Mount Gilboa

Biblical Text

Mount Gilboa is where King Saul died, together with three of his sons, while fighting the Philistines.

• 1 Samuel 28:4: The Philistines encamped at Shunem, and Saul encamped at Gilboa. When Saul saw the Philistine army, he was afraid and sought out the woman at Endor who had a familiar spirit (1 Samuel 28:5–25). Such a woman was a medium who claimed to call up the spirits of the dead.
• 1 Samuel 31:1–8: The Israelite army was defeated on Mount Gilboa, and Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua were killed. Saul, gravely wounded by archers, fell upon his own sword and died. The Philistines fastened Saul's body to the wall of Beth-shan, and the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead retrieved it by night and buried it.
• 2 Samuel 1: A young Amalekite reported Saul's death to David. David composed a lament (a song mourning the dead) for Saul and Jonathan, singing, "Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain, upon you…" (2 Samuel 1:21).
• 2 Samuel 21:12; 1 Chronicles 10:1–8: These passages refer again to the same event.

Geography and Background

Mount Gilboa is a ridge rising on the southeastern side of the Jezreel Valley, reaching a little over 500 meters (about 1,650 feet) above sea level. Across the valley to the north lies the Hill of Moreh, at whose foot are Shunem and Endor. This terrain fits the biblical account of the two armies facing each other across the valley. To the east, the ridge extends toward Beth-shan in the Jordan Valley.

A spring at the northern foot of Gilboa is commonly identified as the well of Harod, where Gideon encamped (Judges 7:1). The name Gilboa, however, does not appear in the text of Judges. The original meaning of the name Gilboa is uncertain.

Broader Biblical Significance

The battle of Mount Gilboa marks a turning point: it ended the reign of Saul, Israel's first king, and opened the way for the era of David. First Chronicles 10:13–14 explains that Saul died because he did not keep the word of the Lord and inquired of one who had a familiar spirit. The name Gilboa does not appear in the New Testament.

Interpretations and Debates

• Two accounts of Saul's death: First Samuel 31 records that Saul took his own life, yet in 2 Samuel 1 the young Amalekite claims that he killed Saul. Many commentators hold that the young man fabricated his story in hope of a reward from David. Other scholars think that differing traditions have been preserved side by side.
• Saul's suicide: The text reports Saul's defeat and death but passes no separate judgment on the act of taking his own life. For this reason, some urge caution in reading this passage in connection with the question of suicide.
• The tale of the "cursed, barren mountain": Stories circulate that because of David's lament, no rain falls on Mount Gilboa, or no grass grows there, to this day. This, however, is not what the text says. David's words are generally read as a poetic expression of grief.

In the Korean Church

In Korean church preaching, Saul's end is frequently used to illustrate the fate of one who turns away from God. Preachers also cite 2 Samuel 1, where David sincerely mourns the death of Saul, the man who had sought to kill him, to speak about the proper attitude toward one's enemies.