Now the name of Hebron before was Kiriath Arba, after the greatest man among the Anakim. Then the land had rest from war.
Parallel translations
- KJV And the name of Hebron before was Kirjatharba; which Arba was a great man among the Anakims. And the land had rest from war.
- BSB (Hebron used to be called Kiriath-arba, after Arba, the greatest man among the Anakim.) Then the land had rest from war.
- NKJV And the name of Hebron formerly was Kirjath Arba (Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim). Then the land had rest from war.
- NASB Now the name of Hebron was previously Kiriath-arba; for Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim. Then the land was at rest from war.
- NLT (Previously Hebron had been called Kiriath-arba. It had been named after Arba, a great hero of the descendants of Anak.) And the land had rest from war.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Hebron, formerly called Kiriath Arba after the great Anakite, is now Caleb's; and the land rested from war. It marks the close of the major conquest.
Overview
The old name honored the foremost of the giant Anakim, whose terrifying reputation once made Israel shrink back (Numbers 13:33). Now that very stronghold falls to faithful Caleb, and the narrative notes that the land had rest from war. This rest is a foretaste of the greater rest God's people find in Christ (Hebrews 4:8-9), won not by giants but by the Lord who fights for His own.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Josh 11:23So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that Yahweh spoke to Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. The land had rest from war.
- Gen 23:2Sarah died in Kiriath Arba (also called Hebron), in the land of Canaan. Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.
- Josh 15:13He gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh a portion among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of Yahweh to Joshua, even Kiriath Arba, named after the father of Anak (also called Hebron).
- Judg 3:11The land had rest forty years, then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
- Judg 5:31“So let all your enemies perish, Yahweh, but let those who love him be as the sun when it rises in its strength.” Then the land had rest forty years.
- Judg 8:28So Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more. The land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.
- Judg 3:30So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. Then the land had rest eighty years.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Joshua — the same name as Jesus, 'the LORD saves' — leads God's people into their inheritance, a shadow of the greater Joshua who brings us into the true rest and the promised land that remains.
How Joshua 14:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.