Reference: Mizpah
Easton
or Miz'peh, watch-tower; the look-out. (1.) A place in Gilead, so named by Laban, who overtook Jacob at this spot (Ge 31:49) on his return to Palestine from Padan-aram. Here Jacob and Laban set up their memorial cairn of stones. It is the same as Ramath-mizpeh (Jos 13:26).
(2.) A town in Gilead, where Jephthah resided, and where he assumed the command of the Israelites in a time of national danger. Here he made his rash vow; and here his daughter submitted to her mysterious fate (Jg 10:17; 11:11,34). It may be the same as Ramoth-Gilead (Jos 20:8), but it is more likely that it is identical with the foregoing, the Mizpeh of Ge 31:23,25,48-49.
(3.) Another place in Gilead, at the foot of Mount Hermon, inhabited by Hivites (Jos 11:3,8). The name in Hebrew here has the article before it, "the Mizpeh," "the watch-tower." The modern village of Metullah, meaning also "the look-out," probably occupies the site so called.
(4.) A town of Moab to which David removed his parents for safety during his persecution by Saul (1Sa 22:3). This was probably the citadel known as Kir-Moab, now Kerak. While David resided here he was visited by the prophet Gad, here mentioned for the first time, who was probably sent by Samuel to bid him leave the land of Moab and betake himself to the land of Judah. He accordingly removed to the forest of Hareth (q.v.), on the edge of the mountain chain of Hebron.
(5.) A city of Benjamin, "the watch-tower", where the people were accustomed to meet in great national emergencies (Jos 18:26; Jg 20:1,3; 21:1,5; 1Sa 7:5-16). It has been supposed to be the same as Nob (1Sa 21:1; 22:9-19). It was some 4 miles north-west of Jerusalem, and was situated on the loftiest hill in the neighbourhood, some 600 feet above the plain of Gibeon. This village has the modern name of Neby Samwil (Illustration: Neby Samwil), i.e., the prophet Samuel, from a tradition that Samuel's tomb is here. (See Nob.)
Samuel inaugurated the reformation that characterized his time by convening a great assembly of all Israel at Mizpeh, now the politico-religious centre of the nation. There, in deep humiliation on account of their sins, they renewed their vows and entered again into covenant with the God of their fathers. It was a period of great religious awakening and of revived national life. The Philistines heard of this assembly, and came up against Israel. The Hebrews charged the Philistine host with great fury, and they were totally routed. Samuel commemorated this signal victory by erecting a memorial-stone, which he called "Ebenezer" (q.v.), saying, "Hitherto hath the Lord helped us" (1Sa 7:7-12).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Then he took his brethren with him and followed after him seven days' journey, and overtook him at the mount Gilead.
And Laban overtook Jacob: and Jacob had pitched his tent in that mount. And Laban with his brethren pitched their tent also upon the mount Gilead.
Then said Laban, "This heap be witness between thee and me this day." Therefore is it called Gilead. "And this toot-hill which the LORD seeth," said he, "be witness between me and thee when we are departed one from another:
"And this toot-hill which the LORD seeth," said he, "be witness between me and thee when we are departed one from another:
and unto the Canaanites both by east and west: and unto the Amorites, Hittites, Perezites, and Jebusites in the mountains; and unto the Hivites under Hermon in the land of Mizpeh:
And the LORD delivered them into the hands of Israel: and they smote them and chased them, into great Sidon, and unto the hot waters, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward: and smote them until they had none remaining of them.
And from Heshbon unto Ramathmizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim unto the borders of Debir.
And on the other side Jordan over against Jericho eastward, they gave Bezer in the wilderness upon the plain, out of the tribe of Reuben and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh.
Then the children of Ammon gathered together and pitched in Gilead. And the children of Israel gathered them together and pitched in Mizpeh.
Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead. And the people made him head and ruler over them. And Jephthah rehearsed all his words in Mizpeh.
Then Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house. And see, his daughter came out against him, with timbrels and dances, which was his only child: so that beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
Then all the children of Israel went out: and there gathered a congregation together as it had been but one man, even from Dan to Beersheba and out of the land of Gilead, unto the land to Mizpeh.
And the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizphah. Then said the children of Israel, "Tell us how this wickedness happened."
And the men of Israel sware in Mizpeh saying, "There shall none of us give his daughter unto any of Benjamin to wife."
