Cuthah
Cuthah is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Mesopotamia in modern-day Iraq. Known today as Tell Ibrahim. It appears across 2 verses in Scripture.
Biblical History
Cuthah was an important city of ancient Mesopotamia, mentioned twice in 2 Kings 17 in connection with the Assyrian resettlement policy following the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BC. After deporting the Israelites, the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim to repopulate the cities of Samaria (2 Kings 17:24). These settlers became the ethnic and religious ancestors of the Samaritans, a mixed people who initially continued worshipping their own gods alongside a syncretistic adoption of Israelite religion. The people of Cuthah were worshippers of Nergal, the Mesopotamian god of the underworld and pestilence (2 Kings 17:30). The Cuthaeans thus became a distinctive group in the resettlement, and in later Jewish tradition the term Cuthean became a common derogatory designation for Samaritans. Cuthah's role in biblical history is therefore closely tied to the theological crisis of the northern kingdom's destruction and the subsequent religious complexities of the land of Israel.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
Cuthah is securely identified with Tell Ibrahim, located approximately 30 kilometers northeast of Babylon in modern Iraq. The site preserves the remains of ancient Kutha, a significant Sumerian and Babylonian city dedicated to the cult of Nergal, god of the underworld. The temple of Nergal at Kutha, referenced in 2 Kings 17:30, was one of the most important religious sanctuaries in Mesopotamia. Archaeological investigations have confirmed continuous occupation from the Ubaid period through the Neo-Babylonian era. Cuneiform tablets from the site document administrative and religious activities. The site was partially investigated in the early twentieth century, with surface surveys and satellite imaging revealing the city's considerable extent.
Verse Appearances (2)
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- OpenBible.info (n.d.) Bible Geocoding. Available at: https://www.openbible.info/geo/. [CC BY 4.0]
- Bagnall, R. et al. (eds.) (n.d.) Pleiades: A Gazetteer of Past Places. Available at: https://pleiades.stoa.org. [CC BY 3.0]
- Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
- Lawrence, D. et al. (2025) Villages to Empires: a settlement dataset for the Southern Levant. doi:10.5281/zenodo.15111732. [CC BY 4.0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]