Dictionary Article

Small province mentioned with Trachonitis as forming the tetrarchy of Philip, brother of Herod the Great, during the reign of Tiberius Caesar (Lk 3:1). A reasonable assumption places Iturea northeast of the Sea of Galilee and in the area of Mt Hermon, but its location and boundaries have been much disputed. The name almost certainly comes from Jetur, a son of Ishmael (Gn 25:15), whose descendants were among those conquered by the Israelites east of the Jordan (1 Chr 5:19-20). Thereafter, the Itureans virtually drop from sight until Josephus records another defeat inflicted on them by Aristobulus in 105–104 BC, at which time many of them were faced with a choice between circumcision and exile.

Show passage in OET: LUK 3:1

OET-RV LUK 3:1

3 It was the fifteenth year of the rule of Kaisar Tiberios when Pontios Pilatos (Pilate) was the governor of Yehudah (Judea) and Herodes (Herod) was the ruler of the Galili quarter. His brother Filippos (Philip) was the ruler of the Iturean quarter and of the region of Trakonitis, and Lusanias was the ruler of the Abilainai quarter.

OET-LV LUK 3:1

3 And in the_ fifteenth _year of _the government of _Tiberios Kaisar, Pontios Pilatos was governing of_ the _Youdaia, and Haʸrōdaʸs being _quarter _ruler of_ the _Galilaia/(Gālīl), And Filippos the brother of _him being _quarter _ruler of_ the _Itouraios and Traⱪōnitis region, and Lusanios the being _quarter _ruler of _Abilaʸnaʸ,

Show passage in OET: GEN 25:15

OET-RV GEN 25:15

15 Hadad, Teyma, Yetur, Nafish, and Kedemah.

OET-LV GEN 25:15

15 Hₐdad and_Tēymāʼ Yəţūr/(Jetur) Nāfīsh and_Qədəmāh.

Show passage in OET: CH1 5:19–20

OET-RV CH1 5:19

19 They went to war against the Hagrim, Yetur, Nafish, and Nodav,

OET-RV CH1 5:20

20 and were helped because they called out to God in the battle. So with God answering their prayers because of their trust in him, they were able to defeat the Hagrim and their allies.

OET-LV CH1 5:19

19 And_they _made war with the_Hagrī and_Yəţūr/(Jetur) and_Nāfīsh and_Nōdāⱱ.

OET-LV CH1 5:20

20 And_they _were _helped on_them and_they _were _given in_hand _of_their the_Hagrī and_all/each/any/every those_who_were_with_them if/because to_god they _had _cried _out in_battle and_he _was _entreated to/for_them if/because they _trusted in_him/it.

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There are frequent mentions by classical writers of Itureans, sometimes described as Syrians or Arabians—skilled bowmen with the predatory tendencies often associated with groups unable or unwilling to settle for long in any one area. In view of this, it is not surprising that we know more about Itureans than we do about Iturea.

Strabo speaks of them as inhabitants of a mountainous country; Dio Cassius a little later tells us that they had a king. Any attempt to understand their history is complicated by divisions in the Roman Empire that affected them, but by the end of the first century AD, many Itureans were to be found under the provincial rule of Syria.

It is easier, then, to discuss the people than the place. Some scholars, indeed, hold that Luke could not have used the noun “Iturea,” for this was a form unknown until three centuries later, and that the adjectival form better fits the case. This prompts another question: Was this Iturean territory within Philip’s tetrarchy? Could Luke have made a slip and anticipated a later regional regrouping? Josephus at one point lists the constituent parts of Philip’s tetrarchy without including Iturea.

Three facts are clear: (1) there is a certain flexibility and overlapping in descriptions of territorial demarcation; (2) the data we have is insufficient for exact conclusions about Iturea; and (3) the evidence is clear from other parts of Scripture that Luke is a careful and reliable writer.

Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary