Ezion-Geber

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Ezion-Geber or Asiongaber (Hebrew: עֶצְיֹן גָּבֶר, pronounced "Etzyón-Géver") was a city of Idumea, a biblical seaport on the northern extremity of the Ælanitic Gulf (now called the Gulf of Aqaba), in the area of modern Aqaba and Eilat.

[edit] Biblical occurences

It is mentioned six times in the Holy Scriptures: Numbers, xxxiii, 35; Deut., ii, 8; III K. (Vulgate), ix, 26; xxii, 49; II Par. (Chron.), viii, 17; xx, 36. The general site of Asiongaber is indicated in III K., ix, 26 (I K.); but its ruins have disappeared, so that its precise site is a matter of conjecture. The Children of Israel encamped in Asiongaber in their journey through the wilderness (Numbers 33:35). The ships of Solomon and Hiram started from this port on their voyage to Ophir. It was the main port for Israel's commerce with the countries bordering on the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. Josaphat, King of Juda, joined himself with Ochozias, the wicked King of Israel, to make ships in Asiongaber; but God disapproved the unholy alliance, and the ships were broken in the port (2 Chronicles 20:37).

I Kings 9:26-29 (King James Version) says:

And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edom.

And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon.

And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.

Ezion-Geber was one of the places the Israelites migrated through during the Exodus.

The name "Ezion Geber" resembles "the giant's backbone", perhaps named after a rock formation. But according to the translation of "Targum Yonathan Ben Ezial", the words Ezion-Geber mean 'The Village of the Hen'. (כְּרַך תַּרְנְגוֹלָא)

[edit] Sources and references

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This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia, so may be out of date, or reflect the point of view of the Catholic Church as of 1913. It should be edited to reflect broader and more recent perspectives. [1]

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