בְּתוּל

Bethul (i.e. Bethuel), a place in Palestine

Definition

Bethul (בְּתוּל) is a proper noun referring to a town in the territory of the tribe of Simeon, located within the southern part of the land of Judah. It is mentioned only once in the Old Testament as one of the cities allotted to Simeon (Joshua 19:4). The name is a variant spelling of Bethuel (בְּתוּאֵל), which is more commonly known as the name of Rebekah's father (Genesis 22:22-23, 24:15). In the biblical context, Bethul represents a specific geographical location, not to be confused with the personal name.

Biblical Usage

This word appears only in Joshua 19:4, within a list of cities given to the tribe of Simeon. Its usage is strictly geographical and administrative, documenting the division of the Promised Land. There are no other occurrences or varied usages in the Hebrew Bible.

Etymology

The name Bethul (H1329) is a shortened or variant form of Bethuel (H1328, בְּתוּאֵל). Bethuel itself is a compound name, likely from 'beth' (house) and 'El' (God), meaning 'House of God'. The variation in spelling (dropping the aleph) is a common phonetic phenomenon in Hebrew place names versus personal names.

Semantic Range

As a place name, Bethul signifies the tangible fulfillment of God's promise to allocate specific territories to each tribe of Israel. Its inclusion in a town list reflects the administrative and tribal organization of ancient Israel following the conquest, grounding biblical narrative in real geography.

Bethuel (Bᵉthûʼêl, H1328) — The more common spelling, primarily used as a personal name (Rebekah's father) but referring to the same linguistic root and meaning 'House of God'.

Word Details

Scripture References