BiblePics LogoBiblePics

What is Samaria in the Bible?

Royal city of Israel's kings, built by Omri and captured by Assyria, and later a region visited by Jesus and evangelized by Philip.

Samaria is the city that served as the royal capital of the northern kingdom of Israel, and its name is also used for the surrounding region. King Omri bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, built a city on it, and named it after Shemer (1 Kings 16:24).

Samaria in the Bible

Ahab reigned over Israel in Samaria and built a house of Baal there (1 Kings 16:29, 1 Kings 16:32), and later kings of Israel also reigned there. Benhadad king of Syria besieged the city, and during one siege the famine was so great that an ass's head sold for eighty pieces of silver (2 Kings 6:24-25). The king of Assyria besieged Samaria for three years and took it in the ninth year of Hoshea (2 Kings 17:5, 2 Kings 18:10), then settled foreign peoples in the cities of Samaria (2 Kings 17:24).

The prophets condemn its sins, and Ezekiel calls it Aholah (Ezekiel 23:4; Micah 1:5). In the New Testament, Samaria is a region. Jesus passes through it and speaks with a woman of Samaria at Sychar (John 4:5-7), and Philip preaches Christ in the city of Samaria (Acts 8:5).

Samaria lay in the central hill country of the land of Israel, north of Jerusalem.

Name meaning
Watch or watch-mountain
Name origin
Hebrew
Role
Capital of the northern kingdom of Israel
First mention
1 Kings 13:32
Appearances in the Bible
115 mentions

Questions about Samaria

What is Samaria in the Bible?

Samaria is the city that served as the royal capital of the northern kingdom of Israel, and its name is also used for the surrounding region. King Omri bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, built a city on it, and named it after Shemer (1 Kings 16:24). Ahab reigned over Israel in Samaria and built a house of Baal there (1 Kings 16:29, 1 Kings 16:32), and later kings of Israel also reigned there. Benhadad king of Syria besieged the city, and during one siege the famine was so great that an ass's head sold for eighty pieces of silver (2 Kings 6:24-25). The king of Assyria besieged Samaria for three years and took it in the ninth year of Hoshea (2 Kings 17:5, 2 Kings 18:10), then settled foreign peoples in the cities of Samaria (2 Kings 17:24). The prophets condemn its sins, and Ezekiel calls it Aholah (Ezekiel 23:4; Micah 1:5). In the New Testament, Samaria is a region. Jesus passes through it and speaks with a woman of Samaria at Sychar (John 4:5-7), and Philip preaches Christ in the city of Samaria (Acts 8:5). Samaria lay in the central hill country of the land of Israel, north of Jerusalem.

What does the name Samaria mean?

The name Samaria means “Watch or watch-mountain”. Origin: Hebrew.

Where is Samaria first mentioned in the Bible?

Samaria is first mentioned in 1 Kings 13:32.

How many times is Samaria mentioned in the Bible?

Number of mentions in the Bible: 115.