Editing Abiathar (section)

==In rabbinic literature==
The rescue of the chief priest Abiathar, in the massacre of the priests of Nob ordered by Saul, was fortunate for the house of David; for if he had lost his life, David's descendants would through divine retaliation have been entirely wiped out of existence at the hands of Athaliah.<ref>Sanhedrin 95b</ref> It was David's acts that had really brought about the death of the priests, and to make amends he appointed Abiathar high priest. Abiathar retained the office until he was deserted by the Holy Spirit, without which the high priest could not successfully consult the [[Urim and Thummim]].<ref name=je/> When David, on his flight from Absalom, recognized this loss in Abiathar, he felt compelled to put Zadok in his place.<ref>See [[Seder Olam Rabbah]] 14; Yoma 73b; Sotah 48b; Berachot 4a (Rashi); Sanhedrin 21a. Compare also Ginzberg, "Haggada bei den Kirchenvätern," i., on II Sam. xv. 24, 25.</ref> Abiathar's removal from the Priesthood fulfilled that other part of the curse on the House of Eli—that the Priesthood would pass out of the House of Eli.