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Place Old Testament

Elath

Also known as Eloth =ESV, KJV; Elath =ESV, NIV, KJV

Elath, an Edomite port on the Red Sea, was fortified by Judah during the reigns of Solomon and Uzziah. Mentioned in 6 verses across 4 books, first at Deuteronomy 2:8.

Why it matters. Edomite port on the Red Sea; fortified by Judah

Location
29.529, 35.006 (approximate, within about 2 km)

Coordinates from STEPBible TIPNR (palopenmaps.org link). Approximate; not independently verified.

Last reviewed
2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team

About Elath

Elath, also spelled Eloth, was a seaport located at the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba, an arm of the Red Sea. It was originally part of the territory of Edom (Deu.2.8) but came under Israelite control during the reign of Solomon. Solomon used Elath as a port for his fleet of ships that sailed to Ophir for gold (1Ki.9.26, 2Ch.8.17).

After the division of the kingdom, Elath remained under Judean control. King Uzziah of Judah rebuilt and fortified Elath, restoring it to Judah (2Ki.14.22, 2Ch.26.2). However, during the reign of Ahaz, the Edomites regained control of Elath and drove out the Judeans (2Ki.16.6). The city later fell under Assyrian and Babylonian control. Today, Elath is identified with the modern Israeli city of Eilat.

Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.

Connections

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Appears in Scripture

Named in 6 verses across 4 books. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.

Record type: Place. FaithGraph explanations on this page are editorial and are not Scripture.