And the children of Israel asked, "Who are they among all the tribes of Israel that came not with the congregation unto the LORD?" For they had made a great oath concerning them that came not up to the LORD to Mizpeh, saying that they should surely die.
When the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard that, they were afraid of the Philistines, and said to Samuel, "Cease not to cry unto the LORD our God for us, that he may save us out of the hands of the Philistines." read more. And Samuel took a sucking lamb and offered it altogether for a burnt offering unto the LORD, and cried unto the LORD for Israel. And the LORD heard him. And as Samuel offered the burnt offering, the Philistines came to fight against Israel. But the LORD thundered a great thunder the same day upon the Philistines, and turmoiled them, that they were beaten before Israel. And the men of Israel issued out of Mizpeh and pursued the Philistines and slew them, until they came under Bethcar. And then Samuel took a stone and pitched it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name thereof the stone of help, saying, "Thus far hath the LORD helped us."
Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech was astonished at his coming, and said unto him, "Why cometh thou thyself alone, and no man with thee?"
And David went thence to Mizpeh in the land of Moab, and said unto the king of Moab, "Let my father and mother, I pray thee, have their abiding with you, till I know what God will do with me."
Then answered Doeg the Edomite, which had the oversight of the servants of Saul, and said, "I saw the son of Jesse, when he came to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, which asked counsel of the LORD for him, and gave him victuals, and the sword of Goliath the Philistine also." read more. Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house: that is to say, the priests that were in Nob. And they came all to the king. And Saul said, "Hear, thou son of Ahitub." And he said, "Here I am, my lord." Then said Saul to him, "Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, insomuch that thou hast given him victuals and a sword, and hast asked counsel of God for him that he should arise against me and lie await as it is come to pass this day?" And Ahimelech answered the king, and said, "Who is so faithful among all thy servants as David and thereto the king's son-in-law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is had in honour in thine house? Have I this day begun first to ask counsel of God for him? God forbid that from me: let not the king put such a thing unto his servant and on all the house of my father. For thy servant knoweth nothing of all this, either less or more." But for all that, the king said, "Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech; both thou and all thy father's house." Then said the king unto his footmen that stood about him, "Turn and slay the priests of the LORD, both because their hand is with David and because they knew when David fled and showed it not to me." But the servants of the king would not move their hands, to run upon the priests of the LORD. Then said the king to Doeg, "Turn thou and smite the priests." And Doeg the Edomite turned and ran upon the priests, and slew that same day four score and five persons that did wear each man a linen ephod. And Nob, the city of the priests, he smote with the edge of the sword: both man and woman, child and suckling, with ox, ass and sheep.
Fausets
Hebrew "the Mizpah," generally a "watchtower". Mizpeh (masculine) expresses rather the town; Mizpah (feminine) the district (Jos 11:8,8).
1. In Gilead E. of Jordan. The name Laban gave to Galeed, the "heap of witness," the memorial of his covenant with Jacob, and the boundary landmark between them (Ge 31:48-49,52), "for he said, Jehovah watch between me and thee when we are absent one from another." (See GALEED.) Herein he adopts Jacoh's language (Hebrew) and religion (Jehovah's worship). In Ho 5:1, "ye house of the king, ye have been a snare on Mizpah and a net spread upon Tabor," the sense is, Ye ought to have been "watchers" guarding Israel from evil, but ye have been as hunters entrapping them into it. Mizpah in the E. and Tabor in the W. include the high places of the whole kingdom in which the rulers set up idol altars. Here Israel assembled to choose a leader in its "misery" when Ammon, having oppressed eastern Palestine, was threatening also to attack Judah and Ephraim W. of Jordan.
Jephthah passed Mizpah on his way from Gilead to fight Ammon (Jg 10:16-17; 11:29). Here on the hallowed ground he "uttered all his words before Jehovah in the Mizpah." Thenceforth his home was there; and at Mizpah the sad meeting with his daughter took place (Jg 11:34). Seemingly identical with Ramoth Gilead, or Ramath ("high place") Mizpeh (Jos 13:26); now es Salt, or else Mizpah is the Mount Jebel Osha, to the N.W. Here too Israel met, as being the ancient sanctuary, to determine what was to be done after the outrage perpetrated at Gibeah (Jg 20:1,3; 21:1,5,8).
