Reference: Philistia
Easton
Palestine (q.v.), "the land of the Philistines" (Ps 60:8; 87:4; 108:9). The word is supposed to mean "the land of wanderers" or "of strangers."
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Moab is My washpot [reduced to vilest servitude]; upon Edom I cast My shoe in triumph; over Philistia I raise the shout of victory.
I will make mention of Rahab [the poetic name for Egypt] and Babylon as among those who know [the city of God] -- "behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia (Cush) -- "[saying], This man was born there.
Fausets
See Palestine, which is the same word, and originally meant "the land of the PHILISTINES:" (See PALESTINE.) Ps 60:8; 87:4; 108:9.) Caphtorim; Am 9:7, "the Philistines from Caphtor"; Jer 47:4; De 2:23. Ge 10:14 "Casluhim, out of whom came Philistine." (See CAPHTORIM; CASLUHIM.) Both came from Mizraim, i.e. Egypt. As in Amos and Jeremiah the Philistines are traced to Caphtor, probably the Casluhim and Caphtorim were tribes which intermingled, the Caphtorim having strengthened the Casluchian colony by immigration; so the Philistines may be said to have come from either (Bochart). Philistia is derived from the Ethiopic falasa "to emigrate," Hebrew palash, "wander." (In the W. of Abyssinia are the Falashas, i.e., emigrants, probably Israelites from Palestine.) Successive emigrations of the same race took place into Philistia, first the Casluhim, then the Caphtorim from both of which came the Philistines, who seemingly were in subjection in Caphtor (the northern delta of Egypt), from whence "Jehovah brought them up" (Am 9:7). (See CAPHTOR.)
The objection to the Mizraite origin of the Philistines from their language is answered by the supposition that the Philistine or Caphtorim invaders adopted the language of the Avim whom they conquered (De 2:23). Their uncircumcision was due to their having left Egypt at a date anterior to the Egyptians' adoption (Herodotus ii. 36) of circumcision (compare Jer 9:25-26). The Cherethites were probably Caphtorim, the modern Copts. Keratiya in the Philistine country, at the edge of the Negeb or "south country," and now called "castle of the Fenish," i.e. Philistines, is related to the name Cherethites; so "Philistines" is related to "Pelethites." Their immigration to the neighborhood of Gerar in the south country was before Abraham's time, for he deals with them as a pastoral tribe there (Ge 21:32,34; 26:1,8). This agrees with the statement (De 2:23) that the Avim dwelt in Hazerim, i.e. in nomadic encampments. By the time of the Exodus the Philistines had become formidable (Ex 13:17; 15:14).
At Israel's invasion of Canaan they had advanced N. and possessed fully the seacoast plain from the river of Egypt (el Arish) to Ekron in the N. (Jos 15:4,47), a confederacy of the five cities (originally Canaanite) Gaza (the leading one), Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron (always put last). Each city had its prince (called seren or sar; Jos 13:3 "lords"): Am 1:7-8. The opprobrious name given to the shepherd kings, Philition (Herodotus ii. 12) seems related to Philistine. Their plain was famed for its fertility in grain, vines, and olives (Jg 15:5), so that it was the refuge from times of famine (2Ki 8:2; compare Ge 26:12). It suited war chariots, while the low hills of the shephelah afforded sites for fortresses. Philistia is an undulating plain, 32 miles long, and from nine to 16 broad, from 30 to 300 ft. above the sea. To the E. lie low spurs culminating in hog's backs running N. and S., and rising in places 1,200 ft. above the sea. To the E. of these the descent is steep, about 500 ft., to valleys E. of which the hill country begins.
The sand is gaining on the land, so that one meets often a deep hollow in the sand, and a figtree or apple tree growing at the bottom, or even a house and patch of ground below the sand level. It was the commercial thoroughfare between Phoenicia and Syria on the N. and Egypt and Arabia in the S. Ashdod and Gaza were the keys of Egypt, and the latter was the depot of Arabian produce (Pint., Alex. 25). The term "Canaan" ("merchant") applied to the Philistine land (Zep 2:5) proves its commercial character. They sold Israelites as slaves to Edom and Greece, for which God threatens retribution in kind, and destruction (Am 1:6-8; Joe 3:3-8). They were skilled as smiths in Saul's days; at the beginning of his reign they had so subjugated Israel as to forbid them to have any smith. (See JONATHAN; DAVID; ISRAEL; MICHMASH.) 1Sa 13:19-22.
