Netophathite
Netophathite is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Judea in modern-day Israel. Known today as Khirbet Badd Faluh. It appears across 8 verses in Scripture.
Biblical History
The designation "Netophathite" refers to inhabitants of Netophah, a town in the Judean hill country near Bethlehem that appears in eight verses across several Old Testament books. Netophah produced notable military figures: Maharai the Netophathite and Heleb (or Heled) the Netophathite served among David's elite warriors known as the Thirty (2 Samuel 23:28-29; 1 Chronicles 11:30; 27:13-15). Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite was among the military commanders who rallied to Gedaliah after the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC (2 Kings 25:23; Jeremiah 40:8). In the post-exilic period, Netophathites were among those who returned from Babylon to resettle their ancestral town (Ezra 2:22; Nehemiah 7:26), and Netophathite musicians served among the Levitical singers who settled in villages around Jerusalem (1 Chronicles 9:16; Nehemiah 12:28). The town thus contributed to Israel's life across centuries, producing warriors, leaders, and worship musicians who served God's purposes in both the monarchy and the restored community.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
Netophah is identified with Khirbet Badd Faluh, located approximately 5 kilometers southeast of Bethlehem in the Judean hill country. The site sits near the modern Palestinian village of Beit Fajjar. Archaeological surveys have documented Iron Age pottery and architectural remains consistent with the biblical period. The location fits the geographical context of the Netophathite references, being close to Bethlehem and within the Judean highland region assigned to the tribe of Judah. Some scholars have alternatively suggested Khirbet Umm Tuba or Ramat Rahel as possible identifications. The area features typical Judean hill country terrain with limestone bedrock, agricultural terraces, and ancient cisterns. Systematic excavation at Khirbet Badd Faluh has been limited.
Verse Appearances (8)
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]