ISB ~ Mark 2 v26
when Abiathar was high priest:The priest who provided David with bread was actually Ahimelech, Abiatharās father (1 Sam 21:1). This apparent discrepancy causes some modern scholars to accuse Jesus of misquoting Scripture, although this conclusion is unnecessary.
ā¢ Jesus probably mentioned Abiathar instead of Ahimelech to post a warning for the Pharisees. Abiathar is infamous in OT history as the last high priest of his line, who was banished from Jerusalem and the priesthood for opposing Solomon, the son of David and the heir of his kingdom (1 Kings 2:26-27). He thus represents the end of an old order that passes away with the coming of Davidās royal successor. As Jesus compares himself and the disciples with David and his men, he likewise draws the Pharisees into the story by casting them as figures like Abiathar. The Pharisees, then, represent an old order of covenant leadership that is about to expire, and if they persist in their opposition to Jesus, the new heir of the Davidic kingdom, they will meet the same disastrous fate that befell Abiathar. Jesusā allusion to this OT tradition was a subtle yet strategic way to caution the Pharisees against their antagonism to his ministry.