Asher

Ash´uhr; Heb., “happy”

1 The son of Jacob and Zilpah (Gen 30:12-13) and the eponymous ancestor of the tribe Asher. The name may derive from that of a god, the male counterpart of Asherah or a variant of Ashar, a divine name element in Old Akkadian and Amorite names. 2 The western highlands of Galilee, which constituted the ninth Solomonic district (1Kgs 4:16). The Blessings of Jacob (Gen 49:20) and of Moses (Deut 33:24-25) allude to the fertility of Asher’s land. Asher failed to participate in the battle against Sisera (Judg 5:17), but responded to Gideon’s calls to expel the Midianites (Judg 6:35; Judg 7:23).