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Gath-rimmon

cityOld TestamentCoastal Plain3 verses
Today Tel GerisaCountry IsraelCoordinates 32.092, 34.807

Gath-rimmon is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Coastal Plain in modern-day Israel. Known today as Tel Gerisa. It appears across 3 verses in Scripture.

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Archaeological Data
Occupation Phases
Chalcolithic4500 BCE – 3800 BCE
Early Bronze Age I3800 BCE – 3050 BCE
Early Bronze Age3800 BCE – 2500 BCE
Early Bronze Age III2850 BCE – 2500 BCE
Early Bronze Age IV/Middle Bronze Age I/Int. Bronze2500 BCE – 2000 BCE
Middle Bronze Age I2000 BCE – 1750 BCE
Middle Bronze Age2000 BCE – 1550 BCE
Middle Bronze Age II-III1750 BCE – 1550 BCE
Late Bronze Age1550 BCE – 1150 BCE
Iron Age I-II1150 BCE – 539 BCE
Iron Age I1150 BCE – 980 BCE
Iron Age1150 BCE – 333 BCE
Iron Age IIa980 BCE – 830 BCE
Iron Age II980 BCE – 539 BCE
Iron Age IIb830 BCE – 720 BCE
Iron Age IIc720 BCE – 539 BCE
Iron Age III (Persian)539 BCE – 333 BCE
Hellenistic333 BCE – 63 BCE
Roman63 BCE – 324 CE
Late Roman70 CE – 324 CE
Byzantine324 CE – 638 CE
UnitoAssyrianGovernance, Villages to Empires Dataset (CC BY 4.0), doi:10.5281/zenodo.15111732A. Palmisano, NERD — Near East Radiocarbon Dates (CC BY 4.0), doi:10.5281/zenodo.5767862Uppsala University, ANE Site Placemarks (CC BY 4.0), doi:10.5281/zenodo.6384044

Biblical History

This Gath-rimmon, located in the Coastal Plain, was a Levitical city assigned to the tribe of Dan. It appears in Joshua 19:45 within the description of Dan's territorial allotment along the coastal plain, and in Joshua 21:24 it is specifically designated as one of the cities given from the territory of Dan to the Kohathite Levites. The parallel text in 1 Chronicles 6:69 also preserves this assignment. Dan's coastal allotment proved difficult to hold, the tribe was eventually unable to maintain its position against Philistine and Amorite pressure, leading to the Danite migration northward described in Judges 18. Gath-rimmon, meaning "winepress of the pomegranate," would have been situated in the agriculturally productive Shephelah and coastal zone, making it a valuable Levitical holding for priestly families dependent on the surrounding community's agricultural surplus for their sustenance. Its assignment to the Levites reflects the systematic biblical concern to embed priestly ministry throughout the tribal territories, even in the strategically contested coastal regions that formed Israel's western frontier.

Archaeological & Historical Notes

This Gath-rimmon is identified with Tel Gerisa (also known as Tell Jerishe), located along the Yarkon River near modern Tel Aviv in Israel. Excavations at Tel Gerisa have revealed occupation from the Middle Bronze Age through the Iron Age, consistent with the biblical identification. The site was a significant Bronze Age city controlling the Yarkon River ford, an important passage for trade and military movement along the coastal plain. Iron Age strata at Tel Gerisa show evidence of destruction and rebuilding consistent with the turbulent history of the Danite coastal territory. The site's location near the river and its strategic position in the coastal plain made it an economically and militarily significant settlement throughout the biblical period.

Verse Appearances (3)

References

  1. Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
  2. OpenBible.info (n.d.) Bible Geocoding. Available at: https://www.openbible.info/geo/. [CC BY 4.0]
  3. Bagnall, R. et al. (eds.) (n.d.) Pleiades: A Gazetteer of Past Places. Available at: https://pleiades.stoa.org. [CC BY 3.0]
  4. Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
  5. Lawrence, D. et al. (2025) Villages to Empires: a settlement dataset for the Southern Levant. doi:10.5281/zenodo.15111732. [CC BY 4.0]
  6. Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]

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