{
  "id": "dict_002123",
  "term": "Geba",
  "slug": "geba",
  "letter": "G",
  "entry_type": "biblical_place_name",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "Geba was a town in Benjamin in the Old Testament, often mentioned as a boundary marker and as a setting for military and administrative events.",
  "simple_one_line": "A Benjaminite town in the Old Testament, important mainly as a geographic and historical marker.",
  "tooltip_text": "Biblical town of Benjamin, used in boundary descriptions and historical narratives.",
  "aliases": [],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [
    "Benjamin",
    "Gibeah",
    "Jerusalem",
    "Judah",
    "Michmash",
    "Joshua"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "Boundary",
    "Levitical cities",
    "Saul",
    "Josiah",
    "Tribal allotments"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Geba is an Old Testament place-name for a town in the tribal territory of Benjamin. Scripture mentions it in connection with borders, Levite settlement, and military events, especially in the period of the monarchy.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "Geba was a town in Benjamin north of Jerusalem, used in Scripture as a location marker and the setting for several historical events.",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "Town of Benjamin",
    "appears in boundary and settlement lists",
    "associated with Saul-era events and later reforms",
    "best understood as a place-name rather than a theological concept."
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Geba was a Benjaminite town north of Jerusalem that appears in several Old Testament passages. It is associated with tribal boundaries, priestly or Levitical settlement, and military activity.",
  "description_academic_full": "Geba is an Old Testament town assigned to the tribe of Benjamin and mentioned in contexts involving territorial boundaries, settlement lists, and military activity. It appears in narratives connected with Saul’s reign and in later references that use it as a geographic marker in Judah and Benjamin. Scripture treats Geba as a real location of historical and strategic significance. It is not primarily a theological term, but a biblical place-name that helps locate events and describe the land of Israel.",
  "background_biblical_context": "Geba appears in passages that describe the land allotted to Benjamin, the distribution of towns, and key moments in Israel’s history. It is especially helpful as a marker in texts describing activity near Jerusalem and the border regions of Judah and Benjamin.",
  "background_historical_context": "In the monarchy period, towns like Geba mattered for defense, administration, and regional identity. Its repeated mention alongside nearby locations shows its role as a recognizable point in the landscape of central Israel.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "In ancient Israel, towns named in tribal allotment lists and boundary notices carried covenantal and administrative significance. Geba’s inclusion in such lists reflects its place within the settled life of Benjamin and later Judah.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "Joshua 18:24",
    "1 Samuel 13:3",
    "2 Kings 23:8",
    "Nehemiah 11:31"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "1 Chronicles 6:60",
    "Isaiah 10:29"
  ],
  "original_language_note": "The Hebrew form is גֶּבַע (Gevaʿ), a place-name connected with a town in Benjamin.",
  "theological_significance": "Geba has limited direct theological significance, but it contributes to the historical realism of Scripture. As a fixed place-name, it helps anchor biblical narratives, territorial boundaries, and reform movements in actual geography.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "Place-names in Scripture matter because biblical revelation is rooted in real history and real locations, not abstractions. Geba functions as part of the concrete setting in which God’s purposes unfolded among Israel’s tribes and kings.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "Do not turn Geba into a symbolic or allegorical term. Its significance is primarily geographic and historical. Distinguish carefully between the town of Geba and nearby sites with similar names or functions in boundary descriptions.",
  "major_views_note": "There is broad agreement that Geba is a Benjaminite town, though some passages use it as a regional boundary marker rather than as the center of a narrative. The main interpretive question is its exact archaeological location, not its biblical identity.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "Geba should be treated as a biblical place-name, not as a doctrinal concept. Its value is historical and contextual, not theological in the narrow sense.",
  "practical_significance": "Geba reminds readers that Scripture is rooted in identifiable places and historical circumstances. That helps readers follow the flow of biblical history and the real-world setting of God’s dealings with Israel.",
  "meta_description": "Geba was a Benjaminite town in the Old Testament, mentioned in boundary descriptions, settlement lists, and historical narratives.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/geba/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/geba.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}