Chephirah
Encyclopedia
Chephirah is one of four towns named in Joshua
9:17 along with Gibeon, Beeroth
, and Kiriath-Jearim
. The context is a story explaining a peace treaty between the Israelites and the natives of this region. Chephirah appears again in 18:26 as one of the towns assigned to the Tribe of Benjamin
.
No other noteworthy event occurred at Chephirah for hundreds of years until it was named again in the parallel passages of Ezra
2:25, Nehemiah
7:29, & apocryphal 1 Esdras
5:19. Here the context is not of the location, but of the families who formerly resided there prior to being taken captive to Babylon
. The people of Chephirah are grouped together with those of Beeroth and Kirjath Jearim, but the Gibeonites comprise a separately numbered family.
Since the Survey of Western Palestine map published in the 1880s, no scholar has questioned the identification of the actual site with modern Khirbet Kefireh
.
Book of Joshua
The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land....
9:17 along with Gibeon, Beeroth
Beeroth (north)
Beeroth was a Biblical town seven miles northwest of Jerusalem.The town was an ancient Hivite settlement, and is mentioned in Joshua 9:17, 18:25, 2 Samuel 4:2, Ezra 2:25 and Nehemiah 7:29....
, and Kiriath-Jearim
Kiriath-Jearim
Kiriath-Jearim "city of woods" - was a city in the Land of Israel mentioned 18 times in the Hebrew Bible. It was also referenced by the names Kiriath-Ba'al, Ba'alah and Ba'ale-Judah....
. The context is a story explaining a peace treaty between the Israelites and the natives of this region. Chephirah appears again in 18:26 as one of the towns assigned to the Tribe of Benjamin
Tribe of Benjamin
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Benjamin בִּנְיָמִין was one of the Tribes of Israel.From after the conquest of the land by Joshua until the formation of the first Kingdom of Israel in c. 1050 BCE, the Tribe of Benjamin was a part of a loose confederation of Israelite tribes...
.
No other noteworthy event occurred at Chephirah for hundreds of years until it was named again in the parallel passages of Ezra
Book of Ezra
The Book of Ezra is a book of the Hebrew Bible. Originally combined with the Book of Nehemiah in a single book of Ezra-Nehemiah, the two became separated in the early centuries of the Christian era...
2:25, Nehemiah
Book of Nehemiah
The Book of Nehemiah is a book of the Hebrew Bible. Told largely in the form of a first-person memoir, it concerns the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem by Nehemiah, a Jew who is a high official at the Persian court, and the dedication of the city and its people to God's laws...
7:29, & apocryphal 1 Esdras
1 Esdras
1 Esdras , Greek Ezra, is an ancient Greek version of the biblical Book of Ezra in use among ancient Jewry, the early church, and many modern Christians with varying degrees of canonicity and a high historical usefulness....
5:19. Here the context is not of the location, but of the families who formerly resided there prior to being taken captive to Babylon
Babylon
Babylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
. The people of Chephirah are grouped together with those of Beeroth and Kirjath Jearim, but the Gibeonites comprise a separately numbered family.
Since the Survey of Western Palestine map published in the 1880s, no scholar has questioned the identification of the actual site with modern Khirbet Kefireh
Khirbet Kefireh
Khirbet Kefireh is a modern town just north of Katana, Israel on a hilltop covering about 4-5 acres...
.