Hebrew word · H1507

גֶּ֫זֶר

gezer

Gezer

Name of a city, Tell Gezer (Tell el-Jazari), on the northern edge of the lowland foothills beside the main coast-to-Jerusalem route.

Appears 15 times in 14 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. · Updated October 31, 2026

What it means

Gazer or Gezer = "portion"

a Levitical city on the border of Ephraim

Also named: gov (גֹּב "Gob" H1359)

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

Range of meaning: Name of a city, Tell Gezer (Tell el-Jazari), on the northern edge of the lowland foothills beside the main coast-to-Jerusalem route.
Against the English: No translation issue.
Used elsewhere in the period: Egyptian sources mention it often: Thutmose III's town lists, the Amarna letters (14th century BC, where its kings write to Pharaoh), and the Merneptah Stele (c. 1208 BC: 'Gezer is seized'). In the Bible see Josh 12:12; 16:3, 10; 21:21; Judg 1:29; 1 Kgs 9:15–17.

Range of meaning: Proper name of a major Canaanite city, identified with Tell Gezer (Tell el-Jazari), on a hill where the Shephelah (the low foothills) meets the coastal plain.
Against the English: All versions read 'Gezer'.
Used elsewhere in the period: Named in Egyptian records (Thutmose III, the Amarna letters, Merneptah's stele, which mentions Israel). Its king was defeated in Josh 10:33. It stayed Canaanite (Josh 16:10; Judg 1:29) until Pharaoh captured it and gave it to Solomon as a dowry (1 Kgs 9:16–17). The 'Gezer Calendar', one of the oldest Hebrew inscriptions, was found there.

Range of meaning: A place name, Gezer, identified with Tell Jezer (Tell Gezer). It guarded the junction of the coastal highway and the road up the Aijalon valley.
Against the English: English versions give the name. The fact a reader needs is that Gezer was not in Israelite hands in Joshua's day.
Used elsewhere in the period: Its king Horam was defeated (Joshua 10:33; 12:12), but Ephraim 'did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer' (Joshua 16:10; Judges 1:29). The Amarna letters (14th century BC) record its Canaanite kings. The Merneptah Stele (c. 1208 BC) claims an Egyptian capture of Gezer. Pharaoh later took it and gave it to Solomon as a dowry (1 Kings 9:16–17).

Joshua · 5

Joshua 10:33 גֶּ֔זֶר Gezer

At that time Horam king of Gezer went to help Lachish, but Joshua struck him down along with his people, leaving no survivors.

Here: A major fortified city guarding the route from the coast into the hill country, about 30 km (some 20 miles) north of Lachish.
Joshua 12:12 גֶּ֖זֶר Gezer

the king of Eglon, one; the king of Gezer, one;
Joshua 16:3 גָּ֑זֶר Gezer

Then it descended westward to the border of the Japhletites as far as the border of Lower Beth-horon and on to Gezer, and it ended at the Sea.

Here: A large walled Canaanite city where the hills meet the coastal plain, guarding the main coast road. Verse 10 adds that Ephraim did not drive out its Canaanites.
Joshua 16:10 בְּגָ֑זֶר in Gezer

But they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer. So the Canaanites dwell among the Ephraimites to this day, but they are forced laborers.

Here: Gezer was a major fortified city on the western edge of Ephraim's allotment. It overlooked the coastal highway and the Aijalon valley route up into the hill country, so it was a strategic prize (see setting).
Joshua 21:21 גֶּ֖זֶר Gezer

they were given Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim (a city of refuge for the manslayer), Gezer,

Here: A strong town on the western edge of the hills, guarding the road from the coastal plain up toward Jerusalem. Joshua 16:10 notes that Ephraim did not drive out its Canaanite inhabitants.

Judges · 2

Judges 1:29 בְּגָ֑זֶר בְּגָֽזֶר׃ פ in Gezer

Ephraim also failed to drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer; so the Canaanites continued to dwell among them in Gezer.

2 Samuel · 1

2 Samuel 5:25 גָֽזֶר׃ פ Gezer

So David did as the LORD had commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon to Gezer.

Here: Gezer was a strong city on the edge of the lowland foothills, where the hill country drops toward the coastal plain. It was still outside Israelite control (Joshua 16:10; 1 Kings 9:16), so it marks the border of Philistine territory.

1 Kings · 3

1 Kings 9:15 גָּֽזֶר׃ Gezer

This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon imposed to build the house of the LORD, his own palace, the supporting terraces, and the wall of Jerusalem, as well as Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.

Here: City on the western edge of the hill country. It guarded the route from the coastal plain up to Jerusalem. The next verse explains how it came to Solomon: as Pharaoh's dowry gift.
1 Kings 9:16 גֶּ֙זֶר֙ Gezer

Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire, killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and given it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife.
1 Kings 9:17 גָּ֔זֶר Gezer

So Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth-horon,

1 Chronicles · 4

1 Chronicles 6:67 גֶּ֖זֶר Gezer

They were given Shechem (a city of refuge) with its pasturelands in the hill country of Ephraim, and Gezer,
1 Chronicles 7:28 גֶּ֤זֶר Gezer

Their holdings and settlements included Bethel and its villages, Naaran to the east, Gezer and its villages to the west, and Shechem and its villages as far as Ayyah and its villages.
1 Chronicles 14:16 גָּֽזְרָה׃ Gezer <towards>

So David did as God had commanded him, and they struck down the army of the Philistines all the way from Gibeon to Gezer.
1 Chronicles 20:4 בְּגֶ֖זֶר at Gezer

Some time later, war broke out with the Philistines at Gezer. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, a descendant of the Rephaim, and the Philistines were subdued.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.