Place Old Testament
Tophel
Tophel, a location mentioned in Moses' speech to the Israelites, possibly near modern-day et-Tafeleh, southeast of the Dead Sea (Deut. 1:1). Mentioned once in Scripture, at Deuteronomy 1:1.
Why it matters. A place near where Moses addressed the Israelites
- Primary passages
- Location
- 30.937, 35.617 (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 Tophel
Tophel is mentioned only once in the Bible, in Deu.1.1, as one of the places near where Moses delivered his final address to the Israelites before they entered the Promised Land. The exact location of Tophel is uncertain, but it is described as being in the wilderness, in the Arabah, opposite Suph, between Paran, Laban, Hazeroth, and Di-zahab. Some scholars suggest that Tophel may be identified with modern-day et-Tafeleh, a village located about 15 miles southeast of the Dead Sea, on the caravan route between Petra and Kerak. However, this identification is not conclusive. The mention of Tophel in the context of Moses' speech serves to provide a geographical reference point for the location of the Israelite camp at the time of the address.
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
No reviewed connections yet.
Appears in Scripture
Named in 1 verse across 1 book. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.
Deuteronomy (1 verse)