Sela

=Se’lah, rock, the capital of Edom, situated in the great valley extending from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea (2 Kings 14:7). It was near Mount Hor, close by the desert of Zin. It is called “the rock” (Judg. 1:36). When Amaziah took it he called it Joktheel (q.v.) It is mentioned by the prophets (Isa. 16:1; Obad. 1:3) as doomed to destruction. It appears in later history and in the Vulgate Version under the name of Petra. “The caravans from all ages, from the interior of Arabia and from the Gulf of Persia, from Hadramaut on the ocean, and even from Sabea or Yemen, appear to have pointed to Petra as a common centre; and from Petra the tide seems again to have branched out in every direction, to Egypt, Palestine, and Syria, through Arsinoe, Gaza, Tyre, Jerusalem, and Damascus, and by other routes, terminating at the Mediterranean.” (See EDOM [2].)

(the rock), (2 Kings 14:7; Isaiah 16:1) so rendered in the Authorized Version in Judges city later (2 Chronicles 25:12) probably known as Petra, the ruins of which are found about two days journey north of the top of the Gulf of Akabah and three or four south from Jericho and about halfway between the southern end of the Dead Sea and the northern end of the Gulf of Akabah. It was in the midst of Mount Seir, in the neighborhood of Mount Hor, and therefore Edomite territory, taken by Amaziah, and called Joktheel. In the end of the fourth century B.C. it appears as the headquarters of the Nabatheans, who successfully resisted the attacks of Antigonus. About 70 B.C. Petra appears as the residence of the Arab princes named Aretas. It was by Trajan reduced to subjection to the Roman empire. The city Petra lay, though at a high level, in a hollow three quarters of a mile long and from 800 to 1500 feet wide, shut in by mountain cliffs, and approached only by a narrow ravine, through which, and across the city’s site, the river winds. There are extensive ruins at Petra of Roman date, which have been frequently described by modern travellers.

a rock

SE'LA, and SE'LAH (rock), a celebrated city of Edom, the Greek name being "Petra," or "rock." It was so called from its remarkable situation, "the rock," for which the Hebrew word is "Sela," and the Greek is "Petra." Sela was situated about halfway between the southern end of the Dead Sea and the northern end of the Gulf of Akabah. The city lay in a deep cleft of the range of Mount Seir, near the foot of Mount Hor, and in its situation and in its history was one of the most remarkable cities of antiquity. History. - Sela is only twice mentioned in the O.T. Amaziah captured it, and called it Joktheel -that is, "subdued of God." 2 Kgs 14:7. It was afterward a possession of Moab, and was then exhorted to send a tribute of sheep to Zion. Isa 16:1. In some other passages the word "rock" is supposed to refer to Sela, as in Jud 1:36; 2 Chr 25:11-12; Isa 42:11; Ob 3; but some of these seem to be indefinite, and cannot be referred to the city with any certainty. Sela is not mentioned in the N.T., but has a relation to a N.T. character, for the first wife of Herod Antipas, whom he divorced to take Herodias, Luke 3:19, was the daughter of Aretas, king of Petra, and this wickedness of Herod led to war. Aretas was the general name of the sovereigns of Arabia Petraea, a kingdom which gradually included the territory belonging to the ancient Edomites, who were driven out by the Nabatheans, an Arabian tribe descended from Nebajoth, the eldest son of Ishmael. Gen 25:13; Isa 60:7. In b.c. 301, Antigonus, one of Alexander's successors, sent two expeditions against them, but with slight success. Petra became an important trade centre. It is mentioned by Strabo, Pliny, Josephus, Eusebius, and Jerome. It became an ecclesiastical see, and its [image , -42, 276, 444, 19684] The Rock-Temples…

SE'LA, and SE'LAH (rock), a celebrated city of Edom, the Greek name being "Petra," or "rock." It was so called from its remarkable situation, "the rock," for which the Hebrew word is "Sela," and the Greek is "Petra." Sela was situated about halfway between the southern end of the Dead Sea and the northern end of the Gulf of Akabah. The city lay in a deep cleft of the range of Mount Seir, near the foot of Mount Hor, and in its situation and in its history was one of the most remarkable cities of antiquity. History. - Sela is only twice mentioned in the O.T. Amaziah captured it, and called it Joktheel -that is, "subdued of God." 2 Kgs 14:7. It was afterward a possession of Moab, and was then exhorted to send a tribute of sheep to Zion. Isa 16:1. In some other passages the word "rock" is supposed to refer to Sela, as in Jud 1:36; 2 Chr 25:11-12; Isa 42:11; Ob 3; but some of these seem to be indefinite, and cannot be referred to the city with any certainty. Sela is not mentioned in the N.T., but has a relation to a N.T. character, for the first wife of Herod Antipas, whom he divorced to take Herodias, Luke 3:19, was the daughter of Aretas, king of Petra, and this wickedness of Herod led to war. Aretas was the general name of the sovereigns of Arabia Petraea, a kingdom which gradually included the territory belonging to the ancient Edomites, who were driven out by the Nabatheans, an Arabian tribe descended from Nebajoth, the eldest son of Ishmael. Gen 25:13; Isa 60:7. In b.c. 301, Antigonus, one of Alexander's successors, sent two expeditions against them, but with slight success. Petra became an important trade centre. It is mentioned by Strabo, Pliny, Josephus, Eusebius, and Jerome. It became an ecclesiastical see, and its [image , -42, 276, 444, 19684] The Rock-Temples…