Places in the Bible Today:

Pisgah

Data

Translated NamesAshdoth-pisgah, Pisgah, Pisgah Peak
Typesmountain or mountain range
Geo Data KML (for Google Earth)
GeoJSON (for GIS applications)

5 Possible Identifications

  1. Rujm Siyaghah (modern): 45% confidence
    1. panorama of ruins at Rujm SiyaghahRujm Siyaghah

  2. another name for Mount Nebo (ancient): 20% confidence. It may be:
    1. panorama of Jabal al NabaJabal al Naba

    2. panorama of ruins at Rujm SiyaghahRujm Siyaghah

    3. building at Jebel OshaJebel Osha

  3. another name for Abarim (ancient): less than 10% confidence
    1. panorama looking east at mountains of AbarimAbarim

  4. Jabal al Naba (modern): less than 10% confidence
    1. panorama of Jabal al NabaJabal al Naba

  5. not a proper name (ridge): less than 10% confidence

Verses (8)

Gen-Deut (6)
Num 21:20, 23:14
Deut 3:17, 3:27, 4:49, 34:1
Josh-Ruth (2)
Josh 12:3, 13:20

Linked Data Identifiers

SourceIdentifier
Biblemapper.com1061
Logos FactbookPisgah
OpenBible.info (2007)Pisgah
OpenBible.infoafd9259 (Pisgah)
TIPNRPisgah@Num.21.20
UBS Names Databaseot ID_2415
WikidataQ2601894

Sources

  1. Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (1992): Pisgah (place)
  2. Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land (1990): Pisgah
  3. Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary (2013): Pisgah
  4. Baly, Atlas of the Biblical World (1971): Pisgah
  5. Baly, The Geography of the Bible (1974): page 117
  6. Carta Bible Atlas, 5th Edition (2011)
  7. Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000): Pisgah
  8. Expositor’s Bible Commentary (1984): Deut 34:1 note
  9. Grollenberg, Atlas of the Bible (1957): Pisgah
  10. HarperCollins Bible Dictionary (2011): Pisgah
  11. Hess, Joshua (1996): table 2
  12. Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (2003)
  13. Holman Illustrated Guide to Bible Geography (2020): page 273
  14. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1979): Pisgah
  15. IVP Old Testament Bible Background Commentary (2000): Deut 3:17
  16. Lexham Bible Dictionary (2016): Pisgah
  17. Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary (2014): Pisgah
  18. New Bible Dictionary (1996): Pisgah, Ashdoth-pisgah
  19. New Interpreter’s Bible Dictionary (2009)
  20. New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (1988)
  21. Oxford Bible Atlas, Fourth Edition (2007)
  22. Tyndale Bible Dictionary (2001): Pisgah, Mount
  23. Westminster Historical Atlas to the Bible (1956): Pisgah, Mt.
  24. Wycliffe Bible Encyclopedia (1975): Pisgah
  25. Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible (2010)
  26. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary (2009): Deut 3:27

Confidence Trends over Time

This chart indicates how confidence in the identifications is changing over time. Each dot (connected by a dotted line) reflects the confidence of an identification over the preceding ten years (e.g., the 2009 dot reflects scholarship from 2000 to 2009), and the corresponding solid line reflects a best-fit line for the identification. Confidences that cluster near or below 0% indicate low confidence. Because of the small dataset, it's best to use this chart for general trends; if one identification is trending much higher than the others, for example, then you can probably have higher confidence in the identification. This chart only reflects the sources I consulted (listed above), not an exhaustive review of the literature.

Thumbnail Image Credits

Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg), Raya Sharbain, Bilal Dweik, Guillaume Baviere

About

This page attempts to identify all the possible locations where this biblical place could be. The confidence levels add up to less than 100%, indicating that the modern location is uncertain. It's best to think about the confidences in relative rather than absolute terms. Often they reflect different schools of thought, each confident in their identifications.

The isobands you see on the map (gray areas with dark borders) attempt to give you confidence where a region is. Because many ancient regions aren't precisely defined, I consulted atlases to determine where the biblical region is located and used that data to build the isobands. The smaller isobands reflect more confidence that the given isoband is in the region, while the larger isobands reflect less confidence. Isobands are a kind of contour line that here indicate confidence levels.