Hebrew word · H5729

עֶ֫דֶן

'eden

Eden

'Sons of X' is a standard way to name a people or tribal state after its eponymous (name-giving) ancestor. Here X is Eden, which corresponds to the Aramean state Bit-Adini, 'House of Adini,' on the Euphrates. Its capital was Til-Barsip (Tell Ahmar).

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Eden = "pleasure"

a place conquered by Assyria; probably located in the northwest of Mesopotamia

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 Kings 19:12

Range of meaning

'Sons of X' is a standard way to name a people or tribal state after its eponymous (name-giving) ancestor. Here X is Eden, which corresponds to the Aramean state Bit-Adini, 'House of Adini,' on the Euphrates. Its capital was Til-Barsip (Tell Ahmar).

Against the English

KJV's 'the children of Eden' can mislead twice over. 'Children' sounds like young people, and 'Eden' sounds like the garden. BSB's 'the people of Eden' fixes the first problem but not the second.

How it drifted

The English spelling 'Eden' is identical to the garden of Genesis 2. In Hebrew the words are related in form but listed separately (H5729 here, H5731 for the garden), and this one names a political state.

Used elsewhere in the period

Amos 1:5 threatens 'the one who holds the sceptre from Beth-Eden' (i.e. Bit-Adini). Ezek 27:23 lists Eden among Tyre's trading partners alongside Haran. Shalmaneser III's inscriptions describe his conquest of Bit-Adini and its king Ahuni in the 850s BC.

From the study of Isaiah 37:12

Range of meaning

'Sons of Eden' names a people after their founder. It is the Hebrew equivalent of Assyrian Bit-Adini ('House of Adini'), an Aramean kingdom on both banks of the middle Euphrates with its capital at Til-Barsip (Tell Ahmar). The vowels differ from the Garden of Eden (ʿēden, H5731).

Against the English

KJV and YLT say 'children/sons of Eden', which sounds like Adam's family. BSB's 'the people of Eden' is better but still does not tell the reader it is a kingdom.

How it drifted

The English 'Eden' makes almost every reader think of Genesis 2. The two words look the same in English but are different words with different origins.

Used elsewhere in the period

Amos 1:5 threatens 'the one who holds the scepter from Beth-eden'. Ezekiel 27:23 lists 'Haran, Canneh and Eden' as trading partners of Tyre. Shalmaneser III's Kurkh Monolith and other annals describe his campaigns against Ahuni of Bit-Adini, completed around 856–855 BC, after which Til-Barsip was renamed Kar-Shalmaneser.

Where it appears

2 Kings · 1

  1. 2 Kings 19:12 עֶ֖דֶן Eden

    Did the gods of the nations destroyed by my fathers rescue those nations—the gods of Gozan, Haran, and Rezeph, and of the people of Eden in Telassar?

    Here: Bit-Adini, an Aramean state on the middle Euphrates (also called Beth-Eden in Amos 1:5). It is not the garden of Genesis 2.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 37:12 עֶ֖דֶן Eden

    Did the gods of the nations destroyed by my fathers rescue those nations—the gods of Gozan, Haran, and Rezeph, and of the people of Eden in Telassar?

    Here: An Aramean kingdom on the middle Euphrates, called Beth-eden in Amos 1:5. It has nothing to do with the Garden of Eden.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 27:23 וָעֶ֔דֶן and Eden

    Haran, Canneh, and Eden traded with you, and so did the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad.

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