View of the Kidron Valley with the eastern wall of the Temple Mt. on the right
The Kidron Valley runs south between the Mount of
Olives and the eastern side of the Old City. It continues south past the City
of David on its right, and the Arab village of Silwan on its left. It joins the
Hinnom Valley at the base of Mt. Zion and then continues south through the
Judean dessert all the way to the Dead Sea. The total length of the valley is
20 miles, and it falls 4,000 feet. Before it was diverted by Hezekiah’s tunnel,
the water of the Gihon Spring flowed down the Kidron Valley.
The Valley is also known in the Bible as the Valley
of Jehosaphat—the valley where God will judge. Jewish tradition says that after
the return of Elijah, followed by the coming of the Messiah, God will judge and
bring to an end the enemies of Israel here.
The Bible describes David fleeing across this
valley and up the Mount of Olives to escape his son Absalom (2nd Samuel
15:13-30). Jesus often passed through the Valley between the Temple within the
city and places like the Mt. of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, and Bethany
on the eastern side of the Mt. of Olives
There are many tombs and graves in the Kidron. Burying
people here became a practice in the days of Josiah (2nd Kings 23:6).
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