2. Mizpeh Moab, where the Moabite king lived when David entrusted his parents to him (1Sa 22:3). Possibly Kir Moab, now Kerak, S.E. of the Dead Sea. More probably a mountain fastness on the high land bounding the Arboth Moab on the E. of the Dead Sea; on the mountains Abarim or Pisgah (De 34:1), which David could easily reach from Bethlehem by crossing the Jordan near its entrance into the Dead Sea. Mount Pisgah was the most commanding eminence in Moab, and contained the sanctuary Nebo, of which part was called Zophim (derived from the same root as Mizpeh).
3. The land of Mizpah, the abode of the Hivites, "under Hermon," who joined Jabin against Joshua (Jos 11:8). To "the valley of Mizpah eastward" Joshua chased Jabin's conquered hosts (Jos 11:8). The valley is probably part of the great hollow, Coelo-Syria, now Buka'a (Am 1:5, margin), containing Baalbek; near which on the N. is the hill Haush tell Safiyeh.
4. Mizpah of Benjamin (Jos 18:26). Fortified by Asa against the invasions of northern Israel (1Ki 15:22). The residence and scene of Gedaliah's murder (Jer 40:7-10; 41:1-2), At Mizpah Israel repented at Samuel's call (1Sa 7:5-6), and "drew water and poured it out before the Lord," pleading symbolically their misery, powerlessness, and prostration by the Philistines, that so God might strengthen them. An act of deepest humiliation and confession of misery, the result of sin. (Ps 22:14; 58:7; 2Sa 14:14; Isa 40:29-30; 2Co 12:9-10; La 2:19, "pour out thine heart like water before the face of Jehovah.") Here Samuel appointed Saul king (1Ki 10:17-25). Mizpah with Bethel and Gilgal were the three cities which Samuel as judge visited on circuit.
Men of Mizpah on the return from Babylon helped in rebuilding the wall; "the ruler of the district of Mizpah" and "the ruler of Mizpah" took part in it (Ne 3:7,15,19). Judas Maccabeus (1Ma 3:44) assembled the Jews at Maspha, as being "aforetime a place of prayer over against (implying Mizpah was in full sight of) Jerusalem." Josephus (Ant. 11:8, section 5; B. J. v. 2-3; 2:19, section 4; 5:2-3) mentions Sapha (a corruption of Maspha, Mizpah) as the place of Alexander's meeting Jaddua the high priest; and elsewhere calls it Scopus, i.e. the look-out place, from whence on the broad ridge (the continuation of Olivet), seven stadia N. of the city, one gains the first view of Jerusalem. The Septuagint twice renders Mizpah skopia. Nebi Samwil, on the W. bound of Benjamin toward the Philistines, with whom Israel was about to war (1Sa 7:5-6), Robinson identifies with Mizpah.
But it is five miles off, though in view of the Sakhrah of the temple and the Church of the Sepulchre; and this is at variance with 1 Maccabees, "over against Jerusalem." Moreover it is out of the way of the pilgrims from Samaria to Jerusalem, murdered by Ishmael; whereas Scopus is in the direct road (Jer 41:7). Sennacherib at Nob first caught the full view of "the house of Zion and hill of Jerusalem"; Nob therefore is probably Mizpah. Condor (Palestine Exploration Quarterly Statement, January, 1875) identifies Nob with Nebi Samwil, the Arabs mistaking Nob "high place" for Nebi "prophet." Nebi Samwil is so near Gibeon that it must have been the high place visited by Solomon; the view from it is splendid. Traces of the outer court of the tabernacle are yet discoverable, and a curious rock cut approach. (but, see NOB.)
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Then said Laban, "This heap be witness between thee and me this day." Therefore is it called Gilead. "And this toot-hill which the LORD seeth," said he, "be witness between me and thee when we are departed one from another:
this heap be witness and also this mark, that I will not come over this heap to thee, and thou shalt not come over this heap and this mark, to do any harm.
And Moses went from the fields of Moab up into mount Nebo which is the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the LORD showed him all the land of Gilead even unto Dan,
And the LORD delivered them into the hands of Israel: and they smote them and chased them, into great Sidon, and unto the hot waters, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward: and smote them until they had none remaining of them.
And the LORD delivered them into the hands of Israel: and they smote them and chased them, into great Sidon, and unto the hot waters, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward: and smote them until they had none remaining of them.
