Bible Location
Meaning: their testimony; their prey; their ornament · 8 cross references · Modern-day map available
Adullam was a city in the Judean foothills and is especially remembered for the nearby cave where David gathered followers while fleeing Saul. It is important because it appears in the David story as a place of refuge, leadership, and formation before kingship. First appears in Josh 12:15.1
Place meaning
their testimony; their prey; their ornament
Coordinates
31.66, 35.00
First appears
Josh 12:15
AI summary: Adullam carries significance far beyond its size because of David's cave. There those in distress, debt, and discontent gathered to him, making Adullam one of the clearest early settings of his rise as a leader before he became king. Its location in the Shephelah also ties it to the borderland world of Philistine conflict and Judean defense. The cross references present Adullam as a place of refuge, gathering, and the shaping of David's future rule.1
Place meaning
their testimony; their prey; their ornament
Latitude
31.66
Longitude
35.00
Bible references
8
One of the royal cities of the Canaanites, now ‘Aid-el-ma (Josh. 12:15; 15:35). It stood on the old Roman road in the valley of Elah (q.v.), which was the scene of David’s memorable victory over Goliath (1 Sam. 17:2), and not far from Gath. It was one of the towns which Rehoboam fortified against Egypt (2 Chr. 11:7). It was called “the glory of Israel” (Micah 1:15).
The Cave of Adullam has been discovered about 2 miles south of the scene of David’s triumph, and about 13 miles west from Bethlehem. At this place is a hill some 500 feet high pierced with numerous caverns, in one of which David gathered together “every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented” (1 Sam. 22:2). Some of these caverns are large enough to hold 200 or 300 men. According to tradition this cave was at Wady Khureitun, between Bethlehem and the Dead Sea, but this view cannot be well maintained. 3
Source note: this 1893 dictionary language reflects its period and may be culturally insensitive or outdated. It is presented as historical source material, not as ai-BIBLE’s language, interpretation, or endorsement.
| Book | Cross-References |
|---|---|
| Josh | |
| 1Sam | |
| 2Sam | |
| 1Chr | |
| 2Chr | |
| Neh | |
| Mic |
Figure1: A table of cross references between the selected passage and other passages (Data from Robert Rouse, “Theographic Bible Information,” Theographic-Bible-Metadata, 2020, https://github.com/robertrouse/theographic-bible-metadata.)
AI-assisted summary prepared for ai-BIBLE and stored as page content, based on dictionary material, place metadata, and linked Bible cross references.
Alistair de Blacquiere-Clarkson, “ai-BIBLE Bible Names JSON Factsheet Aggregating Material from Smith’s Bible Dictionary & Hitcocks’s New and Complete Analysis of the Bible.” ai-BIBLE electronic edition, version 1.0.
M.G.Easton, Illustrated Bible Dictionary, ai-BIBLE electronic edition, version 1.0.
Robert Rouse, “Theographic Bible Information,” Theographic-Bible-Metadata, 2020, https://github.com/robertrouse/theographic-bible-metadata.