Their images, golden mice, emerods, and armour imply excellence in the arts (1Sa 6:11; 17:5-6). They carried their idols with them in war (2Sa 5:21), and published their triumphs in the house of their gods; these were Dagon (Jg 16:23), Ashtaroth (1Sa 31:9-10), Baalzebub (2Ki 1:2-6), and Derceto (Diod. Sic. 2:4). (See DAGON.) Their god Dagon was half man and half fish; Derceto was the female deity, with the face of a woman and body of a fish; our mermaid is derived from them. They had priests and diviners (1Sa 6:2), "soothsayers" (Isa 2:6). Their wealth in money was great (Jg 16:5,18). They had advanced military posts or garrisons in Israel's land (1Sa 10:5; 13:3,17); from whence they sent forth spoilers, so that travelers durst not go by the highways (Jg 5:6), and the Israelites hid from the Philistines in caves, or else fled beyond Jordan (1Sa 13:6-7).
Though the Philistine land was allotted to Israel, it was never permanently occupied (Jos 13:2; 15:2,12,45-47; Jg 1:18; 3:5,31,13-16). Neither Shamgar nor Samson delivered Israel permanently from the Philistines. The Israelites so lost heart that they in fear of the Philistines bound Samson (Jg 15:12). The effort to deliver the nation from the Philistines was continued unsuccessfully under Eli (1 Samuel 4), successfully under Samuel (1Sa 7:9-14); Saul (Israel's desire for a king was that he might lead them in war: 1Sa 8:20), 1Sa 8:1 Samuel 13; 14; 17; David (after the disaster at Gilboa: 1 Samuel 31), 2Sa 5:17-25, when they dared to penetrate even to the valley of Rephaim, S.W. of Jerusalem, and to Bethlehem (1Ch 11:16-18; 14:8-16), taking their images, and pursuing them to Gazer, then taking Gath and so wresting the supremacy from the Philistines (1Ch 18:1; 2Sa 8:1), so that encounters with the Philistines henceforth were in their own land (2Sa 21:15-22). (See METHEGAMMAH.)
Solomon had them tributary (1Ki 4:21-24; compare 1Ki 2:39). The Egyptian Pharaoh took Gezer at the head of the Philistia plain, and gave it as his daughter's marriage portion to Solomon (1Ki 9:16-17); and Solomon fortified it and Bethhoron, to command the passes from the Philistia plain to the central region. At Israel's disruption Rehoboam fortified Gath, etc., against the Philistines (2Ch 11:8). But the Philistines laid hold of Gibbethon commanding the defile leading from Sharon up to Samaria; Israel had a long struggle for its recovery (1Ki 15:27; 16:15). The tribute had ceased, only some paid presents to Jehoshaphat (2Ch 17:11). Under Jehoram they invaded Judah (2Ch 21:16-17). Uzziah inflicted a decisive blow on them, dismantling their cities Gath, Ashdod, and Jahneh, and building commanding forts in their land (2Ch 26:6; Am 6:2).
But under the weak Ahaz the Philistines recovered, and invaded the cities of the low country and S. of Judah, taking Bethshemesh, Ajalon, Gederoth. Shocho, Timnah, and Gimzo: Isa 9:12, "the Syrians before (i.e. from the E., which quarter they faced in marking the points of the compass) and the Philistines behind," i.e. from the W. (2Ch 28:18.) Isaiah (Isa 14:29-32) warns Philistia, "rejoice not because the rod of him (Uzziah) that smote thee is broken; for out of the serpent's (as the Philistines regarded Uzziah) root shall come forth a cockatrice," i.e. a more deadly adder, namely, Hezekiah (2Ki 18:8), "and the firstborn of the poor (i.e. the most abject poor, Hebraism; the Jews heretofore exposed to Philistia's invasions and oppression) shall feed in safety." Hezekiah had Egypt for his ally in resisting Assyria, possibly also in subduing the Philistines. Hence Sargon's annals (Bunsen, Eg. 4:603) term Gaza and Ashkelon "Egyptian cities." His general Tartan took Ashdod, as key of Egypt (Isa 20:1-5).
The Assyrians fortified it so strongly that it stood a 29 years' siege under Psammetichus (Herodot. 2:157). Sennacherib took Ashkelon, and gave part of Hezekiah's land as a reward to Ashdod, Gaza, and Ekron for their submission (Rawlinson 1:477). After the Babylonian captivity (Eze 25:15-17) the Philistines vented their "old hatred" on the Jews, for which God as He foretold "executed vengeance on them with furious rebukes, and destroyed the remnant," namely, by Psammetichus, Necho (Jer 25:20), and Nebuchadnezzar who overran their cities on
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba; then Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army returned to the land of the Philistines.
And there was a famine in the land, other than the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines.
When he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out of a window and saw Isaac caressing Rebekah his wife.
Then Isaac sowed seed in that land and received in the same year a hundred times as much as he had planted, and the Lord favored him with blessings.
When Pharaoh let the people go, God led them not by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was nearer; for God said, Lest the people change their purpose when they see war and return to Egypt.
The peoples have heard of it; they tremble; pangs have taken hold on the inhabitants of Philistia.
As for the Avvim who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorim who came from Caphtor destroyed them and dwelt in their stead.)
As for the Avvim who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorim who came from Caphtor destroyed them and dwelt in their stead.)
As for the Avvim who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorim who came from Caphtor destroyed them and dwelt in their stead.)
This is the land that remains: all the regions of the Philistines and all those of the Geshurites: From the Shihor [River] which is east of Egypt, northward to the boundary of Ekron, all of it counted as Canaanite; there are five rulers of the Philistines, those of Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron, and those of the Avvites;
And their south boundary was from the end of the Salt [Dead] Sea, from the bay that faces southward;
Passed along to Azmon, went out by the Brook of Egypt, and ended at the sea. This was their southern frontier.
And the west boundary was the Great Sea with its coastline. This is the boundary round about the people of Judah according to their families.
Ekron, with its towns and villages. From Ekron to the sea, all that lay beside Ashdod, with their villages; read more. Ashdod, with its towns and its villages; Gaza, with its towns and its villages, as far as the Brook of Egypt, and the Great [Mediterranean] Sea with its coastline.
Ashdod, with its towns and its villages; Gaza, with its towns and its villages, as far as the Brook of Egypt, and the Great [Mediterranean] Sea with its coastline.
And the Israelites dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites;
And [Eglon] gathered to him the men of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and they possessed the City of Palm Trees (Jericho). And the Israelites served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years. read more. But when the Israelites cried to the Lord, the Lord raised them up a deliverer, Ehud son of Gera, a Benjamite, a left-handed man; and by him the Israelites sent tribute to Eglon king of Moab. Ehud made for himself a sword, a cubit long, which had two edges, and he girded it on his right thigh under his clothing.
After [Ehud] was Shamgar son of Anath, who slew 600 Philistine men with an oxgoad. He also delivered Israel.
After the days of Shamgar son of Anath, after the days of Jael [meaning here Ehud] the caravans ceased, travelers walked through byways.
And when he had set the torches ablaze, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and he burned up the shocks and the standing grain, along with the olive orchards. Then the Philistines said, Who has done this? And they were told, Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he [the Timnite] has taken his [Samson's] wife and has given her to his companion. And the Philistines came up and burned her and her father with fire.
And they said to him, We have come down to bind you, that we may deliver you into the hands of the Philistines. And Samson said to them, Swear to me that you will not fall upon me yourselves.
And the lords of the Philistines came to her and said to her, Entice him and see in what his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him that we may bind him to subdue him. And we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver.
And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his mind, she went and called for the Philistine lords, saying, Come up this once, for he has told me all he knows. Then the Philistine lords came up to her and brought the money in their hands.
Then the Philistine lords gathered together to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice, for they said, Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hands.
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the Lord? Tell us with what we shall send it to its place.
And they put the ark of the Lord on the cart and along with it the box with the mice of gold and the images of their tumors.
So Samuel took a sucking lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord; and Samuel cried to the Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him. As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to attack Israel. But the Lord thundered with a great voice that day against the Philistines and threw them into confusion, and they were defeated before Israel. read more. And the men of Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines and smote them as far as below Beth-car. Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and he called the name of it Ebenezer [stone of help], saying, Heretofore the Lord has helped us. So the Philistines were subdued and came no more into Israelite territory. And the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. The cities the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron to Gath, and Israel rescued [the cities'] territory from the Philistines. There was peace also between Israel and the Amorites.
That we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.
After that you will come to the hill of God, where the garrison of the Philistines is; and when you come to the city, you will meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying.
Jonathan smote the Philistine garrison at Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear!
When the men of Israel saw that they were in a tight situation -- "for their troops were hard pressed -- "they hid in caves, holes, rocks, tombs, and pits or cisterns. Some Hebrews had gone over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.