And the LORD delivered them into the hands of Israel: and they smote them and chased them, into great Sidon, and unto the hot waters, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward: and smote them until they had none remaining of them.
And the LORD delivered them into the hands of Israel: and they smote them and chased them, into great Sidon, and unto the hot waters, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward: and smote them until they had none remaining of them.
And from Heshbon unto Ramathmizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim unto the borders of Debir.
And they put away the strange gods from them and served the LORD. And the misery of Israel grieved his soul. Then the children of Ammon gathered together and pitched in Gilead. And the children of Israel gathered them together and pitched in Mizpeh.
Then the spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah. And he passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and came to Mizpeh that lieth in Gilead, and from thence unto the children of Ammon.
Then Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house. And see, his daughter came out against him, with timbrels and dances, which was his only child: so that beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
Then all the children of Israel went out: and there gathered a congregation together as it had been but one man, even from Dan to Beersheba and out of the land of Gilead, unto the land to Mizpeh.
And the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizphah. Then said the children of Israel, "Tell us how this wickedness happened."
And the men of Israel sware in Mizpeh saying, "There shall none of us give his daughter unto any of Benjamin to wife."
And the children of Israel asked, "Who are they among all the tribes of Israel that came not with the congregation unto the LORD?" For they had made a great oath concerning them that came not up to the LORD to Mizpeh, saying that they should surely die.
Then they said, "What are they of the tribes of Israel that came not up to Mizpeh to the LORD?" And behold there came none of the inhabiters of Jabeshgilead unto the congregation.
Then said Samuel, "Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, that I may pray for you unto the LORD."
Then said Samuel, "Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, that I may pray for you unto the LORD." And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water and poured it out before the LORD and fasted the same day, and said there, "We have sinned against the LORD." And Samuel judged the causes of the children of Israel in Mizpeh.
And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water and poured it out before the LORD and fasted the same day, and said there, "We have sinned against the LORD." And Samuel judged the causes of the children of Israel in Mizpeh.
And David went thence to Mizpeh in the land of Moab, and said unto the king of Moab, "Let my father and mother, I pray thee, have their abiding with you, till I know what God will do with me."
And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold, three pounds of gold going to a piece, and put them in the house of the wood of Lebanon. And the king made a great seat of Ivory and covered it with precious gold. read more. And the seat had six steps. And the top of the seat was round behind his back with pommels on either side on the place where he sat, and two Lions standing beside the pommels. And there stood twelve lions on the steps, six on a side. There was none like seen in any kingdom. And all king Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the wood of Lebanon were of pure gold. And as for silver, it was nothing worth in the days of Solomon. For the sea ships which the king had in the sea, with the ships of Hiram, came every third year laden with gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks. And so king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. And all the world resorted to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. And brought him every man his present, vessels of silver and of gold, and of raiment, harness, sweet odours, horses and mules, year by year.
Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah, that none should be excused. And they took the stones of Ramah and the timber wherewith Baasha had built, and king Asa built therewith Geba in Benjamin and Mizphah.
Next unto them builded Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, men of Gibeon and of Mizphah; where he that was captain on this side the water had a mansion.
But the Well gate builded Shallum the son of Colhozeh, the ruler of the fourth part of Mizphah; He builded it, covered it, and set on the doors, locks, and bars thereof, and the wall unto the pool of Siloam by the king's garden, unto the steps that go down from the city of David.
After him Ezer the son of Jeshua, the ruler of Mizphah, builded the other piece hard over against the harness corner.
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart also in the midst of my body is even like melting wax.
Let them fall away like water that runneth a pace; and when they shoot their arrows, let them be rooted out.
But that he giveth strength unto the weary, and power unto the faint? Children are weary and faint, and the strongest men fall:
Now when the captains of the Host of Judah, which with their fellows were scattered abroad on every side in the land, understood that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and that man, wife and child, yea and the poor men in the land that were not led captive to Babylon should be under his Jurisdiction: They came to Gedaliah unto Mizphah: Namely, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathah the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah the son of Maachathi, with their companions. read more. And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, swore unto them and their fellows on this manner, "Be not afraid to serve the Chaldeans; dwell in the land, and do the king of Babylon service, so shall ye prosper. Behold, I dwell at Mizphah to be an officer on the Chaldeans' behalf, and to satisfy such as come to us. Therefore gather you wine, corn and oil, and keep them in your warehouses, and dwell in your cities that ye have in keeping."
