3497. Yithnan

Lexical Summary

Yithnan: Yithnan

Original Word: יְתְנָן
Part of Speech: Proper Name Location
Transliteration: Yithnan
Pronunciation: yith-NAHN
Phonetic Spelling: (yith-nawn')
KJV: Ithnan
NASB: Ithnan
Word Origin: [from the same as H8577 (תַּנִּין תַּנִּים - monster)]

1. extensive
2. Jithnan, a place in Israel

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

Ithnan

From the same as tanniyn; extensive; Jithnan, a place in Palestine -- Ithnan.

see HEBREW tanniyn

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from the same as ethan
Definition
a city in the desert of Judah
NASB Translation
Ithnan (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

יִתְנָ֑ן proper name, of a location (etymology dubious) city in the Negeb of Judah Joshua 15:23 (followed by זִיף Joshua 15:24), ᵐ5 A Ιθναζιφ, ᵐ5^L Ιθναν Ζειφ; site unknown.

Topical Lexicon

Name and Meaning

Though the lexicons classify יְתְנָן (Yitnan) simply as a place-name, the consonants evoke the Hebrew root associated with “gift” or “giving.” The town’s very designation therefore hints at the gracious character of Israel’s inheritance: every allotment in the land—no matter how small or obscure—was a gift from the Lord (Deuteronomy 26:9).

Biblical Occurrence

Yitnan appears once, in the catalogue of Judah’s settlements in the Negev:

“Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah, Kedesh, Hazor-Ithnan” (Joshua 15:22-23).

The list belongs to the larger record of cities Joshua assigned to Judah after the conquest.

Geographical Setting

1. Region: Southern Judah (the Negev), bordering Edom.
2. Topography: Semi-arid steppe with scattered wadis, suitable for pastoralism more than intensive farming (compare 1 Samuel 27:10).
3. Possible Identification: Some scholars point to ruins south-southwest of modern Beersheba, while others suggest a site north of Kadesh-barnea. The uncertainty underscores how sparsely populated and mobile the area remained through much of Israel’s history.

Historical Context

• Conquest and Allocation: Joshua 15 records Judah’s portion after the land was divided by lot “in Shiloh before the LORD” (Joshua 18:10). Yitnan, although minor, formed part of the securely measured heritage promised to Abraham (Genesis 17:8) and fulfilled under Joshua (Joshua 21:43-45).
• Tribal Movements: Later texts show Simeonite families settling within Judah’s Negev towns (1 Chronicles 4:28-33). While Yitnan is not individually named there, its proximity means Simeonite shepherds almost certainly grazed its vicinity.
• Border Vigilance: The string of Negev towns functioned as an early-warning line against desert raids and Edomite incursions (2 Chronicles 26:10). Even an obscure site like Yitnan contributed to the security Judah needed to worship in peace at Jerusalem.

Archaeological Notes

No excavation has definitively uncovered Yitnan. Yet Iron Age pottery scatters and fortification remains at several Negev ruins demonstrate how Judah fortified small hillocks for lookout towers, storage, and cisterns. Such finds align with the biblical image of dotted “cities with their villages” (Joshua 15:32).

Theological Significance

1. Covenant Gift: Yitnan’s implied meaning of “gift” reinforces that the land was not earned but bestowed. The same grace that apportioned Judah’s territory grounds New Covenant inheritance in Christ (Galatians 3:18; Ephesians 1:11).
2. Particularity and Providence: Scripture’s detailed geography shows God concerned with every border stone (Proverbs 22:28). Modern believers can trust His governance over the “seemingly insignificant” places of their own lives.
3. Boundary Faithfulness: Judah’s keeping of its Negev posts illustrated obedience in small things. Likewise, churches are called to guard the whole counsel of God, including neglected doctrines or obscure texts (Acts 20:27).

Ministry Applications

• Teaching on Inheritance: Yitnan can serve as an object lesson that spiritual rewards are both corporate (for the tribe) and personal (for each locale).
• Encouraging Overlooked Servants: Just as Yitnan’s name endures in Scripture though its ruins hide in the desert, faithful but unnoticed ministry will be remembered by the Lord (Hebrews 6:10).
• Missional Vision: The site’s border location prompts prayer for frontier missions—those laboring in spiritually “arid” contexts where the gospel outpost may seem small but remains essential (Matthew 24:14).

Related Biblical Motifs

Gift language: Numbers 18:6; Romans 6:23.

Land promises: Genesis 13:15; Psalm 105:11.

Faithful stewardship of minor trusts: Luke 16:10; 1 Corinthians 4:2.

Reflection for Today

Yitnan quietly testifies that God’s gifts reach even the margins. Whether He places His people in prominent centers or lonely border posts, the covenant Lord supplies, protects, and calls all to faithfulness until the greater inheritance is revealed (1 Peter 1:4-5).

Forms and Transliterations

וְיִתְנָֽן׃ ויתנן׃ veyitNan wə·yiṯ·nān wəyiṯnān

Englishman's Concordance

Joshua 15:23
HEB: וְקֶ֥דֶשׁ וְחָצ֖וֹר וְיִתְנָֽן׃
NAS: and Kedesh and Hazor and Ithnan,
KJV: And Kedesh, and Hazor, and Ithnan,
INT: and Kedesh and Hazor and Ithnan

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 3497
1 Occurrence

wə·yiṯ·nān — 1 Occ.