Rabbah

VIEW:28 DATA:01-04-2020

great; powerful; contentious
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary


RABBAH.—1. The capital city of the Ammonites (wh. see). Rabbah was situated on the upper Jabbok on the site of the modern ’Ammân. It was distant from the Jordan about 20 miles, though the distance by way of the Jabbok is much greater, for the stream at Rabbah flows towards the N.E. and reaches the Jordan only after a wide detour. The Ammonite city was situated on the hill-top to the N. of the river. From its position it commanded a wide view in all directions, but especially extensive to the N.E. Rabbah is mentioned in Deu_3:11 as the place where Og’s ‘bedstead ‘might still be seen. This is thought by some to be a reference to a large dolmen still visible not far from ‘Ammân. In Jos_13:25 Rabbah is mentioned in defining the boundaries of the tribe of Gad. The chief event connected with Rabbah which the OT relates is its siege by Joab, in connexion with which Uriah the Hittite, by the express direction of king David, lost his life (see 2Sa_11:1; 2Sa_12:26-27; 2Sa_12:29 and 1Ch_20:1). The city was at this time confined apparently to the hill mentioned above: and since the sides of the hill are precipitous (see the photograph in Barton’s Year’s Wandering in Bible Lands, opp. 156), the task of capturing it was difficult, and the siege was stubborn and prolonged. These conditions gave Joab his opportunity to carry out David’s perfidious order (2Sa_11:15 ff.).
From 2Sa_12:26-29 it appears that the city consisted of two parts, one of which was called the ‘royal city’ or the ‘city of waters.’ This Joab captured, after which David came and captured Rabbah itself. What relation this ‘royal city’ bore to Rabbah proper, it is difficult now to conjecture. It is probable, however, that the text of Samuel is corrupt—that we should read ‘city’ or ‘cistern of waters’—and that Joab, like Antiochus III. and Herod in after centuries, captured the covered passage by which they went to a cistern for water, or the fort which defended it, and so compelled a surrender to David. This cistern was discovered by Conder (see Survey of Eastern Pal. p. 34 ff.).
The Israelites did not occupy Rabbah, but left it in the possession of the Ammonite king, who became David’s vassal. When David later fled to Mahanaim, east of the Jordan, because of Absalom’s rebellion, the Ammonite king was residing in Rabbah (2Sa_17:27).
In the time of Amos (c [Note: circa, about.] . b.c. 750 Rabbah was still the capital of the Ammonites (Amo_1:14), and such it continued to be down to the time of Nebuchadnezzar, who, if we may judge from the prophecies of Jeremiah and Ezekiel (Jer_49:2, Eze_21:20; Eze_25:5), punished Rabbah for a rebellion of the Ammonites by a siege. Whether the siege resulted in a capture we do not know, but it probably did. Only cities situated like Tyre, which was partly surrounded by water, could withstand the might of that monarch.
For a time the city (one of the Decapolis group) bore the name Philadelphia, given to it by Ptolemy Philadelphia (b.c. 285–247), but finally received its modern name, ‘Ammân. It is to-day quite a flourishing city, inhabited partly by Arabs and partly by Circassians. The latter form a more energetic element than is found in most Syrian cities, and give ‘Ammân a greater air of prosperity. The Haj railway, from Damascus to Mecca, passes near ‘Ammân, which has a station on the line.
2. A city in Judah (Jos_15:60); site unknown.
George A. Barton.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
Edited by James Hastings, D.D. Published in 1909

("greatness of size or numbers".)
1. Ammon's chief city, its only city named in Scripture, in contrast to the more civilized Moab's numerous cities (Deu_3:11; 2Sa_12:26; 2Sa_17:27; Jer_49:2; Eze_21:20). (See AMMON.) Conjectured to be the Ham of the Zuzim (Gen_14:5). After Hanun's insult Abishai and Joab defeated the allies Ammon and the Syrians of Bethrehob, Zoba, Ishtob, and Maachah (2 Samuel 10). The following year David in person defeated the Syrians at Helam. Next, Joab with the whole army and the king's bodyguard (including Uriah: 2Sa_23:39) besieged Ammon (2 Samuel 11; 1 Chronicles 19; 20). The ark apparently accompanied the camp (2Sa_11:11), a rare occurrence (1Sa_4:3-6); but perhaps what is meant is only that the ark at Jerusalem was "in a tent" (2Sa_7:2; 2Sa_7:6) as was the army at Rabbah under Jehovah the Lord of the ark, therefore Uriah would not go home to his house.
