Gibeah in the Bible

Meaning: a hill

Exact Match

Zelah, Haeleph, the Jebusite city (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath -- a total of fourteen cities and their towns. This was the land assigned to the tribe of Benjamin by its clans.

Verse ConceptsJerusalem, History OfFourteen

Eleazar son of Aaron died, and they buried him in Gibeah in the hill country of Ephraim, where his son Phinehas had been assigned land.

But his master said to him, "We should not stop at a foreign city where non-Israelites live. We will travel on to Gibeah."

Verse ConceptsAvoiding Foreigners

He said to his servant, "Come on, we will go into one of the other towns and spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah."

Verse ConceptsStaying Temporarily

So they traveled on, and the sun went down when they were near Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin.

They stopped there and decided to spend the night in Gibeah. They came into the city and sat down in the town square, but no one invited them to spend the night.

Verse ConceptsHospitality, Examples OfInhospitalityCity SquaresNot Welcoming PeopleStaying Temporarily

But then an old man passed by, returning at the end of the day from his work in the field. The man was from the Ephraimite hill country; he was living temporarily in Gibeah. (The residents of the town were Benjaminites.)

Verse ConceptsEveningMen Working

The Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, spoke up, "I and my concubine stopped in Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin to spend the night.

Verse ConceptsStaying Temporarily

The leaders of Gibeah attacked me and at night surrounded the house where I was staying. They wanted to kill me; instead they abused my concubine so badly that she died.

Verse ConceptsLewdnessAttempting To Kill Specific PeopleDeath Of Unnamed Individuals

Now this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will attack the city as the lot dictates.

We will take ten of every group of a hundred men from all the tribes of Israel (and a hundred of every group of a thousand, and a thousand of every group of ten thousand) to get supplies for the army. When they arrive in Gibeah of Benjamin they will punish them for the atrocity which they committed in Israel."

Verse ConceptsA Tenth Of PeoplePeople Providing Food

And so all the men of Israel gathered together, unto Gibeah, knit together as it had been but one man.

Verse ConceptsFellowship, In Christian ServiceUnity, Of God's PeopleUnified PeopleNations Unitedgathering

Now, hand over the good-for-nothings in Gibeah so we can execute them and purge Israel of wickedness." But the Benjaminites refused to listen to their Israelite brothers.

Verse ConceptsPurity, Moral And SpiritualHanding Over PeopleDeath Penalty For Sexual Sin

The Benjaminites came from their cities and assembled at Gibeah to make war against the Israelites.

Verse ConceptsCivil War

That day the Benjaminites mustered from their cities twenty-six thousand sword-wielding soldiers, besides seven hundred well-trained soldiers from Gibeah.

Verse ConceptsSeven To Nine HundredTwenty Thousand And Up

The Israelites got up the next morning and moved against Gibeah.

The men of Israel marched out to fight Benjamin; they arranged their battle lines against Gibeah.

Verse ConceptsConfrontationFighting One Another

The Israelites attacked the Benjaminites the next day; they took their positions against Gibeah just as they had done before.

Verse ConceptsDoing Repeatedly

The Benjaminites attacked the army, leaving the city unguarded. They began to strike down their enemy just as they had done before. On the main roads (one leads to Bethel, the other to Gibeah) and in the field, they struck down about thirty Israelites.

Verse ConceptsThirtyBringing People Out Of Other PlacesKilling Within Israel

All the men of Israel got up from their places and took their positions at Baal Tamar, while the Israelites hiding in ambush jumped out of their places west of Gibeah.

Ten thousand men, well-trained soldiers from all Israel, then made a frontal assault against Gibeah -- the battle was fierce. But the Benjaminites did not realize that disaster was at their doorstep.

Verse ConceptsTens Of Thousands

Then the Benjaminites saw they were defeated. The Israelites retreated before Benjamin, because they had confidence in the men they had hid in ambush outside Gibeah.

Verse ConceptsUnreliabilityTrusting Other People

The men hiding in ambush made a mad dash to Gibeah. They attacked and put the sword to the entire city.

Thus they inclosed the Benjamites round about, and chased them, and trode them down with ease over against Gibeah toward the sunrising.

So the men of Kiriath-jearim came and took the ark of the Lord to the house of Abinadab in Gibeah, and they made his son Eleazar holy and put the ark in his care.

Verse ConceptsHoliness, As Set Apart For GodArk Of The Covenant, EventsThe Ark Moved Around

Afterward you will go to Gibeah of God, where there are Philistine officials. When you enter the town, you will meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place. They will have harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres, and they will be prophesying.

Verse ConceptsFlutesHigh PlacesLyreMusical Instruments, types ofProphecy, Methods Of OtShrinesTambourinesHarpsLyresSchooldrums

When Saul and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a company of prophets was coming out to meet him. Then the spirit of God rushed upon Saul and he prophesied among them.

Verse Conceptsequipping, spiritualThe Spirit Of GodPromises Of The Holy SpiritThe Holy Spirit, Source Of WisdomSchoolgroups

Even Saul went to his home in Gibeah. With him went some brave men whose hearts God had touched.

Verse ConceptsHuman WillHeart, Human

When the messengers went to Gibeah (where Saul lived) and informed the people of these matters, all the people wept loudly.

Verse ConceptsPeople Mourning Catastrophe

Saul chose him three thousand men of Israel; whereof two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in mount Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin: and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent.

Verse ConceptsConscriptionA Thousand PeopleTwo ThousandThree Thousand And UpEarthly Armies

And Jonathan made an attack on the armed force of the Philistines stationed at Gibeah; and news was given to the Philistines that the Hebrews were turned against them. And Saul had a horn sounded through all the land,

Verse ConceptsTrumpetGarrisonsTrumpets For Signalling

And Samuel arose, and gat him up from Gilgal unto Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people that were present with him, about six hundred men.

Verse ConceptsCensusSix To Seven HundredSix Hundred And Above

And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that were present with them, abode in Gibeah of Benjamin: but the Philistines encamped in Michmash.

And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron: and the people that were with him were about six hundred men;

Verse ConceptsFruitPomegranatesSix To Seven HundredSix Hundred And Above

The forefront of the one was situate northward over against Michmash, and the other southward over against Gibeah.

And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked; and, behold, the multitude melted away, and they went on beating down one another.

Verse ConceptsWatchman

Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul.

When Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him, (now Saul abode in Gibeah under a tree in Ramah, having his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him;)

Verse ConceptsTamarisk

Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself with us in strong holds in the wood, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon?

Verse ConceptsSouthTelling Of Movements

And the Ziphites came unto Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself in the hill of Hachilah, which is before Jeshimon?

Verse ConceptsHiding From PeopleTelling Of Movements

And David did as the LORD commanded him, and smote the Philistines from Gibeah to Gezer.

Verse ConceptsCommands, in OT

And they set the ark of God upon a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab that was in Gibeah: and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drave the new cart.

Verse ConceptsCartsUnused

And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab which was at Gibeah, accompanying the ark of God: and Ahio went before the ark.

Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD did choose. And the king said, I will give them.

Verse ConceptsSeven ChildrenPeople Hung To Death

Heleb the son of Baanah, the Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin,

Ithai, son of Ribai, of Gibeah, of the sons of Benjamin, - Benaiah, the Pirathonite;

The chief was Ahiezer and then Joash, the sons of Shemaah of Gibeah; Jeziel and Pelet the sons of Azmaveth; Beracah, and Jehu of Anathoth,

three years, reigned he in Jerusalem, and, the name of his mother, was Maacah, daughter of Uriel of Gibeah, - and there was, war, between Abijah and Jeroboam.

Verse ConceptsThree Years

they are gone over the pass; they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah trembleth; Gibeah of Saul is fled.

Verse ConceptsGroups Trembling

They have deeply corrupted themselves, like the days of Gibeah: he will call to mind their iniquity, he will punish their sins.

Verse ConceptsCorruption, Of HumanitySpiritual DepthsGod Remembering Sincorruption

Beyond the days of Gibeah, hast thou sinned, O Israel: there, came they to a stand, the battle against the sons of perversity, touched them not in Gibeah.

Verse ConceptsEvildoersGod's People Sinning

Thematic Bible



But his master said: We are not going to stop in a city where the people are not Israelites. We will pass by and go a little farther and spend the night at Gibeah or Ramah. They passed by Jebus and continued on their way. It was sunset when they came to Gibeah in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin. read more.
They turned off the road to spend the night there. They went into town and sat down in the city square. However no one offered to take them home for the night. An old man came by at the end of a day's work on the farm. He was originally from the mountains of Ephraim, but he was now living in Gibeah. (The other people there were from the tribe of Benjamin.) The old man saw the traveler in the city square and asked: Where do you come from? Where are you going? The Levite answered: We have been in Bethlehem in Judah. We are on our way home deep in the mountains of Ephraim. No one will put us up for the night. We have fodder and straw for our donkeys and we have bread and wine for my concubine and me and for my servant. We have everything we need. The old man said: Come to my home. You are welcome! I will take care of you. You do not have to spend the night in the square. He took them home and fed their donkeys. They washed their feet and ate and drank. They were enjoying themselves when suddenly some sexual perverts from the town surrounded the house and pounded on the door. They said to the old man: Bring out the man who came to your house! We want to have sex with him! The old man went outside and said to them: No, my friends! Please! Do not do such an evil, immoral thing! This man is my guest. Here is his concubine and my virgin daughter. I will bring them out now. You can have them. Do whatever you want with them. But do not do such an awful thing to this man! The men would not listen to him. The Levite took his concubine and put her outside with them. They raped her and abused her all night long and did not stop until morning. At dawn the woman came and fell down at the door of the old man's house. She was still there when daylight came. When her master opened the door that morning to go on his way, he found his concubine lying in front of the house with her hands reaching for the door. He said: Get up and let us go. But there was no answer. Then he put her body across the donkey and started on his way home. When he arrived at his house he got a knife. He took his concubine's body and cut it into twelve pieces. He sent one piece to each of the twelve tribes of Israel. Everyone who saw it said: No such deed has been seen or done since the people of Israel left Egypt! We must do something about this! What will we do?

They have gone deep in depravity as in the days of Gibeah. He will remember their iniquity. He will punish their sins.

Jehovah says: The people of Israel have not stopped sinning against me since the time of their sin at Gibeah. So at Gibeah war will catch up with them.


Saul also went home to Gibeah. With him went some soldiers whose hearts God had touched.

Samuel went to Ramah. Saul went up to his house in Gibeah, in the land of Saul.

Saul heard that David and his men were found. Saul stayed in Gibeah under the tamarisk tree at the worship site. He held his spear in his hand. All his officials stood around him.


The people of Kiriath Jearim got the Ark and took it to Abinadab's house on a hill in their town. His son Eleazar took care of it.

They took it from Abinadab's home on the hill and placed it on a new cart. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the cart.


They go over the pass and make Geba their camping place for the night. Ramah trembles and Gibeah of Saul flees.


And Zelah, Eleph, and Jebusi, which is Jerusalem, Gibeath, and Kirjath; fourteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their families.


Cain, Gibeah, and Timnah; ten cities with their villages:


The Benjaminites came out to fight and were drawn away from the city. Just as before they killed some Israelites in the open country, on the road to Bethel and on the road to Gibeah. They killed about thirty Israelites.



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