Original Word: חֹר הַגִּדְגָּד
Part of Speech: Proper Name Location
Transliteration: Chor hag-Gidgad
Pronunciation: khohr hag-GID-gad
Phonetic Spelling: (khore hag-ghid-gawd')
KJV: Hor-hagidgad
NASB: Hor-haggidgad
Word Origin: [from H2356 (חוֹר חוֹר - hole) and a collateral (masculine) form of H1412 (גּוּדגּוֹדָה - Gudgodah), with the article interposed]

1. hole of the cleft

Hor-hagidgad

From chowr and a collateral (masculine) form of Gudgodah, with the article interposed; hole of the cleft: Chor-hag-Gidgad, a place in the Desert -- Hor-hagidgad.

see HEBREW chowr

see HEBREW Gudgodah

Word Origin
from an unused word and a collateral form of Gudgodah
Definition
"hollow of Gidgad," a place in the S. desert
NASB Translation
Hor-haggidgad (2).

גִּדְגָּד, in ׳חֹר הַגּ see following & below חֹר.

I. חֹר noun [masculine] hollow, only in חֹר הַגִּדְּגָּ֑ד Numbers 33:32 hollow of Gidgad (see Di).

II., III. חוֺר, חֹר, (חוֺרִים) see below II., III. חרר.

Name and Location

Hor-haggidgad (“the cavern of Gidgad”) designates one of the wilderness encampments of the Israelites after the exodus from Egypt. It lay in the arid hill country of the Arabah, south of present-day Wadi el-Gharandel and northwest of the Gulf of Aqaba, on the route that skirted Mount Seir. The site is usually identified with a limestone gorge marked by numerous caves and seasonal torrents that hollow out the rock, features reflected in the Hebrew term ḥōr (“cave” or “hollow”).

Biblical Occurrences

1. Numbers 33:32 records the arrival: “They set out from Bene-jaakan and camped at Hor-haggidgad”.
2. Numbers 33:33 notes the departure: “They set out from Hor-haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah”.

These two references frame the entire canonical data set for the name.

Historical Background and Geography

• The itinerary in Numbers 33 traces a southerly loop designed to bypass Edomite territory (Numbers 20:14-21). Hor-haggidgad falls between Bene-jaakan (linked with the wells of the sons of Jaakan) and Jotbathah (“pleasantness” or “streams”), suggesting a progression from water scarcity to relative abundance.
• The sandstone and limestone strata of the region are riddled with grottoes, enabling temporary shelter from burning desert winds. Such natural “caves” explain the descriptive prefix “Hor.”
• Archaeological surveys along the Feiran-Aqaba road have uncovered Iron-Age pottery and cairn burials, but no conclusive inscriptional evidence has yet fixed the site. Nevertheless, the geographical logic of the Numbers itinerary argues for a location 25–30 kilometers north of modern Eilat.

Relationship to Gudgodah

Deuteronomy 10:7 speaks of “Gudgodah” in the same journey sequence. The consonantal overlap (G-D-G-D) and shared neighboring stations (Bene-jaakan, Jotbathah) point to the same place, with the Deuteronomic form preserving a simpler reduplication while Numbers supplies the fuller descriptive compound. Moses’ dual use illustrates editorial precision under divine inspiration rather than contradiction; both passages complement one another by offering alternative names known to the generation on the plains of Moab.

Theological and Spiritual Significance

• Continuity of Covenant Guidance: Each station, including Hor-haggidgad, underscores God’s meticulous leading—no stage was incidental. Numbers 33 lists forty-two camps to memorialize Yahweh’s unfailing presence “by day in a pillar of cloud and by night in a pillar of fire” (Exodus 13:22).
• Transition from Barrenness to Refreshment: The move from Hor-haggidgad to Jotbathah anticipates the grace that follows trial. Ministry reflection: seasons of spiritual cave-dwelling prepare the soul to value subsequent “streams of water.”
• Memorial of Human Frailty and Divine Patience: The Negev stretch highlights Israel’s failures (Numbers 20–21) yet records Yahweh’s steadfast provision, teaching leaders to shepherd with the same longsuffering.

Lessons for Ministry

1. Record God’s Faithfulness: Like Moses’ itinerary, modern believers are called to recall specific acts of divine guidance to anchor future obedience (Psalm 77:11-12).
2. Embrace Hidden Seasons: Caves symbolize obscurity; effective Christian service often germinates in such hiddenness (cf. 1 Samuel 22:1–2; Galatians 1:17-18).
3. Anticipate Growth after Hardship: Moving from a hollow to a place of “pleasantness” models the New Testament pattern of suffering preceding exaltation (1 Peter 5:10).

New Testament Echoes

The nameless caves of the wilderness prefigure the greater “rock” who would shelter God’s people (1 Corinthians 10:4). Just as Israel camped in a cavernous hollow, so the church abides “in Christ,” the true refuge (Colossians 3:3). The itinerary that includes Hor-haggidgad thereby foreshadows the pilgrim identity of believers, “strangers and exiles on the earth” (Hebrews 11:13), led unfailingly toward the Promised Rest.

הַגִּדְגָּ֑ד הַגִּדְגָּֽד׃ הגדגד הגדגד׃ hag·giḏ·gāḏ haggidGad haggiḏgāḏInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts