Reference: Gilgal
American
A rolling,
1. A celebrated place between the Jordan and Jericho, where the Israelites first encamped, after the passage of that river; where also they were circumcised, and kept their first Passover in Canaan, Jos 4:19; 5:9-10. It continued to be the headquarters of the Israelites for several years, while Joshua was occupied in subduing the land, Jos 9:6; 10:6,15,43. A considerable city was afterwards built there, Jos 15:7, which became famous for many events. Here the tabernacle rested, until its removal to Shiloh; here also, according to the prevalent opinion, Samuel offered sacrifices, and held his court as a judge of Israel; and here Saul was crowned, 1Sa 7:16; 10:8; 11:15; 1Sa 13:7-9; 15:33. A school of the prophets was established, 2Ki 4:38; and yet it afterwards appears to have become a seat of idolatry, Ho 4:15; 9:15; 12:11; Am 4:4; 5:5. At this day, no traces of it are found. According to Josephus, it lay within two miles of Jericho.
2. Another Gilgol lay near Antipatris, Jos 12:23; Ne 12:29. And perhaps a third in the mountains of Ephraim, north of Bethel, De 11:30; 2Ki 2:1-6. There are not wanting those who would make the Gilgal near Antipatris the seat of Samuel's judgeship, and of one of the schools of the prophets.
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Are they not beyond the Jordan, behind the way of the going down of the sun, in the land of the Canaanites who dwell in the Arabah, opposite Gilgal, beside the oaks of Moreh?
And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho.
And LORD said to Joshua, This day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Therefore the name of that place was called Gilgal, to this day. And the sons of Israel encamped in Gilgal. And they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho.
And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him, and to the men of Israel, We have come from a far country, now therefore make ye a covenant with us.
And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slack not thy hand from thy servants. Come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the hill-country are gathered
and the border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that is opposite the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the river, and the border passed along to the waters of En-she
And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel and Gilgal, and Mizpah. And he judged Israel in all those places.
And thou shall go down before me to Gilgal. And, behold, I will come down to thee, to offer burnt-offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace-offerings. Thou shall tarry seven days till I come to thee, and show thee what thou s
And all the people went to Gilgal. And there they made Saul king before LORD in Gilgal, and there they offered sacrifices of peace-offerings before LORD, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
And Elisha came again to Gilgal. And there was a dearth in the land, and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. And he said to his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
also from Beth-gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built for them villages round about Jerusalem.
Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend, and come not ye to Gilgal, nor go ye up to Beth-aven, nor swear, As LORD lives.
All their wickedness is in Gilgal, for there I hated them. Because of the wickedness of their doings I will drive them out of my house. I will love them no more. All their rulers are rebels.
Is Gilead iniquity? They are altogether false. In Gilgal they sacrifice bullocks. Yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the field.
Come to Bethel and transgress, to Gilgal [and] multiply transgression. And bring your sacrifices every morning, [and] your tithes every three days.
But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba. For Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to naught.
Easton
rolling. (1.) From the solemn transaction of the reading of the law in the valley of Shechem between Ebal and Gerizim the Israelites moved forward to Gilgal, and there made a permanent camp (Jos 9:6; 10:6). It was "beside the oaks of Moreh," near which Abraham erected his first altar (Ge 12:6-7). This was one of the three towns to which Samuel resorted for the administration of justice (1Sa 7:16), and here also he offered sacrifices when the ark was no longer in the tabernacle at Shiloh (1Sa 10:8; 13:7-9). To this place, as to a central sanctuary, all Israel gathered to renew their allegiance to Saul (1Sa 11:14). At a later period it became the scene of idolatrous worship (Ho 4:15; 9:15). It has been identified with the ruins of Jiljilieh, about 5 miles south-west of Shiloh and about the same distance from Bethel.
(2.) The place in "the plains of Jericho," "in the east border of Jericho," where the Israelites first encamped after crossing the Jordan (Jos 4:19-20). Here they kept their first Passover in the land of Canaan (Jos 5:10) and renewed the rite of circumcision, and so "rolled away the reproach" of their Egyptian slavery. Here the twelve memorial stones, taken from the bed of the Jordan, were set up; and here also the tabernacle remained till it was removed to Shiloh (Jos 18:1). It has been identified with Tell Jiljulieh, about 5 miles from Jordan.
(3.) A place, probably in the hill country of Ephraim, where there was a school of the prophets (2Ki 4:38), and whence Elijah and Elisha, who resided here, "went down" to Bethel (2Ki 2:1-2). It is mentioned also in DE 11:30. It is now known as Jiljilia, a place 8 miles north of Bethel.
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And Abram passed through the land to the place of Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And LORD appeared to Abram, and said, I will give this land to thy seed. And there he built an altar to LORD, who appeared to him.
And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.
And the sons of Israel encamped in Gilgal. And they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho.
And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him, and to the men of Israel, We have come from a far country, now therefore make ye a covenant with us.
And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slack not thy hand from thy servants. Come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the hill-country are gathered
And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel assembled themselves together at Shiloh, and set up the tent of meeting there, and the land was subdued before them.
And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel and Gilgal, and Mizpah. And he judged Israel in all those places.
And thou shall go down before me to Gilgal. And, behold, I will come down to thee, to offer burnt-offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace-offerings. Thou shall tarry seven days till I come to thee, and show thee what thou s
Then Samuel said to the people, Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there.
Now some of the Hebrews had gone over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead, but as for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel [had appointed], but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. read more. And Saul said, Bring here the burnt-offering to me, and the peace-offerings. And he offered the burnt-offering.
And it came to pass, when LORD would take up Elijah by a whirlwind into heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. And Elijah said to Elisha, Remain here, I pray thee, for LORD has sent me as far as Bethel. And Elisha said, As LORD lives, and as thy soul lives, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
And Elisha came again to Gilgal. And there was a dearth in the land, and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. And he said to his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend, and come not ye to Gilgal, nor go ye up to Beth-aven, nor swear, As LORD lives.
All their wickedness is in Gilgal, for there I hated them. Because of the wickedness of their doings I will drive them out of my house. I will love them no more. All their rulers are rebels.
Fausets
1. Hebrew: "the Gilgal," i.e. rolling. Israel's first encampment W. of Jordan (five miles) where they passed their first night after crossing, and set up the twelve stones taken from the river bed (Jos 4:3,19-20). Here they kept the first Passoverin Canaan (Jos 5:10). On arising ground ("hill," Jos 5:3,9) in the hot sunken Ghor between Jericho and the Jordan, one mile and a half E. of Jericho; five miles and a half W. of Jordan (Josephus, Ant. 5:1, 4, 11). On the N. side of wady Kelt, one mile and a third from the tower of modern Jericho (Eriha); toward the E. is a tamarisk, "Shejaret el Ithleh," which tradition makes the site of "the city of brass," whose walls fell on their besiegers marching round them. A pool is 150 yards S.E. of the tree, such as Israel would need in their long encampment at Gilgal; it is built with well packed pebbles without cement.
S.E. of this are twelve or more small mounds, Tell ayla't Jiljulieh, eight or ten ft. diameter, and three or four high, possibly remains of Israel's camp (Conder, Palestine Exploration). The distances stated by Josephus accord with this site. The Israelites born in the wilderness were here circumcised with stone knives (Jos 5:2 margin; Ex 4:25), which "rolling" away of the reproach of uncircumcision gave the name. The sons under 20 years, when at Kadesh in the second year of the wilderness journey the murmuring nation was rejected (Numbers 14), had been already circumcised; those born subsequently needed circumcision. As God abrogated at Kadesh the covenant, the sons of the rejected generation were not to receive the covenant rite. The manna and pillar of cloud were not withdrawn, because God would sustain the rising generation with the prospect of the ban being removed, and of the covenant temporarily suspended being renewed.
The sentence was exhausted when they crossed the Zered and entered the Amorites' land (De 2:14; Nu 21:12-13), when all the sentenced generation was dead (Nu 26:63-65). Moses, himself under sentence to die, did not venture on the steppes of Moab to direct the circumcision of the younger generation without Jehovah's command. And the rule of divine grace is first to give, then to require; so first He showed His grace to Abraham by leading him to Canaan and giving the promises, then enjoined circumcision; also He did not give the law to Israel at Sinai until first He had redeemed them from Egypt, and thereby made them willing to promise obedience. So now He did not require the renewal of circumcision, the covenant sign of subjection to the law (Ga 5:3), until He had first showed His grace in giving them victory over Og and Sihon, and in making a way through Jordan, a pledge that He would fulfill all His promises and finally give them the whole land.
The circumcision was performed the day after crossing Jordan, i.e. the 11th day of the first month (Ga 4:19). The Passover was kept on the 14th (verse 10). The objection that all could not have been circumcised in one day is futile. For the males in Israel at the census in Moab shortly before were 601,730 upward of 20 years old, besides 23,000 Levites of a month old and upward; at the outside all the males would be less than one million. Of these about 300,000 were 38 years old, therefore born before the census at Kadesh and circumcised already; so that only 600,000 would remain to be circumcised. The uncircumcised could easily be circumcised in one day with the help of the circumcised; the latter would prepare and kill the Passover lamb for their brethren whose soreness (Ge 34:25) would be no bar to their joining in the feast.
The "reproach of Egypt rolled off" is (like "the reproach of Moab" Zep 2:8, and "Syria" Eze 16:57) that heaped on Israel by Egypt, namely, that Jehovah had brought them into the wilderness to slay them (Ex 32:12; Nu 14:13-16; De 9:28). This "reproach of Egypt" rested on them so long as they were under the sentence of wandering and dying in the desert. The circumcision at Gilgal was a practical restoration of the covenant, and a pledge of their now receiving Canaan. No village was, or is, at Gilgal. In Mic 6:5, "O My people, remember ... what Balak ... consulted, and what Balaam ... answered ... from Shittim unto Gilgal," the sense is, Remember My kindness from Shittim. the scene of Balaam's wicked counsel taking effect in Israel's sin, from the fatal effects of which I saved thee, all along to Gilgal where I renewed the covenant with Israel by circumcision (2Sa 19:15).
2. Gilgal from which Elijah and Elisha went down to Bethel (2Ki 2:1-2). Clearly distinct from:
3. Gilgal, which is below in the Ghor along Jordan, not above Bethel, which is 1,000 ft. above Jordan. Now perhaps the ruins Jiljilieh, a few miles N. of Bethel. Another Gilgal has been found four miles from Shiloh, and five from Bethel, which is 500 ft. lower; this may be the Gilgal of 2Ki 2:3. Gilgal not far from Shechem, beside the plains of Moreh (De 11:30). Jos 12:23, "king of the nations (goim) of Gilgal," i.e. of the nomadic tribes, the aboriginal inhabitants of the country whose center was Gilgal.
4. To the N. of Judah (Jos 15:7). (See GELILOTH.)
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And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brothers, took each man his sword, and came upon the city unawares, and killed all the males.
Then Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet. And she said, Surely a bridegroom of blood thou are to me.
Why should the Egyptians speak, saying, He brought them forth for evil, to kill them on the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and relent of this evil against thy people.
And Moses said to LORD, Then the Egyptians will hear it, for thou brought up this people in thy might from among them, and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that thou LORD are in the midst of this people, for thou LORD are seen face to face, and thy cloud stands over them, and thou go before them, in a pillar of clo read more. Now if thou shall kill this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying, Because LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he swore to them, therefore he has slain them in the wilderness.
From there they journeyed, and encamped in the valley of Zered. From there they journeyed, and encamped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that comes out of the border of the Amorites, for the Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.
These are those who were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the sons of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho. But among these there was not a man of them who was numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest, who numbered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. read more. For LORD had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not a man of them left, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
And the days in which we came from Kadesh-barnea, until we came over the brook Zered, were thirty-eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were consumed from the midst of the camp, as LORD swore to them.
lest the land from where thou brought us out say, Because LORD was not able to bring them into the land which he promised to them, and because he hated them, he has brought them out to kill them in the wilderness.
Are they not beyond the Jordan, behind the way of the going down of the sun, in the land of the Canaanites who dwell in the Arabah, opposite Gilgal, beside the oaks of Moreh?
and command ye them, saying, Take for you here out of the midst of the Jordan, out of the place where the priests' feet stood firm, twelve stones, and carry them over with you, and lay them down in the lodging-place where ye shall
And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.
At that time LORD said to Joshua, Make for thee knives of flint, and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time. And Joshua made him knives of flint, and circumcised the sons of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
And LORD said to Joshua, This day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Therefore the name of that place was called Gilgal, to this day. And the sons of Israel encamped in Gilgal. And they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho.
and the border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that is opposite the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the river, and the border passed along to the waters of En-she
So the king returned, and came to the Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to bring the king over the Jordan.
And it came to pass, when LORD would take up Elijah by a whirlwind into heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. And Elijah said to Elisha, Remain here, I pray thee, for LORD has sent me as far as Bethel. And Elisha said, As LORD lives, and as thy soul lives, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel. read more. And the sons of the prophets who were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said to him, Do thou know that LORD will take away thy master from thy head today? And he said, Yes, I know it; hold ye your peace.
before thy wickedness was uncovered, as at the time of the reproach of the daughters of Syria, and of all who are round about her, the daughters of the Philistines, who do despite to thee round about.
O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him. [Remember] from Shittim to Gilgal, that ye may know the righteous acts of LORD.
I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the revilings of the sons of Ammon, with which they have reproached my people, and magnified themselves against their border.
My little children, of whom I suffer birth pains again until Christ is formed in you.
And I solemnly declare again to every man who is circumcised, that he is obligated to do the whole law.
Hastings
A name meaning 'stone circle' applied to several places mentioned in the OT. 1. A place on the east border of Jericho (Jos 4:19), where the Israelites first encamped after crossing Jordan, and which remained the headquarters of the congregation till after the rout of the northern kings at Merom (Jos 14:6). The stone circle from which it certainly took its name (in spite of the impossible etymology given in Jos 5:9), was no doubt that to which the tradition embodied in Jos 4:20 refers, and the same as the 'images' by Gilgal in the story of Ehud (Jg 3:19 Revised Version margin). The name is still preserved in the modern Jilj
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Are they not beyond the Jordan, behind the way of the going down of the sun, in the land of the Canaanites who dwell in the Arabah, opposite Gilgal, beside the oaks of Moreh?
And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.
And LORD said to Joshua, This day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Therefore the name of that place was called Gilgal, to this day.
Then the sons of Judah drew near to Joshua in Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, Thou know the thing that LORD spoke to Moses the man of God concerning me and concerning thee in Kadesh-barnea.
and the border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that is opposite the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the river, and the border passed along to the waters of En-she
But he himself turned back from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand to thee, O king. And he said, Keep silence. And all who stood by him went out from him.
And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel and Gilgal, and Mizpah. And he judged Israel in all those places.
And Elisha came again to Gilgal. And there was a dearth in the land, and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. And he said to his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
For Israel has behaved himself stubbornly, like a stubborn heifer. Now LORD will feed them as a lamb in a large place.
Ephraim is smitten. Their root is dried up. They shall bear no fruit. Yea, though they bring forth, yet I will kill the beloved fruit of their womb.
Is Gilead iniquity? They are altogether false. In Gilgal they sacrifice bullocks. Yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the field.
Come to Bethel and transgress, to Gilgal [and] multiply transgression. And bring your sacrifices every morning, [and] your tithes every three days.
Seek LORD, and ye shall live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, and there be none to quench it in Bethel.
Morish
1. Place west of the Jordan, 'in the east border of Jericho,' where the Israelites encamped after passing the river. Here the twelve memorial stones were placed that were taken out of Jordan. Here the Israelites were circumcised: type of the putting off the body of the flesh; that is, of separation from the system in which man in the flesh lives: cf. Col 3:3-5. Here the reproach of Egypt was 'rolled away' (from which the name of the place was called 'Gilgal'), and they had communion figuratively with the death of Christ in the Passover. On the next day they ate of the old corn of the promised land: type of Christ being the centre of heavenly things on which the Christian feeds. Jos 4:19-20; 5:2-11. Gilgal was not only the starting point in taking possession of the land, but the place to which Joshua returned again and again: it was the place of strength. Jos 9:6; 10:6-15; 14:6. It was here that Saul was made king, 1Sa 11:14-15; and here he offered sacrifices, and Samuel hewed Agag in pieces. 1Sa 13:4-15; 15:12,21,33.
When David returned after the overthrow and death of Absalom, Judah gathered at Gilgal. to meet the king and conduct him over Jordan. 2Sa 19:15. In the days of Jeroboam Gilgal was defiled with idolatry. Ho 4:15; 9:15; Am 4:4. Gilgal which signifies 'rolled away' should be itself 'rolled away.' Am 5:5. In Jos 15:7 the border of Judah's portion 'looked toward' Gilgal, which well agrees with its being near Jericho. But in Jos 18:17 the same place is called GELILOTH, which cannot be traced. Gilgal is identified with Jiljulieh, 31 51' N, 35 29' E. In Ne 12:29 occurs 'the house of Gilgal,' or 'Beth-gilgal,' which may refer to the same place, or may be one of the villages built 'round about' Jerusalem.
2. A place connected with the closing scene of Elijah's life and where Elisha wrought one of his miracles. 2Ki 2:1; 4:38. The two prophets went 'down' from Gilgal to Bethel, whereas when No. 1 is referred to it is always 'going up' to the neighbourhood of Bethel, which seems to indicate that different places are alluded to. It has been identified with Jiljilia, 32 2' N, 35 13' E. (It should however be added that if the identification of Nos. 1 and 2, and that of Bethel is correct, No. 2 is not actually higher than Bethel, though being on a high hill it appears to be so, and a valley has to be crossed to reach it. The altitude of No. 2 is 2,441 feet, and that of Bethel 2,890 feet. No. 1 is below the sea level, which makes the 'going up' from thence to Bethel very apparent.)
3. A place whose king is called 'the king of the nations of Gilgal,' or, as in the R.V., 'the king of Goiim in Gilgal.' He was slain under Joshua. Being mentioned between Dor and Tirzah it is apparently a third Gilgal. Jos 12:23. It has been identified with Jiljulieh, 32 10' N, 34 57' E.
4. In De 11:30 Moses, speaking of the mounts of Gerizim and Ebal, asks "Are they not . . . . in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the champaign over against Gilgal, beside the plains of Moreh?" This does not at all agree with any of the above, but has not been identified with any place in the neighbourhood of the two mountains.
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Are they not beyond the Jordan, behind the way of the going down of the sun, in the land of the Canaanites who dwell in the Arabah, opposite Gilgal, beside the oaks of Moreh?
And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.
At that time LORD said to Joshua, Make for thee knives of flint, and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time. And Joshua made him knives of flint, and circumcised the sons of Israel at the hill of the foreskins. read more. And this is the reason why Joshua circumcised: All the people who came forth out of Egypt, who were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way after they came forth out of Egypt. For all the people who came out were circumcised, but all the people who were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, they had not circumcised. For the sons of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness till all the nation, even the men of war who came forth out of Egypt, were consumed, because they did not hearken to the voice of LORD, to whom LORD swore that he would no And their sons, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised, for they were uncircumcised because they had not circumcised them by the way. And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the nation, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were recovered. And LORD said to Joshua, This day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Therefore the name of that place was called Gilgal, to this day. And the sons of Israel encamped in Gilgal. And they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho. And they ate of the produce of the land on the morrow after the Passover, unleavened cakes and parched grain, in the selfsame day.
And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him, and to the men of Israel, We have come from a far country, now therefore make ye a covenant with us.
And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slack not thy hand from thy servants. Come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the hill-country are gathered So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor. read more. And LORD said to Joshua, Fear them not, for I have delivered them into thy hands. There shall not a man of them stand before thee. Joshua therefore came upon them suddenly, [for] he went up from Gilgal all the night. And LORD discomfited them before Israel, and he killed them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon, and smote them to Azekah, and to Makkedah. And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, while they were at the descent of Beth-horon, that LORD cast down great stones from heaven upon them to Azekah, and they died. More died with the hailstones than those whom the Then Joshua spoke to LORD in the day when LORD delivered up the Amorites before the sons of Israel. And he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, and thou, Moon, in the valley of Aijalon. And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the nation had avenged themselves of their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stayed in the midst of heaven, and hastened not to go down about a whole And there was no day like that before it or after it, that LORD hearkened to the voice of a man, for LORD fought for Israel. And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.
Then the sons of Judah drew near to Joshua in Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, Thou know the thing that LORD spoke to Moses the man of God concerning me and concerning thee in Kadesh-barnea.
and the border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that is opposite the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the river, and the border passed along to the waters of En-she
and it extended northward, and went out at En-shemesh, and went out to Geliloth, which is opposite the ascent of Adummim, and it went down to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben,
Then Samuel said to the people, Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there. And all the people went to Gilgal. And there they made Saul king before LORD in Gilgal, and there they offered sacrifices of peace-offerings before LORD, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel was had in abomination with the Philistines. And the people were gathered together after Saul to Gilgal. And the Philistines assembled themselves together to fight with Israel: thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the sea-shore in multitude. And they came up, and encamped in Michmash, read more. When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait (for the people were distressed), then the people hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in coverts, and in pits. Now some of the Hebrews had gone over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead, but as for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel [had appointed], but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. And Saul said, Bring here the burnt-offering to me, and the peace-offerings. And he offered the burnt-offering. And it came to pass that, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt-offering, behold, Samuel came, and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him. And Samuel said, What have thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines assembled themselves together at Michmash, therefore I said, Now the Philistines will come down upon me to Gilgal, and I have not entreated the favor of LORD. I forced myself therefore, and offered the burnt-offering. And Samuel said to Saul, Thou have done foolishly. Thou have not kept the commandment of LORD thy God, which he commanded thee. For now LORD would have established thy kingdom upon Israel forever, but now thy kingdom shall not continue. LORD has sought for him a man after his own heart, and LORD has appointed him to be prince over his people, because thou have not kept that which LORD commanded thee. And Samuel arose, and got up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people who were present with him, about six hundred men.
And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, and it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set up for him a monument, and turned, and passed on, and went down to Gilgal.
But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice to LORD thy God in Gilgal.
And Samuel said, As thy sword has made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before LORD in Gilgal.
So the king returned, and came to the Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to bring the king over the Jordan.
And it came to pass, when LORD would take up Elijah by a whirlwind into heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.
And Elisha came again to Gilgal. And there was a dearth in the land, and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. And he said to his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
also from Beth-gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built for them villages round about Jerusalem.
Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend, and come not ye to Gilgal, nor go ye up to Beth-aven, nor swear, As LORD lives.
All their wickedness is in Gilgal, for there I hated them. Because of the wickedness of their doings I will drive them out of my house. I will love them no more. All their rulers are rebels.
Come to Bethel and transgress, to Gilgal [and] multiply transgression. And bring your sacrifices every morning, [and] your tithes every three days.
But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba. For Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to naught.
For ye died, and your life has been hidden with the Christ in God. When the Christ, our life, is made known, then ye also will be made known with him in glory. read more. Put to death therefore your body-parts on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and greed, which is idolatry.
Smith
Gil'gal
(a wheel; rolling).
1. The site of the first camp of the Israelites on the west of the Jordan, the place at which they passed the first night after crossing the river, and where the twelve stones were set up which had been taken from the bed of the stream,
comp. Josh 4:3 where also they kept the first passover in the land of Canaan ch.
It was "in the east border of Jericho," apparently on a hillock or rising ground,
comp. Josh 5:9 in the Arboth-Jericho (Authorized Version "the plains"), that is, the hot depressed district of the Ghor which lay between the town and the Jordan. ch.
Here Samuel was judge, and Saul was made king. We again have a glimpse of it, some sixty years later, in the history of David's return to Jerusalem.
A Gilgal is spoken of in
in describing the north border of Judah. In
it is given as Geliloth. Gilgal near Jericho is doubtless intended.
2. In
is named a Gilgal visited by Elijah and Elisha. This could not be the Gilgal of the low plain of the Jordan, for the prophets are said to have gone down to Bethel, which is 3000 feet above the plain. It haa been identified with Jiljilia, about four miles from Bethel and Shiloh respectively.
3. The "king of the nations of Gilgal" or rather perhaps the "king of Goim at Gilgal," is mentioned in the catalogue of the chiefs overthrown bv Joshua.
Possibly the site of this place is marked by the modern village Jiljulieh, about four miles south of Antipatris, which lies 16 miles northeast of Joppa. But another Gilgal, under the slightly-different form of Kilkilieh, lies about two miles east of Antipatris.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.
And Joshua made him knives of flint, and circumcised the sons of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
And the sons of Israel encamped in Gilgal. And they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho.
And the sons of Israel encamped in Gilgal. And they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho.
and the border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that is opposite the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the river, and the border passed along to the waters of En-she
and it extended northward, and went out at En-shemesh, and went out to Geliloth, which is opposite the ascent of Adummim, and it went down to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben,
So the king went over to Gilgal, and Chimham went over with him. And all the people of Judah brought the king over, and also half the people of Israel.
And it came to pass, when LORD would take up Elijah by a whirlwind into heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. And Elijah said to Elisha, Remain here, I pray thee, for LORD has sent me as far as Bethel. And Elisha said, As LORD lives, and as thy soul lives, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
And Elisha came again to Gilgal. And there was a dearth in the land, and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. And he said to his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
Watsons
The word Gilgal signifies rolling. Here the ark was long stationed, and consequently the place was much resorted to by the Israelites. It seems to have been the place in which Jeroboam or some of the kings of Israel instituted idolatrous worship; and hence the allusions to it by the prophets, Ho 4:15; Am 4:4. It is probable that there were idols at Gilgal as early as the days of Ehud, who was one of the judges; for it is said that, having delivered his presents to the king, "Ehud went away, but returned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal," Jg 3:19. The margin of our Bibles reads, "the graven images," or idols set up by the Moabites, the viewing of which, it is thought, stirred up Ehud to revenge the affront thereby offered to the God of Israel. At this same place, the people met to confirm the kingdom to Saul, 1Sa 11:14-15. It was at Gilgal, too, that Saul incurred the divine displeasure, in offering sacrifice before Samuel arrived, 1 Samuel xiii; and there also it was that he received the sentence of his rejection for disobeying the divine command, and sparing the king of Amalek with the spoils which he had reserved, 1 Samuel 15.
It has been supposed that the setting up of stones, as at Gilgal and other places, gave rise to the rude stone circular temples of the Druids, and other Heathens. The idea, however, appears fanciful, and there is an essential difference between stones erected for memorials, and those used to mark sacred, or supposed sacred, places for worship.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
But he himself turned back from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand to thee, O king. And he said, Keep silence. And all who stood by him went out from him.
Then Samuel said to the people, Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there. And all the people went to Gilgal. And there they made Saul king before LORD in Gilgal, and there they offered sacrifices of peace-offerings before LORD, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend, and come not ye to Gilgal, nor go ye up to Beth-aven, nor swear, As LORD lives.
Come to Bethel and transgress, to Gilgal [and] multiply transgression. And bring your sacrifices every morning, [and] your tithes every three days.