Smith's Bible Dictionary

(Frankie) #1

(a hill). Sheva “the father of Macbenah” and “father of Gibea” is mentioned with other names,
unmistakably those of places and not persons, among the descendants of Judah. (1 Chronicles 2:49)
comp. 1Chr 2:42 This would seem to point out Gibea.
Gibeah
a word employed in the Bible to denote a hill. Like most words of this kind it gave its name to
several towns and places in Palestine, which would doubtless be generally on or near a hill. They
are—
•Gibeah, a city in the mountain district of Judah, named with Maon and the southern Carmel,
(Joshua 15:57) and comp. 1Chr 2:49 etc.
•Gibeah of Benjamin first appears in the tragical story of the Levite and his concubine. (Judges
19:20) It was then a “city,” with the usual open street or square, (Judges 19:15,17,20) and containing
700 “chosen men,” ch. (Judges 20:15) probably the same whose skill as slingers is preserved in
the next verse. In many particulars Gibeah agrees very closely with Tuleil-el-Ful, a conspicuous
eminence just four mlles north of Jerusalem, to the right of the road. We next meet with Glbeah
of Benjamin during the Philistine wars of Saul and Jonathan. (1 Samuel 13:15,16) It now bears
its full title. As “Gibeah of Benjamin” this place is referred to in (2 Samuel 23:29) (comp. 1Chr
11:31), and as “Gibeah” it is mentioned by Hosea, (Hosea 5:8; 9:9; 10:9) but it does not again
appear in the history. It is, however, almost without doubt identical with
•Gibeah of Saul. This is not mentioned as Saul’s city till after his anointing, (1 Samuel 10:26) when
is said to have gone “home” to Gibeah. In the subsequent narrative the town bears its full name.
ch (1 Samuel 11:4)
•Gibeah in Kirjath-jearim was no doubt a hill in that city, and the place in which the ark remained
from the time of its return by the Philistines till its removal by David. (2 Samuel 6:3,4) comp.
1Sam 7:1,2
•Gibeah in the field, named only in (Judges 20:31) as the place to which one of the “highways” led
from Gibeah of Benjamin. It is probably the same as Geba. The “meadows of Gaba” (Authorized
Version Gibeah), (Judges 20:33) have no connection with the “field,” the Hebrew word being
entirely different.
Gibeath
probably the same as, Gibeah OF Benjamin, The Land Of. (Joshua 18:28)
Gibeon
(hill city), one of the four, cities of the Hivites, the inhabitants of which made a league with
Joshua, (Joshua 9:3-15) and thus escaped the fate of Jericho and Ai. Comp. ch. (Joshua 11:19)
Gibeon lay within the territory of Benjamin, ch. (Joshua 18:25) and with its “suburbs” was allotted
to the priests, ch. (Joshua 21:17) of whom it became afterwards a principal station. It retains its
ancient name almost intact, el-Jib. Its distance from Jerusalem by the main road is about 6 1/2
miles; but there is a more direct road reducing it to five miles.
Gibeonites, The
the people of Gibeon, and perhaps also of the three cities associated with Gibeon, (Joshua
9:17)—Hivites; and who, on the discover of the stratagem by which they had obtained the protection
of the Israelites, were condemned to be perpetual bondmen, hewers of wood and drawers of water
for the congregation and for the house of God and altar of Jehovah. (Joshua 9:23,27) Saul appears
to have broken this covenant, and in a fit of enthusiasm or patriotism to have killed some and
devised a general massacre of the rest. (2 Samuel 21:1,2,5) This was expiated many years after by

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