TIRZAH
Pleasant, Son 6:4, a city of the Canaanites, Jos 12:24, and afterwards of the tribe of Manasseh or Ephraism; and the royal seat of the kings of Israel from the time of Jeroboam to the reign of Omri, who built the city of Samaria, which then became the capital of this kingdom, 1Ki 15:21,33 16:6,23 2Ki 15:14,16 . Its exact location is unknown.
Fuente: American Tract Society Bible Dictionary
Tirzah
(Heb. Tirtsah’, , delight; Sept. v.r. [in the case of No. 2] and ; Vulg. Thersa), the name of a woman and also of a place. SEE CYPRESS; SEE TIZITE.
1. The last named of the five daughters of Zelophehad, of the tribe of Manasseh, whose case originated the law that in the event of a man dying without male issue his property should pass to his daughters (Num 26:33; Num 27:1; Num 36:11 [where she is named second]; Jos 17:3). SEE ZELOPHEHAI ).
2. An ancient Canaanitish city, whose king is enumerated among the twenty-one overthrown in the conquest of the country (Jos 12:24). From that time nothing is heard of it till after the disruption of Israel and Judah. It then reappears as a royal city, the residence of Jeroboam (1Ki 14:17; Sept. , i.e.? Zaieda), and of his successors, Baasha (1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 15:33), Elah (1Ki 16:8-9), and Zimri (1Ki 16:15). It contained the royal sepulchers of one (1Ki 16:6), and probably all the first four kings of the northern kingdom. Zimri was besieged there by Omri, and perished in the flames of his palace (1Ki 16:18). The new king continued to reside there at first, but after six years he left it to his son Ahab (q.v.), at that time raised to the viceroyship; and removed to a new city which he built and named Shomr6n (Samaria), and which continued to be the capital of the northern kingdom till its fall. Once, and once only, does Tirzah reappear, as the seat of the conspiracy of Menahem ben-Gaddi against the wretched Shallum (2Ki 15:14; 2Ki 15:16); but as soon as his revolt had proved successful, Menahem removed the seat of his government to Samaria, and Tirzah was again left inobscurity. Its reputation for beauty throughout the country must have been wide-spread. It is in this sense that it is mentioned in the Song of Solomon, where the juxtaposition of Jerusalem is sufficient proof of the estimation in which it was held Beautiful as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem (Son 6:4). The Sept. () and. Vulg. (suavis ) do not, however, take tirtsah as a proper name in this passage. Its occurrence here on a level with Jerusalem has been held to indicate that the Song of Songs was the work of a writer belonging to the northern kingdom. But surely a poet, and so ardent a poet as the author of the, Song of Songs, may have been sufficiently independent of political considerations to go out of his own country if Tirzah can be said to be out of the country of a native of Judah- for a metaphor. SEE CANTICLES.
Eusebius (Onomuasf.. sv. ) mentions it in connection with Menahem, and identifies it with a village of Samaritans in Batansea. There is, however, nothing in the Bible to lead to the inference that the Tirzah of the Israelitish monarchs was on the east of Jordan. Josephus merely mentions it (, Ant. 8:12, 5). It is nowhere stated to what tribe this town belonged; but Adrichomius (Theaf. T. S. p. 74) and others place it in Manasseh. Lightfoot (Choreograph. Cent. c. 88) seems to suspect that Tirzah and Shechem were the same; for he says that if Shechem and Tirzah were not one and the same town, it would appear that Jeroboam had removed when his son died from where he was when he first erected his idols (comp. 1Ki 12:25; 1Ki 14:17). It does not appear to be mentioned by the Jewish topographers, or any of the Christian travelers of the Middle Ages, except Brocarduls, who places Thersa on a high mountain, three leagues (leucae) from Samaria to the east (Descriptio Terrte Sanct. 7:13). This is exactly the direction, and very nearly the distance, of Tellizah, a place in the mountains north of Nablius, which was visited by Robinson (Bibl. Res. 3, 302) and Van de Velde in 1852 (Syr. and Pal. 3, 334). The town is on an eminence, which towards the east is exceedingly lofty, though, being at the edge of the central highlands, it is more approachable from the west. The place is large and thriving, but without any obvious marks of antiquity (Robinson, Later Res. p. 302). Lieut. Coider, however, suggests the identity of Tirzah with a mud hamlet called Teidsir, twelve miles east of Jeba, which he found to have been once a place of importance, judging from the numerous rock-cut sepulchers burrowing under the houses, the fertile lands and fine olives around, and the monument of good masonry, apparently a Roman tomb. The position is beautiful, and the old main road leads to the place from Shechem (Tent Work in Palest. 1, 108).
