Valley

With respect to the general features of the Holy Land, see CANAAN; and for descriptions of some of its numerous valleys, see JERUSALEM, JEZREEL, JORDAN, REPHAIM, SHECHIEM, and SODOM. "The valley of the shadow of death," is an expression denoting an extremely perilous and cheerless condition of the soul, Psalm 23:4, and may have been suggested by the psalmist's experience with his flock in some of the deep, narrow, and dark ravines of Syria.

Thus the entrance to Petra is by long winding defile, between rugged precipices in some spots not more than twelve or fourteen feet apart and two or three hundred feet high, and almost excluding the light of day. See view in SELA. A similar pass south of mount Carmel is now known as the "Valley of Death-shade."

BERACAH, VALLEY OF

be-ra'-ka, ber'-a-ka (the King James Version Berachah; `emeq berkhah; koilas eulogias): After the victory of Jehoshaphat and his people over Moab and Ammon, "On the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Beracah; for there they blessed Yahweh: therefore the name of that place was called The valley of Beracah (i.e. of blessing) unto this day" (2 Chronicles 20:26). In the Wady `Arrub there is a ruin called Breikut and the valley in its proximity receives the same name. This is on the main road from Hebron to Jerusalem and not far from Tekoa; it suits the narrative well (see PEF, III, 352).

E. W. G. Masterman

GAD, VALLEY OF

(nachal ha-gadh; the King James Version River of Gad):

In 2 Samuel 24:5 we read that Joab and the captains of the host passed over Jordan and pitched in Aroer, on the right side of the city that is in the midst of the valley of Gad.

If we refer to Joshua 13:25, this might seem to indicate a valley near Rabbath-ammon. According to a generally accepted emendation suggested by Wellhausen, however, we should read, "They began from Aroer, and from the city that is in the middle of the torrent valley, toward Gad."

See AR. The valley is evidently the Arnon. W. Ewing

GATE, VALLEY

In Nehemiah 2:13 the King James Version, "gate of the valley."

See JERUSALEM.

HINNOM, VALLEY OF

hin'-om (ge hinnom, Joshua 15:8; Joshua 18:16; "valley of the son of Hinnom" (ge bhen hinnom), Joshua 15:8; Joshua 18:16 2 Chronicles 28:3; 2 Chronicles 33:6; Jeremiah 7:31; 19:2, 6; 32:35:00; "valley of the children (sons) of Hinnom" (ge bhene hinnom), 2 Kings 23:10; or simply "the valley," literally, the "hollow" or "ravine" (ha-gay'), 2 Chronicles 26:9 Nehemiah 2:13, 15; Nehemiah 3:13 Jeremiah 31:40 and, perhaps also, Jeremiah 2:23 (the above references are in the Hebrew text; there are some variations in the Septuagint)): The meaning of "Hinnom" is unknown; the expressions ben Hinnom and bene Hinnom would suggest that it is a proper name; in Jeremiah 7:32; Jeremiah 19:6 it is altered by the prophet to "valley of slaughter," and therefore some have thought the original name must have had a pleasing meaning.

1. Bible References and History:

It was near the walls of Jerusalem, "by the entry of the gate Harsith" (Jeremiah 19:2); the Valley Gate opened into it (Nehemiah 2:13; Nehemiah 3:13). The boundary between Judah and Benjamin ran along it (Joshua 15:8; Joshua 18:16). It was the scene of idolatrous practices in the days of Ahaz (2 Chronicles 28:3) and of Manasseh, who "made his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom" (2 Chronicles 33:6), but Josiah in the course of his reforms "defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the children (margin "son") of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech" (2 Kings 23:10). It was on account of these evil practices that Jeremiah (7:32; 19:6) announced the change of name. Into this valley dead bodies were probably cast to be consumed by the dogs, as is done in the Wady er-Rababi today, and fires were here kept burning to consume the rubbish of the city. Such associations led to the Ge-Hinnom (New Testament "Gehenna") becoming the "type of Hell" (Milton, Paradise Lost, i, 405).

