Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Joshua 15:7
And the border went up toward Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that [is] before the going up to Adummim, which [is] on the south side of the river: and the border passed toward the waters of En-shemesh, and the goings out thereof were at En-rogel:
7. and the border went up toward Debir ] Not the royal Canaanitish city conquered (Jos 10:29; Jos 10:38), but somewhere behind Jericho. A Wady Dabor is marked in Van de Velde’s Map as close to the south of Nby Msa, at the north-west of the Dead Sea.” Smith’s Bibl. Dict.
from the valley of Achor ] south of Jericho; see ch. Jos 7:26.
looking toward Gilgal ] Not the place where the Israelites first encamped. It is called Geliloth, ch. Jos 18:17.
that is before the going up to Adummim ] = “the pass of the red,” the road leading up from Jericho and the Jordan valley to Jerusalem. ( a) Jerome ascribes the name to the blood “qui in illo loco a latronibus funditur,” i.e. by the robbers who infested the pass in his day, and as they do still, and as they did in the days of our Lord, of whose parable of “the Good Samaritan” this is the scene, ( b) But the more natural meaning of the word is “the Pass of the Red-haired Men,” as if alluding to some aboriginal tribe of the country. ( c) Others would derive it from the red colour of the rocks “the whole pass is white limestone, with the remarkable exception of one large mass of purplish rock on the ascent from Jericho.” S. and P. 424, n.
which is on the south side of the river ] more literally, of the watercourse, or torrent, the Wady Kelt.
the waters of En-shemesh ] “and passith the waters, that ben clepid the welle of the sunne,” Wyclif. This is the present Ain el Haudr or “Apostles’ Spring,” about a mile below Bethany, the only spring on the road to Jericho.
and the goings out thereof were at En-rogel ] This some ( a) would identify with ’Ain Umm ed-Daraj, “the Fountain of the Virgin;” ( b) others with Br Eyub, below the junction of the valleys of Kidron and Hinnom, and south of the Pool of Siloam. It was near this well that ( a) Jonathan and Ahimaaz lay hid during the rebellion of Absalom, in order to collect and send news to David (2Sa 17:17); and ( b) afterwards Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by En-rogel, when he conspired to seize the kingdom (1Ki 1:9). “In itself it is a singular work of ancient enterprise. The shaft, sunk through the solid rock in the bed of the Kidron, is 125 feet deep. The idea of digging such a well at that precise spot may have been suggested by the fact, that, after very great rains, water sometimes rises nearly to the top, and then flows out into the valley below, a strong brook capable of driving a mill. This, however, soon ceases, and the water in the well subsides to less than half its depth. From that point a stream seems to run constantly across it, and pass down the valley under the rock. The water is pure and entirely sweet, quite different from that of Siloam, which proves that there is no connection between them. I have seen the water gushing out like a mill-stream, some fifteen rods south of the well; and then the whole valley was alive with people bathing in it, and indulging in every species of hilarity.” Thomson’s Land and the Book, pp. 658, 659.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The going up to Adummim – Rather, the ascent or pass of Adummim (compare Jos 15:3, margin), on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Its name signifies red and is explained by Jerome as given because of the frequent bloodshed there by robbers. This road is the scene of the parable of the Good Samaritan. Possibly the name may be due to some aboriginal tribe of red men, who held their ground in these fastnesses after the invaders had driven them from the face of the country elsewhere.
En-shemesh – i. e. fountain of the sun; no doubt that now called the Fountain of the Apostles, about two miles from Jerusalem, and the only well on the road to Jericho.
En-rogel – i. e. fountain of the fullers near the walls of Jerusalem. It was here that Jonathan and Ahimaaz concealed themselves after the rebellion of Absalom, in order to procure tidings for David, and here Adonijah gave a feast to his adherents preparatory to making an attempt on the crown (compare the marginal references). It is probably the modern Fountain of the Virgin, the only real spring near Jerusalem, from which the Pool of Siloam is supplied. Others identify it, less probably, with the Well of Job, situated where the valleys of Kedron and Hinnom unite.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 7. The valley of Achor] Debir mentioned in this verse is unknown. The valley of Achor had its name from the punishment of Achan. See the account, Jos 7:24, c.
En-shemesh] The fountain of the sun it was eastward of Jerusalem, on the confines of Judah and Benjamin.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Debir; a differing place from that Debir, Num 15:15, which was near Hebron, and remote from Judahs border; as also from that
Debir, Jos 13:26, which was beyond Jordan.
Gilgal; either that Gilgal nigh Jordan, Jos 4:19, or another place of that name. On the south side of the river, or brook, or valley.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
7. Achor(see on Jos7:26).
Adummima rising groundin the wilderness of Jericho, on the south of the little brook thatflowed near Jericho (Jos 16:1).
En-shemesh“thefountain of the sun”; “either the present well of theapostle, below Bethany, on the road to Jericho, or the fountain nearto St. Saba” [ROBINSON].
