After about 20 years with Laban the Aramean, the father of Leah and Rachel, Jacob receives the instruction to return to the land of Canaan (Genesis 31:3). Jacob departs from Aram Naharaim, which is a region in northern Syria, south-central Turkey, to meet his brother Esau, whom he had not seen since the birthright affair broke out. After the meeting was over, this is what is written in the book of Genesis chapter 33: “16 So Esau returned that day on his way unto Seir. (Seir is the land of Edom): 17 And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built him a house, and made booths (= Succoth in Hebrew) for his cattle. Therefore, the name of the place is called Succoth.” The city of Succoth is located on the eastern side of the Jordan river, and is identified with Tel Deir Ala, where we are. In terms of our location, we are 2 km north of the Jabbok River or A-Zarqa in its Arabic name, one of the main rivers in Jordan. We are 3 km east of the Jordan River and about 30 km east of Nablus. The identification of the place is based, among other things, on the Jerusalem Talmud, in which Succoth was identified with a settlement called “Darala” during the time of the Sages, which is indeed similar to Deir Alla.
Before I continue, I will clear up a confusion that you may have – in the Hebrew Bible there are two cities named Succoth. The first city is the second stop on the route of the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, as it is written in the Book of Exodus, chapter 13: “20 And they journeyed from Succoth; and they encamped in Etham, at the edge of the wilderness.” We are talking today about the second Succoth, which is Tell Deir Ala.
There are several references to Succoth at Tell Deir Alla in the Hebrew Bible. In the Book of Joshua, Chapter 13, the city of Succoth is mentioned as part of the inheritance of the tribe of Gad. The book of Judges chapter 8, tells the story of Gideon’s pursuit of the Midianite kings: Zebah and Zalmunna. I am referring obviously to Gideon Ben Yoash the Judge. The Midianites were a nomadic desert-dwelling people, descendants of Midian son of Abraham and Keturah. The Midianites lived in the northwestern region of the Arabian Peninsula, east of the Dead Sea and in the Arava. They repeatedly raided the Israelites, especially but not exclusively during the period of the Judges.
Gideon crossed the Jordan river with 300 of his soldiers. They were exhausted while chasing 2 kings of the Midianites, Zebah and Zalmunna. They arrived at Succoth and Gideon asked for bread for his soldiers as they were exhausted from the chase. The leaders of Succoth replied that if he would already have Zebah and Zalmunna they would give them food but not under the current situation. Gideon told them, that once he will catch the two kings, he will return to Succoth and kill each one of them. Gideon continued to the next settlement of Penuel, and it was copy and paste of what occurred in Succoth. Gideon eventually caught Zebah and Zalmunna and fulfilled his promised to the people of Succoth and Penuel and killed them.
Another mention of Succoth is in the 1st book of Kings, chapter 7:46, where it is told of King Solomon casting the vessels of the 1st Temple near Succoth.
An interesting angle on two famous events that Yigal Yadin refers to in his article: “The Valley of Succoth in the Wars of King David and King Ahab.” I will only refer to the case of Uriah the Hittite and his wife Bathsheba, in which King David slept with Bathsheba while her husband Uriah was on the battlefield. Bathsheba became pregnant and David released Uriah to sleep at home with Bathsheba so that Uriah would think the newborn was his. Uriah firmly refused as we are been told in the 2nd book of Samuel:11:11.
Before I continue it’s important to explain two points which will assist in understanding the next paragraph. Point 1 is that Succoth in Hebrew has two meanings: A name of a place (two places in the Hebrew Bible are named Succoth and we are in one of them). The 2nd meaning is a temporary structure for accommodation. The way to determine if one is referring to the place named Succoth or to Succoth as a temporary structure for accommodation is by the punctuation of the letters of the word Succoth.
Point 2 is that the punctuation in the Hebrew Bible was added hundreds of years after the process of the collection and consolidation of the writings of the Hebrew Bible was completed. How is the explanation I just gave relate to our issue – Yigal Yadin argued that instead of the current meaning of Succoth in the story about King David battle which use Succoth as a temporary structure for accommodation there is a mistake in the punctuation as it should be Succoth as a place, the settlement of Succoth. Yadin raised a number of questions:
A. Why should the Ark of the Covenant be placed in a temporary structure, while its usual place until the construction of the Temple was in a tent?