See GEHENNA.

2. Situation:

The Valley of Hinnom has been located by different writers in each of the three great valleys of Jerusalem. In favor of the eastern or Kidron valley we have the facts that Eusebius and Jerome (Onom) place "Gehennom" under the eastern wall of Jerusalem and the Moslem geographical writers, Muqaddasi and Nasir-i-khusran, call the Kidron valley Wady Jahamum. The Jewish writer Kimchi also identifies the Valley of Jehoshaphat (i.e. the Kidron) with Hinnom. These ideas are probably due to the identification of the eastern valley, on account of its propinquity to the Temple, as the scene of the last judgment-the "Valley of Jehoshaphat" of Joel 3:2 -and the consequent transference there of the scene of the punishment of the wicked, Gehenna, after the ancient geographical position of the Valley of Hinnom, had long been lost. In selecting sacred sites, from the 4th Christian century onward, no critica Joshua 15:8; Joshua 18:16) cannot be the "Virgin's fount," the ancient Gihon (2 Samuel 17:17).

See GIHON.

Several distinguished modern writers have sought to identify the Tyropeon Valley (el Wad) with Hinnom, but as the Tyropeon was incorporated within the city walls before the days of Manasseh (see JERUSALEM), it is practically impossible that it could have been the scene of the sacrifice of children-a ritual which must have occurred beyond the city's limits (2 Kings 23:10, etc.).

3. Wady er-Rababi:

The clearest geographical fact is found in Joshua 15:8; Joshua 18:16, where we find that the boundary of Judah and Benjamin passed from En-rogel "by the valley of the son of Hinnom"; if the modern Bir Eyyub is En-rogel, as is certainly most probable, then the Wady er-Rababi, known traditionally as Hinnom, is correctly so called. It is possible that the name extended to the wide open land formed by the junction of the three valleys; indeed, some would place Tophet at this spot, but there is no need to extend the name beyond the actual gorge. The Wady er-Rababi commences in a shallow, open valley due West of the Jaffa Gate, in the center of which lies the Birket Mamilla; near the Jaffa Gate it turns South for about 1/3 of a mile, its course being dammed here to form a large pool, the Birket es Sultan. Below this it gradually curves to the East and rapidly descends between sides of bare rocky scarps, much steeper in ancient times. A little before the valley joins the wide Kidron valley lies the traditional site of AKELDAMA (which see).

E. W. G. Masterman

JEHOSHAPHAT, VALLEY OF

(`emeq yehoshaphaT); the latter word means "Yahweh judgeth," and `emeq, "wide," "open valley"; Septuagint he koilas Iosaphat): The name is used in Joel 3:2, 12 of the scene of Judgment: "Let the nations bestir themselves, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat; for there will I sit to judge all the nations round about" (Joel 3:12). "The valley of decision" (or "sharp judgment") is another name the prophet gives to this spot (Joel 3:14). Some have identified it with the valley (`emeq) of BERACAH (which see) of 2 Chronicles 20:26, where King Jehoshaphat obtained a great victory, but this is improbable.

Since the 4th century A.D. the KIDRON (which see) valley has been named the Valley of Jehoshaphat. The tradition is now strongest among the Moslems who point out the exact scene of the Judgment; the Bridge As Sirat, dividing heaven and hell, is to stretch across this valley from the Charam area to the Mount of Olives. It is, however, the ambition of every pious Jew to be buried on the slopes of this valley, to be at hand at the resurrection. This, too, was an ordinary place for Jewish graves in preexilic times (2 Kings 23:6, etc.). The valley today, especially that part adjacent to the temple, is crowded with Moslem and Jewish graves. A worthless tradition indicates the tomb of Jehoshaphat himself close to the so-called "Pillar of Absalom." Se KING'S VALE. There is not the slightest reason for believing that this is the spot referred to by Joel-indeed he may have spoken of an ideal spot only. The valley of the Kidron is a nachal ("ravine"), not an `emeq ("broad valley"). It is impos sible not to suspect that there is some connection between the name Jehoshaphat and the name of a village near the head of this valley-Shaphat; perhaps at one time it was Wady Shaphat, which name would readily suggest the traditional one.