The siege lasted nearly two years, from David's first connection with Bathsheba to the birth of Solomon. The Ammonites made unsuccessful sallies (2Sa_11:17). Joab finally took the lower town, which, from the stream rising in it and flowing through it perennially, is called "the city of waters," and from the king's palace "the royal city." Then in a characteristic speech, half jest half earnest (2Sa_12:28, compare 2Sa_19:6-7), which shows the power he had gained over David through David's secret and wicked commission (2Sa_11:14-15), he invited David to crown the capture by taking the citadel lest if he (Joab) took it, it should be called after his name. Josephus (Ant. 7:7, section 5) says the fortress had but one well, inadequate to supply the wants of its crowded occupants. (On its capture by David, and his putting the people under saws and harrows to cut them in pieces in retaliation for their cruelties, see DAVID, also Jdg_1:7; 1Sa_11:2.)
Amos (Amo_1:14) speaks of its "wall" and "palaces" and "king" (perhaps Moloch) about to be judged by God. So also Jer_49:2-3. Nebuchadnezzar attacked Ammon because of Baalis their king having instigated Ishmael to slay Gedaliah the Chaldaean governor (Jer_40:14). See 1Ma_5:6 as to subsequent judgments on Ammon. Ezekiel (Eze_21:20) depicts Nebuchadnezzar's divination to decide whether he should attack Jerusalem or Rabbah the first. Jerusalem's fall should be followed by that of Rabbah (compare Josephus, Ant. 10:9, section 7). Under the Ptolemies Rabbah still continued of importance as supplying water for the journey across the desert, and was made a garrison for repelling the Bedouins of that quarter.
Ptolemy Philadelphus named it Philadelphia. Josephus (B. J. 3:3, section 3) includes Rabbah in Decapolis. Now Amman, on a tributary (Moiet Amman) of the Zerka river (Jabbok), 19 miles S.E. of Es Salt ("Ramoth Gilead"), 22 E. of Jordan. Its temple, theater, and forum are remarkable ruins. Eight Corinthian columns of the theater (the largest known in Syria) remain. It has become as foretold "a stable for camels, a couching place for flocks a desolate heap" (Eze_25:5). Its coins bear the image of Astarte, and the word Heracleion from Hercules the idol which succeeded Moloch. The large square stones of the citadel are put together without cement, the massive walls are evidently very ancient.
2. Rabbah of Moab, called in the Bible Ar, in the highlands S.E. of the Dead Sea.
3. Rabbah of Judah, near Kirjath Jearim (Jos_15:60).
Fausset's Bible Dictionary
By Andrew Robert Fausset, co-Author of Jamieson, Fausset and Brown's 1888.

Rab'bah. (great).
1. A very strong place on the east of the Jordan, and the chief city of the Ammonites. In five passages ? Deu_3:11; 2Sa_12:26; 2Sa_17:27; Jer_49:2; Eze_21:20 ? it is styled at length, Rabbath of the Ammonites, or the children of Ammon; but elsewhere, Jos_13:25; 2Sa_11:1; 2Sa_12:27; 2Sa_12:29; 1Ch_20:1; Jer_49:3, simply Rabbah. When first named, it is mentioned as containing the bed or sarcophagus of the giant Og. Deu_3:11.
David sent Joab to besiege Rabbah. 2Sa_11:1; 2Sa_11:17; etc. Joab succeeded in capturing a portion of the place ? the "city of waters," that is, the lower town, so called from its containing the perennial stream, which rises in and still flows through it. The citadel still remained to be taken, but this was secured shortly after David's arrival. 2Sa_12:26-31. Long after, at the date of the invasion of Nebuchadnezzar, Jer_49:2-3, it had walls and palaces. It is named in such terms as to imply that it was of equal importance with Jerusalem. Eze_21:20.
