Zaphon standard
:Judg.12.1">Jud 12:1 as the place where the elders of Gilead gathered to meet with Jephthah (tsaphonah should be translated "to Zaphon," not "northward"). It must have lain well to the North of Gad.
Where is Zaphon in the Bible?
Zaphon was a city in the Jordan Valley region of ancient Palestine, allotted to the tribe of Gad during the conquest of Canaan (Joshua 13:27). The city is most notably mentioned in Judges 12:1 as the gathering place where the elders of Gilead met with the judge Jephthah, indicating it was located in the northern part of Gad's territory. Beyond its geographical location, Zaphon also served as a biblical term for "the north" and carried theological significance as a symbolic reference to God's heavenly dwelling place (Psalms 48:2; Isaiah 14:13). Modern scholars generally identify Zaphon with Tell Amateh, located approximately 21 Roman miles south of Pella in the Jordan Valley.
In Scripture4 biblical books; 3 with study content
- Joshua
- Judges
- Psalms
- Isaiah
Zaphon
ISBE 1915 (Public Domain):Judg.12.1">Jud 12:1 as the place where the elders of Gilead gathered to meet with Jephthah (tsaphonah should be translated "to Zaphon," not "northward"). It must have lain well to the North of Gad. According to the Talmud Amathus represented Zaphon (Neubauer, Geog. du Talmud, 249). Here sat one of the Synedria created by Gabinius (Ant., XIV, v, 4). It was a position of great strength (B J, I, iv, 2). Eusebius, Onomasticon places it 21 Roman miles S. of Pella. This is the modern Tell 'Amateh, on the south bank of Wady er-Rujeib, 15 miles South of Pella, and nearly 5 miles North of the Jabbok. Buhl (GAP, 259) objects to the identification that Tell 'Amateh corresponds to the Asophon of Josephus (Ant., XIII, xii, 5). But this objection does not seem well founded.
W. Ewing
za'-ra (Zara): the King James Version (Mt 1:3) = Greek form of ZERAH (which see).
zar'-a-sez: the King James