H0847 H0847
Eshtaol; a town in the Shephelah allotted to Dan, closely associated with Zorah and the story of Samson.
A proper noun identifying the town of Eshtaol, located in the Shephelah (lowland foothills) of Judah and allotted to the tribe of Dan. It is almost always mentioned alongside Zorah, its sister settlement, forming a recognizable pair in the biblical text. Eshtaol figures prominently in the Samson narrative — the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him between Zorah and Eshtaol (Judg 13:25), and he was buried in his father's tomb between the two towns (Judg 16:31). It also served as the staging ground for the Danite migration northward (Judg 18:2, 8, 11). The name may derive from an Arabic form of the verb 'to ask.'
Senses
1. Eshtaol (place name) — The proper name of a town in the Shephelah region, consistently paired with Zorah in both the allotment lists and the Danite narratives. Multilingual evidence is remarkably uniform — English 'Eshtaol,' Spanish 'Estaol,' French 'Eschtaol,' and German 'Eshtaol' all transliterate the same toponym with minor phonetic adaptation. The town appears in the tribal allotment of Judah (Josh 15:33) and Dan (Josh 19:41), then figures in the Samson cycle as the place where the Spirit first moved him (Judg 13:25) and where he was buried (Judg 16:31). The Danite spies departed from Eshtaol on their mission north (Judg 18:2, 8, 11). 7×
AR["أَشْتاؤولُ", "أَشْتَاوُلَ", "إشتاؤولَ", "وَ-أَشْتَاؤُلَ", "وَ-أَشْتَاؤُلُ", "وَ-مِن-أَشْتَاؤُلَ"]·ben["ইশ্তাওল", "ইশ্তাওলের", "ইষ্টায়োল", "এবং-ইষ্টায়োল", "এবং-ইষ্টায়োল-থেকে", "এবং-ইষ্টায়োলে"]·DE["Eshtaol", "und-Eshtaol", "und-von-Eshtaol"]·EN["Eshtaol", "and-Eshtaol", "and-from-Eshtaol"]·FR["Eschtaol", "et-Eschtaol", "et-de-Eschtaol"]·heb["אשתאול", "ו-אשתאול", "ו-מ-אשתאול"]·HI["एश्ताओल", "और-एश्ताओल", "और-एश्ताओल-से"]·ID["Estaol", "Esytaol", "dan-Estaol", "dan-Esytaol", "dan-dari-Estaol"]·IT["Eshtaol", "e-Eshtaol", "e-da-Eshtaol"]·jav["lan-saking-Éstaol", "lan-Èstaol", "lan-Éstaol", "Èstaol", "Éstaol"]·KO["그리고-에스다올", "그리고-에스다올로", "그리고-에스다올에서", "에스다오", "에스타올"]·PT["'Eshta'ol", "Eshtaol", "e-Eshtaol", "e-de-Eshtaol"]·RU["Эштаол", "Эштаолом", "и-Эштаол", "и-из-Эштаола"]·ES["Estaol", "y-Estaol", "y-de-Estaol"]·SW["Eshtaoli", "na-Eshtaoli", "na-kutoka-Eshtaoli"]·TR["Eştaol", "ve--den-Eştaol", "ve-Eştaol"]·urd["اشتاؤل", "اشتاؤل-کے", "اشتاول-کے۔", "اور-اشتاؤل", "اور-اشتاؤل-سے"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† אֶשְׁתָּאוֹל Jos 15:33 + 2 times, אֶשְׁתָּאֹל Ju 13:25 + 3 times n.pr.loc. (in form like the inf. of the Arabic viii. conj. from שָׁאַל: so אֶשְׁתְּמֹעַ from שָׁמַע. Perhaps Arabic-speaking tribes may have settled in parts of S. of Judah) city of Danites in the שְׁפֵלָה of Judah, named with צָרְעָה Jos 15:33; 19:41 Ju 13:25; 16:31; 18:2, 8, 11; perhaps mod. ’Eshûʿa Surveyiii. 25 GuerinPal. ii. 13 f. 382.