Idumea, the Land of Edom, the Idumeans
Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia
(red) (Gen 25:30)—a land and people that received their name from Esau, or Edom, from the color of the pottage (the red lentil stew) for which he sold his birthright to Jacob. The Greeks and Romans called this land Idumea (Ps 60:1[?], Jer 27:3). This land, inhabited by the Horites (Deut 2:12), lay to the south of the Dead Sea as far as the northern end of the Gulf of Elath, on the borders of the land of Moab. Idumea, otherwise the land or mountain of Seir, in biblical times comprised a narrow strip of land between the wilderness of Zin on the west and rocky Arabia on the east.
The climate there was excellent, and the land was noted for its fertility. The ancient capital of Idumea was the city of Bozrah, probably the present-day Bessaireh, mentioned by the prophet Isaiah (63:1): “Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah?” Other cities were Sela, which later became the capital and is better known by its Greek translation: Petra. The ruins of this ancient city, with its many caves, tombs, palaces, and triumphal arches, were discovered in 1812 by Burckhardt, in the region of Wadi Musa, to the east of Mount Hor, on which the high priest Aaron died.
This city, as is known from 2 Kings 14:7, was captured by King Amaziah, when 10,000 Idumeans fell in battle and 10,000 captive Idumeans were hurled down by the victors from the cliffs. Amaziah gave the city the name Joktheel. A third ancient Idumean city, Teman, is mentioned already in the book of Genesis (36:34) (thought to be the present-day Ma’an, to the south of Petra). The inhabitants of Teman were renowned for their wisdom (Jer 49:7). The Idumeans were ruled by kings before there reigned any king over the children of Israel (Gen 36:31), until the time of their subjugation by David (2 Sam 8:14), whereby was fulfilled the prophecy given by Isaac to his son Jacob (Gen 27:29) concerning the descendants of Esau (the Idumeans).
During the reign of David, the Idumeans, as noted above, were defeated by him in the Valley of Salt, and his general Joab destroyed nearly the entire male population (1 Kings 11:15-16). In honor of this victory the psalmist exclaims in the person of the Lord: “Over Edom will I cast out my shoe” (Ps 60:8). Hadad, a member of the royal Idumean family, fled to Egypt, where, being graciously received by Pharaoh, he later became one of Solomon’s most dangerous enemies (1 Kings 11:14-22).
Afterward the inhabitants of southern Edom rebelled against Jehoram, king of Judah, and for nearly half a century maintained their independence (2 Chr 21:8). When Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem, the Idumeans joined him and took an active part in the plunder and slaughter of the vanquished Jerusalemites. Their bloodthirstiness and cruelty on that occasion are recalled in Psalm 137:7: “Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem; who said, Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation thereof.” There is not a single country on the face of the whole earth whose present condition so clearly, precisely, and fully confirms the truth of prophetic words as does Idumea.
The prophecies concerning its fate in the book of Isaiah (34:5, 10-17), as well as elsewhere, are especially striking in their fulfillment. The exact fulfillment of these prophecies is fully confirmed even by the testimony of the very enemies of the Bible. Modern travelers unanimously testify that on the site of ancient, once glorious and warlike Idumea there now stretches a wide, wild, and barren plain. In the place where the kings of Edom once reigned in splendor and the nobles gathered, where the numerous and varied manifestations of ancient power and wealth were concentrated, where royal palaces, temples, and mausoleums once stood magnificent, there is now a wild, gloomy desert, almost uninhabited by anyone.
“And I will possess it,” the prophet Isaiah once prophesied concerning Idumea, “the pelican and the hedgehog… the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it… and thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof… and it shall be a habitation of dragons… the wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island… there shall the great owl make her nest… it shall be an habitation of jackals, and a court for owls” (Isa 34:11-15).
And indeed, nothing could more precisely or vividly convey the present state of the once-warlike Idumea than these words of the divinely-inspired prophet. In conclusion, let it be said that the remnants of the Idumeans, having mingled with the Arabian and other tribes according to prophecy (Amos 9:12, Isa 11:14), were at one time to enter into the kingdom of the Lord; we see that during the earthly life of the Savior, many of the descendants of the Idumeans followed Christ, having heard of His great works (Mark 3:7-8).