Hebrew word · H8289

שָׁרוֹן

sharon

Sharon

The coastal plain of Israel between Joppa and Mount Carmel. The name probably comes from the root yšr ('level, straight') and so means 'the flat land'. It was known for pasture and lush seasonal growth (1 Chronicles 27:29; Isaiah 65:10), and parts of it were marshy or wooded in antiquity.

Appears 7 times in 7 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

This name means plain, level

Sharon = "a plain"

the district lying between the mountains of central Palestine and the Mediterranean Sea and north of Joppa

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 Song of Songs 2:1

Range of meaning

The coastal plain of Israel between Joppa and Mount Carmel. The name probably comes from the root yšr ('level, straight') and so means 'the flat land'. It was known for pasture and lush seasonal growth (1 Chronicles 27:29; Isaiah 65:10), and parts of it were marshy or wooded in antiquity.

Against the English

English versions keep the place name. The Septuagint (pediou, 'of the plain') and the Vulgate (campi, 'of the field') translate it as an ordinary word, 'plain'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Sharon is paired with Carmel and Lebanon as a picture of fertile glory (Isaiah 33:9; 35:2). Its pastures are mentioned in 1 Chronicles 5:16 and 27:29.

Where it appears

Joshua · 1

  1. Joshua 12:18 לַשָּׁר֖וֹן of <the> Sharon

    the king of Aphek, one; the king of Lasharon, one;

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 5:16 שָׁר֖וֹן Sharon

    They lived in Gilead, in Bashan and its towns, and throughout the pasturelands of Sharon.

  2. 1 Chronicles 27:29 בַּשָּׁר֔וֹן in <the> Sharon

    Shitrai the Sharonite was in charge of the herds grazing in Sharon. Shaphat son of Adlai was in charge of the herds in the valleys.

Song of Songs · 1

  1. Song of Songs 2:1 הַשָּׁר֔וֹן <the> Sharon

    I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valley.

    Here: With 'the' in front, this is the well-known Sharon Plain along the Mediterranean coast, famous for its pasture and spring growth. The name also sounds like 'the plain', so the phrase can mean simply 'a flower of the plain'.

Isaiah · 3

  1. Isaiah 33:9 הַשָּׁרוֹן֙ <the> Sharon

    The land mourns and languishes; Lebanon is ashamed and decayed. Sharon is like a desert; Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.

    Here: The coastal plain between Joppa and Carmel, known for its pastures and flowers. The article ('the Sharon') treats it as a well-known landscape.

  2. Isaiah 35:2 וְהַשָּׁר֑וֹן and <the> Sharon

    It will bloom profusely and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.

    Here: The coastal plain south of Carmel, known for its rich pasture and wildflowers (compare Isaiah 65:10; 1 Chronicles 27:29).

  3. Isaiah 65:10 הַשָּׁרוֹן֙ <the> Sharon

    Sharon will become a pasture for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting place for herds, for My people who seek Me.

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