Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Joshua 15:55
Maon, Carmel, and Ziph, and Juttah,
55. Maon ] Group III, consists of ten cities, on the south-east of the two preceding groups, towards the desert:
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 55. Maon] In a desert to which this town gave name, David took refuge for a considerable time from the persecution of Saul; and in this place Nabal the Carmelite had great possessions. See 1Sa 23:24-25; 1Sa 25:2.
Carmel] Not the celebrated mount of that name, but a village, the residence of Nabal. See 1Sa 25:2. It was near Maon, mentioned above, and was about ten miles eastward of Hebron. It is the place where Saul erected a trophy to himself after the defeat of the Amalekites; see 1Sa 15:12.
Ziph] See Clarke on Jos 15:24.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Maon; of which see 1Sa 23:25; 25:2.
Carmel; Nabals country, 1Sa 25.
Ziph; which gave its name to the neighbouring mountain, 1Sa 26:1.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Maon, Carmel,…. Maon was the dwelling place of Nabal the Carmelite, whose possessions were in Carmel, and were not far from one another, 1Sa 25:2. It gave name to a wilderness near where David hid himself from Saul, 1Sa 23:25; Jerom p places it to the east of Daroma, who also informs q us, that there was in his time a village that went by the name of Carmelia, ten miles from Hebron towards the east, and where was a Roman garrison.
and Ziph, according to the same writer r, was eight miles from Hebron to the east; and there was a village shown in his time where David was hid; this gave name to a wilderness also, 1Sa 23:14;
and Juttah, which Jerom calls s Jeshan, was in his time a large village of the Jews, eighteen miles from Eleutheropolis, to the southern part in Daroma. Reland t conjectures that this was the native place of John the Baptist; and that, instead of “a city of Judah”, it should be read “the city Juta”, Lu 1:39.
p De loc. Heb. fol. 93. E. q lbid. fol. 92. C. r Ibid. fol. 95. G. s Ibid. fol. 92. I. t Palestin. Illustrat. tom. 2. p. 870.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
55. The third cluster of mountain cities lies east of the other two, toward the desert.
Maon, modern Main, nine miles south-southeast of Hebron, is conspicuously situated on a conical hill. The summit is crowned with ruins, foundations of hewn stone, a square enclosure, and several cisterns. The view is fine. Many towns of Judah are in sight.
Carmel, now called Kurmul, is a few miles northwest of Maon. Robinson says that here he found more extensive ruins than he had yet anywhere seen, unless perhaps at Beth-el. The city was built in a semicircular amphitheatre shut in by rocks, in which there is an artificial reservoir one hundred and seventeen by seventy-four feet. The ruins consist chiefly of foundations and broken walls, scattered in every direction, and thrown together in mournful confusion and desolation.
Ziph, modern Zif, five miles southeast of Hebron, is in ruins. Twice did its treacherous people attempt to betray David, the youthful outlaw, into the hands of his persecutor, Saul. 1Sa 23:19 ; 1Sa 26:1.
Juttah is in the vicinity of Ziph, at the southwest, and is now called Yutta. Robinson describes it as having the appearance of a large Mohammedan town, on a low eminence, with trees around. He agrees with Reland that this is the city Juda, (Luk 1:39,) the residence of Zacharias and Elizabeth, and the birthplace of John the Baptist. The pronunciation is softened in the New Testament.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘ Maon, Carmel, and Ziph, and Jutah, and Jezreel, and Jokdeam, and Zanoah. Kain, Gibeah and Timnah. Ten cities with their villages.’
The towns of this group were situated south of Hebron. Maon lay on the edge of the wilderness of Judah, known in this neighbourhood as the wilderness of Maon, signifying rough pasture land. It was here that David took refuge from Saul (1Sa 23:24-25) and where the churlish Nabal lived (1Sa 25:2). It is probably Khirbet el-Ma‘in, fourteen kilometres (nine miles) south of Hebron. Carmel is sited at present day Khirbet el-Karmil, twelve kilometres (eight miles) south south east of Hebron in a rolling pastoral region ideal for flocks. Nabal’s wife was a Carmelitess.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Maon: 1Sa 23:25, 1Sa 25:2, 1Sa 25:7, 2Ch 26:10, Isa 35:2
Carmel: 1Ki 18:42
Ziph: Jos 15:24, 1Sa 23:14, 1Sa 23:15, 1Sa 26:1, 1Sa 26:2
Reciprocal: Jos 12:22 – Carmel Jos 21:16 – Juttah Jdg 10:12 – the Maonites 1Sa 15:12 – Carmel 1Sa 23:24 – Maon 1Ch 6:60 – thirteen cities