- Ephrath
Ephrath or Ephratah (Hebrew: אפרתה) is the name of a Biblical place or tribe.
The first mention of Ephrath occurs in
Genesis , [Genesis , chapter 35, verses 16, 19, and 48:7] in reference to whereRachel dies giving birth toBenjamin and is buried on the road fromBethel . A very old tradition is that Ephrath refers toBethlehem , [ [http://www.christiananswers.net/dictionary/ephratah.html Ephratah (Ephrath) (WebBible Encyclopedia) - ChristianAnswers.Net ] ] and thus that she died on the way there, reflected by the ancient Tomb of Rachel at the city's entrance.However, some modern scholars have placed this location closer to
Bethel , in the vicinity ofRamallah , based on verses in Samuel I [Samuel I, 10:2] and Jeremiah. [Jeremiah, 31:14] A prime candidate according to this view is a site known in Arabic as "kubur beni israil" ("burial of theChildren of Israel "), and is adjacent to the "Farah"wadi , whose name recalls "Ephrath". [http://amudanan.co.il/?lon=35.2717&lat=31.8423]Throughout much of the Bible, [Judges, 12:5] Ephrath is a description for members of the Israelite tribe of
Ephraim , as well as for the possible founders of Bethlehem. [Chronicles I, 4:4]The birth of Jesus in nearby Bethlehem in the territory of or "towards Ephrata" ("Bethlehem Ephrata") has always been accounted by Christians a fulfillment of the prophecy in Micah (5:2) [5:1 by
Judaism 's count] ::"But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." (
King James Version ).---- Ephrath was the wife ofCaleb (son of Hezron) and mother of Hur ("I Chronicles" ii. 19 and 50; iv. 4).Geographic Names
Some modern places are named after Ephrath:
The
Israeli settlement of Efrat, near Bethlehem
The town ofEphrata, Pennsylvania
The town ofEphratah, New York
The town ofEphrata, Washington References
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