Beth Zur

Given its position at the bottleneck, with roads fanning out north and south of it, it is no accident that this town had a military function, despite the lack of a spring. It contained a fortress in the time of the Hyksos (1650-1550 BC). The town was partly restored in the 11th century BC, perhaps by Calebites (1 Chronicles 2:45). No trace has been found, however, from the time of David and Solomon, nor indeed from the time of Rehoboam (despite 2 Chronicles 11:7). Beth Zur rose again as a fortress only in the age of Josiah (late seventh century BC), as part of a system of fortresses built to defend Jerusalem.

In 586 BC, when the Babylonians attacked from the north, the Edomites took advantage of Judah's vulnerability in the south. In the course of the following centuries, they expanded into the area around Hebron, as well as the Shephelah. The Persians let the Jews return from Babylonia in 538 BC, and about a century later they established the southern border of the province of Yehud at Beth Zur. The Maccabees fortified it against the Seleucids, but they did not control the area to the south, called Idumea, for this was in Edomite hands. During the Maccabean revolt, therefore, the Seleucids were able to come up the mountain through Edomite territory (in 163 BC). They used elephants driven by Indians, defeating the Maccabean forces here.  (1 Maccabees 4:26; 6:26, 18-48)