Volume 17, Issue 2, 2025, pages 286-306

DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsLJBL2193
Published online: 2025-12-01
Published in print: 2025-12-30

Abstract: The verse 1 Kgs 16:34 represents an intriguing part of Deuteronomistic History for several reasons. It narrates the re-building of Jericho despite God’s prohibition and curse announced by Joshua upon the city’s destruction in Josh 6:26. Moreover, while recounting the effectiveness of the curse in respect to the re-builder of Jericho the passage identifies not only his geographical provenance (Bethel) but also his personal identity (Hiel) along with those of his two sons (Abiram, Segub). Scholars have already dealt with the questions about why Jericho was brought to life by a Bethelite and why this event immediately precedes the Elijah–Elisha cycle. Yet, the reasons the rebuilder of Jericho was concretised by name have not been treated yet. To complement the existing investigations, this paper examines interconnections between the personal names of Hiel and his sons, and the place names of Bethel and Jericho within the Deuteronomistic concept of geography. This study argues for the intentional choice of the anthroponyms of the three literary characters and of the toponym of their origin to communicate both an ironic conformity of the names’ semantic significance with the act of rebuilding and its consequences.