But in the seventh Month it happened, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, one of the king's blood, came with them that were greatest about the king, and ten men that were sworn with him: unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizphah, and ate there together. And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, with those ten men that were sworn to him, start up, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword; and slew him, whom the king of Babylon had made governor of the land.
And when they came in the midst of the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, with them that were sworn unto him, slew them: even at the midst of the pit.
{Kuf} Stand up and make thy prayer in the first watch of the night; pour out thine heart like water before the LORD. Lift up thine hands for the lives of thy young children that die of hunger in the streets.
O ye priests, hear this; take heed, O thou household of Israel; give ear, O thou kingly house. For this punishment will come upon you, that are become a snare unto Mizphah, and a spread net unto the mount of Tabor.
Thus will I break the bars of Damascus, and root out the inhabiter from the field of Aven, and him that holdeth the scepter, out of the pleasant house: so that the people shall be driven out of fair Syria,' sayeth the LORD.
Morish
Miz'pah Mizpeh. Miz'peh
1. The place where Jacob and Laban parted, after making a covenant and raising a heap of stones as a witness of the covenant and as a landmark between them. It was on the east of the Jordan, somewhere in Gilead. Ge 31:49; Jg 10:17; 11:11,29,34. It is probably the place mentioned in Jg 20:1,3; 21:1,5,8. Some suppose it to be identical with RAMATH-MIZPEH in Jos 13:26; and this to be the same as RAMOTH-GILEAD. Others judge these to be all different places and that No. 1 is identified with Suf, 32 18' N, 35 50' E.
2. LAND OF MIZPEH, the resort of the Hivites, who joined with Jabin to attack Joshua. It was 'under Hermon,' and therefore in the north of Palestine, Jos 11:3; this is possibly the same as
3. VALLEY OF MIZPEH to which Joshua chased the allies. Jos 11:8. Probably the extensive valley on the east of Mount Lebanon.
4. Town in the lowlands of Judah. Jos 15:38. Not identified.
5. City of Moab, where David placed his parents for safety. 1Sa 22:3. Not identified.
6. City of Benjamin, in the vicinity of Ramah and Gibeon. Jos 18:26. It was the city to which Samuel gathered the people, as 'to the Lord,' and where he judged Israel, and where also he presented Saul to them as their king. 1Sa 7:5-16; 10:17. The city was rebuilt by Asa king of Judah, and, after the destruction of Jerusalem, Gedaliah the governor established himself there. 1Ki 15:22; 25/23/type/mstc'>2Ki 25:23,25; 2Ch 16:6; Jer 40:6-15; 41:1-16; Ho 5:1. Probably the same place is alluded to in Ne 3:7,15,19. Identified by some with Neby Samwil, 31 50' N, 35 10' E.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"And this toot-hill which the LORD seeth," said he, "be witness between me and thee when we are departed one from another:
and unto the Canaanites both by east and west: and unto the Amorites, Hittites, Perezites, and Jebusites in the mountains; and unto the Hivites under Hermon in the land of Mizpeh:
And the LORD delivered them into the hands of Israel: and they smote them and chased them, into great Sidon, and unto the hot waters, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward: and smote them until they had none remaining of them.
And from Heshbon unto Ramathmizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim unto the borders of Debir.
Then the children of Ammon gathered together and pitched in Gilead. And the children of Israel gathered them together and pitched in Mizpeh.
Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead. And the people made him head and ruler over them. And Jephthah rehearsed all his words in Mizpeh.
Then the spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah. And he passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and came to Mizpeh that lieth in Gilead, and from thence unto the children of Ammon.
Then Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house. And see, his daughter came out against him, with timbrels and dances, which was his only child: so that beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
Then all the children of Israel went out: and there gathered a congregation together as it had been but one man, even from Dan to Beersheba and out of the land of Gilead, unto the land to Mizpeh.
And the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizphah. Then said the children of Israel, "Tell us how this wickedness happened."
And the men of Israel sware in Mizpeh saying, "There shall none of us give his daughter unto any of Benjamin to wife."
And the children of Israel asked, "Who are they among all the tribes of Israel that came not with the congregation unto the LORD?" For they had made a great oath concerning them that came not up to the LORD to Mizpeh, saying that they should surely die.