See GEHENNA.

E. W. G. Masterman

JORDAN VALLEY

1. Physical Peculiarities:

As more fully detailed elsewhere (see ARABAH; DEAD SEA; GEOLOGY OF PALESTINE), the Jordan valley in its lower portion occupies a remarkable depression in the earth's surface, reaching its greatest depth in the Dead Sea, the surface of which is 1,300 ft., the bottom 2,600 ft. below tide level, the portion of the basin below the level of the sea being about 100 miles in length and from 10 to 15 miles in breadth at base, and from two to three times that distance between the bordering summits of the mountains and plateaus on either side. In the early prehistoric period, corresponding with the Glacial epoch, this depression was filled with water to a height of 1,400 ft. (see references above) which gradually disappeared by evaporation as present climatic conditions came on. At an elevation of approximately 650 ft. above the Dead Sea, very extensive sedimentary deposits were made, which, while appearing only in fragments along the shores of the Dead Sea, are continuous over the bottom of the valley (the so-called Ghor), farther North. These deposits are from 100 to 200 ft. thick, consisting of material which was brought down into the valley by the tributary mountain streams descending from each side, while the water stood at this higher level. Naturally these deposits slope gradually from the sides of the valley toward the center, the coarser material of the deposits being nearer the sides, and the amount of sediment being much increased opposite the mouths of the larger streams. The deposit was at first continuous over the entire Ghor, or valley, but has since been much dissected by the Jordan river and its tributaries. The Jordan itself has eroded a channel through the soft sediment, 100 ft. more or less deep, from Lake Galilee to the Dead Sea, a distance in a straight line of about 70 miles. At first this channel was narrow, but it has been constantly enlarged by the stream as it has meandered from side to side, undercutting the banks so that they cave into the river and are washed down to fill up the Dead Sea, a process which is especially familiar to residents upon the banks of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. This narrow gorge is called the Zor, and will hereafter be referred to under this name. The Zor at present averages about 1/2 mile wide, the most of which is occupied by a flood plain extending from the banks of the river to the foot of the sedimentary bluffs on either side. This flood plain is so overgrown with brush and reeds that it is practically impenetrable, except by wild beasts, which, according to Scriptural references, have infested it from earliest times, among which may be mentioned the lion, the tiger, the wild boar. During the spring months, when the snows are melting from Mt. Hermon and cloudbursts are sending sudden torrents of water down the river courses from the plateau of Gilead and the mountains of Samaria, the Jordan "overflows all its banks," i.e. covers this flood plain and drives out the beasts to infest the neighborhood for a short time.

The surface of this old lake bed has also been much dissected by the tributary streams which come in from either side, they having cut channels across the Ghor down to a depth corresponding to that of the Zor. As a consequence the roads leading up the valley find it necessary to hug the base of the mountains on either side to avoid the abrupt descent into the channels of the tributary streams, which are deepest near their mouths. Another natural consequence of these physical peculiarities is that agriculture cannot be carried on except as water to irrigate the level surfaces of the Ghor is carried out from the higher levels of the perennial streams. There are many remains of such aqueducts for irrigation constructed in early times. These are now almost all in ruins and unused. Merrill, however, estimates that 200 square miles of the Jordan valley, over which the surface is as level as a prairie, and as free from stones, could be irrigated at the present time and made as fruitful as the valley of the Nile. But from time immemorial settled agriculture in the Ghor has been rendered precarious by the incursions of the nomadic tribes, who periodically come down from the desert regions on the East.

2. Descriptions:

Two descriptions (the first from my own journal) of the general views obtained of the Jordan valley from adjoining elevated points will give vividness to our conceptions of this remarkable depression.

"It was the middle of December when, after wading all day across the southern flanks of Mt. Hermon, through snow knee-deep for our horses, we descended below the clouds and the snow to the brink of the eastern mountain wall overlooking the upper valley of the Jordan. It was a sight ever to be remembered, with the glistering peak of Mt. Hermon to our right, and the jagged walls of the borders of Naphtali stretching across the horizon on the West, only a few miles away, while between and at our feet were the green fields of the upper Jordan valley, through which ran the silver thread of the river, broadening out into the expanded waters of Lake Merom. Over the plain could dimly be seen the black tents of the Arabs, and the husbandmen plowing the fields for an early harvest. No wonder the spies were impressed with the attractiveness and fertility of the region." This of the upper Jordan valley.

Dr. Merrill gives the following description of the view of the lower Jordan valley from the summit of Kurn Surtabeh, March 23: "Jebel esh Sheikh (Mt. Hermon) was covered with snow, and so was the Lebanon range farther to the West and North. Lake Merom and the volcanic peaks on the plain to the East of it and South of Hermon were distinctly seen, likewise the Sea of Galilee, the hills about Safed, the hills West of Tiberias and the slope from their summit, which inclines toward Mt. Tabor; also Gamala and Gadara, all the range of Jebel `Ajlun or hills of Gilead, Kulat er Rubad, Jebel Meisera and Jebel Osha, the mountains of Moab, and the Dead Sea. But the mere naming of different points that can be seen gives no adequate idea of the extent and magnificence of the prospect which one enjoys from the top of this strange landmark. Hills to the West obstruct the view in that direction, and to the East nothing can be seen beyond the highest part of the Moab and Gilead ranges, but it is the north-and-south sweep which makes the prospect a glorious one. No language can picture correctly the Jordan valley, the winding stream, the jungles on its banks, the strange Ghor with its white, ragged sides, the vast plain of the valley, through and in the middle of which the lower Ghor (the Zor) is sunk, the dense green oases formed here and there by some mountain stream, and the still, lifeless sea, as bright and motionless as molten lead, lying far to the South, ending the great valley and touching the mountains on either side! This is an outline merely, but I cannot summon to my aid words which will describe it more accurately. The Jordan valley or Ghor, in front of Surtabeh, is about 8 miles wide, and looks like a vast plain. The lower Ghor (Zor) is the ragged channel cut down along the middle of the large one. This distinction of the upper and lower Ghor is by no means so strikingly defined above the mouth of the Zerka as it is below that point, and all the way thence to the Dead Sea."

3. Division into Eight Sections:

Considered in detail the valley may be divided, as Conder suggests, into 8 sections. "First the portion between Banias and the Huleh, where it is some 5 miles broad, with steep cliffs some 2,000 ft. high on either side and a broad marsh between. Secondly, from the Huleh to the Sea of Galilee, where the stream runs close to the eastern hills, and about 4 miles from the base of those on the West, which rise toward the high Safed mountains, more than 3,500 ft. above the lake. Thirdly, for 13 miles from the South end of the Sea of Galilee to the neighborhood of Beisan. Here the valley is only 1 1/2 miles broad West of the river, and about 3 on the East, the steep cliffs of the plateau of Kaukab el Hawa on the West reaching an altitude of 1,800 ft. above the stream.

"South of Beisan is the 4th district, with a plain West of Jordan, 12 miles long and 6 miles broad, the line of hills on the East being straight, and the foot of the mountains on this side about 2 miles from the river. In the neighborhood of Beisan, the cross-section of the plain shows 3 levels: that of the shelf on which Beisan stands, about 300 ft. below sea-level; that of the Ghor itself, some 400 ft. lower, reached by an almost precipitous descent; and that of the Zor, or narrow trench, from a half to a quarter of a mile wide, and about 150 ft. lower still. The higher shelf extends westward to the foot of Gilboa; it dies away on the South, but on the North it gradually rises into the plateau of Kaukab and to the western table-land above the sea of Galilee, 1,800 ft. above Jordan.

"After leaving the Beisan plain, the river passes through a narrow valley 12 miles long and 2 or 3 miles wide, with a raised table-land to the West, having a level averaging about 500 ft. above the sea. The Beisan plain is full of springs of fresh water, some of which are thermal, but a large current of salt warm water flows down Wady Maleh, at the northern extremity of this 5th district.

