What is the significance of Dothan in the Bible?
Dothan was a city in central Israel, approximately 12 miles north of Samaria in the hills of Gilboa. Today it is known as Tell-Dothan, located on the south plains of Jezreel. The word Dothan means “two wells,” and both wells are still in existence. Dothan is first mentioned in Genesis 37:17 as near the place…
What was/is the importance of the gates of Jerusalem?
The gates of ancient cities were important as a means of providing access to the city while maintaining security. The Bible speaks of the gates of Jerusalem many times in many different contexts. As the city walls are built, destroyed, and moved and the gates are bricked up, restored, or renamed, it can be difficult…
Should Jerusalem be the capital of modern-day Israel?
Jerusalem figures prominently in both biblical history and biblical prophecy, and it is currently the focus of much controversy and political wrangling. As of December 6, 2017, the United States has recognized Jerusalem as the official capital of Israel, acknowledging the facts of history but rankling the Muslim world. All politics aside, the declaration that…
What is the significance of Ai in the Bible?
Ai was a place in central Canaan. It is first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 12:8 as a place where Abram camped during his journey toward the land God promised in Genesis 12:1: “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.” When Abram reached Ai,…
What is the significance of Mount Gerizim in the Bible?
Mount Gerizim is a mountain located in the central Samaritan highlands. Its summit is about 2,800 feet above sea level. Mount Gerizim sits directly opposite Mount Ebal with the biblical city of Shechem resting in the pass between the two elevations. Mount Gerizim on the south side of the valley and Mount Ebal to the…
Why does Golgotha mean “place of the skull” (Matthew 27:33)?
As Matthew recounts Jesus’ crucifixion, he describes that “they came to a place called Golgotha (which means ‘the place of the skull’)” (Matthew 27:33). Matthew doesn’t directly answer the question of why Golgotha means “place of the skull,” but he uses the term Golgotha, which was “the Aramaic name of a hill near Jerusalem where…
What is Zion?
Psalm 87:2–3 says, “The Lord loves the gates of Zion / more than all the other dwellings of Jacob. / Glorious things are said of you, / city of God.” According to this verse, Zion is synonymous with city of God, and it is a place that God loves. Zion is Jerusalem. Mount Zion is…
What is the Valley of Siddim in the Bible?
The Valley of Siddim, or the Vale of Siddim, was an ancient location in Canaan, mentioned in the book of Genesis in connection with Abraham and the War of Nine Kings. The Valley of Siddim was the site of a decisive battle in which five kings of the Dead Sea region fought four kings from…
What is the significance of Lo Debar in the Bible?
Lo Debar (or Lo-debar) is a town only mentioned a few times in Scripture. If it is, as many scholars assume, the same town as Debir, mentioned several times in the book of Joshua, we find that it was one of the cities of Canaan that Joshua destroyed (Joshua 10:39). Debir, whose name means “pasture”…
What was the Holy of Holies?
The room known as the Holy of Holies was the innermost and most sacred area of the ancient tabernacle of Moses and temple of Jerusalem. The Holy of Holies was constructed as a perfect cube. It contained only the Ark of the Covenant, the symbol of Israel’s special relationship with God. The Holy of Holies…