Then they said, "What are they of the tribes of Israel that came not up to Mizpeh to the LORD?" And behold there came none of the inhabiters of Jabeshgilead unto the congregation.
Then said Samuel, "Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, that I may pray for you unto the LORD." And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water and poured it out before the LORD and fasted the same day, and said there, "We have sinned against the LORD." And Samuel judged the causes of the children of Israel in Mizpeh. read more. When the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard that, they were afraid of the Philistines, and said to Samuel, "Cease not to cry unto the LORD our God for us, that he may save us out of the hands of the Philistines." And Samuel took a sucking lamb and offered it altogether for a burnt offering unto the LORD, and cried unto the LORD for Israel. And the LORD heard him. And as Samuel offered the burnt offering, the Philistines came to fight against Israel. But the LORD thundered a great thunder the same day upon the Philistines, and turmoiled them, that they were beaten before Israel. And the men of Israel issued out of Mizpeh and pursued the Philistines and slew them, until they came under Bethcar. And then Samuel took a stone and pitched it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name thereof the stone of help, saying, "Thus far hath the LORD helped us." And so the Philistines were brought under, that they came no more into the coasts of Israel: for the hand of the LORD was upon the Philistines all the days of Samuel. Thereto, the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel came again to Israel, even from Ekron to Gath, with the coasts of the same, which Israel plucked out of the hands of the Philistines. For there was peace between Israel and the Amorites. And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life, and went about year by year, to Bethel, Gilgal and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places, and came again to Ramah:
After that Samuel called the people together unto the LORD to Mizpeh
And David went thence to Mizpeh in the land of Moab, and said unto the king of Moab, "Let my father and mother, I pray thee, have their abiding with you, till I know what God will do with me."
Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah, that none should be excused. And they took the stones of Ramah and the timber wherewith Baasha had built, and king Asa built therewith Geba in Benjamin and Mizphah.
Next unto them builded Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, men of Gibeon and of Mizphah; where he that was captain on this side the water had a mansion.
But the Well gate builded Shallum the son of Colhozeh, the ruler of the fourth part of Mizphah; He builded it, covered it, and set on the doors, locks, and bars thereof, and the wall unto the pool of Siloam by the king's garden, unto the steps that go down from the city of David.
After him Ezer the son of Jeshua, the ruler of Mizphah, builded the other piece hard over against the harness corner.
Then went Jeremiah unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizphah, and dwelt there with him among the people that were left in the land. Now when the captains of the Host of Judah, which with their fellows were scattered abroad on every side in the land, understood that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and that man, wife and child, yea and the poor men in the land that were not led captive to Babylon should be under his Jurisdiction: read more. They came to Gedaliah unto Mizphah: Namely, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathah the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah the son of Maachathi, with their companions. And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, swore unto them and their fellows on this manner, "Be not afraid to serve the Chaldeans; dwell in the land, and do the king of Babylon service, so shall ye prosper. Behold, I dwell at Mizphah to be an officer on the Chaldeans' behalf, and to satisfy such as come to us. Therefore gather you wine, corn and oil, and keep them in your warehouses, and dwell in your cities that ye have in keeping." Yea all the Jews also that dwelt in Moab, under the Ammonites, in Idumaea and in all the countries, when they heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan governor upon them that were left in Judah: All the Jews, I say, returned out of all places where they were fled unto: and came in to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah unto Mizphah, and gathered wine and other fruits, and that very much. Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah and all the captains of the Host, that were scattered on every side in the land, came to Gedaliah to Mizphah, and said unto him, "Knowest thou not that Baalis king of the Ammonites hath sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, to slay thee?" But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam believed them not. Then said Johanan the son of Kareah unto Gedaliah in Mizphah these words, secretly, "Let me go, I pray thee, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, so that nobody shall know it. Wherefore will he kill thee? That all the Jews which resort unto thee, might be scattered, and the remnant in Judah perish?"
