Abana, a river near Damascus, which Naaman saw as superior to the Jordan River.
Also known as Amana
The Abana River is mentioned in 2Ki.5.12 as one of the two rivers of Damascus, along with the Pharpar. When Elisha told Naaman, commander of the army of Syria, to wash in the Jordan River to cure his leprosy, Naaman initially refused, saying, "Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?" The Abana was apparently a significant and highly regarded river near Damascus. Naaman considered it superior to the Jordan River of Israel. After his servants reasoned with him, Naaman relented and washed in the Jordan as instructed, and his leprosy was cured. The Abana River is generally identified with the modern Barada River, the primary river that flows through Damascus.
Approximate location: 33.545, 36.225 · view on a map · on the Bible atlas
Stony (Heb. marg. “Amanah,” perennial), the chief river of Damascus (2 Kings 5:12). Its modern name is Barada, the Chrysorrhoas, or “golden stream,” of the Greeks. It rises in a cleft of the Anti-Lebanon range, about 23 miles north-west of Damascus, and after flowing southward for a little way parts into three smaller streams, the central one flowing through Damascus, and the other two on each side of the city, diffusing beauty and fertility where otherwise there would be barrenness.
(perennial, stony), one of the “rivers of Damascus.” (2 Kings 5:12) The Barada and the Awaj are now the chief streams of Damascus, the former representing the Abana and the latter the Pharpar of the text. The Barada (Abana) rises in the Antilibanus, at about 23 miles from the city, after flowing through which it runs across the plain, of whose fertility it is the chief source, till it loses itself in the lake or marsh Bahret-el-Kibliyeh.
made of stone; a building
AB'ANA (stony), a river of Damascus, 2 Kgs 5:12, and supposed to be identical with the Amana of Song of Solomon 4:8. Probably the modern Barada, which the Greeks called the Chrysorrhoas (golden stream). It rises in the mountains of Anti-Libanus, about 23 miles N. W. of Damascus, runs through the city in several streams or canals, thence across the plain, and 18 miles east of Damascus falls by several branches into the marshy Bahret-el Kihliyeh, or so-called "Meadow Lakes." The river is a clear, limpid, copious, and perennial stream, and is the chief source of the fertility of the plain of Damascus, making it a garden in the desert. It falls 1149 feet, and waters 800 square miles of territory containing about 14 villages.
AB'ANA (stony), a river of Damascus, 2 Kgs 5:12, and supposed to be identical with the Amana of Song of Solomon 4:8. Probably the modern Barada, which the Greeks called the Chrysorrhoas (golden stream). It rises in the mountains of Anti-Libanus, about 23 miles N. W. of Damascus, runs through the city in several streams or canals, thence across the plain, and 18 miles east of Damascus falls by several branches into the marshy Bahret-el Kihliyeh, or so-called "Meadow Lakes." The river is a clear, limpid, copious, and perennial stream, and is the chief source of the fertility of the plain of Damascus, making it a garden in the desert. It falls 1149 feet, and waters 800 square miles of territory containing about 14 villages.
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
1 verse in 1 book · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H0071
Are not the Abanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not have washed in them and been cleansed?” So he turned and went away in a rage.
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.