Hebrew word · H3096

יַ֫הַץה

yahtzah

Jahaz

A place name. The form with the final -āh began as the 'toward' ending ('to Jahaz') and became a fixed spelling of the name.

Appears 8 times in 8 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Jahaz or Jahazah or Jahzah = "trodden down"

a place in Reuben east of the Dead Sea where Israel defeated Sihon king of the Amorites; site uncertain

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

In depth

From the study of Joshua 21:36

Range of meaning

A place name. The form with the final -āh began as the 'toward' ending ('to Jahaz') and became a fixed spelling of the name.

Against the English

KJV and YLT write 'Jahazah', copying the ending as part of the name. BSB, WEB and most modern versions write 'Jahaz'. Both refer to the same place.

Used elsewhere in the period

The site of Israel's victory over Sihon (Num 21:23; Deut 2:32; Judg 11:20). It is named among Reuben's towns (Josh 13:18) and later in prophecies against Moab (Isa 15:4; Jer 48:21, 34). The Mesha inscription (lines 18–21) says the king of Israel had built Jahaz and stayed there while fighting Mesha, and that Mesha captured it and added it to the territory of Dibon. Its site is debated; Khirbet el-Medeiyineh on the Wadi eth-Thamad is a leading candidate.

Where it appears

Numbers · 1

  1. Numbers 21:23 יָ֑הְצָה Jahaz towards

    But Sihon would not let Israel pass through his territory. Instead, he gathered his whole army and went out to confront Israel in the wilderness. When he came to Jahaz, he fought against Israel.

Deuteronomy · 1

  1. Deuteronomy 2:32 יָֽהְצָה׃ Jahaz towards

    So Sihon and his whole army came out for battle against us at Jahaz.

Joshua · 1

  1. Joshua 13:18 וְיַ֥הְצָה and Jahaz <towards>

    Jahaz, Kedemoth, Mephaath,

Judges · 1

  1. Judges 11:20 בְּיָ֑הְצָה at Jahaz <towards>

    But Sihon would not trust Israel to pass through his territory. So he gathered all his people, encamped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel.

1 Chronicles · 1

  1. 1 Chronicles 6:78 יַ֖הְצָה Jahaz <towards>

    From the tribe of Reuben east of the Jordan opposite Jericho they were given Bezer in the wilderness, Jahzah,

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 15:4 יַ֖הַץ Jahaz

    Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voices are heard as far as Jahaz. Therefore the soldiers of Moab cry out; their souls tremble within.

Jeremiah · 2

  1. Jeremiah 48:21 יַ֖הְצָה Jahaz <towards>

    Judgment has come upon the high plain—upon Holon, Jahzah, and Mephaath,

  2. Jeremiah 48:34 יַ֙הַץ֙ Jahaz

    There is a cry from Heshbon to Elealeh; they raise their voices to Jahaz, from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah; for even the waters of Nimrim have dried up.

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