Encyclopedia entry
Anathoth
The name of one of the cities of refuge, in the tribe of Benjamin (Josh. 21:18). The Jews, as a rule, did not change the names of the towns they found in Palestine; hence this town may be regarded as deriving its name from the goddess Anat. It was the native place of Abiezer, one of David’s “thirty” (2 Sam. 23:27), and of Jehu, another of his mighty men (1 Chr. 12:3). It is chiefly notable, however, as the birth-place and usual residence of Jeremiah (Jer. 1:1; 11:21-23; 29:27; 32:7-9). It suffered greatly from the army of Sennacherib, and only 128 men returned to it from the Exile (Neh. 7:27; Ezra 2:23). It lay about 3 miles north of Jerusalem. It has been identified with the small and poor village of ‘Anata, containing about 100 inhabitants.
Also from Smith's (1884) +−
a priests’ city belonging to the tribe of Benjamin, with “suburbs.” (Joshua 21:18; 1 Chronicles 6:60) Anathoth lay about three miles from Jerusalem. (Isaiah 10:30) The cultivation of the priests survives in tilled fields of grain, with figs and olives. There are the remains of walls and strong foundations, and the quarries still supply Jerusalem with building stones.
(answers to prayer).
Son of Becher, a son of Benjamin. (1 Chronicles 7:8) One of the “heads of the people” who signed the covenant in the time of Nehemiah. (Nehemiah 10:19) (B.C. 410.)
In the Bible
16
Verses where Anathoth is named. Berean Standard Bible (public domain).
- 1 Chronicles 6:60
And from the tribe of Benjamin they were given Gibeon, Geba, Alemeth, and Anathoth, together with their pasturelands. So they had thirteen cities in all among their families.
- 1 Chronicles 7:8
The sons of Becher: Zemirah, Joash, Eliezer, Elioenai, Omri, Jeremoth, Abijah, Anathoth, and Alemeth; all these were Becher’s sons.
- 1 Kings 2:26
Then the king said to Abiathar the priest, “Go back to your fields in Anathoth. Even though you deserve to die, I will not put you to death at this time, since you carried the ark of the Lord GOD before my father David, and you suffered through all that my father suffered.”
- Ezra 2:23
the men of Anathoth, 128;
- Isaiah 10:30
Cry aloud, O Daughter of Gallim! Listen, O Laishah! O wretched Anathoth!
- Jeremiah 1:1
These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests in Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.
+10 more verses naming Anathoth.
Scripture on Anathoth
15
Entries that reference Anathoth
9
Anathoth references
15
Sources · Hitchcock's Bible Names (1869) · Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897) · Smith's Bible Dictionary (1884)
Public-domain text. Modernized only where archaic spelling impedes reading; original facts preserved. Verify against an authoritative modern reference before quoting.