Merom
“Height or high place”
Summary
The waters of Merom was the site of Joshua's decisive victory over the northern Canaanite coalition led by Jabin king of Hazor, traditionally identified with Lake Huleh in the upper Jordan valley.
☩The Battle
When Jabin king of Hazor heard of Israel's conquests in southern Canaan, he formed a coalition of northern kings whose combined forces gathered at the waters of Merom. Joshua, commanded by God not to fear them, made a sudden attack and completely routed the confederacy, pursuing them westward to Sidon and Misrephoth-maim and eastward to the Valley of Mizpeh. He hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots, eliminating the military advantage the Canaanites had possessed.
☩Location and Identification
The traditional identification places Merom at Lake Huleh (the Samechonitis of Josephus), a triangular lake about four and a half miles long through which the Jordan flows between its source and the Sea of Galilee. The lake lies in a noble landscape—a nearly level plain sixteen miles long surrounded by the mountains of Naphtali on the west and the slopes of Bashan on the east, with Mount Hermon towering in the northeast. Some scholars, however, suggest the 'waters of Merom' may refer to a perennial stream near Shimron-Merom west of Nazareth rather than the lake.
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Merom," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. VI (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Merom, Waters of," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. III (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).