What is…
Gezer
also known as: Tel Gezer
Hebrew: גֶּזֶר
Meaning: a precipice
This was an major ancient fortified Canaanite royal city-state (Joshua 10:33; 12:12). “Its importance was due in part to the strategic position it held at the crossroads of the ancient coastal trade route linking Egypt with Syria, Asia Minor (Anatolia/Turkey) and Mesopotamia, and the road to Jerusalem and Jericho, both important trade routes.”
It stood between the lower Beth-horon and the sea (Joshua 16:3; 1 Kings 9:17).
During the conquest of the Promised Land, Joshua killed the king of Gezer. Later, the Tribe of Ephraim received Gezer as part of their lands. However, the tribe did not expel the Canaanites of Gezer their servants to do taskwork (Joshua 16:10; Judges 1:29).
Gezer was allotted with its suburbs to the Kohathite Levites (Joshua 21:21; 1 Chronicles 6:67).
After the battle of Baal-perazim, Gezer was the last point to which David pursued the Philistines (2 Samuel 5:25; 1 Chronicles 14:16).
The Canaanites retained possession of it till the time of Solomon, when the Pharaoh of Egypt came up and took Gezer, “and burnt it with fire” and killed “the Canaanites that dwelt in the city” (10th century BC). This may have been Pharaoh Netjerkheperre-Setepenamun Siamun (aka Neterkheperre).
The Pharaoh gave Gezer as a wedding gift to his daughter, King Solomon’s wife. In marrying this princess, Solomon (a descendant of former Egyptian slaves) now became Pharaoh’s son-in-law. “The alliance through marriage is seen by scholars as the reason for the reported increase in trade with Egypt at 1 Kings 10:28–29.” Eventually Solomon built a palace specifically for this Egyptian wife. Pharaoh’s daughter was the only wife of Solomon to be moved into her own palace.
Solomon then rebuilt and fortified the city for Israelite use (1 Kings 9:15-18). He built two other cities not far from it, Beth-horon (Betchora) was the name of one of them, and Baalath (Beleth) of the other.
Gezer is mentioned in the Amarna tablets.
According to the ancient Jewish historian Josephus and the Christian historian Eusebius of Caesarea (3rd century AD), the 3rd Gezer became known as Gazara.
Gezer is identified with Tel Gezer (Tell el-Jezer), about 10 miles southwest of Beth-horon (Beit Horon).
Gezer stood at an important crossroads of the ancient world. A Christian archaeological video (On the Promised Land: Crossroads of the World) describes this ancient city. “As God called the ancient culture of Gezer to impact the rest of the world for His glory and purpose, so he calls upon us to do the same today.”
What are the Cities of the Bible? Names, descriptions, locations and types