Anathoth

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Easton, Matthew George (1897). "article name needed". Easton's Bible Dictionary (New and revised ed.). T. Nelson and Sons.

Anathoth (/ˈæn.ə.tθ/[1]) is the name of one of the cities given to "the children of Aaron" (Joshua 21:13,18; 1 Chronicles 6:54,60), in the tribe of Benjamin (Josh. 21:18, 1 Chron. 6:60). (Residents were called Antothites or Anetothites.)[2] Since the Israelites often did not change the names of the towns they found in Canaan, the name of this town may be derived from a Canaanite goddess, ‘Anat. However, it is also given as the name of an Israelite person in 1 Chron 7:8, and in Nehemiah 10:19. anathoth:(ana)ie;woman of>thoth. or ie:home/heart/hearth of thoth's woman.

Anathoth is mentioned as the native place of Abiezer the Anetothite, one of David's "thirty" (2 Samuel 23:27), and of Jehu, another of his mighty men (1 Chr. 12:3). It is perhaps best known as the home town of the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 1:1; 29:27; 32:7-9). In 11:21-23, he delivers a prophecy of tribulation by the sword against the residents of Anathoth, who were plotting against him.

Anathoth suffered greatly from the army of Sennacherib, and only 128 men returned to it from the Babylonian exile (Neh. 7:27; Ezra 2:23). It lay about 3 miles north of Jerusalem. The Arab village of ʻAnātā was identified as the site of Anathoth by Edward Robinson. The modern Israeli settlement of Anatot (also known as Almon) was named after it.

Abu Ghosh has also been associated with Anathoth.[3]

References

  1. LDS.org: "Book of Mormon Pronunciation Guide" (retrieved 2012-02-25), IPA-ified from «ăn´a-tōth»
  2. Sir William Smith, ed. (1863). A dictionary of the Bible: comprising its antiquities, biography, geography, and natural history 3. Little, Brown, and Co. p. lxviii.
  3. Conder and Kitchener, 1883, p. 18