En-rogel“thefuller’s fountain,” on the southeast of Jerusalem, below thespot where the valleys of Jehoshaphat and Hinnom unite.
Jos15:13-15. CALEB’SPORTION AND CONQUEST.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And the border went up towards Debir,…. This was neither the Debir in the tribe of Gad, on the other side Jordan, Jos 13:26; nor that in the tribe of Judah near Hebron, Jos 15:15; but a third city of that name, and was not far from Jericho:
from the valley of Achor; where Achan was put to death, and had its name from thence; which, according to Jarchi, lay between the stone of Bohan and Debir:
and so northward, looking towards Gilgal; not the place where Israel were encamped when this lot was made, but it seems to be the same that is called Geliloth, Jos 18:17;
that [is], the going up to Adummim; which, Jerom says c, was formerly a little village, now in ruins, in the lot of the tribe of Judah, which place is called to this day Maledomim; and by the Greeks “the ascent of the red ones”, because of the blood which was there frequently shed by thieves: it lies on the borders of Judah and Benjamin, as you go from Jerusalem to Jericho, where there is a garrison of soldiers for the help of travellers, and is supposed to be the place where the man fell among thieves in his way from the one to the other, Lu 10:30. It was four miles distant from Jericho to the west, according to Adrichomius d, and was a mountain, and part of the mountains of Engaddi:
which [is] on the south side of the river; which some take to be the brook Kidron; but that is not very likely, being too near Jerusalem for this place: it may be rendered “the valley”, so Jarchi, either the valley of Achor, before mentioned, or however a valley that ran along by the mount or ascent of Adummim, which lay to the south of it:
and the border passed to the waters of Enshemesh: or the “fountain of the sun”; but of it we have no account what and where it was. It might be so called, because dedicated to the sun by the idolatrous Canaanites, or because of the sun’s influence on the waters of it. Our city, Bath, is, by Antoninus e, called “aquae solis”, the waters of the sun; though there is a fountain in Cyrene, so called, for a reason just the reverse, it being, as Mela f and Pliny g affirm, hottest the middle of the night, and then grows cooler by little and little; and when it is light is cold, and when the sun is risen is colder still, and at noon exceeding cold; and, according to Vossius h, it is the same with the fountain of Jupiter Ammon; and so it appears to be from Herodotus i, by whom it is also called the “fountain of the sun”, and which he places in Thebes, though Pliny distinguishes them:
and the goings out thereof were at Enrogel; which signifies “the fountain of the fuller”; so the Targum renders it, and probably was a fountain where fullers cleansed their clothes; and was called Rogel, as Jarchi and Kimchi say, because they used to tread them with their feet when they washed them. This was a place near Jerusalem, as appears from 1Ki 1:9; near to which perhaps was the fuller’s monument, at the corner tower of Jerusalem, Josephus k speaks of, as there was also a place not far from it called the fuller’s field, Isa 7:3; according to Bunting l, it had its name from travellers washing their feet here.
c De loc. Heb. fol. 88. E. F. d Theatrum Terrae Sanct. p. 14. e Vid. Cambden’s Britannia, p. 141. f De Situ Orbis, l. 1. c. 8. g Nat. Hist. l. 2. c. 103. h Observat. in Pompon. Mel. ut supra. (De Situ Orbis, l. 1. c. 8.) i Melpomene, sive, l. 4. c. 181. k De Bello Jud. l. 5. c. 4. sect. 2. l Travels, p. 148.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
7. Achor See Jos 7:24, note. This Debir is not the same with that named in Jos 10:38, but another, evidently not far from the Valley of Achor. Its site is unknown.
Gilgal See on Jos 5:9. It is called Geliloth, Jos 18:17. [
Adummim Literally, the ascent of the red ones, and so called because of the frequent effusion of blood there by robbers, (compare Luk 10:30, note,) or else from some early tribe of red men (possibly Edomites) who dwelt there. Keil thinks the name originated in the red colour of the rocks; but Stanley says there are no red rocks here, but the whole pass is white limestone. Adummim was probably at or near the modern ed-Dem, marked on Menke’s map about half way between Jerusalem and Jericho. This is on the south side of Wady Kelt, which is doubtless the river here referred to.]
En-shemesh The fountain of the sun, usually identified with the Well of the Apostles, below Bethany on the road to Jericho; but Dr. Robinson says, “It may very possibly have been the fountain near St. Saba.”
En-rogel The fountain of the fuller. The Arabic version of this verse calls it the Well of Job, which is its modern name. [An old tradition and common opinion has identified it with the deep well situated just below the junction of the Valley of Hinnom with that part of the Valley of Jehoshaphat. It is also called the Well of Nehemiah. But Dr. Bonar identifies it with the Fountain of the Virgin, and more recently M. Ganneau maintains the same opinion, having discovered a rock Zehwele near this fountain, which he identifies with the Stone of Zoheleth mentioned 1Ki 1:9.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘ And the border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward looking towards Gilgal, that is over against the Ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the river, and the border passed along to the waters of Enshemesh and its goings out were at En-rogel.’