"In the 6th district, the Damieh region, the valley again opens to a width of about 3 miles on the West, and 5 on the East of J. The great block of the Kurn Surtubeh here stands out like a bastion, on the West, 2,400 ft. above the river. Passing this mountain, the 7th district is entered-a broad valley extending from near Fusail to `Osh el Ghurab, North of Jericho. In this region the Ghor itself is 5 miles broad, West of the river, and rather more on the East. The lower trench or Zor is also wider here and more distinctly separated from the Ghor. A curious geographical feature of this region was also discovered by the Survey party. The great affluents of the Far'ah and `Aujeh do not flow straight to Jordan, but turn South about a mile West of it, and each runs, for about 6 miles, nearly parallel with the river; thus the mouth of the Far'ah is actually to be found just where that of the next valley is shown on most maps.

"The 8th and last district is that of the plain of Jericho, which, with the corresponding basin (Ghor-es-Seiseban) East of Jordan, measures over 8 miles North and South, and more than 14 across, with Jordan about in the middle. The Zor is here about a mile wide, and some 200 ft. below the broad plain of the Ghor."

4. Climate Fauna and Flora:

Owing to its depression below sea-level the climate of the lower Jordan valley is even more than tropical. In the summer months thermometer scarcely falls below 100 degrees F., even in the night; but during the winter months, though the days are hot, thermometer frequently goes down to 40 degrees in the night time.

The fauna of this part of the Jordan valley and about the Dead Sea is said by Tristram (SWP, "Fauna and Flora") to be identical with that now existing in Ethiopia. Of the mammalia characteristic of this general region, 34 are Ethiopian and 16 Indian, though there is now no possible connection with either Ethiopia or India. The fish of the Jordan show close affinity to many species of the Nile and of the lakes and rivers of tropical Africa. Many species of birds, also, now confined to the lower basin and the Dead Sea, are related to Ethiopian and Indian species.

The flora is equally interesting. Out of 162 species of plants found at the Southwest corner of the Dead Sea, 135 species are African in their affinity. In the marshes of Lake Huleh, many acres are covered with the papyrus plant, which became extinct in Egypt long ago, and is now found in Africa only in the Upper Nile beyond the 7th degree of North latitude. The most common trees and plants of the Jordan valley are the castor-oil plant and the oleander, flourishing especially about Jericho, several varieties of the acacia tree, the caper plant, the Dead Sea apple (Solanum Sodomaeum) the oser tree of the Arabs, tamarisks, Agnus casti (a flowering bamboo), Balanites Aegyptiaca (supposed to be the balm of Gilead), Populus Euphratica (a plant found all over Central Asia but not West of the Jordan), and many tropical plants, among which may be mentioned Zygophyllum coccineum, Boerhavia, Indigofera, several Astragali, Cassias, Gymnocarpum, and Nitraria.

George Frederick Wright

MOUNT OF THE VALLEY

Zereth-shahar is said to be situated in or on the "mount of the valley" (behar ha`emeq (Joshua 13:19)). Cheyne (EB, under the word) says "i.e. on one of the mountains East of the Jordan valley (compare Josephus 13 27), and not impossibly on that described at length in BJ, VII, vi, 1-3." To the Northwest of this mountain is Wady ec-Cara, wherein there may be a reminiscence of Zereth-shahar. There is no certainty.

SALT, VALLEY OF

(ge' ha-melach): The scene of battles, firstly, between David or his lieutenant Abishai and the Edomites (2 Samuel 8:13 1 Chronicles 18:12 Psalm 60, title), and later between Amaziah and these same foes (2 Kings 14:7 2 Chronicles 25:11). It is tempting to connect this "Valley of Salt" with es Sebkhah, the marshy, salt-impregnated plain which extends from the southern end of the Dead Sea to the foot of the cliffs, but in its present condition it is an almost impossible place for a battle of any sort. The ground is so soft and spongy that a wide detour around the edges has to be made by those wishing to get from one side to the other. It is, too, highly probable that in earlier times the whole of this low-lying area was covered by the waters of the Dead Sea. It is far more natural to identify ge' ha-melach with the Wady el-Milch ("Valley of Salt"), one of the three valleys which unite at Beersheba to form the Wady ec-Ceba`. These valleys, el-Milch and ec-Ceba, together make a natural frontier to Canaan.

