Hermon

anathema; devoted to destruction

Hermon

(a peak, summit), a mountain on the northeastern border of Palestine, (3:8; Joshua 12:1) over against Lebanon, (Joshua 11:17) adjoining the plateau of Bashan. (1 Chronicles 5:23) It stands at the southern end, and is the culminating point of the anti-Libanus range; it towers high above the ancient border city of Dan and the fountains of the Jordan, and is the most conspicuous and beautiful mountain in Palestine or Assyria. At the present day it is called Jebel esh-Sheikh , "the chief mountain," and Jebel eth-Thelj , "snowy mountain." When the whole country is parched with the summer sun, white lines of snow streak the head of Hermon. This mountain was the great landmark of the Israelites. It was associated with their northern border almost as intimately as the sea was with the western. Hermon has three summits, situated like the angles of a triangle, and about a quarter of a mile from each other. In two passages of Scripture this mountain is called Baal-hermon , (Judges 3:3; 1 Chronicles 5:23) possibly because Baal was there worshipped. (It is more than probable that some part of Hermon was the scene of the transfiguration, as it stands near Caesarea Philippi, where we know Christ was just before that event --ED.) The height of Hermon has never been measured, though it has often been estimated. It may safely be reckoned at 10,000 feet.

Hermon

A lofty mountain on the northeast border of Palestine, called also Sirion Shenir, and Sion, (not Zion,) De 3:8; 4:39. It is a part of the great Anti-Lebanon Range; at the point where an eastern and lower arm branches off, a little south of the latitude of Damascus, and runs in a southerly direction terminating east of the head of the sea of Galilee. This low range is called Jebel Heish. Mount Hermon is believed to be what is now known as Jebel esh-Sheikh, whose highest summit, surpassing every other in Syria, rises into the region of perpetual snow or ice, ten thousand feet above the sea.

For a view of Hermon, see MEROM. Professor Hackett thus describes its appearance as seen from a hill north of Nazareth: "The mountain was concealed one moment, and the next, on ascending a few steps higher, stood arrayed before me with an imposing effect which I cannot easily describe. It rose immensely above every surrounding object. The purity of the atmosphere caused it to appear near, though it was in reality many miles distant. The snow on its head and sides sparkled under the rays of the sun, as if it had been robed in a vesture of silver. In my mind's eye at that moment it had none of the appearance of an inert mass of earth and rock, but glowed with life and animation. It stood there athwart my path, like a mighty giant rearing his head towards heaven and swelling with the proud consciousness of strength and majesty. I felt how natural was the Psalmist's personification: "the north and the south thou hast created them; Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name,-" Psalm 89:12.

The "little Hermon" of modern travellers, not mentioned in Scripture, is a shapeless mass of hills north of the smaller valley of Jezreel. "Hermonites," or Hermons, in Psalm 42:6, denotes the peaks of the Hermons range.

HERMON

hur'-mon (chermon; Codex Vaticanus, Haermon):

1. Description:

The name of the majestic mountain in which the Anti-Lebanon range terminates to the South (Deuteronomy 3:8, etc.). It reaches a height of 9,200 ft. above the sea, and extends some 16 to 20 miles from North to South. It was called Sirion by the Sidonians (Deuteronomy 3:9; compare Psalm 29:6), and Senir by the Amorites (Deuteronomy 3:9). It is also identified with Sion (Deuteronomy 4:48). See SIRION; SENIR; SION. Sometimes it is called "Mt. Hermon" (Deuteronomy 3:8 Joshua 11:17 1 Chronicles 5:23, etc.); at other times simply "Hermon" (Joshua 11:3 Psalm 89:12, etc.).

2. The Hermons:

Once it is called "Hermons" (chermonim). the King James Version mistakenly renders this "the Hermonites" (Psalm 42:6). It must be a reference to the triple summits of the mountain. There are three distinct heads, rising near the middle of the mass, the two higher being toward the East. The eastern declivities are steep and bare; the western slopes are more gradual; and while the upper reaches are barren, the lower are well wooded; and as one descends he passes through fruitful vineyards and orchards, finally entering the rich fields below, in Wady etteim. The Aleppo pine, the oak, and the poplar are plentiful. The wolf and the leopard are still to be found on the mountain; and it is the last resort of the brown, or Syrian, bear. Snow lies long on the summits and shoulders of the mountain; and in some of the deeper hollows, especially to the North, it may be seen through most of the year.

Mt. Hermon is the source of many blessings to the land over which it so proudly lifts its splendid form. Refreshing breezes blow from its cold heights. Its snows are carried to Damascus and to the towns on the seaboard, where, mingled with the sharab, "drink," they mitigate the heat of the Syrian summer. Great reservoirs in the depths of the mountain, fed by the melting snows, find outlet in the magnificent springs at Chasbeiyeh, Tell el-Kady, and Banias, while the dew-clouds of Hermon bring a benediction wherever they are carried (Psalm 133:3).

