Original Word: פִישׁוֹן
Part of Speech: Noun
Transliteration: Piyshown
Pronunciation: pee-shone'
Phonetic Spelling: (pee-shone')
KJV: Pison
NASB: Pishon
Word Origin: [from H6335 (פּוּשׁ - To spring about)]

1. dispersive
2. Pishon, a river of Eden

Pison

From puwsh; dispersive; Pishon, a river of Eden -- Pison.

see HEBREW puwsh

Word Origin
of uncertain derivation
Definition
one of the rivers of Eden
NASB Translation
Pishon (1).

מִּישׁוֺן proper name, of a river (Thes below פושׁ, compare especially Nes^{Marg. 5}, but dubious); — one of the rivers of Eden Genesis 2:11, Φ(ε)ισων, (on theories of identification see Commentaries, also references below גִּיחוֺן).

Name and Setting

Pishon is identified in Genesis 2:11 as one of the four primeval rivers that branched from “a river flowing out of Eden to water the garden.” The text continues, “It flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold” (Berean Standard Bible). Though mentioned only once, its placement in the Eden narrative situates it at the fountainhead of human history and divine blessing.

Geographic Considerations

Scripture provides two geographic indicators:

1. The river encircles “the whole land of Havilah.”
2. Havilah is notable for “gold, bdellium, and onyx stone” (Genesis 2:11-12).

From this limited data, proposed locations range from regions in Arabia to areas in northeast Africa or Mesopotamia. Because the global landscape was altered by the judgment of the Flood (Genesis 7–8), certainty eludes modern scholarship. The single certainty is that the river belonged to the pre-Flood world and lay within the jurisdiction of Eden’s life-giving waters.

Historical and Scholarly Proposals

• Arabian Hypothesis: Ancient writers such as Josephus linked Havilah with parts of Arabia rich in gold deposits.
• Nile-Blue Nile Hypothesis: Some equate Pishon with an extinct tributary of the Nile, noting its encircling path and association with precious minerals found in Nubia.
• Persian Gulf Ingress: Geologists have identified a fossil river system (often called Wadi Al-Batin) emptying into the Persian Gulf that might match the biblical description.

Each theory attempts to harmonize biblical data with terrain known today, yet all remain conjectural. The one immutable fact is that the Lord Himself placed Pishon exactly where it served His purposes for Edenic abundance.

Theological Significance

1. Fountain of Provision: The fourfold river system underscores the completeness of God’s provision. Pishon, linked to gold and precious stones, illustrates material goodness freely supplied by the Creator (James 1:17).
2. Order and Boundaries: Rivers demarcate territories; Pishon’s course around Havilah speaks to God-ordained boundaries in the created order (Acts 17:26).
3. Foretaste of the New Creation: Eden’s river imagery finds its consummation in Revelation 22:1, “the river of the water of life.” Pishon thus participates in a biblical motif that moves from Eden to the eternal city.

Typological and Prophetic Echoes

While Pishon itself is not directly cited elsewhere, the Edenic rivers form the backdrop for later prophetic visions of life-giving streams (Ezekiel 47:1-12; Zechariah 14:8). These streams prefigure the Spirit’s outpouring (John 7:38-39). The richness of Havilah points forward to the wealth of the nations that will flow to Zion (Isaiah 60:5-6).

Ministry Applications

• Stewardship: The abundance surrounding Pishon reminds believers that riches are God’s gift, to be stewarded for His glory, not idolized (1 Timothy 6:17-19).
• Boundaries and Contentment: As Pishon encompassed Havilah, so God establishes healthy limits for His people’s protection (Psalm 16:6).
• Living Water: Just as Eden was irrigated by Pishon’s source river, so the church is sustained by the living water of Christ; ministries flourish when rooted in Him (John 4:14).

See Also

Gihon; Tigris; Euphrates; Eden, Garden of; Havilah; Rivers in Scripture; Water of Life

פִּישׁ֑וֹן פישון pî·šō·wn piShon pîšōwnInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts