Biblical places
Mahanaim
Where Jacob encountered God's angels on his way to meet Esau (Genesis 32), later the temporary capital of Ish-bosheth and David's refuge during Absalom's revolt (2 Samuel 2, 17). Believed to be the western of the twin tells of Tulul adh-Dhahab along the Jabbok River, though not confirmed.
Sources and location confidence
- Location confidence
- Probable
- Tell edh-Dhahab el-Gharbi (Tulul adh-Dhahab, the western tell)
- 32.1856, 35.6866
OpenBible.info lists six candidate sites; Tell edh-Dhahab el-Gharbi has gained recent scholarly support, but the exact location remains uncertain.
Related Bible passages
These are selected indexed references, not an exhaustive list of every mention in the Bible.
Genesis 32:2
And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.
Joshua 13:26
And from Heshbon unto Ramathmizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim unto the border of Debir;
2 Samuel 2:8
But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's host, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim;
1 Kings 2:8
And, behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim, which cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim: but he came down to meet me at Jordan, and I sware to him by the LORD, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword.
1 Chronicles 6:80
And out of the tribe of Gad; Ramoth in Gilead with her suburbs, and Mahanaim with her suburbs,
Joshua 13:30
And their coast was from Mahanaim, all Bashan, all the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, and all the towns of Jair, which are in Bashan, threescore cities:
2 Samuel 2:12
And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.
1 Kings 4:14
Ahinadab the son of Iddo had Mahanaim: