Places in the Bible Today:

Mount Seir 1

Data

Translated NamesEdom, Edomites, hill country of Seir, mountain of Seir, Mount Seir, Seir, Seirites
Typemountain range
Notesoften a synonym for Edom
Geo Data KML (for Google Earth)
GeoJSON (for GIS applications)

2 Possible Identifications

  1. region around Jebel esh Shera (modern): 80% confidence

    1. satellite view of the region around Jebel esh Sheraregion around Jebel esh Shera

  2. mountains southwest of the Dead Sea (modern): less than 10% confidence

    1. panorama of mountains southwest of the Dead Seamountains southwest of the Dead Sea

Verses (34)

Gen-Deut (18)
Gen 14:6, 32:3, 33:14, 33:16, 36:8, 36:9, 36:30
Num 24:18
Deut 1:2, 1:44, 2:1, 2:4, 2:5, 2:8, 2:12, 2:22, 2:29, 33:2
Josh-Ruth (4)
Josh 11:17, 12:7, 24:4
Judg 5:4
1Sam-Esth (6)
1Chr 4:42
2Chr 20:10, 20:22, 20:23, 25:11, 25:14
Job-Mal (6)
Isa 21:11
Ezek 25:8, 35:2, 35:3, 35:7, 35:15

Linked Data Identifiers

SourceIdentifier
Logos FactbookMount Seir (of Edom)
OpenBible.info (2007)Mount Seir 1, Seir
OpenBible.infoae981db (Mount Seir 1)
TIPNRSeir@Gen.14.6, Seir_Mount@Deu.1.2
WikidataQ15944872

Sources

  1. Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (1992)
  2. Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land (1990): Seir
  3. Carta Bible Atlas, 5th Edition (2011)
  4. Cornerstone Biblical Commentary (2008-2012): Gen 14:1-16
  5. Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000): Seir (place)
  6. ESV Bible Atlas (2010): Map 8-12
  7. Expositor’s Bible Commentary (1984): Deut 2:1
  8. Grollenberg, Atlas of the Bible (1957): Seir (Mount)
  9. HarperCollins Atlas of Bible History (2008)
  10. HarperCollins Bible Dictionary (2011): Seir
  11. Holman Bible Atlas (1999)
  12. Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (2003): Seir, Mount
  13. Holman Illustrated Guide to Bible Geography (2020): page 287
  14. Hudson, Bible Atlas and Companion (2008)
  15. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1979)
  16. IVP Old Testament Bible Background Commentary (2000): Gen 32:3; Gen 33:16
  17. Lexham Bible Dictionary (2016): Seir, Hill country of
  18. New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (1988): Seir, Mount
  19. Oxford Bible Atlas, Fourth Edition (2007)
  20. Sacred Bridge (2014)
  21. Tyndale Bible Dictionary (2001): Seir (place)
  22. Tübingen Bible Atlas (2001)
  23. Waltke and Fredricks, Genesis (2001): 14:8
  24. Wenham, Genesis (1987, 1994): 14:6
  25. Westminster Historical Atlas to the Bible (1956)
  26. Wycliffe Bible Encyclopedia (1975): Seir
  27. Zondervan Atlas of the Bible (2010)
  28. Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible (2010)
  29. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary (2009): Deut 1:44; Judg 5:4; Gen 32:3; Judg 5:4; Ezek 35:1
  30. Zondervan Pictorial Bible Atlas (1972): page 67

Confidence Trends over Time

This chart indicates how confidence in the identifications is changing over time. Each dot (connected by a dotted line) reflects the confidence of an identification over the preceding ten years (e.g., the 2009 dot reflects scholarship from 2000 to 2009), and the corresponding solid line reflects a best-fit line for the identification. Confidences that cluster near or below 0% indicate low confidence. Because of the small dataset, it's best to use this chart for general trends; if one identification is trending much higher than the others (in this case, region around Jebel esh Shera), then you can probably have higher confidence in the identification. This chart only reflects the sources I consulted (listed above), not an exhaustive review of the literature.

Places with Similar Names

Thumbnail Image Credits

Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2019, Godot13

About

This page attempts to identify all the possible locations where this biblical place could be. The confidence levels add up to less than 100%, indicating that the modern location is uncertain. It's best to think about the confidences in relative rather than absolute terms. Often they reflect different schools of thought, each confident in their identifications.

The isobands you see on the map (gray areas with dark borders) attempt to give you confidence where a region is. Because many ancient regions aren't precisely defined, I consulted atlases to determine where the biblical region is located and used that data to build the isobands. The smaller isobands reflect more confidence that the given isoband is in the region, while the larger isobands reflect less confidence. Isobands are a kind of contour line that here indicate confidence levels.