Adam
Adam is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Samaria in modern-day Israel. Known today as Tell ed Damiyeh. It appears across 1 verse in Scripture.
Biblical History
The city of Adam occupies a singular moment in Israel's sacred history: it is the place where the waters of the Jordan River were miraculously cut off to allow the Israelites to cross into the Promised Land. Joshua 3:16 records that the waters "rose up in a heap a great distance away, at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan." This miraculous stoppage — occurring at a location some 30 kilometers upstream from the crossing point near Jericho — demonstrated God's sovereign power over creation and confirmed Joshua's authority as Moses' successor. The event consciously echoed the crossing of the Red Sea under Moses, establishing a theological continuity between the two pivotal events of the Exodus narrative. The city of Adam thus stands as a geographic witness to divine intervention at the threshold of covenant fulfillment. The Jordan crossing inaugurated Israel's possession of Canaan, the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and served as the prologue to the conquest under Joshua.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
The city of Adam is widely identified with Tell ed-Damiyeh, a prominent mound situated at the confluence of the Jabbok and Jordan rivers in the central Jordan Valley, in modern Jordan. The site commands a strategic position where the river narrows between limestone cliffs, making it geologically plausible for landslides to temporarily dam the Jordan — a phenomenon documented historically in 1267, 1906, and 1927 CE. Archaeological surveys have identified occupational layers corresponding to the Late Bronze Age, consistent with the period of the Israelite conquest. The tell remains largely unexcavated but retains surface pottery and structural remains indicating ancient settlement.
Verse Appearances (1)
Josh
Sources: ISBE Encyclopedia · OpenBible Geocoding (CC BY) · Pleiades Gazetteer View all →