From Ptolemy Philadelphus, (B.C. 285-247), it received the name of Philadelphia. It was one of the cities of the Decapolis, and became the seat of a Christian bishop. Its ruins, which are considerable are found at Ammon about 22 miles from the Jordan. It lies in a valley, which is a branch, or perhaps the main course, of the Wady Zerka usually identified with the Jabbok. The public buildings are said to be Roman, except the citadel, which is described as of large square stones put together without cement, and which is probably more ancient than the rest.
2. A city of Judah named with Kirjath-jearim in Jos_15:60 only. No trace of its existence has yet been discovered.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
By Dr. William Smith.Published in 1863

To the east of the Jordan River was the land of the Ammonites, whose capital city was Rabbah, or Rabbah-ammon. Though at times conquered, the city was repeatedly rebuilt. It is known today as Amman, capital of the present-day nation of Jordan (Deu_3:11; Jer_49:1-2; Eze_21:20; Amo_1:13-14). Most references to Rabbah in the Bible are related to conflicts between Ammon and Israel-Judah (e.g. 2Sa_11:1; 2Sa_12:26-31). (For map and other details see AMMON.)
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary by Don Fleming
PRINTER 1990.

rab?a:
(1) (רבּה, rabbāh; Ῥαββά, Rhabbá, Ῥαββάθ, Rhabbáth, Ῥαββάν, Rhabbán. The full name is בּני רבּת עמּון, rabbath benē ‛ammōn; ἡ ἄκρα τῶν υἱῶν Ἀμμών, hē ákra tṓn huiṓn Ammṓn, Ῥαββάθ υἱῶν Ἀμμών, Rhabbáth huiṓn Ammṓn, ?Rabbah of the children of Ammon?): This alone of the cities of the Ammonites is mentioned in Scripture, so we may take it as the most important. It is first named in connection with the ?bed? or sarcophagus of Og, king of Bashan, which was said to be found here (Deu_3:11). It lay East of the territory assigned to Gad (Jos_13:25). Whatever may have been its history in the interval, it does not appear again in Scripture till the time of David. This monarch sent an embassy of sympathy to King Hanun when his father Nahash died. The kindness was met by wanton insult, which led to the outbreak of war. The Ammonites, strengthened by Aramean allies, were defeated by the Israelites under Joab, and took refuge in Rabbah. After David's defeat of the Arameans at Helam a year later, the Ammonites were exposed alone to the full-force of Israel, the ark of the covenant being carried with the troops. The country was ravaged and siege was laid to Rabbah. It was during this siege that Uriah the Hittite by David's orders was exposed ?in the forefront of the hottest battle? (2Sa_11:15), where, treacherously deserted by his comrades, he was slain. How long the siege lasted we do not know; probably some years; but the end was in sight when Joab captured ?the city of waters? (2Sa_12:27). This may mean that he had secured control of the water supply. In the preceding verse he calls it the ?royal city.? By the chivalry of his general, David was enabled in person to enjoy the honor of taking the city. Among the booty secured was the crown of Melcom, the god of the Ammonites. Such of the inhabitants as survived he treated with great severity (2Sa_12:26-31; 1Ch_20:1 ff).
In the utterances of the prophets against Ammon, Rabbah stands for the people, as their most important, or perhaps their only important, city (Jer_49:2, Jer_49:3; Eze_21:20; Eze_25:5; Amo_1:14). Jer_49:4 speaks of the ?flowing valley? - a reference perhaps to the abundance of water and fruitfulness - and the treasures in which she gloried. Eze_21:21 represents the king of Babylon at ?the head of the two ways? deciding by means of the divining arrows whether he should march against Jerusalem or against Rabbah. Amos seems to have been impressed with the palaces of Rabbah.
The city retained its importance in later times. It was captured by Ptolemy Philadelphus (285-247 BC), who called it Philadelphia. It was a member of the league of ten cities. Antiochus the Great captured it by means of treachery (Polyb. v. 71). Josephus (BJ, III, iii, 3) names it as lying East of Peraea. In the 4th century AD, it ranked with Bostra and Gerasa as one of the great fortified cities of Coele-Syria (Ritter, Erdkunde, XV, ii, 1154 f). It became the seat of a bishop. Abulfeda (1321 AD) says that Rabbah was in ruins at the time of the Moslem conquest.
