Hebrew word · H359

אֵילוֹת

'eilot

Elath

A place name, Eloth/Elath, at the head of the gulf beside Ezion-geber. It is usually related to ʾêlâ/ʾayil, large trees (terebinths, oaks or palms). The plural ending could suggest 'the trees' or 'the grove'. Some interpreters relate it to Elim, with its palms (Exod 15:27), but this is a guess.

Appears 8 times in 6 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Elath or Eloth = "grove of lofty trees"

a port on the north-east arm of the Red Sea

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 2 Chronicles 8:17

Range of meaning

A place name, Eloth/Elath, at the head of the gulf beside Ezion-geber. It is usually related to ʾêlâ/ʾayil, large trees (terebinths, oaks or palms). The plural ending could suggest 'the trees' or 'the grove'. Some interpreters relate it to Elim, with its palms (Exod 15:27), but this is a guess.

Against the English

KJV, BSB and WEB keep the plural form 'Eloth'. YLT and many modern versions give the usual form 'Elath'. Both refer to the same place.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 2:8; 1 Kgs 9:26; 2 Kgs 14:22 (Azariah/Uzziah rebuilt it and 'restored it to Judah'); 2 Kgs 16:6 (Judah lost it in Ahaz's reign); the same town is later known as Greco-Roman Aila (Aqaba).

From the study of 1 Kings 9:26

Range of meaning

Elath, a town at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba. The name probably comes from 'êlāh/'ayil, a large tree (terebinth) and by extension a grove, perhaps palm groves at an oasis. Here it is spelled as a plural, 'Eloth'.

Against the English

KJV, WEB and BSB 'Eloth'; others 'Elath'. No drift.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 2:8 (paired with Ezion-geber); 2 Kgs 14:22 (Azariah/Uzziah rebuilds it and restores it to Judah); 2 Kgs 16:6 (lost to Edom under Ahaz); 2 Chr 8:17; 26:2. Later it was Nabataean and Roman Aila, at modern Aqaba in Jordan. The Israeli city of Eilat took the biblical name.

From the study of 2 Kings 16:6

Range of meaning

A port town at the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba. The name is linked to 'elah/'elon, 'terebinth, great tree'. It is closely tied to Ezion-geber, Solomon's shipyard (1 Kgs 9:26; Deut 2:8).

Against the English

English versions use 'Elath' for both spellings. That is reasonable, though it hides the fact that the Hebrew uses both forms in one verse.

Used elsewhere in the period

Excavations in the 1930s and 1980s at Tell el-Kheleifeh, between modern Eilat and Aqaba, have been tied to this site, though the identification is debated. Finds there include a seal impression of an Edomite royal servant ('Qaus'anal, servant of the king') and a signet ring inscribed lytm. Some have connected the ring with King Jotham, Ahaz's father, but that is uncertain.

Where it appears

Deuteronomy · 1

  1. Deuteronomy 2:8 מֵאֵילַ֖ת from Elath

    So we passed by our brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned away from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion-geber, and traveled along the road of the Wilderness of Moab.

    Here: A site at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba, near modern Eilat and Aqaba. Here it marks the southern end of the Arabah road. The name likely relates to 'elah, a large tree (terebinth or palm grove).

1 Kings · 1

  1. 1 Kings 9:26 אֵל֛וֹת Elath

    King Solomon also assembled a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea.

    Here: A plural spelling of Elath, the better-known town at the head of the gulf near modern Aqaba and Eilat. The name probably comes from a word for big trees (terebinths or palms), so roughly 'the Groves'.

2 Kings · 4

  1. 2 Kings 14:22 אֵילַ֔ת Elath

    Azariah was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah rested with his fathers.

    Here: The port town at the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba, on the Red Sea, next to or near Ezion-geber. The name probably means '(place of) the great tree(s)', from 'elah, 'terebinth'. It was Judah's only gateway to the Red Sea trade routes.

  2. 2 Kings 16:6 אֵילַת֙ מֵֽאֵיל֑וֹת אֵילַ֔ת Elath, from Elath

    At that time Rezin king of Aram recovered Elath for Aram, drove out the men of Judah, and sent the Edomites into Elath, where they live to this day.

    Here: Elath, the port at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea, near modern Eilat and Aqaba. It was Judah's only outlet to southern trade by sea. The name probably means 'terebinths' or 'big trees'.

2 Chronicles · 2

  1. 2 Chronicles 8:17 אֵיל֛וֹת Elath

    Then Solomon went to Ezion-geber and to Eloth on the coast of Edom.

    Here: Eloth (Elath), a town beside Ezion-geber at the head of the gulf; the modern names Eilat and Aqaba carry on the same area. The name is often linked to a word for large trees (terebinths, or possibly palms), which would suit an oasis, but that link is not certain.

  2. 2 Chronicles 26:2 אֵיל֔וֹת Elath

    Uzziah was the one who rebuilt Eloth and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah rested with his fathers.

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