Hebrew word · H6943

קֶ֫דֶשׁ

kedesh

Kedesh

A proper name built on the root q-d-sh, which covers holiness and setting something apart for the divine. As a place name it usually means 'sanctuary' or 'holy place'.

Appears 12 times in 12 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Kedesh = "holy place"

a fortified Canaanite city allotted to Naphtali

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 15:23

Range of meaning

A proper name built on the root q-d-sh, which covers holiness and setting something apart for the divine. As a place name it usually means 'sanctuary' or 'holy place'. The Old Testament knows several towns called Kedesh or Kadesh: Kedesh in Naphtali (Josh 20:7), Kedesh in Issachar (1 Chr 6:72), and Kadesh / Kadesh-barnea in the southern wilderness (Num 13:26; 20:1).

Against the English

All English versions simply transliterate the name, so nothing is lost in translation. The risk is that a reader treats it as the famous northern Kedesh.

Used elsewhere in the period

Kadesh-barnea is a fixed point on Judah's southern border in this same chapter (Josh 15:3). Kedesh/Kadesh names also turn up across the Levant, for example Qadesh on the Orontes in Egyptian records. They reflect how common local holy places were.

From the study of Joshua 20:7

Range of meaning

A place name meaning 'holy place, sanctuary', from the same root as qadash. Several towns had the name, which suggests local shrines (compare Kadesh-barnea in the south and Kadesh on the Orontes in Syria, which is a different place). This one is Kedesh of Naphtali, also called Kedesh-naphtali, in Upper Galilee northwest of the Huleh basin. It is generally identified with Tel Qedesh.

Against the English

English transliterates it as 'Kedesh', so the reader loses the meaning 'Holy-place' and with it the echo of the verb right before it.

Used elsewhere in the period

There was a Canaanite king of Kedesh (Josh 12:22). It is listed in Naphtali's allotment (Josh 19:37) and given to the Gershonite Levites as a refuge city (Josh 21:32; 1 Chr 6:76). It was Barak's hometown (Judg 4:6, 9–11) and was taken by the Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser III around 733 BC (2 Kgs 15:29). In 1 Macc 11:63, 73 it is the scene of Jonathan's battle. Excavations at Tel Qedesh uncovered a large Persian–Hellenistic administrative building.

Similar words

Where it appears

Joshua · 5

  1. Joshua 12:22 קֶ֙דֶשׁ֙ Kedesh

    the king of Kedesh, one; the king of Jokneam in Carmel, one;

  2. Joshua 15:23 וְקֶ֥דֶשׁ and Kedesh

    Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan,

    Here: A town in Judah's far-southern (Negev) district. The name comes from the root q-d-sh, 'holy, set apart', and probably marks an old sanctuary site. It is not the better-known Kedesh in Galilee (Naphtali), which was a city of refuge.

  3. Joshua 19:37 וְקֶ֥דֶשׁ and Kedesh

    Kedesh, Edrei, En-hazor,

  4. Joshua 20:7 קֶ֤דֶשׁ Kedesh

    So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.

    Here: A town name meaning 'holy place' or 'sanctuary', from the same root as the verb before it. The Hebrew sounds like 'they made holy Holy-place', a natural echo a hearer would catch.

  5. Joshua 21:32 קֶ֨דֶשׁ Kedesh

    And from the tribe of Naphtali they were given Kedesh in Galilee (a city of refuge for the manslayer), Hammoth-dor, and Kartan—three cities, together with their pasturelands.

    Here: The name means 'holy place' or 'sanctuary', which may point to an old shrine there. This is Kedesh of Naphtali, usually identified with Tel Qedesh in upper Galilee, north-west of Hazor.

Judges · 4

  1. Judges 4:6 מִקֶּ֖דֶשׁ from Kedesh

    She summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “Surely the LORD, the God of Israel, is commanding you: ‘Go and march to Mount Tabor, taking with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun.

    Here: Barak's home town. The place name comes from the root for 'holy', so it may once have been a shrine site. Several towns had this name, which is why it is tied to Naphtali here.

  2. Judges 4:9 קֶֽדְשָׁה׃ Kedesh towards

    “I will certainly go with you,” Deborah replied, “but the road you are taking will bring you no honor, because the LORD will be selling Sisera into the hand of a woman.” So Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh,

  3. Judges 4:10 קֶ֔דְשָׁה Kedesh towards

    where he summoned Zebulun and Naphtali. Ten thousand men followed him, and Deborah also went with him.

  4. Judges 4:11 קֶֽדֶשׁ׃ Kedesh

    Now Heber the Kenite had moved away from the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent by the great tree of Zaanannim, which was near Kedesh.

2 Kings · 1

  1. 2 Kings 15:29 קֶ֨דֶשׁ Kedesh

    In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, including all the land of Naphtali, and he took the people as captives to Assyria.

    Here: Kedesh in Naphtali (Tel Kedesh, Upper Galilee). The name means 'holy place'. It was a city of refuge (Joshua 20:7) and Barak's home town (Judges 4:6).

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 6:72 קֶ֖דֶשׁ Kedesh

    From the tribe of Issachar they were given Kedesh, Daberath,

  2. 1 Chronicles 6:76 קֶ֤דֶשׁ Kedesh

    And from the tribe of Naphtali they were given Kedesh in Galilee, Hammon, and Kiriathaim, together with their pasturelands.

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