Rabbah is represented by the modern ‛Ammān, a ruined site with extensive remains, chiefly from Roman times, some 14 miles Northeast of Heshbon, and about 22 miles East of the Jordan. It lies on the northern bank of Wâdy ‛Ammān, a tributary of the upper Jabbok, in a well-watered and fruitful valley. Possibly the stream which rises here may be ?the waters? referred to in 2Sa_12:27. Ancient Rabbah may have stood on the hill now occupied by the citadel, a position easy of defense because of its precipitous sides. The outer walls of the citadel appear to be very old; but it is quite impossible to say that anything Ammonite is now above ground. The citadel is connected by means of an underground passage with a large cistern or tank to the North, whence probably it drew its watersupply. This may be the passage mentioned in the account of the capture of the city by Antiochus. ?It is,? says Conder (Heth and Moab, 158), ?one of the finest Roman towns in Syria, with baths, a theater, and an odeum, as well as several large private masonry tombs built in the valley probably in the 2nd century. The fortress on the hill, now surrounding a considerable temple, is also probably of this same date. The church with two chapels farther North, and perhaps some of the tombs, must belong to a later age, perhaps the 4th century. The fine mosque and the fine Moslem building on the citadel hill cannot be earlier than the 7th, and are perhaps as late as the 11th century; and we have thus relics of every building epoch except the Crusading, of which there appears to be no indication.?
The place is now occupied by Arabs and Circassians who profit by the riches of the soil. It is brought into contact with the outside world by means of the Damascus-Hejaz Railway, which has a station here.
(2) (הרבּה, hā-rabbāh; Codex Vaticanus Σωθηβᾶ, Sōthēbá; Codex Alexandrinus Ἀρεββά, Arebbá): An unidentified city of Judah named along with Kiriath-jearim (Jos_15:60).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
PRINTER 1915.

Rab?bah. This name, which properly denotes a great city or metropolis, is given in Scripture to the capital of the Ammonites (Jos_13:25; 2Sa_11:1; 2Sa_12:27; 1Ch_20:1; Jer_49:3); the full name of which, however, as given in Deu_3:11, appears to have been Rabbath-beni-Ammon. It was in this place that the great iron bedstead of Og king of Bashan was preserved (Deu_3:11). It was besieged by Joab, and when on the point of yielding to that general, was surrendered to David in person (2Sa_11:12). After this Rabbah was included in the tribe of Gad. After the separation of the ten tribes, Rabbah, with the whole territory beyond the Jordan, adhered to the kingdom of Israel, till it was ravaged by the Assyrians under Tiglathpileser, and the inhabitants expatriated to Media. The Ammonites then recovered possession of Rabbah and the other cities and territories which had in former times been taken from them by the Israelites. Some centuries later, when these parts were subject to Egypt, Rabbah was restored or rebuilt by Ptolemy Philadelphus, and called by him Philadelphia, and under this name it is often mentioned by Greek and Roman writers.
Rabbah appears to have consisted, like Aroer, of two parts; the city itself, and 'the city of waters,' or royal city, which was probably a detached portion of the city itself, insulated by the stream on which it was situated. The 'city of waters' was taken by Joab; but against the city itself he was obliged to call for the assistance of David with a reinforcement (2Sa_12:29).
The ruins of Rabbah stand about 19 miles south-east of Szalt, in a long valley traversed by a stream, the Moiet Amman, which at this place is arched over, the bed as well as the banks being paved. The prophet Ezekiel foretold that Rabbah should become 'a stable for camels,' and the country 'a couching place for flocks' (Eze_25:5). This has been literally fulfilled, and Burckhardt actually found that a party of Arabs had stabled their camels among the ruins of Rabbah.
The Rabbah of Jos_15:60 was in the tribe of Judah.




The Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature
by John Kitto.

Rabbah
(Heb. Rabbah', רִבָּה), the name of several ancient places both east and west of the Jordan, although it appears in this form in connection with only two in the A. V. The root is urob, meaning much, and hence great, whether in size or importance (Gesenius, Thesaur. p. 1254; Furst, Handworterb. ii, 347). The word survives in Arabic as a common appellative, and is also in use as the name of places — e.g. Rabba, on the east of the Dead Sea; Rabhah, a temple in the tribe of Medshidj (Freytag, 2, 107 a); and perhaps also Rabaut, in Morocco. In the following account we chiefly follow the usual Biblical and archaological authorities, with additions from other sources. SEE RABBI.
