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Matthew George Easton
Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition (1897) · 3,964 entries on site
Full of hollows, a town in the highlands of Judah ( Josh. 15:58 ). It is now a small village of the same name, and is situated about 5 miles north-east of Hebron on the way to Jerusalem. There is an old Jewish tradition that Gad, David’s seer ( 2 Sam. 24:11 ), was buried here.
A community; alliance. (1.) A city in the south end of the valley of Eshcol, about midway between Jerusalem and Beersheba, from which it is distant about 20 miles in a straight line. It was built “seven years before Zoan in Egypt” ( Gen. 13:18 ; Num. 13:22 ). It still exists under the same name, and is one of the most ancient cities in the world. Its earlier name was Kirjath-arba ( Gen. 23:2 ; Josh. 14:15 ; 15:3 ). But “Hebron would appear to have been the original name of the city, and it was not till after Abraham’s stay there that it received the name Kirjath-arba, who [i.e., Arba] was not the founder but the conqueror of the city, having led thither the tribe of the Anakim, to which he belonged. It retained this name till it came into the possession of Caleb, when the Israelites restored the original name Hebron” (Keil, Com.). The name of this city does not occur in any of the prophets or in the New Testament. It is found about forty times in the Old. It was the favorite home of Abraham. Here he pitched his tent under the oaks of Mamre, by which name it came afterwards to be known; and here Sarah died, and was buried in the cave of Machpelah ( Gen. 23:17-20 ), which he bought from Ephron the Hittite. From this place the patriarch departed for Egypt by way of Beersheba (37:14; 46:1). It was taken by Joshua and given to Caleb ( Josh. 10:36 , 37 ; 12:10; 14:13). It became a Levitical city and a city of refuge (20:7; 21:11). When David became king of Judah this was his royal residence, and he resided here for seven and a half years ( 2 Sam. 5:5 ); and here he was anointed as king over all Israel ( 2 Sam. 2:1-4 , 11 ; 1 Kings 2:11 ). It became the residence also of the rebellious Absalom ( 2 Sam. 15:10 ), who probably expected to find his chief support in the tribe of Judah, now called el-Khulil. In one part of the modern city is a great mosque, which is built over the grave of Machpelah. The first European who was permitted to enter this mosque was the Prince of Wales in 1862. It was also visited by the Marquis of Bute in 1866, and by the late Emperor Frederick of Germany (then Crown-Prince of Prussia) in 1869. One of the largest oaks in Palestine is found in the valley of Eshcol, about 3 miles north of the town. It is supposed by some to be the tree under which Abraham pitched his tent, and is called “Abraham’s oak.” (See OAK .) (2.) The third son of Kohath the Levite ( Ex. 6:18 ; 1 Chr. 6:2 , 18 ). (3.) 1 Chr. 2:42 , 43 . (4.) A town in the north border of Asher ( Josh. 19:28 ).
Plot of the sharp blades, or the field of heroes, ( 2 Sam. 2:16 ). After the battle of Gilboa, so fatal to Saul and his house, David, as divinely directed, took up his residence in Hebron, and was there anointed king over Judah. Among the fugitives from Gilboa was Ish-bosheth, the only surviving son of Saul, whom Abner, Saul’s uncle, took across the Jordan to Mahanaim, and there had him proclaimed king. Abner gathered all the forces at his command and marched to Gibeon, with the object of wresting Judah from David. Joab had the command of David’s army of trained men, who encamped on the south of the pool, which was on the east of the hill on which the town of Gibeon was built, while Abner’s army lay on the north of the pool. Abner proposed that the conflict should be decided by twelve young men engaging in personal combat on either side. So fiercely did they encounter each other that “they caught every man his fellow by the head, and thrust his sword in his fellow’s side; so they fell down together: wherefore that place was called Helkath-hazzurim.” The combat of the champions was thus indecisive, and there followed a severe general engagement between the two armies, ending in the total rout of the Israelites under Abner. The general result of this battle was that “David waxed stronger and stronger, and the house of Saul waxed weaker and weaker” ( 2 Sam. 3:1 ). (See GIBEON .)
Dread, a descendant of Canaan, and the ancestor of the Hittites ( Gen. 10:18 ; Deut. 7:1 ), who dwelt in the vicinity of Hebron ( Gen. 23:3 , 7 ). The Hittites were a Hamitic race. They are called “the sons of Heth” ( Gen. 23:3 , 5 , 7 , 10 , 16 , 18 , 20 ).
Jehovah impels, the king of Hebron who joined the league against Gibeon. He and his allies were defeated ( Josh. 10:3 , 5 , 16 -27).
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