Seneh
“Thorn or acacia bush”
Summary
The southern of two sharp rocky crags flanking the pass of Michmash, near which Jonathan and his armor-bearer achieved their daring victory over the Philistines.
☩Location and Name
Seneh was one of two isolated rocks standing in the 'passage of Michmash,' the strategic gorge between Geba and Michmash. It was the southern crag, nearest to Geba (called Gibeah in some translations). The name means 'thorn' or 'thorn bush'—the same Hebrew word used for the burning bush at Horeb—possibly referring either to the rock's shape or to acacia bushes growing upon it. The modern Wady Suweinit ('valley of the little thorn tree') may preserve an echo of this ancient name.
☩Jonathan's Victory
When the Philistines held a garrison at Michmash during Saul's reign, Jonathan and his armor-bearer undertook a daring assault. Rather than going around by the main passage, they climbed directly across the ridge between Seneh and its companion crag Bozez. The rocky terrain and steep cliffs made the route seem impossible, but Jonathan's faith in God's ability to save 'by many or by few' led to a stunning victory that routed the entire Philistine army.
Related Verses1 mention
1 Samuel· 1 verse
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Seneh," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. IX (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Seneh," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. IV (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Seneh," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).