E. W. G. Masterman

SLAUGHTER, VALLEY OF

In Jeremiah 7:32; Jeremiah 19:6, a name given to the valley of Hinnom.

See HINNOM, VALLEY OF; JERUSALEM, III, 2.

SOREK, VALLEY OF

so'-rek (nachal soreq, "the valley of the choice (soreq) vine" (see VINE); sorech): "(Samson) loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah" (Judges 16:4). Jerome (OS, 153, 6) mentions a Capharsorec which was near Saraa (ancient ZORAH (which see)); this latter is undoubtedly the village of Sura`h, high up upon the northern slopes of the great Wady es Surar. About 3/4 of a mile West of this is Khurbet Surik, which is certainly the site referred to by Jerome, and possibly marks that of a more ancient town which gave its name to the whole valley. This valley is of importance in the historical geography of Palestine out of all proportion to its scanty mention in the Old Testament (HGHL, 218;). The Wady es Surar is an expansion of the ravine Wady Isma`in (which itself is formed by the junction of the great Wady Beit Chanineh, which rises near Bereh, and the Wady es Sikkeh, which drains the "Plain of Rephaim" near Jerusalem). The Jerus-Jaffa Railway traverses successively the Wady es Surar, the Wady Ismai`n and the Wady es Sikkeh to reach the Jerusalem plateau. The Valley of Sorek is a name which probably belonged only to the open, fertile valley, well suited for vineyards, which traverses the Shephelah. It is now given over almost entirely to the cultivation of wheat, barley and maize (durra). The valley passes between the lofty hill of Sara`h (Zorah) to the North and `Ain Shems (Beth-shemesh) and Tibneh (Timnah) on the South. Standing on the ruins of Beth-shemesh, one can watch the modern railway train winding for miles up the valley along almost the very road from Ekron (now `Akiv), upon which came the strange sight of the milch kine dragging the ark (1 Samuel 6:12). Very probably it was in this valley that the Philistines were defeated (1 Samuel 7:5-14) (PEF, III, 53, Sh XVII).

E. W. G. Masterman

VALE, VALLEY

val, val'-i:

(1) gay'; either absolute: "from Bamoth to the valley that is in the field of Moab" (Numbers 21:20); or with a proper name: "valley of Hinnom," also "valley of the son of Hinnom" (Joshua 15:8); "valley of Slaughter" (Jeremiah 7:32); "valley of Zeboim" (1 Samuel 13:18); "valley of Zephathah" (2 Chronicles 14:10); "valley of Hamon-gog" (Ezekiel 39:11); "valley of Iphtah-el" (Joshua 19:14); "valley of the mountains" (Zechariah 14:5); "Valley of Salt" (2 Samuel 8:13); "valley of vision" (Isaiah 22:1); once (in the Revised Version (British and American)) as a place-name: "until thou comest to Gai" (the King James Version "the valley") (1 Samuel 17:52); also (Revised Version) "Ge-harashim" (1 Chronicles 4:14); compare "valley of craftsmen" (margin "Ge-haharashim") (Nehemiah 11:35).

