Atomic Bible

Ancient kingdom east of Babylon; ally and enemy of Israel

Elam

Named in 16 verses across 7 books, first in Genesis 14:1.

עֵילָםElam

עֵלְמָיֵאElamite

ἘλαμίτηςElamite

Also called Elamite.

The name means “a young man; a virgin; a secret.” Hitchcock's Bible Names, 1869

About Elam Written by AI

Elam was an ancient kingdom located east of Babylonia in what is now southwestern Iran. The Elamites were descendants of Shem, son of Noah (Genesis 10:22). Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, was an ally of other Mesopotamian kings who fought against Sodom and Gomorrah and took Lot captive before being defeated by Abraham (Genesis 14:1-16). The Elamites were skilled archers (Isaiah 22:6) and were sometimes allies of Israel's enemies. Elamite kings are mentioned in Assyrian records of campaigns against Judah. The prophets Isaiah (11:11, 21:2, 22:6) and Jeremiah (25:25, 49:34-39) foretold Elam's conquest by the Babylonians and Medes as part of God's judgment. However, Jeremiah also prophesied Elam's restoration in the latter days (49:39). Some Elamites were present in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost (Act.2.9). Nehemiah's opponents included a man named Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab (Nehemiah 2:19, 6:1), possibly indicating alliances between Elam and Israel's neighbors. The references to Elam in Dan.8.2 suggest the province maintained some importance during the Persian period.

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

This entry is on the name Elam, and may cover more than one person or place by that name.

Highland, the son of Shem (Gen. 10:22), and the name of the country inhabited by his descendants (14:1, 9; Isa. 11:11; 21:2, etc.) lying to the east of Babylonia, and extending to the shore of the Mediterranean, a distance in a direct line of about 1,000 miles. The name Elam is an Assyrian word meaning “high.”

“The inhabitants of Elam, or ‘the Highlands,’ to the east of Babylon, were called Elamites. They were divided into several branches, speaking different dialects of the same agglutinative language. The race to which they belonged was brachycephalic, or short-headed, like the pre-Semitic Sumerians of Babylonia.

Read the rest of the entry

“The earliest Elamite kingdom seems to have been that of Anzan, the exact site of which is uncertain; but in the time of Abraham, Shushan or Susa appears to have already become the capital of the country. Babylonia was frequently invaded by the Elamite kings, who at times asserted their supremacy over it (as in the case of Chedorlaomer, the Kudur-Lagamar, or ‘servant of the goddess Lagamar,’ of the cuneiform texts).

“The later Assyrian monarchs made several campaigns against Elam, and finally Assur-bani-pal (about B.C. 650) succeeded in conquering the country, which was ravaged with fire and sword. On the fall of the Assyrian Empire, Elam passed into the hands of the Persians” (A.H. Sayce).

This country was called by the Greeks Cissia or Susiana.

M. G. Easton, Illustrated Bible Dictionary, third edition (1897), public domain, from CrossWire. Shown as written; its Scripture quotes are from older translations.

32.189, 48.258 See it on a map

GenesisMatthewRevelation

Where the Bible names it

  1. Genesis 14:1

    In those days Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim

  2. Genesis 14:9

    against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five.

  3. Ezra 4:9

    From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates—the judges and officials over Tripolis, Persia, Erech and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,

  4. Isaiah 11:11

    On that day the Lord will extend His hand a second time to recover the remnant of His people from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.

  5. Isaiah 21:2

    A dire vision is declared to me: “The traitor still betrays, and the destroyer still destroys. Go up, O Elam! Lay siege, O Media! I will put an end to all her groaning.”

  6. Isaiah 22:6

    Elam takes up a quiver, with chariots and horsemen, and Kir uncovers the shield.

  7. Jeremiah 25:25

    all the kings of Zimri, Elam, and Media;

  8. Jeremiah 49:34

    This is the word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah.

  9. Jeremiah 49:35

    This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Behold, I will shatter Elam’s bow, the mainstay of their might.

  10. Jeremiah 49:36

    I will bring the four winds against Elam from the four corners of the heavens, and I will scatter them to all these winds. There will not be a nation to which Elam’s exiles will not go.

  11. Jeremiah 49:37

    So I will shatter Elam before their foes, before those who seek their lives. I will bring disaster upon them, even My fierce anger,” declares the LORD. “I will send out the sword after them until I finish them off.

  12. Jeremiah 49:38

    I will set My throne in Elam, and destroy its king and officials,” declares the LORD.

  13. Jeremiah 49:39

    “Yet in the last days, I will restore Elam from captivity,” declares the LORD.

  14. Ezekiel 32:24

    Elam is there with all her multitudes around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword—those who went down uncircumcised to the earth below, who once spread their terror in the land of the living. They bear their disgrace with those who descend to the Pit.

  15. Daniel 8:2

    And in the vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa, in the province of Elam. I saw in the vision that I was beside the Ulai Canal.

  16. Acts 2:9

    Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,

From STEPBible's TIPNR, Tyndale House Cambridge (CC BY 4.0): names, family, references and the AI written article. Verse text is the BSB.