The Cities of the Tribe of Simeon in the Negev Frontier

Joshua 19:1-9 records the second tribal lot at Shiloh which fell to Simeon "within the inheritance of the children of Judah" — meaning Simeon's territory was carved out of the southern Judean Negev. The catalog names seventeen towns including Beersheba (Sheba), Moladah, Hazar-shual, Balah, Azem, Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah, Ziklag, Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susah, Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen. Because the tribal allotment proved too narrow for Simeon, the tribe eventually merged into the larger southern Judean population — preserving its name in genealogies but losing its distinct territorial identity by the early monarchy.

Read It