(2) `emeq, `amoq, "to be deep"; compare Arabic `amuq, "to be deep"; `umq, "depth"; 'Ammiq, a village in the valley of Coele-Syria; absolute: "He could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley" (Judges 1:19); often with place-names: "valley of Achor" (Joshua 7:24); "valley of Aijalon" (Joshua 10:12); "valley of Gibeon" (Isaiah 28:21); "vale of Hebron" (Genesis 37:14); "valley of Jehoshaphat" (Joel 3:2); "vale of Rephaim," the King James Version "valley of the giants" (Joshua 15:8); "vale of Shaveh" (Genesis 14:17); "vale of Siddim" (Genesis 14:3); "valley of Succoth" (Psalm 60:6); compare "valley of Weeping" (the King James Version "Baca") (Psalm 84:6); "valley of Beracah" (margin "Blessing") (2 Chronicles 20:26); "valley of decision" (Joel 3:14); "vale of Elah" (margin "terebinth") (1 Samuel 17:2); "the King's Vale" (Genesis 14:17); but "the king's dale" (2 Samuel 18:18); "Emekkeziz," the King James Version "valley of Keziz" (Joshua 18:21).

(3) biq`ah, baqa`, "to cleave," hence, "valley," especially "broad valley" or "plain"; compare Arabic baq`at, "wet meadow" Biqa`, Coele-Syria; absolute: "a land of hills and valleys" (Deuteronomy 11:11); with place-names: "valley of Jericho" (Deuteronomy 34:3); "valley of Lebanon" (Joshua 11:17); "valley of Megiddo" (2 Chronicles 35:22); "valley of Mizpah" (Joshua 11:8).

(4) nachal, also "river" or "stream"; absolute "Isaac's servants digged (dug) in the valley" (Genesis 26:19); with place-names: "valley (the King James Version "river") of the Arnon" (Deuteronomy 2:24); "valley of Eshcol" (Numbers 32:9); "valley of Gerar" (Genesis 26:17); "valley of Shittim" (Joel 3:18); "valley of Sorek" (Judges 16:4); "valley of Zered" (Numbers 21:12).

(5) shephelah, shaphel, "to be low"; compare Arabic safal, "to be low"; the King James Version "valley" or "vale," the Revised Version (British and American) "lowland," the coast and foothills of Western Palestine

(6) aulon, "valley" (Judith 4:4; 7:03; 10:10).

(7) pharagx: "Every valley shall be filled" (Luke 3:5).

The valley gate (Nehemiah 2:13, etc.) may have had about the location of the present Jaffa gate, if by "valley" is meant the valley of Hinnom. If the Tyropoeon is meant, it would have been near the southwestern corner of the charam area.

See JERUSALEM.

The valleys of the mountainous part of Palestine are mostly dry, rocky wadies with occasional torrents m the winter season. Those which descend to the W. widen out as they approach the plain and contain broad fields and meadows which in the winter and spring at least are fresh and green. The valley of the Jordan, the valley of Megiddo and the valley of Lebanon (i.e. Coele-Syria) contain much cultivable land: "the herds that were in the valleys" (1 Chronicles 27:29): "They of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley" (1 Samuel 6:13); "The valleys also are covered over with grain" (Psalm 65:13).

See BROOK; CHAMPAIGN; LOWLAND; RIVER; SHEPHELAH.

Alfred Ely Day

(1.) Hebrews bik'ah, a "cleft" of the mountains (Deuteronomy 8:7; 11:11; Psalm 104:8; Isaiah 41:18); also a low plain bounded by mountains, as the plain of Lebanon at the foot of Hermon around the sources of the Jordan (Joshua 11:17; 12:7), and the valley of Megiddo (2 Chronicles 35:22).

(2.) `Emek, "deep;" "a long, low plain" (Job 39:10, 21; Psalm 65:13; Cant. 2:1), such as the plain of Esdraelon; the "valley of giants" (Joshua 15:8), usually translated "valley of Rephaim" (2 Samuel 5:18); of Elah (1 Samuel 17:2), of Berachah (2 Chronicles 20:26); the king's "dale" (Genesis 14:17); of Jehoshaphat (Joel 3:2, 12), of Achor (Joshua 7:24; Isaiah 65:10), Succoth (Psalm 60:6), Ajalon (Joshua 10:12), Jezreel (Hosea 1:5).

(3.) Ge, "a bursting," a "flowing together," a narrow glen or ravine, such as the valley of the children of Hinnom (2 Kings 23:10); of Eshcol (Deuteronomy 1:24); of Sorek (Judges 16:4), etc.

