Maon

Biblical References

• Joshua 15:55: In the book of Joshua, Maon appears in the list of towns allotted to the tribe of Judah, together with Carmel, Ziph, and Juttah. This indicates that Maon was a town in the hill country of Judah.
• 1 Samuel 23:24-28: David and his men, pursued by Saul, stayed "in the wilderness of Maon, in the plain on the south of Jeshimon." Saul went on one side of the mountain and David on the other, and Saul had nearly surrounded David. At that moment word came that the Philistines had invaded the land, so Saul broke off the pursuit and turned back. For this reason the place was called Sela-hammahlekoth.
• 1 Samuel 25:2: The story of Nabal begins with the words "And there was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel." Nabal insultingly refused David's request. His wife, Abigail, went out to meet David and averted his retaliation, and after Nabal's death she became David's wife.

In addition, 1 Chronicles 2:45 lists Maon as a personal name in the genealogy of Caleb's descendants. This man is recorded as the father of Beth-zur.

Background

Maon lay in the hill country of Judah south of Hebron, near towns such as Carmel and Ziph. The region borders the Judean wilderness to the east and was well suited to raising sheep and goats. The record that Nabal was a wealthy man who owned three thousand sheep and a thousand goats (1 Samuel 25:2) fits this setting. Maon is widely identified today with Khirbet Ma'in, about 13–14 kilometers (8–9 miles) south of Hebron, although scholars' judgments vary.

As a common noun, the Hebrew word ma'on (מָעוֹן) means "dwelling" or "habitation." The same word is used in Psalm 90:1, where God is called the "dwelling place" of His people: "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations."

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

Maon is a principal setting of the period before David became king, when he was hunted from place to place in the wilderness. First Samuel records that it was here that David narrowly escaped from Saul's hand. It was also here that Abigail's wise intervention kept David from avenging himself by shedding blood. Both episodes are read as part of the process by which David waited for God's timing rather than seizing the throne by his own strength. The place name Maon does not appear in the New Testament.

Interpretive Issues

• Distinction from Carmel: The Carmel mentioned in the Maon narrative is a town of Judah near Maon. It is a different place from Mount Carmel in the north, where Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal. The two are sometimes mistakenly confused.
• Meaning of Sela-hammahlekoth: The name is interpreted either as "rock of escape" or as "rock of division," and scholars differ on which is correct.
• Textual variants: In 1 Samuel 25:1, the Hebrew text gives the place to which David went down as "the wilderness of Paran." The Septuagint, by contrast, is reported to read "the wilderness of Maon."
• "The Maonites": Many scholars hold that the "Maonites" mentioned in Judges 10:12 and elsewhere refer to a different people, unrelated to the town of Maon in the hill country of Judah.

In the Korean Church

Maon is mentioned chiefly as a background location in sermons on the story of Abigail and Nabal in 1 Samuel 25. It also appears in sermons on 1 Samuel 23 that address David's years in the wilderness and God's protection.