Mamre

The hallowed spot where the Lord appeared unto Abraham. (Gen. 18: 1.) It is derived from Marah, bitter.

an Amorite, brother of Aner and Eshcol, and friend of Abraham, Gen 14:13. It was with these three persons, together with his own and their domestics, that Abraham pursued and overcame the kings after their conquest of Sodom and Gomorrah.

2. MAMRE, the same as Hebron. In Gen 23:19, it is said, that “Abraham buried Sarah in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre: the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan.” And in Gen 35:27, it is said, that “Jacob came unto Isaac his father, unto Mamre, unto the city of Arba, which is Hebron.” The city probably derived its name from that Mamre who joined Abraham in the pursuit of Chedorlaomer, and the rescue of Lot, Genesis 14.

MAMRE, PLAIN OF, a plain near Mamre, or Hebron, said to be about two miles to the south of the town. Here Abraham dwelt after his separation from Lot; here he received from God himself a promise of the land, in which he was then a stranger, for his posterity; here he entertained the angels under an oak, and received a second promise of a son; and here he purchased a burying place for Sarah; which served also as a sepulchre for himself and the rest of his family.

Mam´re, the name of an Amoritish chief who, with his brothers Aner and Eshcol, was in alliance with Abraham (Gen 14:13; Gen 14:24). Hence, in the Authorized Version, ’the oaks of Mamre,’ ’plain of Mamre’ (Gen 13:18; Gen 18:1), or simply ’Mamre’ (Gen 23:17; Gen 23:19; Gen 35:27), a grove in the neighborhood of Hebron.

An Amorite prince, brother of Eshcol and Aner. All three united their forces to aid Abraham in the rescue of Lot, Gen 14:1-24 . He gave his name to the town where he dwelt, afterwards Hebron, in the suburbs of which was a large terebinth-tree, or grove, (see OAK,) called in the English Bible "the plain of Mamre." Here Abraham and his descendants often pitched their tents, Gen 13:18 18:1. The cave of Machpelah was adjacent to Mamre on the east, Gen 23:17,19 49:30; and from the heights nearby, Abraham could see the smoking plain of Sodom, Gen 19:27,28 .\par

Mam’re. (strength, fatness). An ancient Amorite, who with his brothers, Eshcol and Aner, was in alliance with Abram, Gen 14:13; Gen 14:151, and under the shade of whose oak grove, the patriarch dwelt in the interval between his residence at Bethel and at Beersheba. Gen 13:18; Gen 18:1. In the subsequent chapters, Mamre is a mere local appellation. Gen 23:17; Gen 23:19; Gen 25:9; Gen 49:30; Gen 50:13.

An ancient Amorite. Gen 13:18, "the plain (rather the oaks or terebinths) of Mamre"; Gen 14:13; Gen 14:24, brother of Eshcol, friend and ally of Abraham. The chieftain had planted the terebinths, or was associated with them as his tenting place; so "the oak of Deborah" (Jdg 4:5). Mamre was less than a mile from Hebron (Josephus, B. J. 4:9, section 7); but Robinson makes it two Roman miles off, now the hill er Rameh.

Constantine, to suppress the superstitions veneration to the terebinths, erected a basilica or church on the spot. That it was on an elevation appears from the record that Machpelah faces it (Gen 23:17-19; Gen 25:9). Abram resided under the oak grove shade in the interval between his stay at Bethel and at Beersheba (Gen 13:18; Gen 18:1; Gen 20:1; Gen 21:31). If Machpelah be on the N.E. side of the Hebron valley, then Mamre as "facing it" must have been on the opposite slope, where the governor’s house now is. (See HEBRON.)

[Mam’re]

1. An Amorite chieftain, who, with his brothers Aner and Eshcol, was confederate with Abram. Gen 14:13; Gen 14:24.

2. Place connected with Machpelah and Hebron, the name of which is derived from the above chief. Gen 13:18; Gen 18:1; Gen 23:17; Gen 23:19; Gen 35:27; Gen 49:30.

MAMRE.—A name found several times in connexion with the history of Abraham. It occurs (a) in the expression ‘terebinths of Mamre’ in Gen 13:18; Gen 18:1 (both J [Note: Jahwist.] ), and Gen 14:13 (from an independent source) with the addition of ‘the Amorite’; (b) in the expression ‘which is before Mamre,’ in descriptions of the cave of Machpelah, or of the field in which it was (Gen 23:17; Gen 23:19; Gen 25:9; Gen 49:30; Gen 50:13), and in Gen 35:27, where Mamre is mentioned as the place of Isaac’s death; (c) in Gen 14:24 as the name of one of Abraham’s allies, in his expedition for the recovery of Lot. In (b) Mamre is an old name, either of Hebron or of a part of Hebron (cf. Gen 23:19, Gen 35:27); in Gen 14:13 it is the name of a local sheik or chief (cf. Gen 14:24), the owner of the terebinths called after him; in Gen 13:18; Gen 18:1 it is not clear whether it is the name of a person or of a place. The ‘terebinths of Mamre’ are the spot at which Abraham pitched his tent in Hebron. The site is uncertain, though, if the present mosque, on the N.E. edge of Hebron, is really built over the cave of Machpelah, and if ‘before’ has its usual topographical sense of ‘east of,’ it will have been to the W. of this, and at no great distance from it (for the terebinths are described as being ‘in’ Hebron, Gen 13:18). From Josephus’ time (BJ, IV. ix. 7) to the present day, terebinths or oaks called by the name of Abraham have been shown at different spots near Hebron; but none has any real claim to mark the authentic site of the ancient ‘Mamre.’ The oak mentioned by Josephus was 6 stadia from the city; but he does not indicate in which direction it lay. Sozomen (HE ii. 4), in speaking of the ‘Abraham’s Oak’ of Constantine’s day (2 miles N. of Hebron), states that it was regarded as sacred, and that an annual fair and feast was held beside it, at which sacrifices were offered, and libations and other offerings cast into a well close by. Cf. Oak.

S. R. Driver.

mam´rḗ (ממרא, mamrē’; Septuagint Μαμβρή, Mambrḗ):

(1) In Gen 14:24 Mamre is mentioned as the name of one of Abraham’s allies, who in Gen 14:13 is described as the Amorite, brother of Eschcol and Aner.

1. Biblical Data:

The name of the grove of trees is evidently considered as derived from this sheikh or chieftain. The “oaks” (“terebinths”) of Mamre where Abram pitched his tent (Gen 14:13; Gen 18:1) are described (Gen 13:18) as “in Hebron.” Later on MACHPELAH (which see) is described as “before,” i.e. “to the East of Mamre” (Gen 23:17; Gen 25:9; Gen 49:30; Gen 50:13), and Mamre is identified with Hebron itself (Gen 23:19).

2. Traditional Sites:

While Mamre has always been looked for in the vicinity of Hebron, the traditions have varied greatly, determined apparently by the presence of a suitable tree. The one site which has a claim on grounds other than tradition is that called Khirbet and ‛Ain Nimreh (literally, the “ruin” and “spring” of “the leopard”), about 1/2 mile North-Northwest of modern Hebron. The word Nimreh may be a survival of the ancient Mamre, the name, as often happens, being assimilated by a familiar word. The site is a possible one, but, beyond this, the name has not much to commend it.

Tradition has centered round three different sites at various periods: (1) The modern tradition points to a magnificent oak (Quercus ilex, Arabic Sindian), 1 1/2 miles West-Northwest of the modern city, as the terebinth of Abraham; its trunk has a girth of 32 ft. It is now in a dying condition, but when Robinson visited it (BR, II, 72, 81) it was in fine condition; he mentions a Mohammedan tradition that this was “Abraham’s oak.” Since then the site had been bought by the Russians, a hospice and church have been erected, and the tradition, though of no antiquity, has become crystallized. (2) The second tradition, which flourished from the 16th century down to the commencement of the 19th century, pointed to the hill of Deir el Arba‛in (see HEBRON) as that of Mamre, relying especially, no doubt, in its inception on the identity of Mamre and Hebron (Gen 23:19). A magnificent terebinth which stood there was pointed out as that of Abraham. The site agrees well with the statement that the cave of Machpelah was “before,” i.e. to the East of Mamre (Gen 23:17, etc.). (3) The third and much older tradition, mentioned in several Christian writers, refers to a great terebinth which once stood in an enclosure some 2 miles North of Hebron, near the road to Jerusalem. It is practically certain that the site of this enclosure is the strange Ramet el-Khalı̂l. This is an enclosure some 214 ft. long and 162 ft. wide. The enclosing walls are made of extremely fine and massive masonry and are 6 ft. thick; the stones are very well laid and the jointing is very fine, but the building was evidently never completed. In one corner is a well - Bı̂r el-Khalı̂l - lined with beautiful ashlar masonry, cut to the curve of the circumference.

It is probable that this enclosure surrounded a magnificent terebinth; if so, it was at this spot that before the days of Constantine a great annual fair was held, attended by Jews, Christians and heathen who united a pay honor to the sacred tree, while the well was on the same occasion illuminated, and offerings were made to it. Similar customs survive today at several shrines in Palestine. Constantine suppressed these “superstitions,” and built a church in the neighborhood, probably the so-called “Abraham’s house,” Beit Ibrahim of today. The tree which stood here is apparently that mentioned by Josephus (BJ, IV, ix, 7) as having continued “since the creation of the world.” At this enclosure, too, Jewish women and children were sold at auction after the suppression of the revolt of Bar Cochba. Whatever the origin of the veneration paid to this terebinth - now long centuries dead and gone - early Christian tradition associated it with Abraham and located Mamre here. This tradition is mentioned by Jerome (4th century), by Eucherius (6th century), by Areulphus (700 AD) and by Benjamin of Tudela (1163 AD). Among the modern Jews it is looked upon as the site of “Abraham’s oak.” It is probable that the view that Abraham was connected with this tree is one attached to it much later than its original sanctity; it was originally one of the many “holy trees” of the land venerated by primitive Semitic religions feeling, and the nearness of Hebron caused the Bible story to be attached to it. Judging from the Bible data, it appears to be too far from Hebron and Machpelah to suit the conditions; the site of Mamre must have been nearer to Deir el Arba‛in, but it has probably been entirely lost since very early times.

For a very good discussion about Mamre see Mambre by Le R. P. Abel des Freres Precheurs in the Conferences de Saint Etienne, 1909-10 (Paris).

(2) An Amorite chief, owner of the “oaks” mentioned above (Gen 14:13, Gen 14:14).

Mamre was a locality in Hebron named after the man who owned it. Its prominent oak trees, which possibly were considered sacred, were a well known landmark (Gen 13:18; Gen 14:13; Gen 14:24; Gen 18:1; Gen 23:19). (For details see HEBRON.)