Bible Encyclopedias
Abel (2)

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ā´bel (, אבל 'ābhēl , "meadow"): A word used in several compound names of places. It appears by itself as the name of a city concerned in the rebellion of Sheba (2 Samuel 20:14; compare 1 Samuel 6:18 ), though it is there probably an abridgment of the name Abel-beth-maacah. In 1 Samuel 6:18 , where the Hebrew has "the great meadow," and the Greek "the great stone," the King James Version translates "the great stone of Abel.»