But in the seventh Month it happened, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, one of the king's blood, came with them that were greatest about the king, and ten men that were sworn with him: unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizphah, and ate there together. And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, with those ten men that were sworn to him, start up, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword; and slew him, whom the king of Babylon had made governor of the land. read more. Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with Gedaliah at Mizphah, and all the Chaldeans that he found there waiting upon him. The next day after that he had slain Gedaliah - the matter was yet unknown - there came certain men from Shechem, from Shiloh and Samaria, to the number of eighty, which had shaven their beards, rent their clothes, and were all heavy, bringing meat offerings, and incense in their hands, to offer it in the house of the LORD. And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth of Mizphah weeping, to meet them. Now when he met them, he said, "Go your way to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam." And when they came in the midst of the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, with them that were sworn unto him, slew them: even at the midst of the pit. Among these eighty men there were ten, that said unto Ishmael, "Oh slay us not, for we have yet a great treasure in the field, of wheat, barley, oil and honey." So he spared them, and slew them not with their brethren. Now the pit wherein Ishmael did cast the dead bodies of the men whom he slew because of Gedaliah, had king Asa caused to be made, for fear of Baasha the king of Israel, and the same pit did Ishmael fill with slain men. As for the remnant of the people, the king's daughters and all the people that were yet left at Mizphah, upon whom Nebuzaradan the chief Captain had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor: Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away prisoners toward the Ammonites. But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all they which had been captains over the king's Host with him, heard of all the wickedness that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done; they took their companions, and went out for to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and found him by the waters of Rabim in Gibeon. Now when all the people, whom Ishmael led captive, saw Johanan the son of Kareah and all the other Captains of the Host, they were glad. So all the people that Ishmael had carried away from Mizphah, were brought again. And when they returned, they came to Johanan the son of Kareah. But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah fled from Johanan with eight of his sworn companions, and went to the Ammonites. Then Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the Host that were with him, took the remnant of the people, whom Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had led away when he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom they also had rescued from him: fighting men, women and children, and gelded men: Whom they brought again from Gibeon.
O ye priests, hear this; take heed, O thou household of Israel; give ear, O thou kingly house. For this punishment will come upon you, that are become a snare unto Mizphah, and a spread net unto the mount of Tabor.
Smith
Miz'pah
and Miz'peh (a watch-tower), the name of several places in Palestine.
1. The earliest of all, in order of the narrative, is the heap of stones piled up by Jacob and Laban,
on Mount Gilead, ver.
to serve both as a witness to the covenant then entered into and as a landmark of the boundary between them. ver.
On this natural watch-tower did the children of Israel assemble for the choice of a leader to resist the children of Ammon.
There the fatal meeting took place between Jephthah and his daughter on his return from the war. ch.
It seems most probable that the "Mizpeh-gilead" which is mentioned here, and here only, is the same as the "ham-Mizpah" of the other parts of the narrative; and both are probably identical with the Ramath-mizpeh and Ramoth-gilead, so famous in the later history.
2. A second Mizpeh, on the east of Jordan, was the Mizpeh-moab, where the king of that nation was living when David committed his parents to his care.
3. A third was "the land of Mizpeh," or more accurately "of Mizpah," the residence of the Hivites who joined the northern confederacy against Israel, headed by Jabin king of Hazor.
No other mention is found of this district in the Bible, unless it be identical with --
4. The valley of Mizpeh, to which the discomfited hosts of the same confederacy were chased by Joshua,
perhaps identical with the great country of Coele-Syria.
5. Mizpeh, a city of Judah,
in the district of the Shefelah or maritime lowland.
6. Mizpeh, in Joshua and Samuel; elsewhere Mizpah, a "city" of Benjamin, not far from Jerusalem.
Jos 18:26; 1Ki 15:22; 2Ch 16:6; Ne 3:7
It was one of the places fortified by Asa against the incursions of the kings of northern Israel,
1Ki 15:22; 2Ch 16:6; Jer 41:10
and after the destruction of Jerusalem it became the residence of the superintendent appointed by the king of Babylon,
etc., and the scene of his murder and of the romantic incidents connected with the name of Ishmael the son of Nethaniah. It was one of the three holy cities which Samuel visited in turn as judge of the people,
the other two being Bethel and Gilgal. With the conquest of Jerusalem and the establishment there of the ark, the sanctity of Mizpah, or at least its reputation, seems to have declined. From Mizpah the city or the temple was visible. These conditions are satisfied by the position of Scopus, the broad ridge which forms the continuation of the Mount of Olives to the north and cast, from which the traveller gains, like Titus, his first view, and takes his last farewell, of the domes, walls and towers of the holy city.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And Laban overtook Jacob: and Jacob had pitched his tent in that mount. And Laban with his brethren pitched their tent also upon the mount Gilead.
