Gederathite
Gederathite is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Judea in modern-day Israel. Known today as Jedireh. It appears across 1 verse in Scripture.
Biblical History
Gederathite is a gentillic designation, a term identifying a person as an inhabitant of Gederah, appearing in 1 Chronicles 12:4, where Jozabad the Gederathite is listed among the warriors who joined David at Ziklag during his flight from Saul. These men from Benjamin and Judah came to David while he was in the Philistine city of Ziklag, swelling the ranks of his growing band of followers before he became king over all Israel. The list in 1 Chronicles 12 presents these early supporters as skilled fighters, including bowmen and slingers who could use both hands (1 Chronicles 12:2). Jozabad the Gederathite is identified as one of the ambidextrous warriors, able to sling stones or shoot arrows with either hand. His hometown of Gederah was a Benjaminite settlement, distinct from the Judean Gederah of Joshua 15, likely corresponding to the site near modern Jedireh north of Jerusalem. The episode illustrates how David's rising fortunes attracted capable fighters from across the tribal territories of Benjamin and Judah, forming the nucleus of the loyal military force that would eventually establish and defend the united monarchy. Gederathite thus serves as a reminder that even small, obscure towns contributed faithful men to Israel's formative history.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
The Benjaminite Gederah, home of Jozabad the Gederathite, is tentatively identified with a site near modern Jedireh, located northeast of Jerusalem in the West Bank. The area preserves ancient place-name continuity consistent with the biblical toponym. Surface surveys of the region have identified Iron Age occupation remains, though no systematic excavation specifically targeting the ancient site has been conducted. The Benjaminite highlands north of Jerusalem were densely settled during the Iron Age, as demonstrated by surveys and excavations at neighboring sites. The identification of this Gederah as distinct from the Judean Gederah of the Shephelah reflects the biblical pattern of multiple towns sharing related names rooted in the Hebrew word for enclosure or wall.
Verse Appearances (1)
1Chr
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]