Shephelah

שְׁפֵלָה · she.phe.lah · H821919 mentions in 9 books, most in Joshua (6)

Where it is

31.78° N, 34.85° E · Located through Ekron · region

Coordinates and map: OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding · CC BY 4.0 · drawn without map tiles

Mentioned most in

Joshua · 6 2 Chronicles · 4 Jeremiah · 3 Deuteronomy · 1 Judges · 1 1 Kings · 1 + 3 books

Counted from 19 references · STEPBible, Tyndale House Cambridge · CC BY 4.0

About this place

The Shephelah, meaning "lowland" in Hebrew, refers to the fertile foothills and valleys located between the Judean hills and the coastal plain of Israel. This region is mentioned numerous times throughout the Old Testament, often in the context of military campaigns, agricultural abundance, and territorial allotment.

The Shephelah was known for its strategic importance, as it served as a natural buffer between the hill country of Judah and the Philistine cities along the coast. During the conquest of Canaan, Joshua and the Israelites fought against the kings of the Shephelah (Josh. 9:1; 10:40; 11:2, 16; 12:8). The region was allotted to the tribes of Judah and Dan (Josh. 15:33; Judg. 1:9).

The Shephelah was renowned for its fertility and agricultural productivity. It was a region where wheat, barley, grapes, and olives were cultivated (1Chr. 27:28; 2Chr. 26:10). The abundance of sycamore and cedar trees in the Shephelah was compared to the abundance of stones during Solomon's reign (1Ki. 10:27; 2Chr. 1:15; 9:27).

The prophets Jeremiah and Zechariah mention the Shephelah in their prophecies, highlighting its importance and the restoration of its cities and villages (Jer. 17:26; 32:44; 33:13; Zech. 7:7). The prophet Obadiah also foretells that the people of the Shephelah will possess the fields of Ephraim and Samaria (Obad. 1:19).

The Shephelah played a significant role in the history of ancient Israel, serving as a region of strategic, agricultural, and prophetic importance. Its fertile valleys and proximity to major trade routes made it a valuable and contested area throughout the biblical period.

Article: STEPBible, Tyndale House Cambridge · CC BY 4.0

Every mention

19 references, counted from STEPBible, Tyndale House Cambridge · CC BY 4.0 · verse text: World English Bible (public domain)

Deuteronomy1 mention

Deuteronomy 1:7Turn, and take your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites and to all the places near there: in the Arabah, in the hill country, in the lowland, in the South, by the seashore…

Joshua6 mentions

Joshua 9:1When all the kings who were beyond the Jordan, in the hill country, and in the lowland, and on all the shore of the great sea in front of Lebanon, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite…Joshua 10:40So Joshua struck all the land, the hill country, the South, the lowland, the slopes, and all their kings. He left no one remaining, but he utterly destroyed all that breathed, as Yahweh…Joshua 11:2and to the kings who were on the north, in the hill country, in the Arabah south of Chinneroth, in the lowland, and in the heights of Dor on the west,Joshua 11:16So Joshua captured all that land, the hill country, all the South, all the land of Goshen, the lowland, the Arabah, the hill country of Israel, and the lowland of the same,Joshua 12:8in the hill country, and in the lowland, and in the Arabah, and in the slopes, and in the wilderness, and in the South; the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the…Joshua 15:33In the lowland, Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah,

Judges1 mention

Judges 1:9After that, the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who lived in the hill country, and in the South, and in the lowland.

1 Kings1 mention

1 Kings 10:27The king made silver as common as stones in Jerusalem, and cedars as common as the sycamore trees that are in the lowland.

1 Chronicles1 mention

1 Chronicles 27:28Over the olive trees and the sycamore trees that were in the lowland was Baal Hanan the Gederite. Over the cellars of oil was Joash.

2 Chronicles4 mentions

2 Chronicles 1:15The king made silver and gold to be as common as stones in Jerusalem, and he made cedars to be as common as the sycamore trees that are in the lowland.2 Chronicles 9:27The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedars to be as abundant as the sycamore trees that are in the lowland.2 Chronicles 26:10He built towers in the wilderness, and dug out many cisterns, for he had much livestock, both in the lowlands and in the plains. He had farmers and vineyard keepers in the mountains and in…2 Chronicles 28:18The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the lowland and of the South of Judah, and had taken Beth Shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Soco with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and…

Jeremiah3 mentions

Jeremiah 17:26They will come from the cities of Judah, and from the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the lowland, from the hill country, and from the South, bringing burnt…Jeremiah 32:44Men will buy fields for money, sign the deeds, seal them, and call witnesses, in the land of Benjamin, and in the places around Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill…Jeremiah 33:13In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, in the cities of the South, in the land of Benjamin, in the places around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, the flocks…

Obadiah1 mention

Obadiah 1:19Those of the South will possess the mountain of Esau, and those of the lowland, the Philistines. They will possess the field of Ephraim, and the field of Samaria. Benjamin will possess…

Zechariah1 mention

Zechariah 7:7Aren’t these the words which Yahweh proclaimed by the former prophets when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and its cities around her, and the South and the lowland were…

What the dictionary says

shef-e'-la (ha-shephelah; sephela, saphela): 1. Name and References: The word denotes "lowland," and is variously rendered in the King James Version.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915)

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Sources

STEPBible TIPNR · Translators Individualised Proper Names with all References · CC BY 4.0 · github.com/STEPBible/STEPBible-Data
OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding · CC BY 4.0 · www.openbible.info/geo/