Ramah

What is known

• Ramah was the hometown of the prophet and judge Samuel, where he lived, judged Israel on a circuit, and was ultimately buried
• As a border town between Israel and Judah, Ramah was fortified by Baasha of Israel to blockade Judah, then dismantled by Asa of Judah who reused its materials to build Geba and Mizpah
• Jeremiah 31:15 pictures 'Rachel weeping for her children' at Ramah, a passage later quoted in Matthew 2:18 regarding Herod's slaughter of the innocents
• Ramah was a gathering point for captives being marched to Babylon after Jerusalem's fall, per Jeremiah 40:1

History

Founded

A town of Benjamin, occupied through the Iron Age; the biblical name means simply 'height,' and several distinct 'Ramahs' appear in the Old Testament, which has led to some confusion in identification

Industry

Small hill-country town on the central north-south ridge route, giving it strategic and administrative importance

Coordinates

31.8508° N, 35.2372° E

Scripture references

• 1 Samuel 1:19-20 — Samuel's family returns to Ramah; his birth
• 1 Samuel 7:17 — Samuel judges Israel from his home at Ramah
• 1 Samuel 8:4 — Elders of Israel come to Samuel at Ramah to demand a king
• 1 Samuel 15:34 — Samuel returns to Ramah after rejecting Saul
• 1 Samuel 19:18-24 — David flees to Samuel at Ramah
• 1 Samuel 25:1 — Samuel is buried at Ramah
• 1 Kings 15:17-22 — Baasha fortifies Ramah; Asa dismantles it
• Jeremiah 31:15 — Rachel weeping for her children at Ramah
• Jeremiah 40:1 — Jeremiah released from captivity at Ramah

On a modern map

Ramah today

Further reading

• Ramah (Benjamin) - Wikipedia

Reflect

Samuel always circled back home to Ramah, where he had built an altar — what rhythm keeps bringing you back to center?