The "valley of vision" (Isaiah 22:1) is usually regarded as denoting Jerusalem, which "may be so called," says Barnes (Com. on Isaiah), "either (1) because there were several valleys within the city and adjacent to it, as the vale between Mount Zion and Moriah, the vale between Mount Moriah and Mount Ophel, between these and Mount Bezetha, and the valley of Jehoshaphat, the valley of the brook Kidron, etc., without the walls of the city; or (2) more probably it was called the valley in reference to its being compassed with hills rising to a considerable elevation above the city" (Psalm 125:2; Comp. also Jeremiah 21:13, where Jerusalem is called a "valley").

(4.) Hebrews nahal, a wady or water-course (Genesis 26:19; Cant. 6:11).

1. (n.) The space enclosed between ranges of hills or mountains; the strip of land at the bottom of the depressions intersecting a country, including usually the bed of a stream, with frequently broad alluvial plains on one or both sides of the stream. Also used figuratively.

2. (n.) The place of meeting of two slopes of a roof, which have their plates running in different directions, and form on the plan a reentrant angle.

3. (n.) The depression formed by the meeting of two slopes on a flat roof.

1237. biqah -- a valley, plain
... << 1236, 1237. biqah. 1238 >>. a valley, plain. Transliteration: biqah Phonetic
Spelling: (bik-aw') Short Definition: valley. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/1237.htm - 6k

1516. gay -- a valley
gay or gay. << 1515, 1516. gay or gay. 1517 >>. a valley. Transliteration: gay
or gay Phonetic Spelling: (gah'-ee) Short Definition: valley. ...
/hebrew/1516.htm - 6k

5158. nachal -- torrent, torrent-valley, wadi
... nachal. 5158a >>. torrent, torrent-valley, wadi. Transliteration: nachal Phonetic
Spelling: (nakh'-al) Short Definition: brook. brook, flood, river, stream, valley ...
/hebrew/5158.htm - 5k

1522. Gechazi -- perhaps "valley of vision," servant of Elisha
... perhaps "valley of vision," servant of Elisha. Transliteration: Gechazi or Gechazi
Phonetic Spelling: (gay-khah-zee') Short Definition: Gehazi. ...
/hebrew/1522.htm - 6k

1056. Baka -- a valley in Palestine
... a valley in Palestine. Transliteration: Baka Phonetic Spelling: (baw-kaw') Short
Definition: Baca. ... Baca. From bakah, weeping; Baca, a valley in Palestine -- Baca ...
/hebrew/1056.htm - 6k

5158a. nachal -- torrent, torrent-valley, wadi
... << 5158, 5158a. nachal or nachlah or nachalah. 5158b >>. torrent, torrent-valley,
wadi. Transliteration: nachal or nachlah or nachalah Short Definition: brook. ...
/hebrew/5158a.htm - 5k

6160. arabah -- a steppe or desert plain, also a desert valley ...
... << 6159, 6160. arabah. 6161 >>. a steppe or desert plain, also a desert valley
running S. from the Sea of Galilee. Transliteration: arabah ...
/hebrew/6160.htm - 6k

5160. Nachaliel -- "valley of God," a place East of the Dead Sea
... Nachaliel. 5161 >>. "valley of God," a place East of the Dead Sea. Transliteration:
Nachaliel Phonetic Spelling: (nakh-al-ee-ale') Short Definition: Nahaliel. ...
/hebrew/5160.htm - 6k

1025. Beth Haemeq -- "valley house," a place on the border of ...
... "valley house," a place on the border of Asher. Transliteration: Beth Haemeq Phonetic
Spelling: (bayth haw-Ay'-mek) Short Definition: Beth-emek. ...
/hebrew/1025.htm - 6k

7708. Siddim -- a valley near the Dead Sea
... << 7707, 7708. Siddim. 7709 >>. a valley near the Dead Sea. Transliteration:
Siddim Phonetic Spelling: (sid-deem') Short Definition: Siddim. ...
/hebrew/7708.htm - 6k