3. GiBEAii OF Phinehas, in Mount Ephraim, where the high-priest Eleazar, son of Aaron, was buried by his son Phinehas (Josh, xxiv, 33, where the name is rendered "hill of Phinehas"). Eusebius and Jerome (Onomast. s. v. ri]jiu>d, Gebin) probably mention this place by the name of Geha (although they incorrectly identify this with the Gcbim of Isa. x, 31) (s. v. " Ge- bim"), five Roman miles from Gophna, on the road to Neapolis (Shechem), which was itself fifteen Roman miles north of Jerusalem. Josephiis appears also to allude to it {Taiia^d, Ant. x, 1, 20). Dr. Robinson (Researches, iii, 80, note) finds it in a narrow valley called wady el-Jib, the Geeb of Maundrell, lying just midway on the road between Jerusalem and Shechem ; the indication of direction in the Onomasticon agrees with the position of the village Jibea (located on that wad}'), west of the Nablus road, half way between Bethel and Shiloh (Van de Velde, Memoir, p. S15), but the distance still better suits that of the Moslem ruined village Jihia, west of this (Robinson, Research- es, iii. Append, p. 125 ; Van de Velde, Map).
Gib'eatli (Josh, xviii, 28). See Gibeah 1.
Gib'eathite (Heb. with the article hag-Gibathi' , '''r"'l'\r\ ; Sept. 0 ra/3o.jt7-jyc V. r. Vaftacirijc, Tijiai- Srei-iji;), the designation of a native of Gibeah (1 Chron. xii, 3); in this case, Shemaah, or "the Shemaah," fa- ther of two Benjamites, " Saul's brethren," who joined David. See Gibeah 1.
Gib'eon (Heb. Gibon^^^VIli^, hill-city; Sept. Fa- ftailjj', Josephus rn/3n(o), one of the four cities of the riivites, the others being Beeroth (omitted by Jose- phus, Ant. V, 2, 16), Chephirah, and Kirjath-jearim (Josh, ix, 17). See Canaanite. Its inhaliitants made a league with Joshua (ix, 3-15), and thus escaped the fate of Jericho and Ai (comp. xi, 19). See Gibe- oxiTE. It appears, as might be inferred from its tak- ing the initiative in this matter, to have been the largest of the four — " a great city, like one of the royal cities" — larger than Ai (x, 2). Its men, too, were all practiced warriors (^Gibborim, D"^"i35). Gibeon lay within the territory of Benjamin (xviii, 25), and with its -'suburbs" was allotted to the priests (xxi, 17). of whom it afterwards became a principal station, where the tabernacle was set up for many years under David and Solomon (1 Chron. xvi, 39 ; xxi, 29 : 2 Chron. i, 3), the ark being at the same time at Jerusalem (2 Chron. i, 4). For these and other notices in the historical books of Scripture, see below. From Jer. xii, 16, we may infer that after the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, Gibeon again became the seat of government. It produced prophets in the days of Jeremiah (Jer. xxviii, 1). After the captivity we find
GIBEON
850
GIBEON
the " men of Gibson" returning with Zerubbabel (Neh, vii, 25 : in the list of Ezra the name is altered to Gib- Bak), and assisting Nehemiah in the repair of the wall of Jerusalem (iii, 7). In the post-Biblical times it was the scene of a victory bj' the Jews over the Koman troops under Cestius Gallus, which offers in man}^ re- spects a close parallel with that of Joshua over the Ca- naanites (Josephus, War, ii, It), 7 ; Stanley, Palest, p. 212). In 2 Sam. v, 25 it would seem to be called Geba (where the error of the original has been follow- ed by all tlie versions), as compared with 1 Chron. xiv, 16 ; but it is to be distinguished from both Geba and Gibeah. It is said (2 Sam. ii, 13) that there was a pool in Gibeon. Whether it were of any considerable extent does not appear from this passage; but there is little doubt that it is the same as "the great waters that are in Gibeon" (Jer. xli, 12). There was also a great stone or rock here (2 Sam. xx, 8), and also the great high place (1 Kings iii, 4). All this shows that Gibeon was situated on an eminence, as its name im- ports.
Location. — None of the scriptural passages mark the site of Gibeon ; but there are indications of it in Josephus ( lVa7; ii, 10, 1), who places it 40 (^Anf. vii, 11, 7) or 50 stadia north-west from Jerusalem, and in Je- rome (Kp. 86, ad Eustoch.), which leave little doubt that Gibeon is to be identified with the place which still bears the name of El-Jib. The name Gaboon is indeed mentioned by writers of the time of the Cru- sades, as existing at this spot, and among the Arabs it then alread}' bore the name of El-Jil), under which it is mentioned bj' Bohaedinn (^Vita Saladin, p. 243). Af- terwards it was overlooked by most travellers till the last century, when the attention of Pococke was again directed to it (^Description of the East, ii, 49). Tlie traveller who pursues the northern camel-road from Jerusalem, turning off to the left at Tuleil el-ful (Gib- eah) on that branch of it which leads westward to Jaffa, finds himself, after crossing one or two stony and barren ridges, in a district of a more open charac- ter. The hills are rounder and more isolated than those through which he has been passing, and rise in well- defined mamelons from broad undulating valleys of tolerable extent and fertile soil. This is the central plateau of the country, the "land of Benjamin;" and these round hills are the Gibeahs, Gebas, Gibeons, and Eamahs, whose names occur so frequently in the rec- ords of this district. Retaining its ancient name al- most intact, El-Jib stands on the northernmost of a couple of these mamelons, just at the place where the road to the sea parts into two branches, the one by the lower level of the wady Suleiman, the other bj' the heights of the Beth-horons, to Gimzo, Lydda, and Joppa. The road passes at a short distance to the north of the base of the hill of El-Jib. The strata of the hills in this district lie much more horizontal than those further south. With the hills of Gibeon this is peculiarly the case, and it imparts a remarkable precision to their appearance, especially when viewed from a height such as the neighboring eminence of neby Samwil. The houses stand very irregularly and unevenl}-, sometimes almost above one another. They seem to be chief!}' rooms in old massive ruins, which have fallen down in every direction. One large build- ing still remains, probal)ly a former castle or tower of strength. The natural terraces arc carried round the hill like contour lines ; they are all dotted thick with olives and vines, and the ancient-looking houses are scattered over the flatfish sunnnit of the mound. On the east side of the hill is a copious spring, which is- sues in a cave excavated in the limestone rock, so as to form a large reservoir. In the trees farther down are the remains of a pool or tank of considerable size, probably, says Dr. Robinson, 120 feet In' 100, i. e. of rather smaller dimensions than the lower pool at He- bron. This is doubtless the " i)Ool of Gibeon," at which Abner and Joab met together with the troops of