1. A very strong place on the east of Jordan, which, when its name is first introduced in the sacred records, was the chief city of the Ammonites. In five passages (Deu_3:11; 2Sa_12:26; 2Sa_17:27; Jer_49:2; Ezra 21:20) it is styled at length רִבִּת בְּנֵי עִמּוֹן, Rabbdth-bene-Ammon, A. V. “Rabbath of the Ammonites,” or “of the children of Ammon;” but elsewhere (Jos_13:25; 2Sa_11:1; 2Sa_12:27; 2Sa_12:29; 1Ch_20:1; Jer_49:3; Ezra 25:5; Amo_1:14) simply “Rabbah.” The Sept. generally has ῾Ραββάθ, but in some MSS. occasionally ῾Ραβάθ, or ἡ ῾Ραββά. In Deu_3:5 it is τῆ ἄκρα τῶν υἱῶν ῎Αμμών in both MSS. In Jos_13:25 the Vat. has῎Αραβα ἡ ἐστιν κατὰ πρόσωπον Α᾿ράδ, where the first and last words of the sentence seem to have changed places. Other various readings likewise occur.
Rabbah appears in the sacred records as the single city of the Ammonites; at least no other bears any distinctive name, a fact which contrasts strongly with the abundant details of the city life of the Moabites. Whether it was originally, as some conjecture, the Ham of which the Zuzim were dispossessed by Chedorlaomer (Gen_14:5), will probably remain forever a conjecture. The statement of Eusebius (Onomast. s.v. ‘Ajucav) that it was originally a city of the Rephaim implies that it was the Ashteroth Karnaim of Genesis 14. In agreement with this is the fact that it was in later times known as Astarte (Steph. Byz. quoted by Ritter, p. 1155). In this case, the dual ending of Karnainm may point, as some have conjectured in Jerushalaim, to the double nature of the city — a lower town and a citadel. When first named it is in the hands of the Ammonites, and is mentioned as containing the bedstead of the giant Og (Deu_3:11), possibly the trophy of some successful war against the more ancient Rephaim. With the people of Lot, their kinsmen the Israelites had no quarrel, and Rabbath- of-the-children-of-Ammon remained to all appearance unmolested during the first period of the Israelitish occupation. It was not included in the territory of the tribes east of Jordan; the border of Gad stops at “Aroer, which faces Rabbah” (Jos_13:25). The attacks of the Bene-Ammon on Israel, however, brought these peaceful relations to an end. Saul must have had occupation enough on the west of' Jordan in attacking and repelling the Philistines and in pursuing David through the woods and ravines of Judah to prevent his crossing the river, unlless on such special occasions as the relief of Jabesh. At any rate, we never hear of his having penetrated so far in that direction as Rabbah. But David's armies were often engaged against both Moab and Ammon. His first Ammonitish campaign appears to have occurred early in his reign. A part of the army, unider Abishai, was sent as far as Rabbah to keep the Ammonites in check (2Sa_10:10; 2Sa_10:14), but the main force under Joab remained at Medeba (1Ch_19:7). The following year was occupied in the great expedition by David in person against the Syrians at Helam, wherever that may have been (2Sa_10:15-19). After their defeat the Ammonitish war was resumed, and this time Rabbah was made the main point of attack (2Sa_11:1). Joab took the command, and was follovwed by the whole of the army. The expedition included Ephraim and Benljamin, as well as the king's own tribe (2Sa_11:11), the “king's slaves” (2Sa_11:1; 2Sa_11:17; 2Sa_11:24), probably David's immediate body-guard, and the thirty-seven chief captains. Uriah was certainly there, and, if a not improbable Jewish tradition may be adopted, Ittai the Gittite was there also. SEE ITTAI.
