TEKOA

(Te·koʹa).

A town in the territory of Judah that is commonly identified with Khirbet ʼet-Tuquʽ, some 16 km (10 mi) S of Jerusalem and lying at an elevation of about 820 m (2,700 ft). To the E stretches the Wilderness of Judah, of which “the wilderness of Tekoa” (where the Ammonites, Moabites, and the forces from Mount Seir suffered a crushing defeat during Jehoshaphat’s reign) was apparently a part. (2Ch 20:20, 24) King Rehoboam, David’s grandson, rebuilt and fortified Tekoa, and for centuries thereafter the city evidently served as an outpost in the Judean defense system. (2Ch 11:5, 6; compare Jer 6:1.) It was the home of Ikkesh, the father of Ira, one of David’s mighty men. (1Ch 11:26, 28) From there came the wise woman who, at the direction of Joab, appealed to King David in behalf of Absalom. (2Sa 14:1-21) And there, in the ninth century B.C.E., the prophet Amos raised sheep.​—Am 1:1.

Some may conclude that the Tekoa mentioned in the Judean genealogical records (1Ch 2:3, 24; 4:5) was a son of Ashhur. However, Tekoa is not listed in 1 Chronicles 4:5-7 among the seven sons of Ashhur’s two wives, suggesting that Ashhur, rather than being the father of a son named Tekoa, may have been the founder of the town or of its population.