Hebrew word · H4719

מַקֵּדָה

makedah

Makkedah

Place name of uncertain etymology. Some link it to the root n-q-d ('speckled', used of sheep-breeders). This is speculative.

Appears 9 times in 8 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Makkedah = "place of shepherds"

the location of a cave in Judah where Joshua captured and executed five Canaanite kings during the conquest; located near Bethhoron and Libnah

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 15:41

Range of meaning

Place name of uncertain etymology. Some link it to the root n-q-d ('speckled', used of sheep-breeders). This is speculative.

Against the English

The name is transliterated the same way in all versions.

Used elsewhere in the period

Joshua 10:10, 16–29 tells of the cave where the five kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon hid, and the town Joshua then took. It is listed again among defeated kings in Joshua 12:16. Eusebius's Onomasticon (4th century AD) places it 8 Roman miles east of Eleutheropolis (Beit Guvrin). Modern proposals include Khirbet el-Qom and Khirbet Beit Maqdum, and none is certain.

Where it appears

Joshua · 9

  1. Joshua 10:10 מַקֵּדָֽה׃ Makkedah

    And the LORD threw them into confusion before Israel, who defeated them in a great slaughter at Gibeon, pursued them along the ascent to Beth-horon, and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah.

    Here: A town in the Shephelah whose site is uncertain. The five kings hide in its cave (vv. 16–27), so naming it here points ahead to how the story ends.

  2. Joshua 10:16 בְּמַקֵּדָֽה׃ at Makkedah

    Now the five kings had fled and hidden in the cave at Makkedah.

  3. Joshua 10:17 בְּמַקֵּדָֽה׃ at Makkedah

    And Joshua was informed: “The five kings have been found; they are hiding in the cave at Makkedah.”

  4. Joshua 10:21 מַקֵּדָ֖ה Makkedah

    The whole army returned safely to Joshua in the camp at Makkedah, and no one dared to utter a word against the Israelites.

    Here: A town in the low hill country of Judah, the Shephelah. The five kings hid in a cave there (v. 16). Its exact site is not certain. The Hebrew has no 'at'; the place name simply sits next to 'the camp'.

  5. Joshua 10:28 מַקֵּדָה֩ מַקֵּדָ֔ה Makkedah

    On that day Joshua captured Makkedah and put it to the sword, along with its king. He devoted to destruction everyone in the city, leaving no survivors. So he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.

    Here: A town in the Shephelah, the low hills between Judah's highlands and the coastal plain. The five Amorite kings hid in a cave near it (10:16–17). It is listed later among Judah's lowland towns (15:41). Where exactly it stood is uncertain.

  6. Joshua 10:29 מִמַּקֵּדָ֖ה from Makkedah

    Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Makkedah to Libnah and fought against Libnah.

    Here: 'From Makkedah.' This is the town where the five Amorite kings hid in a cave and were executed (10:16–27), and which Joshua had just destroyed (10:28). Where it stood is uncertain, but it was somewhere in the low hills (the Shephelah) west of Judah.

  7. Joshua 12:16 מַקֵּדָה֙ Makkedah

    the king of Makkedah, one; the king of Bethel, one;

  8. Joshua 15:41 וּמַקֵּדָ֑ה and Makkedah

    Gederoth, Beth-dagon, Naamah, and Makkedah—sixteen cities, along with their villages.

    Here: The best-known name in the verse. This is where the five Amorite kings hid in a cave and were executed after the battle of Gibeon (Joshua 10:10–28). Listing it here quietly ties the land grant back to the conquest story.

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