Lexical Summary Mekonah: Mekonah Original Word: מְכֹנָה Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Mekonah The same as mkownah; a base; Mekonah, a place in Palestine -- Mekonah. see HEBREW mkownah NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originof uncertain derivation Definition a place in Judah NASB Translation Meconah (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs מְכֹנָה proper name, of a location in Judah Nehemiah 11:28. ᵐ5L Μαμη. — מְכֹנָה = מְכוֺנָה see כון. [מִכְנָס], מִכְנְסֵי see כנס. מֶ֫כֶס, [מִכְסָה] see כסס. מִכְסֶה, מְכַסֶּה see I. כסה. מַכְמֵּלָה see כפל. Topical Lexicon Geographic Setting Mekonah was a Judean village in the Negeb-Shephelah belt, listed immediately after Ziklag (Nehemiah 11:28). Because Ziklag is securely located in the south-western hill country bordering the Philistine plain, Mekonah is commonly placed in the same district, probably a few kilometres north-east of Tell es-Shearia (biblical Ziklag) or near the later Greco-Roman site of Menois. The topography—rolling pastureland that grades into semi-arid steppe—made it suitable for mixed agriculture and flock-keeping, matching Nehemiah’s emphasis on “villages with their fields” (Nehemiah 11:25). Biblical Context Nehemiah 11 records the repopulation of Judah after the Babylonian exile. While some families were chosen by lot to live in fortified Jerusalem, others re-occupied ancestral towns to restore the rural economy. Verse 28 reads: “in Ziklag, in Mekonah and its villages”. The verse places Mekonah among a chain of settlements stretching from Kiriath Arba (Hebron) southward to Beersheba, illustrating a deliberate policy to secure Judah’s traditional frontiers (Joshua 15:20-32). Mekonah therefore represents the re-establishment of covenant life not only in the urban centre but also in the countryside, ensuring that Jerusalem’s temple worship was undergirded by stable agrarian support. Historical Background 1. Pre-exilic roots: The appearance of Mekonah in a post-exilic list implies an earlier existence, likely disrupted by Babylonian incursions (2 Kings 25:1-12). Theological and Ministry Significance • Covenant faithfulness: God’s promise to “bring them back to the land” (Jeremiah 32:37) proved tangible when even modest villages such as Mekonah were re-occupied. Small places mattered in the outworking of divine fidelity. Related Passages and Themes • Joshua 15:20-32 – Original allotment of southern Judah, the territorial canvas reclaimed in Nehemiah 11. Archaeological Notes No definitive excavation of Mekonah has yet occurred. Surface finds at Khirbet el-Maqs include Iron-Age sherds overlain by Persian-to-Byzantine material, matching the occupational profile implied by Nehemiah. Lack of massive fortifications aligns with its description as a village rather than a fortified city. Lessons for Today 1. God honors humble places. Ministry in lesser-known locales carries eternal weight. Forms and Transliterations וּבִמְכֹנָ֖ה ובמכנה ū·ḇim·ḵō·nāh ūḇimḵōnāh uvimchoNahLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Nehemiah 11:28 HEB: וּבְצִֽקְלַ֥ג וּבִמְכֹנָ֖ה וּבִבְנֹתֶֽיהָ׃ NAS: and in Ziklag, in Meconah and in its towns, KJV: And at Ziklag, and at Mekonah, and in the villages INT: Ziklag Meconah towns 1 Occurrence |
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