Bible Encyclopedias
Bethulia

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

bē̇ -thū´li -a ( Βαιθουλουά , Baithoulouá ): A town named only in the Book of Judith (4:6; 6:10ff; 7:1ff; 8:3; 10:6; 12:7; 15:3, 6; 16:21ff). From these references we gather that it stood beside a valley, on a rock, at the foot of which was a spring, not far from Jenı̄n ; and that it guarded the passes by which an army might march to the South. The site most fully meeting these conditions is that of Sānūr . The rock on the summit of which it stands rises sheer from the edge of Merj el -Ghariḳ , on the main highway, some 7 miles South of Jenı̄n . Other identifications are suggested: Conder favoring Mithilı̄yeh , a little farther north; while the writer of the article "Bethulia" in Encyclopedia Biblica argues for identification with Jerusalem.