Aroer
Encyclopedia
Aroer is a Biblical town on the north bank of the River Arnon to the east
of the Dead Sea
, in present-day Jordan
.
The town was an ancient Moabite
settlement, and is mentioned in the Bible.
"Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of Arnon" (Deut
. ii. 36), is probably represented by the present ruins of 'Arzā'ir on the north bank of the Arnon ravine, about eleven miles (18 kilometres) from the mouth of the river (Tristram, "Moab," pp. 129-131). The city was still standing in the time of Eusebius. This place was usually described by its situation, in order to distinguish it from other localities of the same name (Deut
. iii. 12, iv. 48; Josh
. xii. 2, xiii. 9; Judges
xi. 26; II Sam
. xxiv. 5).
It appears first as having been captured by the Amorite
king Sihon
from Moab
(compare Num. xxi. 26). In the Mesha inscription
, l. 26, it is mentioned as having been built by the Moabites. After Israel's attack on the Amorites, it was assigned as part of the territory of the tribe of Reuben
, whose southern frontier it marked. This is the city mentioned in Num
. xxxii. 34, with the southern towns, as having been built by the children of Gad
before the distribution of the land. When Hazael
and his Syrians took from Israel the territory across
the Jordan, Aroer is given as its southern limit (II Kings
x. 33). It is clear, from Jer
. xlviii. 19, that the Moabites ultimately recovered it from the Israelite
s.
According to a prophecy
in the writings of Isaiah
(chapter 17, verse 2), Aroer will become either forsaken, forsaken and desolate, or forsaken forever, depending on which manuscript
is used to derive the English translation. Its geographical surroundings may be included in this prophecy, as well, as the verse reads "the cities of Aroer."
Transjordan (Bible)
The Transjordan is used to describe an area of land in the Southern Levant lying east of the Jordan River that is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. The area is said to form part of an ill-defined area known as the land of Israel...
of the Dead Sea
Dead Sea
The Dead Sea , also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are below sea level, the lowest elevation on the Earth's surface. The Dead Sea is deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the world...
, in present-day Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
.
The town was an ancient Moabite
Moabite
Moabite may refer to:*a person from Moab, the former country of the Moabite people, currently located in the area of Jordan east of the Dead Sea*the Moabite language, an extinct Canaanite dialect once spoken in Moab...
settlement, and is mentioned in the Bible.
"Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of Arnon" (Deut
Deuteronomy
The Book of Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible, and of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch...
. ii. 36), is probably represented by the present ruins of 'Arzā'ir on the north bank of the Arnon ravine, about eleven miles (18 kilometres) from the mouth of the river (Tristram, "Moab," pp. 129-131). The city was still standing in the time of Eusebius. This place was usually described by its situation, in order to distinguish it from other localities of the same name (Deut
Deuteronomy
The Book of Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible, and of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch...
. iii. 12, iv. 48; Josh
Book of Joshua
The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land....
. xii. 2, xiii. 9; Judges
Book of Judges
The Book of Judges is the seventh book of the Hebrew bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its title describes its contents: it contains the history of Biblical judges, divinely inspired prophets whose direct knowledge of Yahweh allows them to act as decision-makers for the Israelites, as...
xi. 26; II Sam
Books of Samuel
The Books of Samuel in the Jewish bible are part of the Former Prophets, , a theological history of the Israelites affirming and explaining the Torah under the guidance of the prophets.Samuel begins by telling how the prophet Samuel is chosen by...
. xxiv. 5).
It appears first as having been captured by the Amorite
Amorite
Amorite refers to an ancient Semitic people who occupied large parts of Mesopotamia from the 21st Century BC...
king Sihon
Sihon
Sihon, according to the Old Testament, was an Amorite king, who refused to let the Israelites pass through his country. The Bible describes that as the Israelites in their Exodus came to the country east of the Jordan, near Heshbon, King of the Amorites refused to let them pass through his...
from Moab
Moab
Moab is the historical name for a mountainous strip of land in Jordan. The land lies alongside much of the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. The existence of the Kingdom of Moab is attested to by numerous archeological findings, most notably the Mesha Stele, which describes the Moabite victory over...
(compare Num. xxi. 26). In the Mesha inscription
Mesha Stele
The Mesha Stele is a black basalt stone bearing an inscription by the 9th century BC ruler Mesha of Moab in Jordan....
, l. 26, it is mentioned as having been built by the Moabites. After Israel's attack on the Amorites, it was assigned as part of the territory of the tribe of Reuben
Reuben (Bible)
According to the Book of Genesis, Reuben or Re'uven was the first and eldest son of Jacob with Leah. He was the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Reuben.-Etymology:...
, whose southern frontier it marked. This is the city mentioned in Num
Book of Numbers
The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch....
. xxxii. 34, with the southern towns, as having been built by the children of Gad
Tribe of Gad
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Gad was one of the Tribes of Israel.From after the conquest of the land by Joshua until the formation of the first Kingdom of Israel in c. 1050 BC, the Tribe of Gad was a part of a loose confederation of Israelite tribes. No central government existed,...
before the distribution of the land. When Hazael
Hazael
Hazael was a court official and later an Aramean king who is mentioned in the Bible. Under his reign, Aram-Damascus became an empire that ruled over large parts of Syria and Palestine....
and his Syrians took from Israel the territory across
Transjordan (Bible)
The Transjordan is used to describe an area of land in the Southern Levant lying east of the Jordan River that is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. The area is said to form part of an ill-defined area known as the land of Israel...
the Jordan, Aroer is given as its southern limit (II Kings
Books of Kings
The Book of Kings presents a narrative history of ancient Israel and Judah from the death of David to the release of his successor Jehoiachin from imprisonment in Babylon, a period of some 400 years...
x. 33). It is clear, from Jer
Book of Jeremiah
The Book of Jeremiah is the second of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, following the book of Isaiah and preceding Ezekiel and the Book of the Twelve....
. xlviii. 19, that the Moabites ultimately recovered it from the Israelite
Israelite
According to the Bible the Israelites were a Hebrew-speaking people of the Ancient Near East who inhabited the Land of Canaan during the monarchic period .The word "Israelite" derives from the Biblical Hebrew ישראל...
s.
According to a prophecy
Prophecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
in the writings of Isaiah
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
(chapter 17, verse 2), Aroer will become either forsaken, forsaken and desolate, or forsaken forever, depending on which manuscript
Manuscript
A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
is used to derive the English translation. Its geographical surroundings may be included in this prophecy, as well, as the verse reads "the cities of Aroer."