Valley of Gibeon
Valley of Gibeon is a location mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Judea in modern-day Israel. Known today as El Jib. It appears across 1 verse in Scripture.
Biblical History
The Valley of Gibeon appears in a single striking passage in Isaiah 28:21, where the prophet invokes two dramatic divine interventions from Israel's past as a way of warning his contemporaries that God's judgment was imminent, and unexpected. Isaiah refers to the LORD rising as He did "on Mount Perazim" and doing His work "in the Valley of Gibeon," both allusions to famous military victories associated with David. The Valley of Gibeon is closely associated with Joshua's battle against the Amorite coalition described in Joshua 10, during which the sun stood still and Israel routed its enemies in a supernatural rout. Gibeon itself was a major Canaanite city that had made peace with Israel through deception, prompting the very battle that unfolded in its environs. Later, in 2 Samuel 2, Gibeon's pool became the site of an ill-fated confrontation between the forces of Abner and Joab during the civil war between the house of Saul and David. Isaiah's use of Gibeon as a reference point for divine action underscored the theological paradox that the very God who once fought for Israel might now fight against a rebellious Israel, a sobering reversal of the ancient tradition.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
Gibeon is firmly identified with el-Jib, a village northwest of Jerusalem whose ancient name is preserved in the Arabic toponym. Excavations at el-Jib, conducted by James B. Pritchard in the 1950s and 1960s, produced one of the most significant biblical-archaeological corroborations: dozens of jar handles stamped with the name Gibeon (gb'n) in ancient Hebrew script, directly confirming the site's identity. The famous water shaft and pool system at el-Jib, a rock-cut cylindrical pool approximately 11 meters in diameter and 11 meters deep, is likely the "pool of Gibeon" mentioned in 2 Samuel 2:13. The surrounding valley terrain is consistent with the military engagements described in both Joshua and Samuel.
Verse Appearances (1)
Isa
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]