Beit She'an. At night, the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead retrieve the bodies, showing their devotion to the rescuer of the city. Following a funeral pyre, Saul and his sons were buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh (, ). When David learns it was the men of Jabesh-Gilead who had brought Saul to a honorable burial, he sent messengers to bless them (). Later, David takes the bones of Saul and of his son Jonathan from Jabesh and buries them in Zela, in the tomb of Saul's father (). House of Shallum In the Books of Kings (, ) Shallum of Israel's father is identified as Jabesh. However, the passage may instead mention a toponym, identifying that Shallum was "the son" of a city called Jabesh. In this view, Shallum may have originated from Jabesh-Gilead. Later years In his Antiquities of the Jews (c. 93-94 CE), Josephus describes Jabesh Gilead as a metropolis in the Transjordan. In the early-4th century CE, Greek scholar Eusebius mentioned "Iabeis Galaad" in his Onomasticon as a "village beyond the Jordan located on the mountains six miles from the city of Pella on the road to Gerasa." Identification The exact location of Jabesh-Gilead is debated. Most scholars identify it with Tell el-Maqlub, but Tell Abu al-Kharaz is also frequently suggested. Both sites were inhabited during the Iron Age and lie along Wadi al-Yabis, a stream believed to preserve the town's ancient name. See also Jabesh Gilead Sources References Book of Judges Books of Samuel Books of Chronicles Hebrew Bible cities Former populated places in Southwest Asia House of Shallum