A desert region in the Jordan Valley and southward.
Arabah
Named in 22 verses across 9 books, first in Deuteronomy 1:1.
עֲרָבָהArabah
About Arabah Written by AI
The Arabah, also known as the desert or plain, is a geographic region mentioned numerous times in the Old Testament. It refers to the elongated depression that runs from the Sea of Galilee in the north to the Gulf of Aqaba in the south, including the Jordan Valley and the area south of the Dead Sea. In the book of Deuteronomy, the Arabah is mentioned in the context of Moses' farewell address to the Israelites, recounting their journey from Horeb (Sinai) to the Promised Land (Deu.1.1, 7; 2:8). The Arabah is described as part of the route they took and as a region they passed through. The Arabah is also mentioned in the book of Joshua as a reference point for the boundaries of the tribal allotments (Joshua 11:16; 12:1, 3, 8; 18:18). It served as a natural border between the territories of the tribes settling in Canaan. In the historical books, the Arabah is associated with events such as David's flight from Absalom (2Sa.2.29; 4:7) and the escape of King Zedekiah from Jerusalem during the Babylonian invasion (2Ki.25.4; Jeremiah 39:4; 52:7). The prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel mention the Arabah in their prophecies. Isaiah speaks of the Arabah as a place of desolation (Isaiah 33:9), while Ezekiel envisions a future restoration where the waters flowing from the temple will bring life to the Arabah (Ezk.47.8). The Arabah's arid climate and sparse vegetation make it a challenging environment. However, its strategic location along trade routes and its unique geological features, such as the Dead Sea, have made it a significant region throughout biblical history.
Drafted by an AI model for STEPBible's TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Check it against the verses below.
Easton's Bible Dictionary, 1897
Plain, in the Revised Version of 2 Kings 14:25; Josh. 3:16; 8:14; 2 Sam. 2:29; 4:7 (in all these passages the A.V. has “plain”); Amos 6:14 (A.V. “wilderness”). This word is found in the Authorized Version only in Josh. 18:18. It denotes the hollow depression through which the Jordan flows from the Lake of Galilee to the Dead Sea. It is now called by the Arabs el-Ghor. But the Ghor is sometimes spoken of as extending 10 miles south of the Dead Sea, and thence to the Gulf of Akabah on the Red Sea is called the Wady el-Arabah.
M. G. Easton, Illustrated Bible Dictionary, third edition (1897), public domain, from CrossWire. Shown as written; its Scripture quotes are from older translations.
32.030, 35.521 See it on a map
Where the Bible names it
- Deuteronomy 1:1
These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the Jordan—in the Arabah opposite Suph—between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab.
- Deuteronomy 1:7
Resume your journey and go to the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the hill country, in the foothills, in the Negev, and along the seacoast to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great River Euphrates.
- Deuteronomy 2:8
So we passed by our brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned away from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion-geber, and traveled along the road of the Wilderness of Moab.
- Deuteronomy 3:17
The Jordan River in the Arabah bordered it from Chinnereth to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea) with the slopes of Pisgah to the east.
- Deuteronomy 4:49
including all the Arabah on the east side of the Jordan and as far as the Sea of the Arabah, below the slopes of Pisgah.
- Deuteronomy 11:30
Are not these mountains across the Jordan, west of the road toward the sunset, in the land of the Canaanites who live in the Arabah opposite Gilgal near the Oak of Moreh?
- Joshua 8:14
When the king of Ai saw the Israelites, he hurried out early in the morning with the men of the city to engage them in battle at an appointed place overlooking the Arabah. But he did not know that an ambush had been set up against him behind the city.
- Joshua 11:2
to the kings of the north in the mountains, in the Arabah south of Chinnereth, in the foothills, and in Naphoth-dor to the west;
- Joshua 11:16
So Joshua took this entire region: the hill country, all the Negev, all the land of Goshen, the western foothills, the Arabah, and the mountains of Israel and their foothills,
- Joshua 12:1
Now these are the kings of the land whom the Israelites struck down and whose lands they took beyond the Jordan to the east, from the Arnon Valley to Mount Hermon, including all the Arabah eastward:
- Joshua 12:3
as well as the Arabah east of the Sea of Chinnereth to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea), eastward through Beth-jeshimoth, and southward below the slopes of Pisgah.
- Joshua 12:8
the hill country, the foothills, the Arabah, the slopes, the wilderness, and the Negev—the lands of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites):
- Joshua 18:18
Then it went on to the northern slope of Beth-arabah and went down into the valley.
- 1 Samuel 23:24
So they set out and went to Ziph ahead of Saul. Now David and his men were in the Wilderness of Maon in the Arabah south of Jeshimon,
- 2 Samuel 2:29
And all that night Abner and his men marched through the Arabah. They crossed the Jordan, marched all morning, and arrived at Mahanaim.
- 2 Samuel 4:7
They had entered the house while Ish-bosheth was lying on his bed, and having stabbed and killed him, they beheaded him, took his head, and traveled all night by way of the Arabah.
- 2 Kings 25:4
Then the city was breached; and though the Chaldeans had surrounded the city, all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden. They headed toward the Arabah,
- Isaiah 33:9
The land mourns and languishes; Lebanon is ashamed and decayed. Sharon is like a desert; Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.
- Jeremiah 39:4
When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled. They left the city at night by way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls, and they went out along the route to the Arabah.
- Jeremiah 52:7
Then the city was breached; and though the Chaldeans had surrounded the city, all the men of war fled the city by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden. They headed toward the Arabah,
- Ezekiel 47:8
And he said to me, “This water flows out to the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah. When it empties into the Dead Sea, the water there becomes fresh.
- Zechariah 14:10
All the land from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem will be turned into a plain, but Jerusalem will be raised up and will remain in her place, from the Benjamin Gate to the site of the First Gate to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses.
From STEPBible's TIPNR, Tyndale House Cambridge (CC BY 4.0): names, family, references and the AI written article. Verse text is the BSB.