En-shemesh, a spring on the border between the territories of Judah and Benjamin, near Jerusalem.
Also known as En Shemesh
En-shemesh, meaning "spring of the sun," was a spring located on the border between the territories of Judah and Benjamin, near Jerusalem (Joshua 15:7; 18:17). It is mentioned twice in the Bible, both times in the context of describing the boundary lines of these two tribes.
In Joshua 15:7, En-shemesh is listed as one of the landmarks on the northern border of Judah, along with the Stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben, and the valley of Achor. In Joshua 18:17, it is mentioned again as part of the southern border of Benjamin, along with Geliloth and the stone of Bohan.
The exact location of En-shemesh is uncertain, but it was likely situated east of Jerusalem, in the vicinity of the Kidron Valley. Its name, "spring of the sun," may suggest that it was located in a sunny spot or that it had some association with sun worship in Canaanite times.
Apart from its role in demarcating the tribal boundaries, no other details about En-shemesh are provided in the Bible. Its mention in the boundary descriptions helps to establish the geographical extent of Judah and Benjamin's territories during the division of the Promised Land.
Approximate location: 31.774, 35.270 · view on a map · on the Bible atlas
Fountain of the sun a spring which formed one of the landmarks on the boundary between Judah and Benjamin (Josh. 15:7; 18:17). It was between the “ascent of Adummim” and the spring of En-rogel, and hence was on the east of Jerusalem and of the Mount of Olives. It is the modern ‘Ain-Haud i.e., the “well of the apostles” about a mile east of Bethany, the only spring on the road to Jericho. The sun shines on it the whole day long.
fountain, or eye, of the sun
EN-SHE'MESH (*fountain of the Sun), a spring between Judah and Benjamin, Josh 15:7; Josh 18:17; probably the same as that now called the "Apostle's Spring," about 1 1/2 miles east of Bethany, and the first halting-place for travellers from Jerusalem to Jericho.
EN-SHE'MESH (*fountain of the Sun), a spring between Judah and Benjamin, Josh 15:7; Josh 18:17; probably the same as that now called the
"Apostle's Spring," about 1 1/2 miles east of Bethany, and the first halting-place for travellers from Jerusalem to Jericho.
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.
2 verses in 1 book · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H5885
Then the border went up to Debir from the Valley of Achor, turning north to Gilgal, which faces the Ascent of Adummim south of the ravine. It continued along the waters of En-shemesh and came out at En-rogel.
From there it curved northward and proceeded to En-shemesh and on to Geliloth facing the Ascent of Adummim, and continued down to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben.
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.