En-gedi is an important oasis on the west side of the Dead Sea, about 56.3 kilometers (35 miles) southeast of Jerusalem. It was part of the land given to the tribe of Judah (Joshua 15:62). En-gedi had a hot water spring flowing from a limestone cliff. It created plants that thrived in warm climates. The area became known for its palms, vineyards, and balsam (Song of Solomon 1:14; Josephus’s Antiquities 20.1.2). The ancient site was southeast of the oasis at Tell el-Jarn near modern ’Ain Jidi.
En-gedi was also called Hazazon-tamar (2 Chronicles 20:2). It appears in several Old Testament stories:
Chedorlaomer conquered the Amorites there (Genesis 14:7).
David hid from Saul in the caves of En-gedi (1 Samuel 23:29).
In Ezekiel’s vision of a restored Israel, fishermen catch fish from the Dead Sea between En-gedi and En-eglaim (Ezekiel 47:10).