Bible Word Study
יַרְמוּת
Yarmûwth · Jarmuth, the name of two places in Palestine
יַרְמוּת
Jarmuth, the name of two places in Palestine
Definition
Yarmuth (Jarmuth) is the name of two distinct cities in ancient Palestine. The first and most prominent is a Canaanite royal city in the Shephelah (lowland) region, which was part of the Amorite coalition defeated by Joshua (Joshua 10:3, 5, 23). It later became a city within the tribal territory of Judah (Joshua 15:35) and was designated as a Levitical city for the Kohathites (Joshua 21:29). The second Yarmuth is a town in the territory of Issachar, mentioned only in the list of returning exiles (Nehemiah 11:29).
Biblical Usage
The name Yarmuth appears seven times in the Old Testament, exclusively in historical books. Its primary usage is in Joshua, detailing its role as a conquered Canaanite city (Joshua 10:3, 12:11) and its subsequent allocation to Judah and the Levites. The final mention in Nehemiah 11:29 refers to a different town by the same name in the north, repopulated after the exile. The usage is consistently as a proper place name.
Etymology
Derived from the Hebrew root רוּם (rûm, H7311), meaning 'to be high' or 'exalted.' Yarmuth is a nominal form meaning 'height' or 'elevation,' a fitting name for a city likely situated on a hill, which was common for defense and prominence in the ancient Near East.
Semantic Range
As a conquered Canaanite city, Yarmuth represents God's faithfulness in fulfilling the land promise to Israel (Joshua 10). Its allocation to the Levites (Joshua 21:29) highlights the provision for the priestly tribe, who received cities rather than a contiguous land inheritance, underscoring their unique role dedicated to God's service among the people. As a 'royal city' (Joshua 10:3), Yarmuth was a fortified political center ruled by a king. Its defeat by Joshua demonstrated the military collapse of the localized Canaanite city-state system in the face of Israel's campaign, which was understood as divinely sanctioned. The name itself reflects the typical practice of naming settlements after geographical features like hills. None directly applicable as a proper name. For the concept of a 'high place,' see: רָמָה (rāmâ, H7413) — a general term for height or high place; בָּמָה (bāmâ, H1116) — often a cultic 'high place' for worship.
Word Details
How this works
Definitions are from the Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (BDB, 1906, public domain). Concordance and morphology data are from the OSHB (Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible).
Full methodology & sources →References
- Abbott-Smith, G. (1921) A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. [Public Domain]
- Brown, F., Driver, S.R. and Briggs, C.A. (1906) A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Oxford: Clarendon Press. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Tyndale Brief lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (TBESG). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Formatted full LSJ (TFLSJ). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Thayer, J.H. (1889) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. [Public Domain]
- Gesenius, W. (1846) Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament. [Public Domain]
- Dodson, J. (2010) Greek Lexicon. Biblical Humanities. [CC0]