Bible Dictionary
Open place
“Open place” refers either to Enaim, where Tamar sat, or possibly to a threshing floor near the gate of Samaria. The expression reflects differing translations of the Hebrew text.
Definition
“Open place” is a translation used in two different biblical contexts. In Genesis it refers more properly to an opening or gate of Enaim, where Tamar sat. In the account of Ahab and Jehoshaphat, it may refer to a threshing-floor or open area near the gate of Samaria.
Biblical Usage
The phrase occurs in Tamar’s story and in the scene where Ahab and Jehoshaphat sat in royal dress before the gate of Samaria.
Historical Background
The Genesis wording reflects a translation misunderstanding of the Hebrew phrase. The passage in Kings has an awkward Hebrew text, and ancient versions differ in their rendering.
Scripture References
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
Gen. 38:14, 21, mar. Enaim; the same probably as Enam (Josh. 15:34), a city in the lowland or Shephelah.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>(1) The "open place" of Ge 38:14 the King James Version, in which Tamar sat, has come from a misunderstanding of the Hebrew, the translators having taken bephethach `enayim to mean "in an opening publicly," instead of "in an opening (i.e. a gate) of Enaim" (compare Pr 1:21 in the Hebrew). The Revised Version (British and American) has corrected; see ENAIM.</p><p>(2) In 1Ki 22:10 parallel 2Ch 18:9 the Revised Version (British and American) relates that Ahab and Jehoshaphat sat "each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, in an open place (margin "Hebrew: a threshing-floor," the King James Version "a void place") at the entrance of the gate of Samaria." The Hebrew here is awkward, and neither the Septuagint nor the Syriac seems to have read the present text in 1Ki 22:10, the former having "in arms, at the gate of Samaria," and the latter "in many-colored garments." Consequently various attempts have been made to emend the text, of which the simplest is the omission of beghoren, "in an open place." If, however, the text is right--as is not impossible--the open place is a threshing-floor close to the gate. See the commentaries.</p><p>Burton Scott Easton</p>