And raiders came out of the Philistine camp in three companies; one company turned toward Ophrah, to the land of Shual,
Now there was no metal worker to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make swords or spears. But each of the Israelites had to go down to the Philistines to get his plowshare, mattock, axe, or sickle sharpened. read more. And the price for plowshares and mattocks was a pim, and a third of a shekel for axes and for setting goads [with resulting blunt edges on the sickles, mattocks, forks, axes, and goads.] So on the day of battle neither sword nor spear was found in the hand of any of the men who were with Saul and Jonathan; but Saul and Jonathan his son had them.
And he had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of mail, and the coat weighed 5,000 shekels of bronze. He had bronze shin armor on his legs and a bronze javelin across his shoulders.
They cut off Saul's head and stripped off his armor and sent them round about the land of the Philistines to publish it in the house of their idols and among the people. And they put Saul's armor in the house of the Ashtaroth [the idols representing the female deities Ashtoreth and Asherah], and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.
When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, they all went up to find [him], but [he] heard of it and went down to the stronghold. The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the Valley of Rephaim. read more. David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand? And the Lord said to David, Go up, for I will surely deliver [them] into your hand. And David came to Baal-perazim, and he smote them there, and said, The Lord has broken through my enemies before me, like the bursting out of great waters. So he called the name of that place Baal-perazim [Lord of breaking through]. There the Philistines left their images, and David and his men took them away.
There the Philistines left their images, and David and his men took them away. The Philistines came up again and spread themselves out in the Valley of Rephaim. read more. When David inquired of the Lord, He said, You shall not go up, but go around behind them and come upon them over opposite the mulberry (or balsam) trees. And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then bestir yourselves, for then has the Lord gone out before you to smite the army of the Philistines. And David did as the Lord had commanded him, and smote the Philistines from Geba to Gezer.
The Philistines had war again with Israel. And David went down and his servants with him and fought against the Philistines, and David became faint. Ishbi-benob, who was of the sons of the giants, the weight of whose spear was 300 shekels of bronze, was girded with a new sword, and thought to kill David. read more. But Abishai son of Zeruiah came to David's aid, and smote and killed the Philistine. Then David's men charged him, You shall no more go out with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel. After this, there was again war with the Philistines at Gob (Gezer). Then Sibbecai the Hushathite slew Saph (Sippai), who was a descendant of the giant. There was again war at Gob with the Philistines, and Elhanan son of Jaare-oregim, a Bethlehemite, slew Goliath the Gittite, whose spear shaft was like a weaver's beam. And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; he also was a descendant of the giants. And when he defied Israel, Jonathan son of Shimei, brother of David, slew him. These four were descended from the giant in Gath, and they fell by the hands of David and his servants.
But after three years, two of Shimei's servants ran away to Achish son of Maacah, king of Gath. And Shimei was told, Behold, your [runaway] servants are in Gath.
Solomon reigned over all the kingdoms from the [Euphrates] River to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt; they brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, sixty measures of meal, read more. Ten fat oxen, twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep, besides harts, gazelles, roebucks, and fatted fowl of choice kinds. For he had dominion over all the region west of the [Euphrates] River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kings west of the River, and he had peace on all sides around him.
For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up and taken Gezer, burned it with fire, slew the Canaanites who dwelt in the city, and had given it as dowry to his daughter, Solomon's wife. So Solomon rebuilt Gezer and Lower Beth-horon,
Baasha son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against Nadab, and Baasha smote him at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines, for Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon.
In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned for seven days in Tirzah. The troops were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines,
[King] Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria and lay sick. He sent messengers, saying, Go, ask Baal-zebub, the god of [Philistine] Ekron, if I shall recover from this illness. But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king in Samaria and say to them, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? read more. Therefore the Lord says: You [Ahaziah] shall not leave the bed on which you lie, but shall surely die. And Elijah departed. When the messengers returned to Ahaziah, he said, Why have you turned back? They replied, A man came up to meet us who said, Go back to the king who sent you and tell him, Thus says the Lord: Is there no God in Israel that you send to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not leave the bed on which you lie, but shall surely die.
So the woman arose and did as the man of God had said. She went with her household and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years.
He smote the Philistines, even to Gaza [the most distant city] and its borders, from the [isolated] watchtower to the [populous] fortified city.
