One of three valleys (the others being the Kidron and the Tyropoeon or Central Valleys) that define the southern topography of Jerusalem. The three valleys join at the south-eastern end of Jerusalem just beyond the Pool of Siloam and drains into the Judean desert in the direction of the Dead Sea. The Valley of Hinnom wraps the southern part of the city before turning north to from the western edge of the city.
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In the earliest reference to the valley in the OT it was called " gey ben-hinnom, "Valley of Ben Hinnom," when it served as a demarcation for the boundaries of Judah and Benjamin (Jos 15:8; 18:16). The valley appeared to have played little role in ancient Israel's history for it was not mentioned again until the early 8th Cent. BC when King Ahaz "burned sacrifices in the Valley of Ben Hinnom and sacrificed his sons in the fire, following the detestable ways of the nations that the LORD had driven out before the Israelites" (2 Chron 28:3). He was followed by his grand-son, Manasseh (2 Chron 33:6). The site of this detestable practice eventually acquired a name for itself, when, in the time of Josiah, we read of Topheth where children were burned to death as an offering to the pagan god Molech. In his reforming zeal Josiah gave the place a thorough desecration and put an end to its practice (2 Ki 23:10). The practice so horrified Jeremiah, he was vehement in his preaching of the wrath of God that would attend the practice (nearly half of its 13 occurrences (in 11 verses) in the OT is found in Jeremiah).
The Valley of Hinnom is not mentioned in the NT per se. By the time of Jesus the valley seemed to have become a place where refuse of all kinds (including possibly the corpses of criminals and animals). From this came arose—it is surmised—the habit of calling it gehenna (Gk) from the shortened Heb. gey hinnom, and a synonym for hell (e.g., Matt 5:22; Mk 9:43; Lk 12:5).
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