{
  "id": "dict_000601",
  "term": "Beth-Zur",
  "slug": "beth-zur",
  "letter": "B",
  "entry_type": "biblical_place",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "A town in the hill country of Judah, mentioned in the Old Testament as a Judahite place name.",
  "simple_one_line": "Beth-Zur was a town in Judah.",
  "tooltip_text": "Biblical town in Judah, likely south of Jerusalem.",
  "aliases": [],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [
    "Judah",
    "Hill country of Judah",
    "Jerusalem",
    "Nehemiah",
    "Joshua, Book of"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "Bethlehem",
    "Hebron",
    "Lachish",
    "Judah, Territory of"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Beth-Zur is a biblical town in the hill country of Judah. It appears in Old Testament geographic and administrative lists and is best understood as a place name within Israel’s territorial history rather than as a theological concept.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "A town in Judah mentioned in the Old Testament.",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "A geographic place, not a doctrine or theological term.",
    "Associated with the hill country of Judah.",
    "Appears in tribal and post-exilic restoration contexts.",
    "Helps locate biblical events within Israel’s land history."
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Beth-Zur is a town in the hill country of Judah, noted in Old Testament references and later historical importance. Because it is a geographic location rather than a doctrinal concept, it should be classified as a place entry.",
  "description_academic_full": "Beth-Zur is a biblical town associated with Judah, likely located in the hill country south of Jerusalem. In Scripture it functions as a geographic and historical marker within Israel’s land inheritance, settlement, and post-exilic rebuilding. The name is not presented as a theological concept, but as a real location in Judah’s territory. A Bible dictionary entry should therefore classify it as a place and define it in biblical-geographic terms.",
  "background_biblical_context": "Beth-Zur appears in Old Testament lists connected with the inheritance of Judah and with later administrative and rebuilding activity in Jerusalem’s surrounding area. Its repeated mention shows that it was a recognized settlement in Judah’s territory and part of the biblical geography of the southern hill country.",
  "background_historical_context": "Beyond the Old Testament, Beth-Zur became a strategically important site in later Jewish history because of its elevated location and defensive value. That later importance fits its geographic position, but the biblical entry should remain focused on its scriptural role as a town in Judah.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "As a Judean town, Beth-Zur belongs to the settlement pattern of ancient Israel in the southern highlands. Its later prominence in Jewish history reflects how biblical sites often remained significant in the land’s continuing political and military story.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "Joshua 15:58",
    "1 Chronicles 2:45",
    "Nehemiah 3:16"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "1 Maccabees 4:29-34",
    "1 Maccabees 5:27"
  ],
  "original_language_note": "The Hebrew form is commonly rendered Beth-zur, meaning 'house of rock' or 'house of refuge' in traditional explanation, though place-name etymologies should be held cautiously unless the biblical context clearly supports them.",
  "theological_significance": "Beth-Zur has no direct doctrinal meaning in itself, but it contributes to the Bible’s record of covenant land, tribal inheritance, restoration after exile, and the historical rootedness of God’s people in real places.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "As a place name, Beth-Zur illustrates how biblical revelation is anchored in history and geography. Scripture presents God’s acts in real locations, not in abstraction, and the value of the entry lies in tracing that concrete setting.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "Do not treat Beth-Zur as a theological term. Avoid overconfident claims about exact etymology or archaeological identification unless supported by additional evidence. Keep the entry focused on the biblical data and the site’s historical-geographic significance.",
  "major_views_note": "There is little interpretive dispute over its basic identity as a town in Judah. Discussion usually concerns location, archaeological identification, and later historical significance rather than doctrine.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "Beth-Zur should not be used to build doctrine. It is a biblical place name and should be interpreted as part of salvation history, not as a symbolic or mystical term.",
  "practical_significance": "Bible readers benefit from Beth-Zur as a reminder that Scripture is set in real geography. It helps locate passages historically and can aid reading about Judah, Jerusalem’s surroundings, and post-exilic restoration.",
  "meta_description": "Beth-Zur was a town in the hill country of Judah, mentioned in the Old Testament as a biblical place name.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/beth-zur/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/beth-zur.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}