David was then in the stronghold, and the Philistines' garrison was in Bethlehem. And David longingly said, Oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem which is by the gate! read more. Then the Three [mighty men] broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem which was by the gate and brought it to David. But David would not drink it; he poured it out to the Lord,
And when the Philistines heard that David was anointed king over all Israel, [they] all went up to seek David. And [he] heard of it and went out before them. Now the Philistines had come and made a raid in the Valley of Rephaim. read more. David asked God, Shall I go up against the Philistines? And will You deliver them into my hand? And the Lord said, Go up, and I will deliver them into your hand. So [Israel] came up to Baal-perazim, and David smote [the Philistines] there. Then David said, God has broken my enemies by my hand, like the bursting forth of waters. Therefore they called the name of that place Baal-perazim [Lord of breaking through]. [The Philistines] left their gods there; David commanded and they were burned. And the Philistines again made a raid in the valley. And David inquired again of God, and God said to him, Do not go up after them; turn away from them and come [around] upon them over opposite the mulberry trees. And when you hear a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry or balsam trees, then go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to smite the Philistine host. So David did as God commanded him, and they smote the army of the Philistines from Gibeon even to Gezer.
After this, David smote and subdued the Philistines, and took Gath and its villages out of the hand of the Philistines.
And some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat gifts and tribute silver, and the Arabs brought him flocks: 7,700 each of rams and of he-goats.
And the Lord stirred up against Jehoram the anger of the Philistines and of the Arabs who were near the Ethiopians. They came against Judah, invaded it, and carried away all the possessions found in and around the king's house, together with his sons and his wives; so there was not a son left to him except Jehoahaz, the youngest.
He went out against the Philistines and broke down the walls of Gath, of Jabneh, and of Ashdod, and built cities near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines.
The Philistines had invaded the cities of the low country and of the South (the Negeb) of Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, and Soco, and also Timnah and Gimzo, with their villages, and they settled there.
In those days also I saw Jews who had married wives from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. And their children spoke half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak the Hebrew, but in the language of each people.
Moab is My washpot [reduced to vilest servitude]; upon Edom I cast My shoe in triumph; over Philistia I raise the shout of victory.
The fire [of war] devoured their young men, and their bereaved virgins were not praised in a wedding song.
I will make mention of Rahab [the poetic name for Egypt] and Babylon as among those who know [the city of God] -- "behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia (Cush) -- "[saying], This man was born there.
Moab is My washbasin; upon Edom [My slave] My shoe I cast [to be cleaned]; over Philistia I shout [in triumph].
Surely [Lord] You have rejected and forsaken your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled [with customs] from the east and with soothsayers [who foretell] like the Philistines; also they strike hands and make pledges and agreements with the children of aliens.
The Syrians [compelled to fight with their enemies, going] before [on the east] and the Philistines behind [on the west]; and they will devour Israel with open mouth. For all this, [God's] anger is not [then] turned away, but His hand is still stretched out [in judgment].
Rejoice not, O Philistia, all of you, because the rod [of Judah] that smote you is broken; for out of the serpent's root shall come forth an adder [King Hezekiah of Judah], and its [the serpent's] offspring will be a fiery, flying serpent. And the firstborn of the poor and the poorest of the poor [of Judah] shall feed on My meadows, and the needy will lie down in safety; but I will kill your root with famine, and your remnant shall be slain. read more. Howl, O gate! Cry, O city! Melt away, O Philistia, all of you! For there is coming a smoke out of the north, and there is no straggler in his ranks and none stands aloof [in Hezekiah's battalions]. What then shall one answer the messengers of the [Philistine] nation? That the Lord has founded Zion, and in her shall the poor and afflicted of His people trust and find refuge.
In the year that the Tartan [Assyrian commander in chief] came to Ashdod in Philistia, sent by Sargon king of Assyria, he fought against Ashdod and took it. At that time the Lord spoke by Isaiah son of Amoz, saying, Go, loose the sackcloth from off your loins and take your shoes off your feet. And he had done so, walking around stripped [to his loincloth] and barefoot. read more. And the Lord said, As My servant Isaiah has walked [comparatively] naked and barefoot for three years, as a sign and forewarning concerning Egypt and concerning Cush (Ethiopia), So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptian captives and the Ethiopian exiles, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with buttocks uncovered -- "to the shame of Egypt. And they shall be dismayed and confounded because of Ethiopia their hope and expectation and Egypt their glory and boast.
Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will punish all who though circumcised [outwardly, in the flesh] are still uncircumcised [in corresponding inward purity] -- " Egypt, Judah, Edom, the children of Ammon, Moab [all of whom are related except Egypt], and all who live in the desert and who clip off the corners of their hair and beards; for all these nations are uncircumcised [in heart], and all the house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.
