Elon.

By: Morris Jastrow, Jr. , Charles J. Mendelsohn , George A. Barton

1.

—Biblical Data:

The tenth judge of Israel. He was a Zebulonite, and succeeded Ibzan as judge. He judged Israel for ten years, when he died and was buried in Aijalon in the country of Zebulun (Judges xii. 11, 12). "Elon" ( ) and "Aijalon" ( ) differ merely in their vowels, and it is generally thought that they should be considered the same. The Septuagint renders both Αἰλώμ

J. Jr. C. J. M. —Critical View:

Elon is one of the five minor judges whose names are given together with a few statistics about them, but who are connected with no historical exploits. The others are Tola, Jair, Ibzan, and Abdon. Elon is, in Gen. xlvi. 14 and Num. xxvi. 26, a clan of the tribe of Zebulun. Since Tola and Jair are also clans; since Ibzan and Abdon, from the number of their posterity, are probably likewise; and since the narratives of the minor judges are late additions to the Book of Judges, it is probable that Elon is a personified clan and never had historical existence as a judge (compare Moore, "Commentary on Judges," pp. 270 et seq. , 310 et seq. , and Budde's Commentary to Judges, p. 78).

J. Jr. G. A. B.

2. A Hittite; father of Esau's wife, Bashemath or Adah (Gen. xxvi. 34, xxxvi. 2).

3. One of the three sons of Zebulun; he was the ancestor of the Elonites (Gen. xlvi. 14; Num. xxvi. 26).

4. A city on the border of Dan (Josh. xix. 43). The place has not yet been positively identified. Some consider it the same as Elon-beth-hanan (I Kings iv. 9), which is mentioned as belonging to the second taxing district of Solomon, and according to Schick (in "Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palästina Vereins," x. 137), is identical with Khirbat Wadi Alin, east of 'Ain Shams. Elon-beth-hanan, on the other hand, is sometimes taken as representing two places (compare LXX. and Vulgate: the former has καὶ Ελὼν ἕως Βηθανάν; the latter, "et in Elon et in Bethanan"). In Josh. xix. 42 "Aijalon" (A. V. "Ajalon") occurs, and perhaps "Elon" in the next verse is a dittography, the two words having the same consonants ( compare Elon , 1).

J. Jr. C. J. M.