{
  "id": "dict_005344",
  "term": "Socoh",
  "slug": "socoh",
  "letter": "S",
  "entry_type": "biblical_place_name",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "Socoh is a biblical place name used for at least one town in the Old Testament, best known as the Judahite town near the Valley of Elah.",
  "simple_one_line": "A biblical town name, best known for the Socoh in Judah near the Valley of Elah.",
  "tooltip_text": "Biblical place name; best known as the Judahite town near the Valley of Elah in the David and Goliath account.",
  "aliases": [],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [
    "Azekah",
    "Valley of Elah",
    "Judah",
    "Philistines",
    "David",
    "Goliath",
    "Shephelah"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "Beth-shemesh",
    "Keilah",
    "Lachish",
    "Soco",
    "biblical geography"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Socoh is a biblical place name used for towns in the Old Testament, especially the Judahite town near the Valley of Elah.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "An Old Testament place name for a town in Judah, and possibly more than one location.",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "The best-known Socoh is in Judah's lowland near the Valley of Elah",
    "it appears in territorial lists and in the setting of David's conflict with Goliath",
    "Scripture presents Socoh as a real historical location, not a theological concept."
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Socoh is a biblical place name used for at least one Old Testament town, most notably a town in Judah in the Shephelah near the Valley of Elah. It appears in geographic and military contexts, including the narrative setting for the Philistines' encampment before David fought Goliath. Because this is a location rather than a doctrine, it belongs in a place-name entry.",
  "description_academic_full": "Socoh is an Old Testament place name used for at least one town in Judah, and biblical references indicate that more than one location may be intended in some contexts. The best-known Socoh lies in the Shephelah of Judah near the Valley of Elah and is associated with the Philistine encampment before David's battle with Goliath. Other references place Socoh within Judahite settlement and fortification lists. Scripture uses the name as a historical geographic marker, so the entry should be treated as a biblical place-name rather than a theological term.",
  "background_biblical_context": "Socoh appears in passages that locate towns within Judah and describe military movement in the lowland region. Its best-known mention is in the David and Goliath account, where the Philistines gathered between Socoh and Azekah in the Valley of Elah (1 Sam. 17).",
  "background_historical_context": "The Shephelah was a strategic buffer zone between the hill country of Judah and Philistine territory. Towns such as Socoh served as important geographic markers in accounts of conflict, settlement, and territorial control.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "Ancient Israelite place names often identified settled towns, clan territories, and military staging points. Socoh fits that pattern as a local settlement name anchored in Judah's historical geography.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "Joshua 15:35",
    "1 Samuel 17:1–2",
    "2 Chronicles 11:7"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "Joshua 15:48",
    "1 Chronicles 4:18-19 (for broader Judahite geographic context, where applicable)"
  ],
  "original_language_note": "Hebrew place name, usually transliterated Socoh or Soco depending on the translation tradition.",
  "theological_significance": "Socoh has no direct doctrinal meaning of its own, but it helps anchor biblical events in real geography and reinforces the historical character of Scripture.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "As a place name, Socoh functions as a reference point in narrative and territorial description rather than as an abstract concept. Its value is historical and literary, not speculative or symbolic.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "Several English spellings and transliterations may refer to the same Hebrew place name. Read each occurrence in context to determine which location is meant, especially when a passage only uses the name as a geographic marker.",
  "major_views_note": "The main interpretive issue is identification: whether a given occurrence refers to the Judahite town near the Valley of Elah or another place with the same or similar name.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "Socoh should not be treated as a doctrine, symbol, or typological system. It is a historical biblical location.",
  "practical_significance": "Socoh reminds readers that biblical events happened in identifiable places and that geography often matters for understanding the narrative flow of Scripture.",
  "meta_description": "Socoh is a biblical place name for a town in Judah, best known from the David and Goliath account in 1 Samuel 17.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/socoh/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/socoh.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}