Rachel died and was buried near the road to Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem.

When I came back from Paddan-aram, Rachel died, to my sorrow, on the road in the land of Canaan, with some distance yet to go to Ephrathah, so I buried her there near the road to Ephrathah, which is Bethlehem.”

Maarath, Beth-anoth, and Eltekon. In total: six cities and their surrounding areas. Tekoah, Ephrathah (that is, Bethlehem), Peor, Etam, Koulon, Tatam, Sores, Karem, Gallim, Bether, and Manahath. In total: eleven cities and their surrounding areas.

They also owned Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem; in total: twelve cities and their surrounding areas.

Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon

After Jephthah, Ibzan from Bethlehem led Israel.

Then Ibzan died and was buried in Bethlehem.

Now there was a young man from Bethlehem in Judah, from the area of the Judahite clan. He was a Levite residing there as an immigrant.

The man left the town of Bethlehem in Judah to settle as an immigrant wherever he could find a place. He came to Micah’s house in the Ephraim highlands while he was making his way.

“Where are you from?” Micah asked him. He replied, “I’m a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, and I’m looking to settle as an immigrant anywhere I can find a place.”

A Levite, a woman, and her father

In those days when there was no king in Israel, there was a certain Levite living as an immigrant in the far corners of the Ephraim highlands. He married a secondary wife from Bethlehem in Judah.

In an act of unfaithfulness toward him, his secondary wife left him and went back to her father’s household at Bethlehem in Judah. She stayed there four full months.

“We’re traveling from Bethlehem in Judah to the far corners of the Ephraim highlands,” he replied to the old man. “That’s where I’m from. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and I’m heading to my home. But no one has offered to take me in tonight.

The family in Moab

During the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. A man with his wife and two sons went from Bethlehem of Judah to dwell in the territory of Moab.

The name of that man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They entered the territory of Moab and settled there.

So both of them went along until they arrived at Bethlehem. When they arrived at Bethlehem, the whole town was excited on account of them, and the women of the town asked, “Can this be Naomi?”

Thus Naomi returned. And Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, returned with her from the territory of Moab. They arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

Gleaning in Bethlehem

Now Naomi had a respected relative, a man of worth, through her husband from the family of Elimelech. His name was Boaz.

Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem. He said to the harvesters, “May the Lord be with you.” And they said to him, “May the Lord bless you.”

Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord grant that the woman who is coming into your household be like Rachel and like Leah, both of whom built up the house of Israel. May you be fertile in Ephrathah and may you preserve a name in Bethlehem.

Samuel anoints David

The Lord said to Samuel, “How long are you going to grieve over Saul? I have rejected him as king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and get going. I’m sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem because I have found my next king among his sons.”

Samuel did what the Lord instructed. When he came to Bethlehem, the city elders came to meet him. They were shaking with fear. “Do you come in peace?” they asked.

One of the servants responded, “I know that one of Jesse’s sons from Bethlehem is a good musician. He’s a strong man and heroic, a warrior who speaks well and is good-looking too. The Lord is with him.”

Now David was Jesse’s son, an Ephraimite from Bethlehem in Judah who had eight sons. By Saul’s time, Jesse was already quite old and far along in age.

but David went back and forth from Saul’s side to shepherd his father’s flock in Bethlehem.

Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, my boy?” “I’m the son of your servant Jesse from Bethlehem,” David answered.

If your father takes note of my absence, tell him, ‘David begged my permission to run down to his hometown Bethlehem, because there is an annual sacrifice there for his whole family.’

Jonathan answered Saul, “David begged my permission to go to Bethlehem.

They took Asahel and buried him in his father’s tomb in Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men marched all night. When daylight came, they were in Hebron.

There was yet another battle with the Philistines at Gob; and Elhanan, Jair’s son from Bethlehem, killed Goliath from Gath, whose spear shaft was as strong as the bar on a weaver’s loom.

At that time, David was in the fortress, and a Philistine fort was in Bethlehem.

David had a craving and said, “If only someone could give me a drink of water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem.”

So the three warriors broke through the Philistine camp and drew water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem and brought it back to David. But he refused to drink it and poured it out to the Lord.

Among the Thirty were: Asahel, Joab’s brother; Elhanan, Dodo’s son from Bethlehem;

Salma, Bethlehem’s father; and Hareph, Beth-gader’s father.

The family of Salma, Bethlehem’s father: the Netophathites, Atroth-beth-joab, half of the Manahathites, and the Zorites.

Penuel was Gedor’s father, and Ezer was Hushah’s father. This was the family of Hur the oldest son of Ephrathah, Bethlehem’s father:

Jokim; the men of Cozeba; Joash; and Saraph, who married into Moab but returned to Bethlehem (the records are ancient).

At that time David was in the fortress, and a Philistine fort was in Bethlehem.

David had a craving and said, “If only someone could give me a drink of water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem.”

So the three warriors broke through the Philistine camp and drew water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem and brought it back to David. But he refused to drink it and poured it out to the Lord.

The mighty warriors: Asahel, Joab’s brother; Elhanan, Dodo’s son from Bethlehem;

in Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa,

of Bethlehem 123

The people of Bethlehem and Netophah 188

They set out for Egypt, stopping on the way at Geruth Chimham near Bethlehem,

As for you, Bethlehem of Ephrathah, though you are the least significant of Judah’s forces, one who is to be a ruler in Israel on my behalf will come out from you. His origin is from remote times, from ancient days.

Coming of the magi

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the territory of Judea during the rule of King Herod, magi came from the east to Jerusalem.

They said, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is what the prophet wrote:

You, Bethlehem, land of Judah, by no means are you least among the rulers of Judah, because from you will come one who governs, who will shepherd my people Israel.”

He sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search carefully for the child. When you’ve found him, report to me so that I too may go and honor him.”

Murder of the Bethlehem children

When Herod knew the magi had fooled him, he grew very angry. He sent soldiers to kill all the children in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding territory who were two years old and younger, according to the time that he had learned from the magi.

Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea.

When the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened. Let’s confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.”

Didn’t the scripture say that the Christ comes from David’s family and from Bethlehem, David’s village?”