Jazer
Jazer(orJaazer) was a city east of theJordan River,in or nearGilead,[1]inhabited by theAmorites.It was taken by a special expedition sent byMosesto conquer it towards the end of theIsraelites'Exodus journeyfromEgypt.[2]From theSeptuagint(which reads Ἰαζήρ for עז in Numbers xxi. 24) it appears that Jazer was on the border ofAmmon.[3]As an important city it gave its name to the whole of the surrounding territory[4]- a "Sea of Jazer" is mentioned inJeremiahxlviii. 32.[5]
Jazer is stated to have been a fertile land fit for the raising of cattle[6]and a place having many vineyards.[7]It was occupied by thechildren of Gad,[8]by which tribe it was allotted as aLevitical cityto theMerariteLevites.[9]In the time ofDavidit seems to have been occupied by theHebronites,who were descendants ofKohath.[10]It was chosen as one of the stations by David's officers who were sent to number thechildren of Israel.[11]
According to1 MaccabeesandJosephus(paraphrasing 1 Maccabees, most likely), Jazer was captured and burned byJudas Maccabeusduring theMaccabee campaigns of 163 BC.[12]The site of Jazer was defined byEusebiusandJerome[13]as being 8 or 10 Roman miles west ofPhiladelphia,and 15 miles north ofHeshbon,and as the source of a large river falling into theJordan.It is identified by some scholars[14]with the modernKhirbet es-Saron the road fromIraq al-AmirtoAl-Salt;but this identification has been rejected by Cheyne.[15]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Num. xxxii. 1, 3; I Chron. l.c.
- ^Numbersxxi. 32
- ^Numbers 21inBrenton Septuagint Translation
- ^Numbers 32:1
- ^But comp. the Septuagint rendering πολις Ιαζήρ, probably due to reading (Hebrew in JE) instead of (Hebrew in JE)
- ^Numbers 32:1
- ^Isaiahxvi. 8, 9; Jeremiah xlviii. 32
- ^Josh. xiii. 25; I Chron. xxvi. 31
- ^Josh. xxi. 39; I Chron. vi. 66 [A. V. 81]
- ^I Chron. xxvi. 31
- ^II Sam. xxiv. 5
- ^"Ant." xii. 8, § 1
- ^"Onomasticon," s.v. "Azor"
- ^e.g., S. Merrill; see Hastings, "Dict. Bible," s.v.
- ^Cheyne and Black, "Encyc. Bibl." s.v.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Singer, Isidore;et al., eds. (1901–1906)."JAAZER".The Jewish Encyclopedia.New York: Funk & Wagnalls.
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