Gihon

Biblical Text

In the Bible, Gihon refers to two different places.

• The river of Eden: Genesis 2:10–14 records that a river flowing out of the Garden of Eden divided into four heads. The second river is the Gihon: "the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia" (Genesis 2:13; Hebrew Cush). The other three are the Pison, the Hiddekel, and the Euphrates.
• The spring of Jerusalem: In 1 Kings 1, David has his son Solomon ride on David's own mule down to Gihon. There the priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan anoint Solomon king (1 Kings 1:33–45). 2 Chronicles 32:30 records that Hezekiah stopped the upper watercourse of Gihon and brought its water down to the west side of the City of David. 2 Chronicles 33:14 records that Manasseh built an outer wall on the west side of Gihon, in the valley.

Background

The Hebrew name Gihon (גִּיחוֹן) is commonly explained as related to a verb meaning "to gush forth" or "to burst out."

It is unclear which river the Gihon of Eden refers to. The "Cush" mentioned in the text has commonly been understood as the Ethiopian–Nubian region of the upper Nile. For this reason, the Jewish historian Josephus and many Church Fathers identified the Gihon with the Nile. Other scholars, however, noting that the Hiddekel (Tigris) and the Euphrates are rivers of Mesopotamia, connect Cush with the Kassites of Mesopotamia and look for the Gihon in that region as well.

The Gihon Spring in Jerusalem lies on the eastern slope of the City of David, facing the Kidron Valley. It was the main water source of ancient Jerusalem. The spring is known for gushing forcefully at intervals, and some explain the name by this feature. The channel that carried the spring's water to the Pool of Siloam inside the city is commonly called "Hezekiah's Tunnel." In 1880 an inscription describing its construction was discovered inside the tunnel. Hezekiah's waterworks are also mentioned in 2 Kings 20:20.

Broader Biblical Significance

The four rivers of Eden are read as a picture of life and abundance flowing out from the garden God made to the whole earth. This water imagery continues later in Scripture. Ezekiel 47 describes water that flows out from the temple and gives life to everything it reaches, and Revelation 22:1–2 describes the river of the water of life and the tree of life in the New Jerusalem.

Some interpreters draw attention to the fact that the river of Eden and the spring of Jerusalem share the same name. On this reading, Jerusalem and the temple are portrayed as places that recall Eden. Some commentators also connect this spring with "the waters of Shiloah that go softly" (Isaiah 8:6) and with the river "the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God" (Psalm 46:4). These connections, however, are interpretations and are not stated directly in the text.

Interpretations and Debates

Views differ on whether the Gihon of Eden is an actual geographical river.

• Literal river view: This view seeks to identify the Gihon with the Nile or with a particular river in Mesopotamia.
• Altered landscape view: Some young-earth creationists explain that the shape of the land was changed by Noah's Flood, so that the river can no longer be located today.
• Literary view: This view understands the four rivers as a literary depiction of abundance reaching the whole world.
• Allegorical interpretation: In antiquity some interpreters, such as the Jewish philosopher Philo, likened the four rivers to four virtues.

Regarding Jerusalem, some identify the "gutter" (2 Samuel 5:8) mentioned in the account of David's capture of the city with a vertical shaft connected to the Gihon Spring. This identification remains disputed even among archaeologists and is not an established fact.