Dothan

Dothan, a place where Joseph found his brothers and was later sold into slavery (Genesis 37:17).

Dothan was a place located in the territory of Israel, mentioned in two significant events in the Bible. First, it was the place where Joseph found his brothers tending their flocks after being sent by his father, Israel (or 'Jacob') (Genesis 37:17). It was near Dothan that Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery to a caravan of Ishmaelites traveling to Egypt. Later, during the time of the prophet Elisha, the king of Aram sent his army to capture Elisha at Dothan (2Ki.6.13). God protected Elisha by revealing the presence of heavenly chariots and horses surrounding the city. Dothan was located near the major trade routes between Egypt and Mesopotamia, making it a strategic location for both commercial and military purposes.

Two wells, a famous pasture-ground where Joseph found his brethren watching their flocks. Here, at the suggestion of Judah, they sold him to the Ishmaelite merchants (Gen. 37:17). It is mentioned on monuments in B.C. 1600.

It was the residence of Elisha (2 Kings 6:13), and the scene of a remarkable vision of chariots and horses of fire surrounding the mountain on which the city stood. It is identified with the modern Tell-Dothan, on the south side of the plain of Jezreel, about 12 miles north of Samaria, among the hills of Gilboa. The “two wells” are still in existence, one of which bears the name of the “pit of Joseph” (Jubb Yusuf).