Fuente: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
Tirzah (2)
The present Teiasir, which Tristram assumes (Bible Places, page 196) as the modern representative, lies twelve miles east by north from Sebustieh (Samaria), and is described in the .Memoirs accompanying the Ordnance Survey (2:228, 245). As to the identity of the name, Lieut. Conder remarks (Tent Work, 2:108):
“It contains the exact letters of the Hebrew word, though the last two radicals are interchanged in position, a kind of change not unusual among the peasantry. The beauty of the position and the richness of the plain on the west, the ancient remains, and the old main road to the place from Shechem, seem to agree well with the idea of its having once been a capital; and if I am right in the suggestion, then the old sepulchres are probably, some of them, those of the early kings of Israel before the royal family began to be buried in Samaria.”
Fuente: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
Tirzah (1)
Num 26:33; Num 27:1; Num 36:11; Jos 17:3.
Fuente: Fausset’s Bible Dictionary
Tirzah (2)
A Canaanite city whose king was one of the 31 subdued by Joshua (Jos 13:24). The royal residence of the kings of Israel from Jeroboam to Omri, who removed the capital to Samaria (1Ki 14:17; 1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 16:6; 1Ki 16:17-18); Baasha was buried here. Zimri was besieged here by Omri, and perished in the flames of the palace. Menahem who smote Shallum “went up from Tirzah” (2Ki 15:14; 2Ki 15:16), but when reigning made Samaria his capital.
Celebrated for beauty (Son 6:4); some derive Tirzah from ratsah, “pleasant.” Its mention is no ground for assigning the Song to a date later than Solomon, as it was in his time the chief city of northern Israel as Jerusalem of southern Israel. The church is “a city set on an hill” (Mat 5:14), “well pleasing” to God (Heb 13:21). In the middle ages Brocardus mentions a Thersa on a height three leagues E. of Samaria; this is the exact position of Telluzah, in the mountains N. of Nablus, a large flourishing town, precipitous toward the E. and accessible from the W.; without remains of antiquity; a corruption probably of Tirzah.
Fuente: Fausset’s Bible Dictionary
Tirzah
TIRZAH.1. One of the 31 cities captured by Joshua (Jos 12:24). It was the residence of Jeroboam i. (1Ki 14:17) and his successors down to Omri (1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 16:6; 1Ki 16:8; 1Ki 16:15; 1Ki 16:17; 1Ki 16:23). The doubtful reference in Son 6:4 compares the Shulammite to Tirzah in beauty. The site is uncertain. Three different identifications have met with favour: Talluza, a village E. of Samaria and N. of Mt. Ebal; et-Tireh, a village close to Mt. Gerizim; and Teyasir, 11 m. N. of Nblus (Shechem) and 12 m. E. of Sebastiyeh (Samaria). 2. One of the five daughters of Zelophehad (Num 26:33; Num 27:1; Num 36:11, Jos 17:3).
H. L. Willett.
Fuente: Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible
Tirzah
A city in the land of Judaea, belonging to Ephraim, and from the days of Jeroboam, King of Israel, to the reign of Omri, Tirzah was the royal city and the King’s residence.
It is said to have been a beautiful, spot, and the name Tirzah, which, comes from a root, signifying somewhat grateful, evidently seems, to say so, Jesus compares his church to it. “Thou art beautiful, O my love, as”Tirzah, said the Redeemer, “comely as Jerusalem and terrible as an army with banners,” (Son 6:4) And is not the church all this when beautiful, in his salvation and comely in the comeliness which he hath put upon her? And what an awe do Jesus’s little ones strike even now upon the ungodly, when they behold them living in his faith, and fear and love? And who, will dare to oppose them, by and by, when they shall see the Lord Jesus come to be “glorified in his saints, and admired in all them that believe?”
Fuente: The Poor Mans Concordance and Dictionary to the Sacred Scriptures
Tirzah
turza (, tircah; , Thersa):
(1) A royal city of the Canaanites, the king of which was slain by Joshua (Jos 12:24). It superseded Shechem as capital of the Northern Kingdom (1Ki 14:17, etc.), and itself gave place in turn to Samaria. Here reigned Jeroboam, Nadab his son, Baasha, Elah and Zimri (1Ki 15:21, 1Ki 15:33; 1Ki 16:6, 1Ki 16:8, 1Ki 16:9, 1Ki 16:15). Baasha was buried in Tirzah. Here Elah was assassinated while drinking himself drunk in the house of his steward; here therefore probably he was buried. Zimri perished in the flames of his palace, rather than fall into Omri’s hands. In Tirzah Menahem matured his rebellion against Shallum (2Ki 15:14). The place is mentioned in Son 6:4 the King James Version, where the Shulammite is said to be beautiful … as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem. The comparison may be due to the charm of its situation. The name may possibly be derived from racah, to delight. Several identifications have been suggested. Buhl (Geographic des alten Palestina, 203) favors et-Treh, on the West of the plain of Makhneh, 4 miles South of Nablus, which he identifies with the Tira-thana of Josephus. He quotes Neubauer to the effect that the later Jews said Tiran or Tarita instead of Tirzah, as weakening the claim of Telluzah, which others (e.g. Robinson, BR, III, 302) incline to. It is a partly ruined village with no spring, but with ancient cisterns, on a hill about 4 miles East of North from Nablus. This was evidently the place intended by Brocardius – Thersa, about 3 miles East of Samaria (Descriptio, VII). A third claimant is Teiasr, a fortress at the point where the road from Abel-meholah joins that from Shechem to Bethshan, fully 11 miles Northeast of Nablus. It is impossible to decide with certainty. The heavy t in Telluzah is a difficulty. Teiasr is perhaps too far from Shechem. Buhl’s case for identification with et-Treh is subject to the same difficulty as Telluzah.