Then said Laban, "This heap be witness between thee and me this day." Therefore is it called Gilead.
this heap be witness and also this mark, that I will not come over this heap to thee, and thou shalt not come over this heap and this mark, to do any harm.
and unto the Canaanites both by east and west: and unto the Amorites, Hittites, Perezites, and Jebusites in the mountains; and unto the Hivites under Hermon in the land of Mizpeh:
And the LORD delivered them into the hands of Israel: and they smote them and chased them, into great Sidon, and unto the hot waters, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward: and smote them until they had none remaining of them.
Then the children of Ammon gathered together and pitched in Gilead. And the children of Israel gathered them together and pitched in Mizpeh.
Then Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house. And see, his daughter came out against him, with timbrels and dances, which was his only child: so that beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water and poured it out before the LORD and fasted the same day, and said there, "We have sinned against the LORD." And Samuel judged the causes of the children of Israel in Mizpeh.
and went about year by year, to Bethel, Gilgal and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places, and came again to Ramah:
Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah, that none should be excused. And they took the stones of Ramah and the timber wherewith Baasha had built, and king Asa built therewith Geba in Benjamin and Mizphah.
Next unto them builded Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, men of Gibeon and of Mizphah; where he that was captain on this side the water had a mansion.
Now when the captains of the Host of Judah, which with their fellows were scattered abroad on every side in the land, understood that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and that man, wife and child, yea and the poor men in the land that were not led captive to Babylon should be under his Jurisdiction:
As for the remnant of the people, the king's daughters and all the people that were yet left at Mizphah, upon whom Nebuzaradan the chief Captain had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor: Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away prisoners toward the Ammonites.
Watsons
MIZPAH, or MIZPEH, a city of the tribe of Benjamin, situated in a plain, about eighteen miles west of Jerusalem. Here Samuel dwelt; and here he called Israel together, to observe a solemn fast for their sins, and to supplicate God for his assistance against the Philistines; after which they sallied out on their enemies, already discomfited by the thunders of heaven, and gave them a total defeat, 1 Samuel 7. Here, also, Saul was anointed king, 1Sa 10:17-25. It appears that between this and the time of Asa, king of Judah, Mizpeh had suffered probably in some of the intervening wars, as we are told that Asa built it with the stones and timber of Ramah, 1Ki 15:22. There was another Mizpeh in Gilead; on the spot where Jacob set up the pillar or heap of stones, to commemorate the covenant there made between him and Laban, Ge 31:49. (See Gilead.) There was also a third Mizpeh, in the land of Moab, where David placed his father and mother, while he remained in his retreat at Adullam, 1Sa 22:3. It is to be observed, that Mizpeh implies a beacon or watch tower, a pillar or heap of commemoration; and at all the places bearing this name, it is probable that a single pillar, or a rude pile, was erected as the witness and the record of some particular event. These, subsequently, became altars and places of convocation on public occasions, religious and civil.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"And this toot-hill which the LORD seeth," said he, "be witness between me and thee when we are departed one from another:
After that Samuel called the people together unto the LORD to Mizpeh and said unto the children of Israel, "Thus sayeth the LORD God of Israel. 'I brought you out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hands of all kingdoms that oppressed you. read more. And ye have this day cast away your God that helped you out of all your adversities and tribulations. And ye have said unto him: make a king over us. Now therefore stand before the LORD by your tribes and your thousands.'" And when Samuel had brought all the tribes of Israel the tribe of Benjamin was caught. When he had brought the tribe of Benjamin by their kindreds, the kindred of Matri was caught: and Saul the son of Kish was caught. And they sought him; but he could not be found. Then they asked the LORD further, whither the man should come thither. And the LORD answered, "Behold, he hath hid himself among the stuff." And they ran and fetched him thence. And when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from the shoulders upward. And Samuel said to all the people, "There! See ye whom the LORD hath chosen, and how there is none like him among all the company?" And all the people shouted and said, "God save the king!" Then Samuel told the people the duty of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the LORD, and so sent all the people away; every man to his house.
And David went thence to Mizpeh in the land of Moab, and said unto the king of Moab, "Let my father and mother, I pray thee, have their abiding with you, till I know what God will do with me."
Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah, that none should be excused. And they took the stones of Ramah and the timber wherewith Baasha had built, and king Asa built therewith Geba in Benjamin and Mizphah.