This Debir was not the one mentioned in Jos 13:26; Jos 15:15 but probably one above the Wadi Debr which is the lower part of the Wadi Mukallik, or near Tughret ed-Debr, south of the Ascent of Adummim. It is also not mentioned in the parallel Jos 18:17. It was thus clearly not an important place. For ‘the valley of Achor’ possibly we should translate ‘low lying plain of Achor’. El Buqei‘a is suggested as a possibility. It would be seen as an abandoned place, a place to be avoided. This was where Achan was stoned to death (Jos 7:25).
“And so northward looking towards Gilgal, that is over against the Ascent of Adummim.” At this point the boundary moved northward towards the Ascent of Adummim, towards Gilgal. This would be a different Gilgal from the Israelite encampment. Its name, ‘a rolling’ suggests that some religious activity took place at these sites involved with rolling stones, possibly to set up as altars, or bodies rolling in ecstasy in their depraved sexual rites. Some relate it to stone circles but if it were so we would have expected them to be discovered. It was probably the same as Geliloth (Jos 18:17).
The Ascent of Adummim was a steep pass on the border of Judah and Benjamin, probably Tal‘at ed-Damm (the ascent of blood). This name was probably given because of the redness of the soil, but it may also have been a place where murderous robberies were common. This may have been the place in mind where the good Samaritan was pictured as finding the victim of robbery with violence.
“Which is on the south side of the river, and the border passed along to the waters of Enshemesh and its goings out were at En-rogel.” The ‘south side of the river’ must refer to the impressive gorge of the Wadi el-Kelt. The waters of Enshemesh (‘spring of the sun’) is probably the modern ‘Ain Haud, four kilometres (three miles) east of Jerusalem, just south of the Jericho road. ‘Its goings out’ refers to the point at which a line comes to an end (see verses 4 and 11), thus there was now a deviation at En-rogel (‘well of the launderer’). This was just outside Jerusalem (2Sa 17:17; 1Ki 1:9) and is known today as Job’s Well.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jos 15:7 And the border went up toward Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that [is] before the going up to Adummim, which [is] on the south side of the river: and the border passed toward the waters of Enshemesh, and the goings out thereof were at Enrogel:
Ver. 7. At Enrogel. ] Or, The fuller’s well; who hath his name in Hebrew from footing it, quia pedibus mundet vestes. So hath the talebearer. Psa 15:3
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Debir: Jos 15:15, Jos 10:38, Jos 10:39
the valley: Jos 7:26, Isa 65:10, Hos 2:5
Gilgal: Jos 4:19, Jos 5:9, Jos 5:10, Jos 10:43
Adummim: A town and mountain of Benjamin – Jos 18:17, near Jericho, towards Jerusalem.
Enshemesh: Situated east of Jerusalem, on the confines of Judah and Benjamin.
Enrogel: Supposed to be the same as the fountain of Siloam, east of Jerusalem, at the foot of mount Zion. 2Sa 17:17, 1Ki 1:9
Reciprocal: Jos 7:24 – the valley Jos 18:16 – Enrogel
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jos 15:7-8. Northward looking toward Gilgal Having Gilgal to the north of it. Which is to be understood, not of that Gilgal near Jericho, but of that place called Geliloth, (Jos 18:17,) which was distant from thence, as appears by what follows. And the border went up Properly; for the line went from Jordan and the salt sea, to the higher grounds nigh Jerusalem; and, therefore, the line is said to go down, (Jos 18:16,) because there it takes a contrary course, and goes downward to Jordan and the sea. By the valley of the son of Hinnom A famous place on the east side of Jerusalem; and so delightfully shady, that it invited the Israelites to idolatrous worship in it, whereby it became infamous, 2Ki 23:10; Jer 7:32. Hinnom, in all probability, was some eminent person in ancient times, who was the owner of this valley; for it is sometimes called the valley of the children of Hinnom; which shows his posterity were planted here. After it was polluted by idolatry it became a place where they threw all their filth and dead carcasses; and where there was a continual fire, the Jews say, to burn bones, and such sordid things as were thrown there; from whence they think it became the name for hell fire. The south side of the Jebusites Namely, the city of the Jebusites. The same is Jerusalem Which is called Jebusi in the last verse of the eighteenth chapter, and Jebus, Jdg 19:10, especially that part of it fortified by the Jebusites, which was called mount Sion, and lay on the south of Jerusalem. And the border went up to the top of the mountain Which is thought to be mount Moriah. The end of the valley of the giants northward Which mountain had on the north part of it the valley of Rephaim, (as the word is in the Hebrew,) which was in the tribe of Judah, extending itself from mount Moriah as far as Bethlehem, as Josephus informs us.