Hinnom, Valley of
Location and Geography
The Valley of Hinnom runs along the south and southwest walls of Jerusalem, forming part of the boundary between the tribal territories of Judah and Benjamin (Joshua 15:8; 18:16). It meets the Kidron Valley at the southeastern corner of the city. The Valley Gate of the city wall opened into this ravine (Nehemiah 2:13; 3:13). Today the valley is identified with the Wadi er-Rababi, a deep gorge that curves around the western and southern sides of the Old City of Jerusalem. The name "Hinnom" is of uncertain meaning, but the expressions "son of Hinnom" and "sons of Hinnom" suggest it was originally a personal or clan name associated with the valley's original owner.
The Horror of Child Sacrifice
The valley achieved its terrible reputation during the reigns of the Judean kings Ahaz and Manasseh. King Ahaz "made his sons pass through the fire" in the valley (2 Chronicles 28:3), following the abominable practices of the nations God had driven out of the land. Manasseh went even further, making his children pass through the fire in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom as part of his widespread idolatry (2 Chronicles 33:6). These rites were associated with the worship of Molech, and the specific location within the valley was called Topheth, possibly derived from a word meaning "fire pit" or "drum" (drums being beaten to drown out the cries of sacrificed children).
Josiah's Reforms and Prophetic Judgment
King Josiah, in his sweeping religious reforms, deliberately defiled Topheth so that no one could use it again for child sacrifice to Molech (2 Kings 23:10). He desecrated the site to make it permanently unfit for worship. The prophet Jeremiah pronounced devastating judgment on the valley, declaring that God would rename it "the Valley of Slaughter" because of the coming destruction that would fill it with the bodies of the dead (Jeremiah 7:31-32; 19:2-6). Jeremiah announced that the days were coming when the valley would no longer be associated with the burning of children but with the burial of the slain when God judged Jerusalem for its sins (Jeremiah 32:35).
From Valley to Symbol: The Origin of Gehenna
The valley's grim history of child sacrifice, prophetic condemnation, and later use as a burning refuse dump transformed its name into a powerful symbol. The Hebrew "Ge-Hinnom" (Valley of Hinnom) became the Greek "Gehenna," which Jesus used as His primary term for the place of final judgment and punishment. In the New Testament, Gehenna appears twelve times, eleven of them in the words of Jesus Himself (Matthew 5:22, 29-30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 33; Mark 9:43-47; Luke 12:5). James also uses the term once (James 3:6). By using this name, Jesus drew on the valley's associations with fire, destruction, divine judgment, and the consequences of unfaithfulness to God.
The Valley in Later Jewish and Christian Tradition
In the centuries between the Old and New Testaments, Jewish writers increasingly used Ge-Hinnom as a term for the place of eschatological punishment. The valley's association with perpetual fires and the disposal of refuse contributed to its symbolic power. Some later traditions placed the entrance to the underworld at this location. The physical valley remained a landmark of Jerusalem throughout the Roman period and beyond, serving as a constant visual reminder of the consequences of Israel's darkest chapter of apostasy.
Biblical Context
The Valley of Hinnom appears in Joshua 15:8 and 18:16 as a boundary marker, in 2 Kings 23:10 during Josiah's reforms, in 2 Chronicles 28:3 and 33:6 during the reigns of Ahaz and Manasseh, and extensively in Jeremiah's prophecies (Jeremiah 7:31-32; 19:2-6; 32:35). The Nehemiah account references the Valley Gate (Nehemiah 2:13; 3:13). Its legacy as 'Gehenna' permeates Jesus' teaching on judgment in the Gospels.
Theological Significance
The Valley of Hinnom represents the intersection of human depravity and divine judgment. The child sacrifices performed there stand as the ultimate expression of idolatrous corruption, and God's judgment on the valley illustrates His righteous response to such evil. The transformation of its name into Gehenna shows how a physical place became a theological concept, serving as Jesus' most vivid term for the final consequences of rejecting God. The valley reminds readers that God takes sin with ultimate seriousness.
Historical Background
Archaeological evidence confirms the practice of child sacrifice in the ancient Near East, with numerous Phoenician and Punic sites containing the burned remains of infants in dedicated precincts called tophets. The identification of the Valley of Hinnom with Wadi er-Rababi has been confirmed through centuries of topographical study. Josephus mentions the area in his descriptions of Jerusalem's geography. The tradition of the valley as a burning refuse dump, while widely cited, has limited direct archaeological confirmation, though the association with fire and judgment was firmly established by the intertestamental period.