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Medeba

(Encyclopedia)Medeba mĕdˈĭbə, mēˈ– [key], town, Jordan, the modern Madaba, E of the Dead Sea. An ancient Moabite town, it changed hands between Moab and Israel several times. In early Christian times it was...

Ghor, the

(Encyclopedia)Ghor, the, Arabic Al Ghawr, region of the Jordan Valley, c.70 mi (110 km) long, between the Sea of Galilee (Lake Tiberias) and the Dead Sea, on the border of Jordan and Israel and the West Bank. Entir...

Seir

(Encyclopedia)Seir sēˈər [key]. 1 Mountainous region, S Palestine, S of the Dead Sea. Mt. Hor is the highest point. Seir is identical with Edom, which is mentioned frequently in the Bible as Mt. Seir. The eponym...

Amorites

(Encyclopedia)Amorites ămˈərīts [key], a people of Canaan. There is evidence of them in Babylonia, where in the 19th cent. b.c. they established under their patronage the first dynasty at Babylon. The most powe...

Jahaz

(Encyclopedia)Jahaz jäˈzə [key], in the Bible, unidentified town, E of the Dead Sea. Israel's defeat there of the Amorites is recorded on the Moabite stone. ...

Dibon

(Encyclopedia)Dibon dīˈbŏn [key] or Dibon-gad, ancient city, E of the Dead Sea, now a ruin called Dhiban. The Moabite stone was found there, and important remains from the Moabite period have been excavated. Ref...

Ammon, in the Bible

(Encyclopedia)Ammon ămˈən [key], in the Bible, people living E of the Dead Sea. Their capital was Rabbath-Ammon, the present-day Amman (Jordan). Their god was Milcom, to whom Solomon built an altar. A Semitic pe...

Zoar, in the Bible

(Encyclopedia)Zoar bēˈlə [key], it was the only one of the Cities of the Plain (see Sodom) to escape destruction. Lot and his daughters took refuge here. It is probably now submerged in the southern end of the D...

Melchizedek

(Encyclopedia)Melchizedek or Melchisedec both: mĕlkĭzˈədĕk [key] [Heb.,=king of righteousness], in the Bible, king of Salem and “priest of the most high God.” He blessed Abraham after the defeat of Chedorl...

Kittim

(Encyclopedia)Kittim or Chittim both: kĭtˈĭm [key]. 1 Biblical term for Cyprus; often extended to include lands W of Syria. The name originally designated the Phoenician port of Citium in Cyprus. 2 Term appearin...