Bible Locations

This Joktheel was a town in the Shephelah of Judah, listed only in Joshua 15:38 with Dilean, Mizpah and Lachish, in the district around Lachish. The name may mean "God destroys" or "subdued by God." The Shephelah is the region of low, rolling hills between the Philistine coastal plain and the Judean mountains, with fertile valleys for grain, olives and vines. The Lachish area was densely settled and was heavily damaged during Sennacherib's invasion in 701 BC, when the Assyrians captured Lachish after a siege shown on reliefs in the British Museum. Joktheel's exact location is unknown. No events are recorded there, and no other ancient source mentions it. It's different from the Joktheel in Edom, the name King Amaziah gave to the stronghold of Sela. Like many towns in Joshua's lists, it's known only by its name and its neighbors.