Salem

i. A place of which Melchizedek was king (Gn 14", He V- ^). It was, apparently, near a broad open valley ('cmek), called ' the vale of Shaveh,' or ' the king's vale' (Gn 14"). Various positions have been assigned to Salem. Josephus and the Jewish commentators identilied the town with Jerusalem, and believed Salem to be the ancient name of that city (Jos. Ant. I. x. 2, BJ VI. x. ; Onkelos and all the Targg.) This was also the opinion of the early Christians, for Jerome {Qu. in Gen.)

writes of Melchizedek as ' king of Salem, which was the old name of Jenisalem,' and he alludes to the same belief in Ep. Ixxiii. ad Ev. § 2. (See also Eus Onom. 'IfpowaX^/n). Jerome himself, however, iden tified Salem with a place called Salumiits, in the Jordan Vallev, 8 miles south of Scythojiolis, where the ruins of tlie palace of Melchizedek were shown [Ep. Ixxiii. ad Ev. §7 ; Onom. i. ' Salem,' 'Aenon ').

At this spot there is now an artificial mound {tell), and on it the tomb of Slieikh Halim, In a frag- 354 SALEMA8 SALMON ment preserved by Ensebius {Prmp. Ev. ix. 22) the meeting of Abrani and Melchizedek is said to liave taken place in 'Ar-Garizin, that is, Mt. Gerizira. This is probably a tradition derived from tlie belief, current in the times of Eusebius and Jerome, that Shechem was the Shalem {AV, RVm) of On 33" (Onom. s. 'Salem,' 'Sichem'). This view was advocated by Dean Stanley (S.

and P. 250). The Samaritan tradition places Salem at SAlim, east of N6hlus. Bochart (Phakq ii.) and Ewald (Gesvh. i. 410) supposed Salem to have been east of Jordan, between Damascns and Sodom. The most probable view is that Salem was Jerusalem. The arguments in its favour are : — that Jerus.

is so called in Ps 76'' (see below) ; that Salem as the residence of a priest-king must have been an important and well-known city, and that, if it be not Jerusalem, it is only once mentioned in the OT ; the similarity of the names of the two kings ^lelchizedek and Adonizedek (Jos 10', if this and not Adonibezek is the correct reading, see Adonizedek) ; and the parallel drawn between Melchizedek and the king of the line of David ruiing at Jerusalem (Ps 110').

In the Tel el- Amarna tablets, which are earlier than the con- quest of Palestine by Joshua, Jerusalem appears as Uru-salim, that is, according to Sayce [but this interpretation is extremely doubtful], the city of the god Salim, or god of peace. It may be added that Abrara's route on his return from Damascus to Hebron might well have passed through Jerus., and that the vale of Shaveh may have been the broad open head of the valley of Hinnom before it contracts and becomes a ravine (qni).

See, further, Dillm. on Gn 14" ; Sayce, SCM 295 ff., EHH 28 ; Horamel, AHT 201. 2. (ip dprifTj ; in pace) There is a general agree- ment that in Ps 76- ' Salem ' is Jerusalem. Each of the two names Salem and Zion indicates Jeru- salem as the special seat of Di\-ine worship, as Judah and Israel each stand for the whole nation in Ps76' 114=. 3.

The valley of Salem (tJk ai\wi>a 2aX)}/i) is mentioned (Jth 4'') as one of the places to which the people of Judsea sent messengers on the ap- proach of Holofemes. Reland suggests {Pal. p. 977) that the original Heb. reading was ■iib"d'7 dSp*? { = eU ai/Xii-a tU ZoXij^, 'into the plain to Salem,' that is, into the Jordan Valley {Av\uv) to Salem), and that the Greek translators rendered without the repeated els. The iilace w.

as very pos- sibly that called Saluniias by Jerome {see aoove), which was situated not far from the point at which the ancient road from Bethshean to Shechem left the plain of the Jordan and entered the hills. i. In Jer 41 [48] » the LXX (B) reads Salem for Shiloh. This Salem, if the readin" be correct, must have been near Shechem, and possibly at Sdlim to the east of N&blus. C. W. Wilson. SALEMAS {Salame, Salemas, AV Sadaraias), 2Es l' = Shallum, an ancestor of Ezra (of.

Ezr 7^) ; called also Salem, 1 Es 8'. There is some doubt as io the nominative of this name in 2 Esdras. It occurs in the genitive, for which Dr. James reads in the text Saleme, with note ' Salema; A.' SALIH {loKetfi. ; Salim).— A town or village named (Jn 3^) to indicate the position of ^■Enon, — the 'springs' in which John was baptizing, — and, presumably, a well-known place. It was on the west side of Jordan (cf. Jn 3^ with l" and 10"), but its site has not yet been determined.

Various identifications have been suggested. (1) Eusebius and Jerome (Onutn. s. * iEnon ') state that in their day Mnou was shown 8 miles Bouth of Scythopolis, near Salim (Salmnias), and the Jordan. This Salim is now, apparently. Tell Bidhghah (see Salem), not far from which i) • group of fine springs that answer well to the ' many waters ' of /Enon. It has been objected to this site that, as it was in Samaria, the Jews ^^ould not have gone to it to be baptized.

But it is probable, from its position, that Saluniias was in the district of Scythopolis — a town of Decapolis, with a large population of Jews noted for their strict performance of all religious observ- ances. See, further, Westcott on Jn 3^. (2) Robuison (BRP iii. 333) and Conder^fiK*. Work, i. 91) have proposed Sdlim, east of Ndblus% but this place is 4 niLfes from the springs lucDtitied •» ith Mnon, and separated from them by a range of hills.

It is, too, in the heart of Samaria, and not far from Shechem. (3) Barclay (City of the Great King, 558-570) identities .iEnon with the copious springs in W&dy fdrah, to the N.E. of Jerusalem, and is of opinion that Salim was in the Wddy SiUeim near 'Andta (Anathoth). (4) Bii-scliing identifies Salim with 'Ain Karim, the traditional birthplace of St. John. (5) Alford {Gr. Test. Jn 3^) and Riehm (ElVB, s.

' Salim ') suppose Salim and ^Enon to be ShUhim (LXX rfXff/M) and Ain in the Negeb (Jos 15*=). But these two places in the southernmost parts of Judah, as yet unidentified, seem to be too far removed from what is known of the scene of the Baptist's labours. C. W. Wilson. SALIMOTH (B 2oXeiAtw9, X'ha<ta\iii<ie, due to • wTong division of syllables in the names 'Barl | aa-ZaX^ix^e, AV Assalimoth), 1 Es i^. Called Shelomith, Ezr S"".