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MEROM*, Waters of
Site of Joshua’s victory over Jabin, king of Hazor, and his allies, mentioned only twice in the Bible (Jos 11:5-7). Jabin’s allies included Jobab, the king of Madon, and the kings of Shimron, Achshaph, and the northern hill country, as well as those of the lowland south of the Sea of Galilee. The site of the battle is not clear but a likely place for “the waters of Merom” is near the foot of Har Merom (on modern Israeli maps), or on older maps, Jabel Marun—the highest mountain in Israel (3,962 feet, or 1,207.1 meters). Near the base of the mountain is the town of Merom, where several roads leading into northern Galilee converge. It is on the road between Hazor and Acco on the coast; hence, it was a convenient place for Joshua’s enemies to rendezvous. Merom is about eight miles (12.9 kilometers) southwest of Hazor. The “waters of Merom,” therefore, would be the springs that emerge from the mountain to flow down Wadi Leimun into the Sea of Galilee. Merom is mentioned in Egyptian texts of the second millennium BC associated with the campaigns of Thutmose III. The Assyrian monarch Tiglath-pileser III also reported his expedition into this region in 733–732 BC, at the time when he conquered Damascus. The allied forces defeated by Joshua fled northwest, in the direction of Sidon, suggesting an attack by Joshua from the southeast, from the area west of the Sea of Galilee, the natural approach from the south.