Lexical Summary Beth Gamul: Beth Gamul Original Word: בֵּית גָּמוּל Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Beth- gamul From bayith and the passive participle of gmuwl; house of (the) weaned; Beth-Gamul, a place East of the Jordan -- Beth- gamul. see HEBREW bayith see HEBREW gmuwl NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom bayith and pass. part. of gamal Definition "place of recompense," a place in Moab NASB Translation Beth-gamul (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs בֵּית גָּמוּל proper name, of a location in Moab Jeremiah 48:23 (place of recompense) — modern Umm ej-Jemâl ? BdPal 203, 5 hours south from Bosra. Topical Lexicon Biblical Occurrence Beth-gamul appears once in the Old Testament, in the Moabite oracle of Jeremiah. Jeremiah 48:23: “on Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon.” The single mention sets the town among a cluster of sites on the high plateau east of the Dead Sea, showing it belonged to the heartland of Moab at the time of the Babylonian advance. Geographical Setting The companions of Beth-gamul in Jeremiah—Kiriathaim, Beth-meon, Dibon, Nebo—form a north-south line on the Medeba plateau. Most scholars therefore place Beth-gamul somewhere between Dibon (modern Dhiban) and the Arnon Gorge. Two leading suggestions are: The “house” prefix hints at a settled agricultural center rather than a nomadic encampment, consistent with the plateau’s arable soils and long occupation. Historical Background 1 Chronicles 5:8 and Numbers 32:34-38 show that this plateau was first secured by Reuben and Gad in the days of Moses. The Mesha Inscription (ninth century BC) records Moab’s counter-offensive, and by Jeremiah’s era Moab controlled the region again. Beth-gamul, then, stood as a witness to centuries of border struggle between covenant Israel and the proud kingdom of Moab. Its inclusion in the Babylonian judgment list demonstrates that Moab’s regained strongholds would fall just as surely as the more famous cities north and south. Prophetic Significance Jeremiah’s oracle exposes Moab’s pride (Jeremiah 48:26-30) and predicts total devastation: “Judgment has come on the high plain” (Jeremiah 48:21). Naming Beth-gamul in verse 23 underscores the thoroughness of that judgment—no corner of the plateau, however obscure, will escape. History confirms the prophecy: Babylon’s campaigns (ca. 582 BC) neutralized Moab, after which the nation fades from the biblical narrative. Archaeological and Extrabiblical Correlations The Mesha Stele lines 10-14 include a partially preserved “bt-gm[ ]”, plausibly Beth-gamul, indicating its existence at least 300 years before Jeremiah. Survey pottery from Tell Jammal ranges from Iron II through the Persian period, matching the town’s occupation curve implied by Scripture. These converging lines of evidence strengthen confidence in the historical reliability of Jeremiah 48. Theological and Pastoral Reflections Beth-gamul, though mentioned only once, teaches enduring lessons: Application for Ministry Preachers may use Beth-gamul to illustrate: 1. The seriousness with which God addresses national arrogance. Forms and Transliterations גָּמ֖וּל גמול gā·mūl gaMul gāmūlLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Jeremiah 48:23 HEB: וְעַל־ בֵּ֥ית גָּמ֖וּל וְעַל־ בֵּ֥ית NAS: Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul and Beth-meon, KJV: And upon Kiriathaim, and upon Bethgamul, and upon Bethmeon, INT: Kiriathaim against Beth-gamul against and Beth-meon |
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