Rock of Rimmon

Biblical Text and Narrative

The Rock of Rimmon is mentioned three times in the narrative of Judges 19–21. The story begins in Gibeah, where a Levite's concubine is killed. The other tribes of Israel demand that the perpetrators be handed over, but the tribe of Benjamin refuses, and war breaks out as a result.

• Judges 20:45: The defeated Benjamites flee toward the wilderness, to the Rock of Rimmon, while the Israelite army pursues them and kills many.
• Judges 20:47: Six hundred Benjamites reach the Rock of Rimmon and remain there for four months.
• Judges 21:13: The congregation of Israel sends word to the Benjamites at the Rock of Rimmon, proclaiming peace to them.

Israel then gives them four hundred virgins from Jabesh-gilead as wives and, to make up the shortfall, allows them to take women who were dancing at the feast in Shiloh. In this way the tribe of Benjamin is kept from being cut off (Judges 21:14–23).

Background

The Hebrew word rimmon means "pomegranate," and the word translated "rock" refers to a rock or cliff. The text says only that the site lay toward the wilderness and does not specify its exact location. Scholars commonly propose the vicinity of the present-day village of Rammun, east of Bethel. This identification, however, is a conjecture based on the similarity of the names and on the terrain, and it remains uncertain. The rugged, rocky terrain is thought to have provided a suitable refuge in which a band of fugitives could hide and hold out.

The Old Testament mentions several places named Rimmon, including a town in the territory of Judah and Simeon (Joshua 15:32) and a town in the territory of Zebulun (Joshua 19:13). The name was also used for an Aramean deity (in the account of Naaman, 2 Kings 5:18). The Rock of Rimmon is distinct from all of these.

Significance in the Broader Biblical Narrative

The Rock of Rimmon is the place where one of the twelve tribes of Israel nearly disappeared yet survived through the six hundred men who remained. The Book of Judges closes this account with the words, "In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes" (Judges 21:25). This concluding statement reflects the moral and social disorder of the period of the judges.

Israel's first king, Saul, later came from the tribe of Benjamin; his hometown was Gibeah. Scripture also records Saul's deliverance of Jabesh-gilead shortly after he became king (1 Samuel 11), and many interpreters draw attention to the connection between the two narratives. In the New Testament, Paul identifies himself as a member of the tribe of Benjamin (Romans 11:1; Philippians 3:5).

Interpretation and Issues

• Date of the events: The text records that Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, was serving as high priest during this war (Judges 20:28). For this reason, many interpreters hold that although the events of Judges 19–21 appear at the end of the book, they actually took place early in the period of the judges.
• The "remnant" reading: Some sermons and commentaries connect the six hundred survivors at the Rock of Rimmon with the theme of the remnant, reading the episode as the preservation of a tribe even amid judgment. Because the text itself does not describe the event in theological terms, this reading belongs to the realm of interpretation.
• Location: As noted above, scholars differ on the archaeological identification of the site.