Ramah
A hilltop city of Benjamin where Deborah judged and Samuel travelled in circuit; the city of Rachel's lament prophecy.
First mentioned in the Bible
She would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Raʹmah and Bethʹel in the mountainous region of Eʹphra·im, and the Israelites would go up to her for judgment.— Judges 4:5
Background
Ramah (Hebrew for "height") was a city allotted to Benjamin (Josh 18:25), crowning the hill on the highway north from Jerusalem. The prophetess Deborah sat between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim and judged Israel (Judg 4:5); Samuel travelled in circuit through Bethel, Gilgal and Mizpah, judged Israel at Ramah, built an altar there, and made it his home in later years (1 Sam 7:16-17). Baasha king of Israel fortified Ramah to block access from Judah, until King Asa, with Aramean help under Ben-hadad, took it back (1 Kings 15:17-22). After Babylon felled Jerusalem, the guard commander Nebuzaradan gathered the captives at Ramah, where the prophet Jeremiah was released (Jer 40:1). Jeremiah foretold that "a voice is heard in Ramah... Rachel weeping for her children" (Jer 31:15), which Matthew links to Herod's slaughter of the infants in Bethlehem (Matt 2:18).
Related Scriptures (New World Translation)
She used to sit under Debʹo·rah’s palm tree between Raʹmah and Bethʹel in the mountainous region of Eʹphra·im; the Israelites would go up to her for judgment.— Judges 4:5
“This is what Jehovah says:— Jeremiah 31:15Explore Ramah on the interactive map →
Click the button above to open the interactive map