The ark accompanied the camp (2Sa_11:11), the only time that we hear oft' its doing so, except that memorable battle with the Philistines, when its capture caused the death of the tli'lli-priest. On a former occasion (Num_31:6) the “holy things” only are specified-an expression which hardly seems to include the ark. David alone, to his cost, remained in Jerusalem. The country was wasted, and the roving Ammonites were'driven with all their property (xii, 30) into their single stronghold, as the Betdouin Kenites were driven from their tents inside the walls of Jerusalem when Judah was overrun by the Challanans. SEE RECHABITE, The siege must have lasted nearly, if not quite, two years; since during its progress David formed his connection with Bathsheba, and the two children, that which died and Solomon, were successively born. The sallies of the Ammonites appear to have formed a main feature of the siege (2Sa_11:17, etc.). At the end of that time Joab succeeded in capturing a portion of the place — the “city of waters,” that is, the lower town, so called from its containing the perennial stream which rises in and still flows through it. The fact (which seems uindoubted) that the source of the stream was within the lower city, explains its having held out for so long. It was also called the “royal city” (עַיר הִמְּלוּכָה), perhaps from its connection with Molech or Milcom — “the king” more probably from its containing the palace of Hanun and Nahash. But the citadel, which rises abruptly on the north side of the lower town, a place of very great strength, still remained to be taken, and the honor of this capture, Joab (with that devotion to David which runs like a bright thread through the dark web of his character) insists on reserving for the king. “I have fought,” writes he to his uncle, then living at ease in the harem at Jerusalem, in all the satisfaction of the birth of Solomon — “I have fought against Rabbah, and have taken the city of waters; but the citadel still remains: now, therefore, gather the rest of the people together and come; put yourself at the head of the whole army, renew the assault against the citadel, take it. and thus finish the siege which I have carried so far,” and then he ends with a rough banter (comp. 2Sa_19:6) — half jest, half earnest — “lest I take the city and in future it go under my name.” The waters of the lower city once in the hands of the besiegers, the fate of the citadel was certain, for that fortress possessed in itself (as we learn from the invaluable notice of Josephus, Ant. 7:7, 5) but one well of limited supply, quite inadequate to the throng which crowded its walls.
The provisions also were at last exhausted, and shortly after David's arrival the fortress was taken, and its inmates, with a very great booty, and the idol of Molech, with all its costly adornments, fell into the hands of David. We are not told whether the city was demolished or whether David was satisfied with the slaugnhter of its inmates. In the time of Amos, two centuries and a half later, it had again a “wall” and “palaces,” and was still the sanctuary of Molech” — “the king” (Amo_1:14). So it was also at the date of the invasion of Nebuchadnezzar (Jer_49:2-3), when its dependent towns (“daughters”) are mentioned, and when it is named in such terms as imply that it was of equal importance with Jerusalem (Ezra 21:20). At Rabbah, no doubt Baalis, king of the Bene-Ammon (Jer_40:14), held such court as he could muster, and within its walls was plotted the attack of Ishmael which cost Gedaliah his life and drove Jeremiah into Egypt. The denunciations of the prophets just named may have been fulfilled either at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem, or five years afterwards, when the Assyrian armies overran the country east of Jordan on their road to Egypt (Josephus, Ant. 10:9, 7). See Jerome, on Amos 1:41.
In the period between the Old and New Testaments, Rabbath-Ammon appears to have been a place of much importance and the scene of many contests. The natural advantages of position and water supply, which had alsays distinguished it, still made it an important citadel by turns to each side during the contentions which raged so long over the whole of the district. It lqy on the road between Heshbon and Bosra, and was the last place at which a stock of water could be obtained for the journey across the desert; while, as it stood on the confines of the richer and more civilized country, it formed an important garrison station for repelling the incursions of the wild tribes of the desert. From Ptolemy Philadelphus (B.C. 285-247) it received the name of Philadelphia (Jerome, on Ezra 25:1), and under this name it is often mentioned by Greek and Roman writers (Pliny, Hist. Nat. v, 16; Ptolemy. Geog. v, 15), by Josephus (War, i, 6, 3; i, 19, 5; ii, 18, 1), and upon Roman coins (Eckhel, iii, 351; Muinet, v, 335), as a city of Arabia, Coele-Syria, or Decapolis. The district either then or subsequently was called Philadelphene (Josephus, War iii, 3, 3), or Arabia Philadelphensis (Epiphanius, in Ritter, Syriev, p. 1155). In B.C. 218 it was taken from the then Ptolemy (Philopator) b)y Antiochus the Great, after a long and obstinate resistance from the besieged in the citadel. A communication with the spring in the lower town had been made since (possibly in consequence of) David's siege, by a long secret subterranean passage, and had not this been discovered to Antiochus by a prisoner, the citadel might have been enabled to hold out (Polybius, v, 17). During the struggle between Antiochus the Pious (Sidetes) and Ptolemy. the son-in- law of Simon Maccabaeus (B.C. cir. 134), it is mentioned as being governed by a tyrant named Cotylas (Ant. 13:8, 1). Its ancient name, though under a cloud, was still used; it is mentioned by Polybius (v, 71) under the hardly altered form of Rabbatamana ( ῾Ραββατάμανα). About B.C. 65 we hear of it as in the hands of Aretas (one of the Arab chiefs of that name), who retired thither from Judaea when menaced by Scaurus, Pompey's general (Josephus, War, i, 6, 3). The Arabs probably held it till the year B.C. 30, when they were attacked there by Herod the Great. But the account of Josephus (War, i, 19. 5, 6) seems to imply that the city was not then inhabited, and that although the citadel formed the main point of the combat, yet that it was only occupied on the instant. The water communication above alluded to also appears not to have been then in existence, for the people who occupied the citadel quickly surrendered from thirst, and the whole affair was over in six days.
At the Christian aera Philadelphia formed the eastern limit of the region of Permea (Josephus, War, iii, 3, 3). It was one of the cities of the Decapolis, and as far down as the 4th century was esteemed one of the most remarkable and strongest cities of the whole of Ccele-Syria (Eusebius, Onomast.; Ammianus Marc. in Ritter, p. 1157). Its magnificent theatre (said to be the largest in Syria), temples, odeon, mausoleum, and other public buildings were probably erected during the 2d and 3d centuries, like those of Jerash, which they resemble in style, though their scale and design are grander (Lindsay). Among the ruins of an “immense term ple” on the citadel hill, Mr. Tipping saw some prostrate columns five feet in diameter. Its coins are extant, some bearing the figure of Astarte, some the word Herakleion, implying a worship of Hercules, probably the continnuation of that of Molech or Milcom. From Stephanus of Byzantium we learn that it was also called Astarte, doubtless from its containing a temple of that goddess. Justin Martyr, a native of Shechem, writing about A.D. 140, speaks of the city as containing a multitude of Ammonites (Dict. with Trypho), though it would probably not be safe to interpret this too strictly.
Philadelphia became the seat of a Christian bishop, and was one of the nineteen sees of “Paltestina tertia” which were subordinate to Bostra (Reland, Palaest. p. 228). The church still remains “in excellent preservation” with its lofty steeple (lord Lindsay). Some of the bishops appear to have signed under the title of Bakatha; which Bakatha is by Epiphanius (himself a native of Palestine) mentioned in such a manner as to imply that it was but another name for Philadelphia, derived from an Arab tribe in whose possession it was at that time (A.D. cir. 400). But this is doubtful (see Reland, Palaest. p. 612; Ritter, p. 1157).
When the Moslems conquered Syria, they found the city in ruins (Abulfeda inl Ritter, p. 1158; and in note to lord Lindsay); and in ruins remarkable for their extent and desolation even for Syria, the “land of ruins,” it still remains. The ancient name has been preserved among the natives of the country. Abulfeda calls it Amman (Tab. Syr. p. 19), and by that name it is still known. The prophet Ezekiel foretold that Rabbah should become “a stable for camels,” and the country “a couching-place for flocks” (Eze_25:5). This has been literally fulfilled, and Burckhardt actually found that a party of Arabs had stabled their camels among the ruins of Rabbah. Too much stress has, however, been laid upon this minute point by Dr. Keith and others (Evidence from Prophecy, p. 150).
What the prophet meant to say was that Ammon and its chief city should be desolate; and he expressed it by reference to facts which would certainly occur in any forsaken site in the borders of Arabia; and which are now constantly occurring not in Rabbah only, but in many other places. Rabbah lies about twenty-two miles from the Jordan at the eastern apex of a triangle, of which Heshbon and es-Salt form respectively the southern and northern points. It is about fourteen miles from the former and twelve from the latter. Jerash is due north, more than twenty miles distant in a straight line, and thirty-five by the usual road (Lindsay, p. 278). It lies in a valley which is a branch, or perhaps the main course, of the Wady Zerka, usually identified with the Jabbok. The Moiet-Ammann, or water of Amman, a mere streamlet, rises within the basin which contains the ruins of the town. The main valley is a winter torrent, but appears to be perennial, and contains a quantity of fish, by one observer said to be trout (see Burckhardt, p. 358; G. Robinson, 2, 174; “a perfect fish-pond,” Tipping). The stream runs from west to east, and north of it is the citadel on its isolated hill. The public buildings are said to be Roman, in general character like those at Jerash, except the citadel, lwhich is described as of large square stones put together without cement, and which is probably more ancient than the rest. Among the ruins are chiefly noticeable a spacious church, built with large stones, and having a steeple; a temple, with part of the side walls and a niche in the back wall remaining; a curved wall along the water-side, with many niches, and in front of it a row of large columns, four of which remain, though without capitals; a high- arched bridge over the river, still perfect, apparently the only one that had existed. The citadel on the hill, a structure of immense strength, and the theatre have been referred to above. ‘The remains of private houses scattered on both sides of the stream are very extensive. They have been visited, and described in more or less detail, by Burckhardt (Syria, p. 357- 360), Seetzen (Reisen, i, 396; 4:212214), Irby (June 14), Buckingham (E. Syria, p. 68-82), lord Lindsay (5th ed. p. 278-284), G. Robinson (ii, 172178), lord Claud Hanmilton (in Keith, Evid. of Proph. ch. vi), De Saulcy (Dead Sea, i, 387 sq.), Tristram (Land of Israel, p. 544 sq.), Porter (Handb. foi Palest. p. 302), B:itdeker (Palastina, p. 319), and the Rev. A. E. Northern, in the Quart. Statement of the “Pal. Explor. Fund,” April, 1872, p. 57 sq., where a plan is given.
2. (הָרִבָּה, with the definite article; Sept. Σωθηβᾶ v. r. Α᾿ρεββα; Vulg. Aebba) a city of Judah, named, with Kirjath-jearim, in Jos_15:60 only. It lay among the group of towns situated to the west of Jerusalem, on the northern border of the tribe of Judah (Keil, Comment. ad loc.). It is probably only an epithet for Jerusalem itself, which otherwise would not appear in the list. SEE JUDAH (Tribe of).
3. In one passage (Jos_11:8) ZIDON is mentioned with the affix Rabbah-Zidon-rabbah. This is preserved in the margin of the A. V., though in the text it is translated “great Zidon.”
4. Although there is no trace of the fact in the Bible there can be little doubt that the name of Rabbah was also attached in Biblical times to the chief city of Moab. Its Biblical name is “Ar,” but we have the testimony of Eusebius (Onomast. s.v. Moab) that in the 4th century it possessed the special title of Rabbath-Moab, or, as it appears in the corrupted orthography of Stephanus of Byzantium, the coins, and the Ecclesiastical Lists, Rabathmoba. Rabbathmoma. and Ratba or Robba Moabitis (Reland, Palest. p. 226, 957; Seetzen, Reisen, 4:227; — titter, p. 1220). This name was for a time displaced by Areopolis, in the same manner that Rabbath- Ammon had been by Philadelphia: these, however, were but the names imposed by the temporary masters of the country, and employed by them in their official documents; and when they passed away, the original names, which had never lost their place in the mouths of the common people, reappeared, and Rabba, like Ammam, still remains to testify to the ancient appellation. Rabba lies on the highlands at the southeast quarter of the Dead Sea, between Kerak and Jibel Shihan. Its ruins, which are unimportant, are described by Burckhardtm (July 15), Seetzen (Reisel, i, 411), De Saulcy (Jan. 18), and Porter (Handb.for Palestine, p. 297 sq.). SEE AN.

CYCLOPEDIA OF BIBLICAL, THEOLOGICAL AND ECCLESIASTICAL
press 1895.

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