Greek word · G4471
Ῥαμᾶ
rama
Ramah
Greek spelling of Hebrew Rāmâ, 'height, high place'. Several towns had this name. The one meant in Jeremiah 31:15 is Ramah of Benjamin (modern er-Ram), about 8 km north of Jerusalem on the main north–south ridge road.
Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
From the study of Matthew 2:18
- Range of meaning
Greek spelling of Hebrew Rāmâ, 'height, high place'. Several towns had this name. The one meant in Jeremiah 31:15 is Ramah of Benjamin (modern er-Ram), about 8 km north of Jerusalem on the main north–south ridge road.
- Against the English
English versions simply transliterate it as 'Ramah' (KJV 'Rama'). That is correct, but it hides two things: the name means 'height', and Ramah was tied to exile.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Jeremiah 40:1 says Nebuzaradan, the Babylonian commander, released Jeremiah at Ramah, where he had been 'bound in chains among all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah who were being exiled to Babylon'. 1 Samuel 10:2 puts Rachel's tomb 'in the territory of Benjamin', near this area. Genesis 35:19 and 48:7 instead place her burial 'on the way to Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem'. The Vulgate of Jeremiah and some Jewish interpretation (the Targum) translate the name as a common noun, 'on the height'.
Where it appears
Matthew · 1
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Matthew 2:18 Ῥαμὰ Ramah
“A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.”
Here: A town of the tribe of Benjamin about 8 km (5 miles) north of Jerusalem. Its name means 'height'. In Jeremiah it is where the captives were gathered before being marched off to Babylon (Jer 40:1). Naming it brings the exile to mind.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.