Meaning
Ephrath; Ephrathah ef'-rath, e'-frath, ef'-ra-tha, ef-ra'-tha ('ephrath; Ephratha; Gen 35:16, Gen 48:7); ('ephrathah, in the other references: Jos 15:59 (in added verse of Septuagint only); Rth 4:11, 1Ch 2:19, 1Ch 2:24, 1Ch 2:50, Psa 132:6, Mic 5:2, the King James Version "Ephratah"):
The name either of Bethlehem itself or of a district in which Bethlehem was situated. A man of this place was called an Ephrathite (Rth 1:2, 1Sa 17:12). It is held by many authorities that the Ephrath where Rachel was buried (Gen 35:16, Gen 48:7) was a different place, the words "the same is Bethlehem" being a gloss. The reading in Ps 132:6 is doubtful; the Revised Version, margin has "Ephraim."
E. W. G. Masterman
