Bible Dictionaries
Aroer

Holman Bible Dictionary

(uh roh' er) Place name meaning “juniper.” 1. City on north rim of Arnon Gorge east of Dead Sea on southern boundary of territory Israel claimed east of the Jordan River (Joshua 13:9 ). It figured in territorial claims of Reuben (Joshua 13:16 ), though the tribe of Gad originally built it (Numbers 32:34 ). Compare Deuteronomy 3:12 . Sihon, king of the Amorites, ruled it prior to Israel's conquest (Deuteronomy 4:48; Joshua 12:2 ). Israel claimed a three hundred year history in the area (Judges 11:26 ). Jehu's sins brought God's punishment on Israel, including the loss of Aroer to Hazael of Damascus (about 840 B.C.) (2 Kings 10:33 ). Compare Isaiah 17:2 . Jeremiah asked Aroer to witness God's coming judgment on Moab (Jeremiah 48:19 ). The Moabites had gained control of Aroer under King Mesha, as his inscription on the Moabite Stone witnesses (about 850 B.C.). Spanish excavations show Aroer to have been more a border fortress than a major city. It is located at Khirbet Arair two and one-half miles east of the highway along the Arnon River.

2. A city of the tribe of Gad (Joshua 13:25 ) near Rabbah, capital of the Ammonites. This may be the Aroer where Jephthah defeated the Ammonites (Judges 11:33 ).

3. Town in southern Judah about twelve miles southeast of Beersheba with whose leaders David divided the spoil of battle (1 Samuel 30:28 ). This is located at modern Khirbet Arara. The text of Joshua 15:22 may have originally read Aroer. Two of David's captains hailed from Aroer ( 1 Chronicles 11:44 ).