3. Sanctuaries:

Hermon marked the northern limit of Joshua's victorious campaigns (Joshua 12:1, etc.). It was part, of the dominion of Og (Joshua 12:5), and with the fall of that monarch, it would naturally come under Israelite influence. Its remote and solitary heights must have attracted worshippers from the earliest times; and we cannot doubt that it was a famous sanctuary in far antiquity. Under the highest peak are the ruins of Kacr `Antar, which may have been an ancient sanctuary of Baal. Eusebius, Onomasticon, speaks of a temple on the summit much frequented by the surrounding peoples; and the remains of many temples of the Roman period have been found on the sides and at the base of the mountain. The sacredness of Hermon may be inferred from the allusion in Psalm 89:12 (compare Enoch 6:6; and see also BAAL-HERMON).

Some have thought that the scene of the Transfiguration should be sought here; see, however, TRANSFIGURATION, MOUNT OF.

The modern name of Hermon is Jebel eth-thilj, "mount of snow," or Jebel esh-sheikh, "mount of the elder," or "of the chief."

Little Hermon, the name now often applied to the hill between Tabor and Gilboa, possibly the Hill of Moreh, on which is the sanctuary of Neby Dahy, has no Biblical authority, and dates only from the Middle Ages.

W. Ewing

A peak, the eastern prolongation of the Anti-Lebanon range, reaching to the height of about 9,200 feet above the Mediterranean. It Marks the north boundary of Palestine (Deuteronomy 3:8, 4:48; Joshua 11:3, 17; 13:11; 12:1), and is seen from a great distance. It is about 40 miles north of the Sea of Galilee. It is called "the Hermonites" (Psalm 42:6) because it has more than one summit. The Sidonians called it Sirion, and the Amorites Shenir (Deuteronomy 3:9; Cant. 4:8). It is also called Baal-hermon (Judges 3:3; 1 Chronicles 5:23) and Sion (Deuteronomy 4:48). There is every probability that one of its three summits was the scene of the transfiguration (q.v.). The "dew of Hermon" is referred to (Psalm 89:12). Its modern name is Jebel-esh-Sheikh, "the chief mountain." It is one of the most conspicuous mountains in Palestine or Syria. "In whatever part of Palestine the Israelite turned his eye northward, Hermon was there, terminating the view. From the plain along the coast, from the Jordan valley, from the heights of Moab and Gilead, from the plateau of Bashan, the pale, blue, snow-capped cone forms the one feature in the northern horizon."

Our Lord and his disciples climbed this "high mountain apart" one day, and remained on its summit all night, "weary after their long and toilsome ascent." During the night "he was transfigured before them; and his face did shine as the sun." The next day they descended to Caesarea Philippi.

1179. Baal Chermon -- "Baal of Hermon," the center of Baal worship ...
... "Baal of Hermon," the center of Baal worship on Mt. Hermon. Transliteration: Baal
Chermon Phonetic Spelling: (bah'-al kher-mone') Short Definition: Baal-hermon. ...
/hebrew/1179.htm - 6k

7865. Sion -- another name for Mount Hermon
... Sion. 7866 >>. another name for Mount Hermon. Transliteration: Sion Phonetic Spelling:
(see-ohn') Short Definition: Sion. ... Hermon -- Sion. see HEBREW siy'. ...
/hebrew/7865.htm - 6k

4706. Mitsar -- a mountain near Hermon
... << 4705, 4706. Mitsar. 4707 >>. a mountain near Hermon. Transliteration: Mitsar
Phonetic Spelling: (mits-awr') Short Definition: Mizar. ...
/hebrew/4706.htm - 6k

8149. Shenir -- Amorite name for Mount Hermon
... << 8148, 8149. Shenir or Senir. 8150 >>. Amorite name for Mount Hermon. Transliteration:
Shenir or Senir Phonetic Spelling: (shen-eer') Short Definition: Senir. ...
/hebrew/8149.htm - 6k

8303. Siryon -- a Sidonian name for Mount Hermon
... << 8302, 8303. Siryon. 8304 >>. a Sidonian name for Mount Hermon. Transliteration:
Siryon Phonetic Spelling: (shir-yone') Short Definition: Sirion. ...
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2362. Chavran -- a district Southeast of Mount Hermon
... << 2361, 2362. Chavran. 2363 >>. a district Southeast of Mount Hermon. Transliteration:
Chavran Phonetic Spelling: (khav-rawn') Short Definition: Hauran. ...
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1171. Baal Gad -- "Baal of fortune," a place near Mt. Hermon
... Hermon. Transliteration: Baal Gad Phonetic Spelling: (bah'-al gawd) Short Definition:
Baal-gad. ... Hermon NASB Word Usage Baal-gad (3). Baal-gad. ...
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2768. Chermon -- "sacred (mountain)," a mountain in S. Aram (Syria ...
... "sacred (mountain)," a mountain in S. Aram (Syria) and Northern Israel. Transliteration:
Chermon Phonetic Spelling: (kher-mone') Short Definition: Hermon. ... Hermon ...
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2769. Chermonim -- the Hermonites
... the Hermonites. Transliteration: Chermonim Phonetic Spelling: (kher-mo-neem') Short
Definition: Hermon. ... of Chermon, qv NASB Word Usage Hermon (1). the Hermonites ...
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