 9:1.
Why it matters. Father of Kish and grandfather of King Saul
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Abiel
Abiel, also referred to as Jeiel, Ner, or Abigibeon (or '[re]-founder of Gibeon'), was a Benjaminite and the father of Kish, who was the father of King Saul, Israel's first king. In 1Sa.9.1, Abiel is mentioned as the father of Kish and is described as a mighty man of power. The genealogies in 1Chronicles 8 and 9 provide additional information about Abiel's family.
In 1Ch.8.33 and 1Ch.9.39, he is called Ner, while in 1Ch.8.29 and 1Ch.9.35, he is referred to as Jeiel and Abigibeon or '[re]-founder of Gibeon'. These variations in names suggest that he may have been known by multiple names or that there might have been some discrepancies in the genealogical records. Abiel's son Kish became the father of Saul, who was anointed as the first king of Israel by the prophet Samuel.
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
Connections
No reviewed connections yet.
Family
Family links from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0). Where the dataset marks an identification as uncertain, the mark is kept. Matthew and Luke give different genealogies for Jesus; see the Lineage page, which never merges them.
Appears in Scripture
Named in 6 verses across 2 books. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.