GESSUR (Hebr. Gēšūr). — 1. An Aramaean region, present-day Gōlān, between the Lake Batanea (v.) to the east, between the Aramaean principality of Maacha to the north and Galaad to the south. The small state was later absorbed (ca. 1000 B.C.) by Aram of Damascus. The Gessureans (gēšūrī) are mentioned together with the inhabitants of Maacha (Deut. 3:14; Ios. 12:5; 13:11), probably also in II Sam. 2:9 according to the Syriac version and the Vulgate. Spared by the Israelites (Ios. 13:13), they subsequently occupied some of the cities of Iair (I Par. 2:23).
Maacha, wife of David and mother of Absalom, was the daughter of Tholmai, king of G. (II Sam. 3:3; I Par. 3:2), to whose court Absalom fled after killing Amnon (II Sam. 13:37; 14:23, 32; 15:8).
2. From Ios. 13:2 and I Sam. 27:8 it appears that the Gessureans existed as a small Amalekite kingdom south of Philistia and east of the Egyptian frontier. Left unconquered by Josue (Ios. 31:2), it was conquered by David (I Sam. 27:8). It is not known what relationship existed between them and the former Gessureans.