Bible Dictionary
Beth-barah
A ford or crossing associated with Gideon’s pursuit of the Midianites. Its precise location is uncertain, and it has sometimes been connected with the New Testament Bethany beyond the Jordan.
Definition
Beth-barah was a ford or crossing associated with Gideon’s pursuit of the Midianites. Its precise location is uncertain, but it was probably near a stream entering the Jordan.
Biblical Usage
Gideon sent messengers to the Ephraimites to seize the waters as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan, trapping the fleeing Midianites.
Historical Background
The place may have been on the modern Wady Fari‘ah near its entrance into the Jordan. Its identification with Bethany beyond the Jordan is not established in the supplied material.
Scripture References
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
House of crossing, a place south of the scene of Gideon’s victory (Judg. 7:24). It was probably the chief ford of the Jordan in that district, and may have been that by which Jacob crossed when he returned from Mesopotamia, near the Jabbok (Gen. 32:22), and at which Jephthah slew the Ephraimites (Judg. 12:4). Nothing, however, is certainly known of it. (See BETHABARA.)
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>beth-ba'-ra (beth barah; Baithera): Perhaps Beth-`abharu, the guttural being lost in copying. It is a ford which the Midianites were expected to pass in fleeing from Gideon. Messengers were therefore sent by Gideon to the Ephraimites bidding them "take before them the waters, as far as Beth-barah, even (the Revised Version, margin "and also") the Jordan" (Jud 7:24). "The waters" were the streams emptying themselves into the Jordan: "even the Jordan" is a gloss on "the waters." Between the Jordan and the modern Wady Fari`ah an enemy could be entrapped; it is therefore probable that Beth-barah was on that stream near its entrance into the Jordan.</p><p>See BETHABARA.</p><p>S. F. Hunter</p>