Hebrew word · H966

בֶּ֫זֶק

bevezek

Bezek

A place name. Most identify it with Khirbet Ibziq, in the hills west of the Jordan, north-east of Shechem. (The Bezek of Judges 1:4–5 may be a different, southern site.)

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

What it means

§ Bezek = "lightning"

the home of Adonibezek, the place where Israel rallied under Saul

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 1 Samuel 11:8

Range of meaning

A place name. Most identify it with Khirbet Ibziq, in the hills west of the Jordan, north-east of Shechem. (The Bezek of Judges 1:4–5 may be a different, southern site.)

Against the English

Every version simply transliterates it.

Used elsewhere in the period

Eusebius (Onomasticon) knew two villages named Bezek near Scythopolis/Beth-shean. Modern historical geographers (e.g. Aharoni) place Saul's Bezek at Khirbet Ibziq.

Where it appears

Judges · 2

  1. Judges 1:4 בְּבֶ֔זֶק at Bezek

    When Judah attacked, the LORD delivered the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek.

  2. Judges 1:5 בְּבֶ֔זֶק at Bezek

    And there they found Adoni-bezek and fought against him, striking down the Canaanites and Perizzites.

1 Samuel · 1

  1. 1 Samuel 11:8 בְּבָ֑זֶק at Bezek

    And when Saul numbered them at Bezek, there were 300,000 Israelites and 30,000 men of Judah.

    Here: The place where the army gathered, usually identified with Khirbet Ibziq, west of the Jordan and roughly across the valley from Jabesh-gilead. From there a night march could reach the besieged town.

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