Bethel (Hebrew בֵּית־אֵל, Standard Hebrew Bet El, Beyt El, Tiberian Hebrew Bêṯ-ʼĒl) is a Biblical city in ancient Israel, about 10 miles north of Jerusalem in Samaria (Northern West Bank). Bethel has been identified by some with the ruins surrounding the Palestinian village of Beitin and by others with the modern Israeli settlement of Beit El. It is frequently associated with the patriarchs Abraham and Jacob. Abraham made a sanctuary in the area, giving the place the name Bethel, the city called Luz formerly. It is where Jacob is said to have had his dream of a ladder ascending to heaven. Thereupon Jacob set upright the stone which had served as his pillow, poured oil on it, and named it Bethel 'House of God'. From this the later city presumably derived its name. According to Jewish tradition, Beit El also refers to the Temple Mount and the Midrash teaches that the Temple Mount physically came to Beit El during Jacob's dream where he laid the Foundation Stone, which is identitifed as the stone which served as his pillow. Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family spoken by more than 6 million people, mainly in Israel, the West Bank, the United States and by Jewish communities around the world. ... The Modern Hebrew language is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family. ... Tiberian Hebrew is an oral tradition of pronunciation for ancient forms of Hebrew, especially the Hebrew of the Bible, that was given written form by masoretic scholars in the Jewish community at Tiberias in the early middle ages, beginning in the 8th century. ... The Bible (From Greek βιβλια—biblia, meaning books, which in turn is derived from βυβλος—byblos meaning papyrus, from the ancient Phoenician city of Byblos which exported papyrus) is the sacred scripture of Christianity. ... Jerusalem and the Old City. ... Beit El is an Israeli settlement in the Binyamin region of the Northern West Bank (Samaria). ... Abraham (אַבְרָהָם Father/Leader of many, (circa 1700 BCE) Standard Hebrew Avraham, Tiberian Hebrew ; Arabic ابراهيم ; Geez አብርሃም ) is the regarded as a patriarch of Israelite religion, recognized by Judaism and later Christianity, and a very important prophet in Islam. ... Jacob Wrestling with the Angel – Gustave Doré, 1855 Jacob or Yaakov, (יַעֲקֹב Holder of the heel, Standard Hebrew YaÊ¿aqov, Tiberian Hebrew Yaʿăqōḇ; Arabic يعقوب YaÊ¿qÅ«b), later known as Israel (יִשְׂרָאֵל Prince with God, Standard Hebrew Yisraʾel, Tiberian Hebrew YiÅ›rāʾēl; Arabic اسرائيل Isrāʾīl) is a Biblical... The ancient name of a royal Canaanite city, connected with Bethel (Gen. ... Aerial view of the Temple Mount, with the Dome of the Rock in the center, the Western Wall and the Al Aqsa Mosque on the upper left of the compound The Temple Mount (Hebrew: (without niqqud: הר הבית), Har haBáyit) or Noble Sanctuary (Arabic: الحرم الشريف,   al-Ḥaram aÅ¡-Å arÄ«f?) is a... Midrash (pl. ...

For traditions of other such stones named Bethel and a god named Bethel see Bethel (god). Bethel meaning in Hebrew and Phoenician and Aramaic House of El or House of God is seemingly the name of a god or an aspect of a god in some ancient middle-eastern texts dating to the Assyrian, Persian and Hellenistic periods. ...

In troublous times the people went to Bethel to ask counsel of God (Judges 20:18, 31; 21:2). Here the ark of the covenant was kept for a long time under the care of Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron (20:26-28). Here also Samuel held in rotation his court of justice (1 Sam. 7:16). It was said to be a favourite place of worship. It was included in the northern kingdom when Israel was divided. Jeroboam I made Bethel the chief sanctuary of the northern kingdom, setting up the golden calf (1 Kings 12:28-33; 13:1). Hence the prophet Hosea (Hosea 4:15; 5:8; 10:5, 8) calls it in contempt Beth-aven, i.e., "house of hurtfulness." The city was also the centre for the prophetic ministry of Amos. The city apparently escaped destruction by the Assyrians at the time of the fall of Samaria, but it was later occupied by Josiah of the remaining southern kingdom. Bethel remained an abode of priests even after the northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed(2 Kings 17:28, 29). Book of Judges (Hebrew: ספר שופטים) is a book of the Bible originally written in Hebrew. ... Phinehas or Pinhas - פִּינְחָס, Standard Hebrew Pinəḥas, Tiberian Hebrew Pînəħās is a name shared by two characters in the Hebrew Bible. ... Aaron (אַהֲרֹן;, a word meaning bearer of martyrs in Hebrew (perhaps also, or instead, related to the Egyptian Aha Rw, Warrior Lion), Standard Hebrew Aharon, Tiberian Hebrew ʾAhărōn), was a Levite and the elder brother of Moses and the eldest son of Amram and Jochebed (Exodus 6:16 ff. ... For other people with the name Samuel see Sam In the Old Testament, Samuel or Shmuel (שְׁמוּאֵל Name/Heard of God, Standard Hebrew Šəmuʼel, Tiberian Hebrew Šəmûʼēl) is a leader of ancient Israel. ... Jeroboam (increase of the people), the son of Nebat an Ephrathite (1 Kings 11:26-39), was the first king of the break-away ten tribes or Kingdom of Israel, over whom he reigned twenty-two years. ... The Book of Hosea is a book of the Jewish Hebrew Bible, known to Christians as the Old Testament, written by Hosea. ... (עָמוֹס Burden, Standard Hebrew ʿAmos, Tiberian Hebrew ʿĀmôs) was a person in the Bible, and putative author of the speeches reported in the Book of Amos (for Bible citation Amo). ... Samaria, Sumaria or Shomron (Hebrew שֹׁמְרוֹן, Standard Hebrew Šoməron, Tiberian Hebrew Šōmərôn, Arabic سامريّون Sāmariyyūn (but commonly called in Arabic جبال نابلس Jibal Nablus), in the New Testament Greek Σαμαρεία) is a term used for the mountainous northern part of the area on the west bank of the Jordan River. ... Josiah or Yoshiyahu (יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ supported of the LORD, Standard Hebrew Yošiyyáhu, Tiberian Hebrew Yôšiyyāhû) was king of Judah, and son of Amon and Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. ...

Bethel was also a town in the south of Judah (Josh. 8:17; 12:16). It seems to be the same as the place called Bethul or Bethuel, a city of the tribe of Simeon. The Kingdom of Judah (Hebrew מַלְכוּת יְהוּדָה, Standard Hebrew Malḫut Yəhuda, Tiberian Hebrew Malḵûṯ Yəhûḏāh) in the times of the Hebrew Bible, was the nation formed from the territories of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin after the Kingdom of Israel was divided, and was named after... This entry incorporates text from Eastons Bible Dictionary, 1897, with some modernisation. ...

Sources

"Bethel", in M. G. Easton, The Illustrated Bible Dictionary, T. Nelson and Sons, London, 1894