Aro´er, a town on the north side of the river Arnon, and therefore on the southern border of the territory conquered from the Amorites, which was assigned to the tribes of Reuben and Gad (Deuteronomy 2:36; Joshua 12:2; Joshua 13:9). The Amorites had previously dispossessed the Ammonites of this territory; and although in the texts cited the town seems to be given to Reuben, it is mentioned as a Moabitish city by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 48:19). Burckhardt found the ruins of this town under the name of Araayr, on the edge of a precipice overlooking the river. Aroer is always named in conjunction with 'the city that is in the midst of the river;' whence it has been conjectured that, like Rabbath Ammon [RABBATH-AMMON], it consisted of two parts, or distinct cities; the one on the bank of the river, and the other in the valley beneath, surrounded, either naturally or artificially, by the waters of the river.
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Aroer, one of the towns 'built,' or probably rebuilt, by the tribe of Gad (Numbers 32:34). Burckhardt, in journeying from Szalt towards Rabbath Ammon, notices a ruined site, called Ayra, as 'one of the towns built by the tribe of Gad.' It is about seven miles south-west from Szalt. Aroer of Gad is also mentioned in Judges 11:33, and 2 Samuel 24:5.
Aroer, 3
Aroer, a city in the south of Judah, to which David sent presents after recovering the spoil of Ziklag (1 Samuel 30:26; 1 Samuel 30:28). At the distance of twenty geographical miles S. by W. from Hebron, there is a broad valley called Ararah, in which are evident traces of an ancient village or town. The identity of name shows that this was the Aroer of Judah.
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John Kitto was an English biblical scholar of Cornish descent.Born in Plymouth, John Kitto was a sickly child, son of a Cornish stonemason. The drunkenness of his father and the poverty of his family meant that much of his childhood was spent in the workhouse. He had no more than three years of erratic and interrupted education. At the age of twelve John Kitto fell on his head from a rooftop, and became totally and permanently deaf. As a young man he suffered further tragedies, disappointments and much loneliness. His height was 4 ft 8 in, and his accident left him with an impaired sense of balance. He found consolation in browsing at bookstalls and reading any books that came his way.
From these hardships he was rescued by friends who became aware of his mental abilities and encouraged him to write topical articles for local newspapers, arranging eventually for him to work as an assistant in a local library. Here he continued to educate himself.
One of his benefactors was the Exeter dentist Anthony Norris Groves, who in 1824 offered him employment as a dental assistant. Living with the Groves family, Kitto was profoundly influenced by the practical Christian faith of his employer. In 1829 he accompanied Groves on his pioneering mission to Baghdad and served as tutor to Groves's two sons. In 1833 Kitto returned to England via Constantinople, accompanied by another member of the Groves mission, Francis William Newman. Shortly afterwards he married, and in due course had several children.
A London publisher asked Kitto to write up his travel journals for a series of articles in the Penny Magazine, a publication read at that time by a million people in Britain, reprinted in America and translated into French, German and Dutch. Other writing projects followed as readers enquired about his experiences in the East amidst people living in circumstances closely resembling those of Bible times.
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