Chesil
Chesil is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Judea in modern-day Israel. Known today as Khirbet ar Ras. It appears across 1 verse in Scripture.
Biblical History
Chesil is a Judahite town mentioned once in Joshua 15:30 as part of the extensive list of cities in the southern allotment of Judah, specifically within the Negev district along Judah's southern frontier. It appears in the company of towns such as Eltolad, Hormah, and Ziklag — settlements that formed the defensive and administrative fabric of Judah's arid southland. Chesil may be identical to Bethul (Josh 19:4) and Bethuel (1 Chr 4:30), which appear in similar town lists for the tribe of Simeon, suggesting a settlement in the Beer-sheba region that bore variant names in different traditions. The Negev towns of this period served as important outposts on the edge of the desert, controlling trade routes and nomadic movements across the southern wilderness. While no narrative events are associated specifically with Chesil, the detailed preservation of its name reflects the careful territorial organization of the Judahite administration during the early monarchy.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
Chesil is tentatively identified with Khirbet ar-Ras, a ruined mound in the northern Negev highlands of Israel. Surface surveys have yielded Iron Age pottery consistent with Israelite-period occupation, placing it within the expected chronological range for the Judahite Negev town lists. The site sits in the transitional zone between the central Judean hills and the open Negev desert, along routes connecting the Hebron highlands with the Beer-sheba basin. Due to the large number of sites in this region and the relatively sparse nature of the archaeological data, the identification of Chesil remains provisional. Systematic excavation of the site has not been conducted, and further survey work would be required to confirm the identification.
Verse Appearances (1)
Josh
Sources: ISBE Encyclopedia · OpenBible Geocoding (CC BY) · Pleiades Gazetteer View all →