Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Kings 4:12
Baana the son of Ahilud; [to him pertained] Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth-shean, which [is] by Zartanah beneath Jezreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, [even] unto [the place that is] beyond Jokneam:
12. Baana the son of Ahilud ] Probably the brother of Jehoshaphat the recorder mentioned in 1Ki 4:3.
Taanach and Megiddo ] These places are both inland to the east of Dor, Megiddo being a little north of Taanach which lies in the valley of Esdraelon. Cf. Jdg 5:19 ‘Taanach by the waters of Megiddo.’ Beth-shean is still further east nearer to the Jordan, and Zartanah is no doubt Zarethan or Zarthan (Jos 3:16), which must have been close to the Jordan. Abel-meholah is south from Beth-shean in the Jordan valley. The name Jokneam should be, on the authority both of Hebrew, Septuagint and Vulgate, written Jokmeam. This place is mentioned 1Ch 6:68, but in the parallel passage Jos 21:22 Kibzaim is given instead. In both passages the place is assigned as one of the Levitical cities in the tribe of Ephraim, which would suit entirely with the text of the present verse, as it would then be in the same district as Zarthan and Abel-meholah, whereas Jokneam lies to the north of the ridge of Carmel, not far from the coast of the Mediterranean. The scribe’s confusion between Jokmeam and Kibzaim is not difficult to understand on looking at the forms in Hebrew.
Instead of the italics to him pertained at the beginning of this verse, it is simpler to substitute in, which stands in all the previous verses.
beneath Jezreel ] implies that the place or district so described lay in the plain country stretching south of Jezreel. That city was built on a small height and looked south over the plain of Esdraelon.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
On these cities see Jos 12:21; Jos 3:16; Jdg 7:22; Jos 21:22.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Zartanah beneath Jezreel, which was in Issachar. And this seems added to distinguish it from that
Zartanah, Jos 3:16.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Baana the son of Ahilud, [to him pertained] Taanach and Megiddo, and all Bethshean,…. All which were places in the tribe of Manasseh, Jos 17:11;
which [is] by Zartanah beneath Jezreel; so described, to distinguish it, as is thought, from Zaretan in Jos 3:16; and the country this officer presided over reached also
from Bethshean to Abelmeholah, [even] unto [the place that is] beyond Jokneam; the two first of these were in the tribe of Manasseh, and the last in the tribe of Zebulun, Jos 19:11.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(12) The fifth division must have been large and important, including much of the great plain of Esdraelon or Jezreel, the garden and battle-field of Northern Palestine, and extending to the Jordan valley. Taanach, Megiddo, and Beth-shean are all named as Canaanitish cities not taken by Manasseh, but made tributary (Jos. 17:11; Jdg. 1:27). Taanach and Megiddo are referred to in the song of Deborah (Jdg. 5:19). Megiddo is the place of the death of Ahaziah (2Ki. 9:27) and the fall of Josiah (2Ki. 23:29). Beth-shean is the city in which the body of Saul was exposed in triumph (1Sa. 31:12). Abel-meholah, the birth-place of Elisha (1Ki. 19:16), lies south of Beth-shean, and is mentioned in the record of the rout of the Midianites by Gideon (Jdg. 7:22). Jokmeam (for such is the right reading) is a Levitical city in Ephraim (1Ch. 6:68), apparently called Kibzaim in Jos. 21:22, and must have been an outlying part of this division.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
12. Taanach and Megiddo In the great plain of Esdraelon. See on Jos 12:21; Jdg 5:19.
Beth-shean The modern Beisan, between Mount Gilboa and the Jordan. See Jos 17:11.
Zartanah This place has not been identified.
Beneath Jezreel The city of Jezreel, which gave its name to the whole neighbouring valley, was on the site of the modern Zerin, near the western end of Mount Gilboa. See on Jos 19:18. Beneath Jezreel indicates that Beth-shean and its neighbouring towns lay lower than Jezreel, a fact confirmed by Robinson: “Zerin lies comparatively high, and commands a wide and noble view, extending down the broad low valley on the east to Beisan. We could here see the acropolis of Beisan lying much lower than Zerin; and from every account that place appears to be situated not far above the level of the Jordan valley.”
Abel-meholah Perhaps the modern Khurbet-esh-Shuk, at the eastern end of Mount Gilboa.
Jokneam The Hebrew is here Jok-meam, but probably a later corruption of Jokneam, called in Jos 12:22, Jokneam of Carmel, and identified by Dr. Robinson with the modern Tell Kaimon, which holds a conspicuous position on the Carmel range, “commanding the main pass from the western portion of Esdraelon to the more southern plain.” Baana’s district thus took in the great valley of Jezreel, and extended from Bethshean on the east to Jokneam on the west.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
1Ki 4:12 Baana the son of Ahilud; [to him pertained] Taanach and Megiddo, and all Bethshean, which [is] by Zartanah beneath Jezreel, from Bethshean to Abelmeholah, [even] unto [the place that is] beyond Jokneam:
Ver. 12. Taanach and Megiddo. ] These were in the tribe of Manasseh: he had also part of Issachar, and part of Zebulun; for in this business they shared out the land, not by tribes but districts, or provinces; that things might be equally carried.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Abel-meholah. The country of Elisha (1Ki 19:16, 1Ki 19:21). Compare Jdg 7:22.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Taanach: Jos 17:11, Jdg 5:19
Megiddo: 2Ki 23:29, 2Ki 23:30
Bethshean: 1Sa 31:10, 1Sa 31:12
Zartanah: 1Ki 7:46, Zarthan, Jos 3:16, Zaretan
Jezreel: 1Ki 18:46
Abelmeholah: 1Ki 19:16
Reciprocal: Jos 12:21 – Megiddo Jos 17:16 – Bethshean Jos 19:11 – Jokneam Jdg 7:22 – Zererath 1Ki 9:15 – Megiddo 2Ki 9:27 – Megiddo 1Ch 6:68 – Jokmeam 1Ch 7:29 – Taanach