KiriathJearim

Kiriath-Jearim, also spelled Kirjath-jearim, is a biblical city in the territory of Judah in the hill country of Judea. The name in Hebrew is Qiryath Yeʿārîm, often translated as “City of the Forests” or “City of Jearim.” The site is conventionally placed near modern Kiryat Ye’arim, in the Jerusalem District of Israel, about 10–12 miles northwest of central Jerusalem, though the precise location is debated.

In biblical narrative, Kiriath-Jearim is best known as the place where the Ark of the Covenant rested after being returned by the Philistines. According to 1 Samuel 7, the Ark was brought to Kirjath-jearim and remained there for about twenty years, until David later moved it to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6; 1 Chronicles 13–16). The city is also listed as a Levitical city in some biblical enumerations.

Throughout later periods, Kiriath-Jearim largely disappears from the literary record, and the exact location and status of the city in later history remain uncertain. Archaeological evidence linking to Kiriath-Jearim has not produced a universally accepted identification, though several sites near Jerusalem have been proposed.

The site’s historical significance lies in its role in the early Israelite cultic narrative and its place in the Ark’s movements, illustrating the transition from the tabernacle period in Shiloh to Jerusalem as the religious center.