Verse 33
33. Aroer See at Joshua 13:25.
Minnith A place that was noted for its wheat, (Ezekiel 27:17;) but its exact site is unknown.
Plain of the vineyards This is a literal translation of a Hebrew proper name Abel-keramim so called, probably, because of its vineyards. The place is mentioned by Eusebius as lying six miles from Rabbah, and was still rich in vineyards in his day.
For want of precise details of the battle, and from uncertainty as to the exact sites of Aroer and Minnith, we find it impossible to trace the course of Jephthah’s victory. We most naturally suppose that from the height of Mount Gilead he marched southward and encountered the Ammonites near Aroer, somewhere between Jordan and Rabbah, probably at Ayra on the Wady Nimrin. Here he put them to flight, and chased them towards the south and east, probably capturing Rabbah, their capital, among the twenty cities which fell into his hands by this great victory. See the map of Gilead, page 234.
Be the first to react on this!
