Sharon
Sharon is a region mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Phoenicia in modern-day Israel. Known today as Transjordan. It appears across 1 verse in Scripture.
Biblical History
This second Sharon, distinct from the famous coastal plain, appears in 1 Chronicles 5:16, which describes the settlements of the tribe of Gad: "They dwelt in Gilead, in Bashan and its towns, and in all the pasturelands of Sharon to their borders." This Transjordanian Sharon refers to a pastoral region east of the Jordan River, likely a fertile plateau within or adjacent to the territories of Bashan and Gilead. The tribe of Gad, along with Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh, received their inheritance east of the Jordan after pledging to assist in the conquest of Canaan west of the river (Numbers 32). The mention of Sharon's pasturelands in connection with Gad's territory highlights the region's suitability for livestock, consistent with the Gadites' request for Transjordanian land because they had "a very great number of livestock" (Numbers 32:1). This eastern Sharon is less well-known than its coastal counterpart but represents the expansive reach of Israelite settlement across both sides of the Jordan, fulfilling God's promise that the land of inheritance would extend from the wilderness to the great river Euphrates.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
This Transjordanian Sharon is difficult to identify precisely. Some scholars associate it with a fertile plain in the region of Bashan or northern Gilead, possibly the Hauran plateau in what is now southern Syria or northwestern Jordan. The Hauran is known for its volcanic soil and exceptional agricultural productivity, which would match the description of rich pasturelands. Others suggest it may refer to a specific locality within the broader Gilead region east of the Sea of Galilee. Archaeological survey work in northern Jordan and southern Syria has documented extensive settlement from the Iron Age, with numerous tells and ruins attesting to the prosperity of the Transjordanian kingdoms. The precise boundaries of this eastern Sharon remain a matter of scholarly conjecture, as no ancient inscription has been found mentioning the name in a Transjordanian context.
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]