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Aram: Ancient Kingdom of High Places
Aram is a Hebrew word meaning “high place” or “highland,” referring to a grandson of Noah and son of Shem. In the Old Testament, the region of Aram encompassed a vast territory stretching from the Euphrates River to the eastern side of the Jordan River, and it was a historically significant area that formed a powerful kingdom centered on Damascus.
Aram: Ancient Kingdom of High Places
In Hebrew, Aram means “to be high,” “high place,” or “highland.” It refers both to the fifth son of Shem, son of Noah, and to the region inhabited by his descendants. In the Old Testament, the place name Aram does not denote a single politically unified territory, but rather a general area where Aramean peoples settled and lived, making its precise boundaries difficult to define.
Aram in the Old Testament (Aram, Syria called country)
Aram as presented in the Old Testament generally refers to a broad region encompassing the basins of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers around the Fertile Crescent, extending to the eastern bank of the Jordan River and the northeastern part of Palestine; this region is also known as Syria. The descendants of Aram initially settled east of the Euphrates, then migrated northward along the river around the 20th century B.C. to the region of Haran. As the Hittites in northern Palestine declined, they moved southward again and, between the 11th and 8th centuries B.C., established the Aramean kingdom (Syria) with Damascus as its capital, enjoying a period of great prosperity. When emphasizing the empire as a powerful, organized state centered on Damascus, it is also referred to as “Syria.” Damascus, which served as the capital of Aram, became a vassal of Israel under King David, and during the reign of King Solomon it was conquered by Rezon of Aram-Zobah, one of the cities of the Aramean kingdom. After the death of Rezon, it was subsequently conquered by Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and Rome.
Major Cities of Aram
The major cities of Aram included Damascus, Hamath, and Geshur, all of which historically served as capital cities of Aram at various times. Aram established pantheons in each of its cities, and the chief patron deity of Aram was ‘Hadad,’ the god of weather and fertility. In Damascus there was a temple to ‘Hadad-Rimmon,’ and the Arameans also worshiped idols such as the moon god ‘Sin,’ the creator god ‘El,’ the sun god ‘Shamash,’ and the plague god ‘Resheph.’ It was out of this world saturated with idolatry that God called Abraham, appointing him as a standard-bearer of faith in the LORD.
Israel and Aram
In fact, the Arameans share the same ancestors as the people of Israel. Abraham, the forefather of Israel, was himself originally from Ur of the Chaldeans, east of the Euphrates; he received God’s call and migrated to Canaan by way of Haran. When the time came to find a bride for his son Isaac, he sent his servant back to his homeland of Paddan-aram. Jacob likewise dwelt at the house of his uncle in Paddan-aram during his conflict with his brother Esau, and after serving Laban for twenty years, he married his two daughters — and so the Arameans came to form one branch of the ancestors of Israel. For this reason, when Moses introduced his own ancestry, he described it by saying, ‘My father was a wandering Aramean.’ (Deut 26:5) Historically, however, Israel and Aram maintained a constant relationship of rivalry and tension, and after the division of the Israelite kingdom, Aram skillfully leveraged both the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah to pursue its own political and military interests. Aram eventually fell, but its language survived and became the common tongue of the Jewish people from the 3rd century B.C. onward. Portions of the Bible were also written in Aramaic.
Originally published in Korean at bible2u.com