B. Does it make sense for the commander of the army and the regular army to camp in an open field without shelter, and this during a long and prolonged siege; while the reserve army, the people of Judah and Israel, lived in a temporary structure for accommodation? According to the accepted explanation, the Ark of the Covenant, the reserve army, and the regular army camped near Rabat Ammon, Today Amman.
C. Does it make sense for king David to risk the Ark of the Covenant, which had only been brought to Jerusalem a short time earlier, and which had already been captured by the Philistines once, and to send the Ark as far as Rabat Ammon, while King David was in Jerusalem?
D. If the entire reserve army was truly encamped near Rabbah-Ammon, how can this fact be reconciled with the advice of Yoav ben Zeruiah, the commander of the army, to King David: (2nd book of Samuel:12) ”28 Now therefore gather the rest of the people (The reserve army) together, and encamp against the city, and take it;”? and with what is written after: “29 And David gathered all the people together, and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and took it.”
Changing the punctuation such that Succoth refers to a place, resolves all the question marks.
And now a few words about the strategic importance of the place: The Valley of Succoth was the most important strategic military base for securing the reign of King David, and later of King Solomon. In the first geographical phase of David’s wars, which were directed against Israel’s close neighbors, mainly the Philistines, David had the advantage of fighting while commuting to and from battles from his nearby center in Jerusalem. This advantage gave him the opportunity to quickly move his army in different directions, with Jerusalem serving as a main strategic logistical base. The situation became different as soon as King David shifted his focus towards the Aramaic kingdoms in the north. The advantage of a strategic logistical center disappeared; the long and unsafe transportation lines no longer allowed him to continue using Jerusalem as the main strategic base, and he had to establish a “forward strategic base”. According to Yadin, the Valley of Succoth was the ideal forward strategic base for David’s purposes, for the following reasons:
A. The Succoth Valley is located on the shortest route between Damascus and Jerusalem. The safest route to Samaria also led from here. Another very important fact is that, just like today, King David did not rely only on the regular professional army, the one based in Jerusalem, but also on the reserve army, which was recruited from the regions where there were large population concentrations, and a large number of reserves came from among the residents of Mount Ephraim not far from here.
B. The topographic of Succoth Valley made it possible to defend it with a small force. It is bounded by the Jordan river to the west, the Jabbok to the south and southeast, the high mountain range to the east and northeast, and streambeds to the north.
C. The valley is rich in natural resources. It has an abundance of water, pasture for sheep and cattle, and agricultural production. The valley served at that time as a center for metal industries, and as an example of what I mentioned earlier – the biblical story of the casting of the copper vessels for the Temple, built by King Solomon here in Succoth.
In 1967, during excavations here at the mound, on the floor of one of the structures, an inscription was discovered on plaster blocks mentioning a prophet named “Balaam Bar-Beor”, identified with Balaam ben Beor mentioned in the book of Numbers (chapters 22–24). This is the first external-biblical find that mentions Balaam by name, indicating that he was a well-known and important prophet also outside of Israel. The inscription, which dates to around 800 BCE, was found broken and missing, and its reconstruction is tentative. It is likely that these are two compositions, with one composition beginning with the words: “The Book of Balaam Bar-Beor, a man who sees God…”. Much can be learned from these two fascinating compositions about the beliefs among the population in the area, and about society at that time. The language is probably a regional dialect of Gilead, close to Moabite and also used in the Hebrew Bible.
Balaam ben Beor was not from the Israelites, perhaps an Aramean or perhaps an Ammonite. By force or by choice he blessed Israel, and for that he is remembered favorably. I hope I have added to your knowledge about the biblical Succoth near the Jabbok River and the Jordan River. To conclude as usual, I have a question for you: There is a military battle of King Ahab in which the word Succoth is included. Who did Ahab, King of Israel, fight against? The answer will appear at the end of the video.