(2) One of the five daughters of Zelophehad (Num 26:33; Num 27:1; Num 36:11; Jos 17:3).
Fuente: International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Tirzah
Tirzah, an ancient Canaanitish city (Jos 12:24), pleasantly situated (Son 6:4), which Jeroboam made the capital of his kingdom, and which retained that rank till Samaria was built by Omri (1Ki 14:17; 1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 16:15-18; 1Ki 16:23-24; 2Ki 15:4). The site is entirely unknown.
Fuente: Popular Cyclopedia Biblical Literature
Tirzah
[Tir’zah]
1. Youngest daughter of Zelophehad. Num 26:33; Num 27:1; Num 36:11; Jos 17:3.
2. Ancient Canaanite city conquered by Joshua. At the division of the kingdom it became a royal city for the kings of Israel. In Son 6:4 it is referred to as being ‘beautiful,’ but the LXX and the Vulgate do not in this passage regard it as a proper name. Jos 12:24; 1Ki 14:17; 1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 15:33; 1Ki 16:6-23; 2Ki 15:14; 2Ki 15:16. Identified with Teiasir, 32 20′ N, 35 23′ E.
Fuente: Concise Bible Dictionary
Tirzah
H8656
1. A daughter of Zelophehad:
– General references
Num 26:33; Num 36:11; Jos 17:3
– Special legislation in regard to the inheritance of
Num 27:1-11; Num 36:1-13; Jos 17:3-4
2. A city of Canaan:
– Captured by Joshua
Jos 12:24
– Becomes the residence of the kings of Israel
1Ki 14:17; 1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 15:33; 1Ki 16:6; 1Ki 16:8-9; 1Ki 16:15; 1Ki 16:17; 1Ki 16:23
– Royal residence moved from
1Ki 16:23-24
– Base of military operations of Menahem
2Ki 15:14; 2Ki 15:16
– Beauty of
Son 6:4
Fuente: Nave’s Topical Bible
Tirzah
Tirzah (tir’zah), delight. One of the 31 cities of the Canaanites taken by Joshua, Jos 12:24, and for 50 years the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel, until Omri built Samaria. 1Ki 14:17; 1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 15:33; 1Ki 16:6; 1Ki 16:23. It is also mentioned in the reign of Menahem, b.c. 772, 2Ki 15:14; 2Ki 15:16, and its fame for beauty appears from Son 6:4. Tirzah has been usually identified with Telluzah, five miles east of Samaria, and 30 miles north of Jerusalem. The village occupies a fine elevation in the midst of olive groves.
Fuente: People’s Dictionary of the Bible
Tirzah
Tir’zah. (delight).
1. Youngest of the five daughters, of Zelophehad. Num 26:33; Num 27:1; Num 36:11; Jos 17:3. (B.C. 1450).
2. An ancient Canaanite city, whose king is enumerated, among those overthrown in the conquest of the country. Jos 12:24. It reappears as a royal city, the residence of Jeroboam, and of his successors, 1Ki 14:17-18, and as the seat of the conspiracy of Menahem ben-Gaddi , against the wretched, Shallum. 2Ki 15:16.
Its reputation for beauty, throughout the country, must have been widespread. It is in this sense, that it is spoken of in the Song of Solomon. Eusebius mentions it in connection with Menahem, and identifies it with a “village of Samaritans in Batanea.” Its site is Telluzah, a place in the mountains, north of Nablus.
Fuente: Smith’s Bible Dictionary
TIRZAH
(1) A Canaanitish city
Jos 12:24; 1Ki 14:17; 1Ki 15:21; 1Ki 16:6; 1Ki 16:23; 2Ki 15:14
(2) Daughter of Zelophehad
Num 26:33; Num 36:11; Jos 17:3