Ramath-lehi, meaning "hill of the jawbone," was the place where Samson killed a thousand Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey.
Also known as Ramath Lehi
Ramath-lehi is mentioned in the Bible in connection with the story of Samson, one of the judges of Israel (Judg. 15:17). After Samson's wife was given to another man, he took revenge on the Philistines by burning their crops and vineyards. In retaliation, the Philistines came to arrest Samson, who was staying in Judah. The men of Judah, fearing Philistine reprisal, bound Samson and handed him over to the Philistines. However, when the Philistines came to capture him, the Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson, and he broke free from his bonds. He then found a fresh jawbone of a donkey and used it to strike down a thousand Philistines (Judg. 15:14-16). The place where this event occurred was called Ramath-lehi, which means "hill of the jawbone" or "jawbone height" (Judg. 15:17). The name served as a reminder of Samson's remarkable feat and God's empowerment in his life. The story of Samson at Ramath-lehi highlights the ongoing conflict between the Israelites and the Philistines during the period of the judges and demonstrates God's power to deliver His people through unlikely means.
Approximate location: 31.753, 34.977 · view on a map · on the Bible atlas
Elevation of Lehi, or the jawbone height; i.e., the Ramah of Lehi (Judg. 15:15-17). The phrase “in the jaw,” ver. 19, Authorized Version, is in the margin, also in the Revised Version, “in Lehi.” Here Samson slew a thousand Philistines with a jawbone.
elevation of the jaw-bone
RA'MATH-LE'HI (hill of Lehi), the place where Samson slew a thousand Philistines with a jaw-bone. Jud 15:17. Probably Ayun Kara. See Lehi.
RA'MATH-LE'HI (hill of Lehi), the place where Samson slew a thousand Philistines with a jaw-bone. Jud 15:17. Probably Ayun Kara. See Lehi.
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 H7437
And when Samson had finished speaking, he cast the jawbone from his hand; and he named that place Ramath-lehi.
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.