Azekah

Azekah was a town in the Shephelah region of Judah, located about 17 miles southwest of Jerusalem. It is first mentioned in Joshua 10:10-11, where the Amorite kings were defeated by Joshua and the Israelites. Azekah was later listed as one of the cities in the allotment of the tribe of Judah (Joshua 15:35). The Philistines gathered their armies between Socoh and Azekah before the famous battle between David and Goliath (1Sa.17.1). During the reign of King Rehoboam, Azekah was one of the cities fortified for the defense of Judah (2Ch.11.9). After the Babylonian exile, Azekah was reinhabited by the Jews (Nehemiah 11:30). The city was one of the last two strongholds, along with Lachish, to fall to the Babylonians during the siege of Jerusalem (Jeremiah 34:7). Archaeological excavations at the site of Tel Azekah have revealed evidence of the city's occupation from the Bronze Age through the Babylonian destruction.