Hadid
Hadid is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Samaria in modern-day Israel. Known today as Al Haditha. It appears across 3 verses in Scripture.
Biblical History
Hadid was a city in the lowlands of ancient Israel that appears in the post-exilic records as a settlement reoccupied by returning Jewish exiles. In Ezra 2:33 and Nehemiah 7:37, the men of Lod, Hadid, and Ono are listed among those who returned from Babylonian captivity under Zerubbabel following Cyrus the Great's decree in 538 BC — 721 individuals according to Ezra's count. Hadid also appears in Nehemiah 11:34 in the list of towns resettled by the tribe of Benjamin in the restoration period. The city's location in the Shephelah lowlands, northwest of Jerusalem, made it part of the strategic corridor connecting Jerusalem to the coastal plain. The repeated mention of Hadid in the restoration texts underscores the determination of returning exiles to reestablish communities in their ancestral territories, fulfilling the prophetic promises of return from exile and the renewal of God's covenant community in the land.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
Hadid is identified with Al Haditha, also known as el-Haditheh, located east of the modern city of Lod (ancient Lydda) in central Israel. The site corresponds to ancient Adida, mentioned in 1 Maccabees 12:38 and 13:13 as a fortified town near the Shephelah where Simon Maccabee assembled forces. The identification with biblical Hadid is widely accepted among scholars based on topographical analysis and the preservation of the name in the Arabic form. Archaeological surveys of the area have identified Iron Age and Persian period pottery consistent with the post-exilic settlement described in Ezra and Nehemiah. The site lies along an important road connecting Jerusalem to Jaffa, explaining its strategic reoccupation after the exile.
Verse Appearances (3)
Sources: ISBE Encyclopedia · OpenBible Geocoding (CC BY) · Pleiades Gazetteer View all →