And all the mixed foreign population; all the kings of the land of Uz; and all the kings of the land of the Philistines and [their cities of] Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod;
Because of the day that is coming to destroy all the Philistines and to cut off from Tyre and Sidon every helper who remains. For the Lord is destroying the Philistines, the remnant [still surviving] of the isle or coastland of Caphtor [where the Philistines originated].
Thus says the Lord God: Because the Philistines have dealt revengefully and have taken vengeance contemptuously, with malice and spite in their hearts, to destroy in perpetual enmity, Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will stretch out My hand against the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites [an immigration in Philistia] and destroy the remainder of the seacoast. read more. And I will execute great vengeance upon them with wrathful rebukes and chastisements, and they shall know (understand and realize) that I am the Lord, when I lay My vengeance upon them.
And they have cast lots for My people, and have given a boy for a harlot and have sold a girl for juice [of the grape] and have drunk it. Yes, and what are you to Me, O Tyre and Sidon and all the [five small] divisions of Philistia? Will you pay Me back for something? Even if you pay Me back, swiftly and speedily I will return your deed [of retaliation] upon your own head, read more. Because you have taken My silver and My gold and have carried into your temples and palaces My precious treasures, And have sold the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem to the sons of the Grecians, that you may remove them far from their border. Behold, I will stir them up out of the place to which you have sold them and will return your deed [of retaliation] upon your own head. I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the children of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far off, for the Lord has spoken it.
Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Gaza [a city in Philistia] and for four [for multiplied delinquencies], I will not reverse the punishment of it or revoke My word concerning it, because [as slave traders] they carried away captive the whole [Jewish] population [of defenseless Judean border villages, of which none was spared, none left behind] and delivered them up to Edom [for the slave trade]. So I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza which shall devour its strongholds.
So I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza which shall devour its strongholds. And I will cut off the inhabitants from Ashdod and him who holds the scepter from Ashkelon, and I will turn My hand against Ekron; and the rest of the Philistines [in Gath and the towns dependent on these four Philistine cities] shall perish, says the Lord God.
And I will cut off the inhabitants from Ashdod and him who holds the scepter from Ashkelon, and I will turn My hand against Ekron; and the rest of the Philistines [in Gath and the towns dependent on these four Philistine cities] shall perish, says the Lord God.
Pass over to Calneh and see, and from there go to Hamath the great [city, north of Damascus]; then go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are they better than these [your] kingdoms? Or are their boundaries greater than your boundaries,
You [O degenerate children of Israel] are no more to Me than these [despised] Cushites, says the Lord. I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt, but have I not [also] brought the Philistines out of Caphtor and the Syrians from Kir?
You [O degenerate children of Israel] are no more to Me than these [despised] Cushites, says the Lord. I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt, but have I not [also] brought the Philistines out of Caphtor and the Syrians from Kir?
For [hear the fate of the Philistines:] Gaza shall be forsaken and Ashkelon shall become a desolation; the people of Ashdod shall be driven out at noonday and Ekron shall be uprooted. Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, the nation of the Cherethites [in Philistia]! The word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines; I will destroy you until no inhabitant is left.
Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, the nation of the Cherethites [in Philistia]! The word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines; I will destroy you until no inhabitant is left.
[The strong cities of Philistia] shall see it and fear; Ashkelon, Gaza also, and be sorely pained, and Ekron, for her confidence and expectation shall be put to shame, and a king [monarchial government] shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited. And a mongrel people shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will put an end to the pride of the Philistines.
Hastings
Morish
Philis'tia
See PALESTINA,
Smith
Philis'tia
(Heb. Pelesheth) (land of sojourners). The word thus translated (in)
is in the original identical with that elsewhere rendered Palestine, which always means land of the Philistines. (Philistia was the plain on the southwest coast of Palestine. It was 40 miles long on the coast of the Mediterranean between Gerar and Joppa, and 10 miles wide at the northern end and 20 at the southern.--ED.) This plain has been in all ages remarkable for the extreme richness of its soil. It was also adapted to the growth of military power; for while the itself permitted. the use of war-chariots, which were the chief arm of offence, the occasional elevations which rise out of it offered secure sites for towns and strongholds. It was, moreover, a commercial country: from its position it must have been at all times the great thoroughfare between Phoenicia and Syria in the north and Egypt and Arabia in the south.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Moab is My washpot [reduced to vilest servitude]; upon Edom I cast My shoe in triumph; over Philistia I raise the shout of victory.
I will make mention of Rahab [the poetic name for Egypt] and Babylon as among those who know [the city of God] -- "behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia (Cush) -- "[saying], This man was born there.