Is 'Bethlehem' the same as 'Bethlem Ephratah'?

Answer 1

No, they are not: there are two towns called 'Bethlehem' which can be confusing, as there is one in the South and the other in the North. The Pharisees knew for certain that the Messiah could only be born in Bethlehem and that Micah 5:2 was definitely a Messianic prophecy. The verse and notes from the NET Bible on Micah 5:2 are as follows:-

Mic 5:2 [NET Bible]

(5:1) As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, [study note: Ephrathah is either an alternate name for Bethlehem or the name of the district in which Bethlehem was located. See Rth_4:11].

seemingly insignificant

[translator's note: Heb "being small."] among the clans of Judah [ie from the Tribe of Judah] -

from you a king will emerge who will rule over Israel on my behalf, [translator's note: Heb "from you for me one will go out to be a ruler over Israel."]

one whose origins

[ translator's note: Heb "his goings out." The term may refer to the ruler's origins (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) or to his activities]

are in the distant past.

[ translator's note: Heb "from the past, from the days of antiquity." Elsewhere both phrases refer to the early periods in the history of the world or of the nation of Israel. For "from the past" see Neh_12:46; Psa_74:12; Psa_77:11; Isa_45:21; Isa_46:10. For "from the days of antiquity" see Isa_63:9; Isa_63:11; Amo_9:11; Mic_7:14; Mal_3:4. In Neh_12:46 and Amo_9:11 the Davidic era is in view].

study note: In riddle-like fashion this verse alludes to David, as the references to Bethlehem and to his ancient origins/activities indicate. The passage anticipates the second coming of the great king to usher in a new era of national glory for Israel. Other prophets are more direct and name this coming ideal ruler "David" (Jer_30:9; Eze_34:23-24; Eze_37:24-25; Hos_3:5). Of course, this prophecy of "David's" second coming is actually fulfilled through his descendant, the Messiah, who will rule in the spirit and power of his famous ancestor and bring to realization the Davidic royal ideal in an even greater way than the historical David (see Isa_11:1; Isa_11:10; Jer_33:15).

In his Notes on Malachi 5:2 Dr John MacArthur in "The MacArthur Study Bible" says that Bethlehem Ephratah is:-

'The town south of Jerusalem which was the birthplace of David and later of Jesus (1Sam 16:1, Matt 2:5, Lu 2:4-7). The name Bethlehem means "house of bread" because the area was a grain-producing area in Old Testament times. The name 'Ephratah' ("fruitful") differentiates it from the Galilean town by the same name.'

When Israel conquered Canaan, the tribe of Judah was given the area of land from the whole left shore of the length of the Dead Sea right across almost to the coast. Caleb claimed the promise Moses had made to him, and Caleb was given the city of Hebron . Hebron is 20 miles SSW (SouthSouthWest) of Jerusalem, and Caleb was given this city as an inheritance [ie permanently].

Jos 14:6, 9, 13-14 KJV [v. 6] Then the children of Judah [ie from the tribe of Judah] came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the LORD said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadeshbarnea. ... [v. 9] And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children's for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the LORD my God. ... ... [v. 13] And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance. [v. 14] Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the LORD God of Israel.

Jos 15:13 And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a part among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the LORD to Joshua, even the city of Arba the father of Anak, which city is Hebron.

Jdg 1:20 And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses said: and he expelled thence the three sons of Anak.

When his first wife Azubah died, Caleb married Ephrathwhose first son was Hur, yet just two chapters later Hur is called the firstborn of Ephratah:-

1Ch 2:18-20 NET [v. 18] Caleb son of Hezron fathered sons by his wife Azubah (also known as Jerioth). Her sons were Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon. [v. 19] When Azubah died, Caleb married Ephrath, who bore him Hur.

1Ch 4:4 [NET] Penuel was the father of Gedor, and Ezer was the father of Hushah. These were the descendants of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrathah and the father of Bethlehem.

Obviously she is the same woman, and in 1Chronicles 2:50 it is translated in English as 'Ephrath' but in Hebrew it is 'Ephratah': the word 'Ephrath' is an anglicization of the Hebrew word 'Ephratah' . ( In some recent translations many proper Hebrew names are now transliterated rather than translated).

1Ch 2:50-51 NET [v. 50] The sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrath:

[ translator's note: The Hebrew text reads "Ephrathah" here, but see [ 1 Chronicles Chapter 2] v. 19, which mentions "Ephrath" as the [mother] of Hur].....

[v. 51] Salma, the father of Bethlehem, Hareph, the father of Beth-Gader.

Caleb married Ephrath/Ephrathah whose first son Hur had a son Salma who had a son Bethlehem. It would seem that Bethlehem Ephratah was both named after him and also given the added appellation of his esteemed great-grandmother. Bethlehem Ephratah is 5 miles South of Jerusalem.

M.G. Easton in his 'Illustrated Bible Dictionary' says that Bethlehem meant "house of bread" and was:

(1.) A city in the "hill country" of Judah. It was originally called Ephrath (Gen_35:16, Gen_35:19; Gen_48:7; Rth_4:11). It was also calledBeth-lehem Ephratah (Mic_5:2), Beth-lehem-judah (1Sa_17:12), and "the city of David" (Luk_2:4). It is first noticed in Scripture as the place where Rachel died and was buried "by the wayside," directly to the north of the city (Gen_48:7). The valley to the east was the scene of the story of Ruth the Moabitess. There are the fields in which she gleaned, and the path by which she and Naomi returned to the town. Here was David's birth-place, and here also, in after years, he was anointed as king by Samuel (1Sa_16:4-13); and it was from the well of Bethlehem that three of his heroes brought water for him at the risk of their lives when he was in the cave of Adullam (2Sa_23:13-17). But it was distinguished above every other city as the birth-place of "Him whose goings forth have been of old" (Mat_2:6; compare Mic_5:2). Afterwards Herod, "when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men," sent and slew "all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under" (Mat_2:16, Mat_2:18; Jer_31:15).

Bethlehem ... is about 5 miles south of Jerusalem, standing at an elevation of about 2,550 feet above the sea, thus 100 feet higher than Jerusalem....

This other Bethlehem (now known as 'Beit-Lahm" near modern-day Haifa) is 6 miles WNW (West North West ) of Nazareth. Nazareth is 26 miles North of Jerusalem as high as the Lake of Galilee, and Bethlehem is 30 miles NNW of Jerusalem almost on the coast near Mt Carmel and is in the tribal land of Zebulun.

Both Bethlehems are widely separated geographically, and Easton (op. cit) says it is only mentioned once in The Bible in Joshua 19:15. With this one exception, every time "Bethlehem" is mentioned it always refers to Bethlehem Ephratah in the south of the country below Jerusalem.