The term “Shiloh” appears several times in the Bible and has different meanings in different contexts. At its core, Shiloh refers to a city located in the land of Ephraim in ancient Israel. It was an important religious center for the Israelites for several centuries. The meaning and significance of Shiloh evolved over time, taking on additional symbolic and prophetic meanings.
Here is an overview of the main ways “Shiloh” is used in the Bible:
1. As a City in Ancient Israel
The first mention of Shiloh in the Bible identifies it as a city located north of Bethel in the territory of Ephraim (Joshua 16:6). After the Israelites conquered Canaan, the Tabernacle and Ark of the Covenant were set up at Shiloh, making it the religious center of Israel during the period of the Judges (Joshua 18:1, Judges 18:31). Shiloh was located on a hill and became the place where people would gather for annual festivals and sacrifices (Judges 21:19). It remained an important shrine and center of worship for over 300 years until the Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant and destroyed Shiloh (1 Samuel 4:3). The Ark was never returned to Shiloh.
Archaeological excavations at Tel Shiloh in modern Israel have uncovered the remains of an ancient town from the Iron Age and artifacts like pottery, tools, and evidence of cultic worship. This confirms Shiloh was a significant city and religious center in the periods described in the Bible.
2. As a Prophecy About the Messiah
In Genesis 49:10, the patriarch Jacob gives a blessing and prophecy over his sons. When speaking over his son Judah, Jacob says:
“The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” (Genesis 49:10 ESV)
The reference to “Shiloh” here is interpreted as a messianic prophecy. The traditional understanding is that Shiloh refers to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The meaning is that the tribe of Judah will hold authority and leadership over Israel until the rightful ruler, the Messiah, comes. “Shiloh” has the sense of “he to whom it belongs” or “the one with the right to rule.”
So Jacob is prophesying that Jesus will come from the line of Judah and that ultimate obedience, authority, and rulership belongs to him. This verse points forward to the coming of Christ and the establishing of his eternal kingdom.
3. As Part of the Promise to Israel
In Jeremiah’s prophecy about the destruction and exile of Judah, God promises that one day he will restore and regather his people:
“For the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah…I will bring them back to the place that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it.” (Jeremiah 30:3 ESV)
Later in this passage, God clarifies the location he will restore them to:
“For there shall be a day when watchmen will call in the hill country of Ephraim: ‘Arise, and let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God.’” (Jeremiah 31:6 ESV)
“At that time, declares the Lord, I will be the God of all the clans of Israel, and they shall be my people. Thus says the Lord: ‘The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness; when Israel sought for rest, the Lord appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. Again I will build you, and you shall be built, O virgin Israel! Again you shall adorn yourself with tambourines and shall go forth in the dance of the merrymakers. Again you shall plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria; the planters shall plant and shall enjoy the fruit. For there shall be a day when watchmen will call in the hill country of Ephraim: ‘Come, let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God.’”’” (Jeremiah 31:1–6 ESV)
In this promise of restoration, God mentions his people finding grace in “the wilderness” and says he will rebuild Israel so she can plant vineyards again in Samaria. This points back to the inheritance of land originally given to the 12 tribes. Shiloh was part of Ephraim’s allotment and Jericho was part of Benjamin’s. So the reference to Ephraim shows God promising to restore Israel’s land as he originally intended, including areas like Shiloh.
4. As a Curse or Destruction
Because Shiloh was destroyed after Eli’s unfaithful priesthood and the capture of the Ark, it became a byword and a curse when referring to destruction or ruin:
“Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel.” (Jeremiah 7:12 ESV)
“Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when it shall no longer be called Topheth, or the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter; for they will bury in Topheth, because there is no room elsewhere. And the dead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the air, and for the beasts of the earth, and none will frighten them away. And I will silence in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, for the land shall become a waste.” (Jeremiah 7:32–34 ESV)
So when prophets warn of destruction, ruin, and desolation, they will sometimes say God will make a place become “like Shiloh.” This comparison evokes the fate of the tabernacle at Shiloh and uses it as a parallel for future judgments.
5. As a Reference to Christ’s Sacrifice
When Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday just prior to his death, he quoted Zechariah 9:9 which prophesies the coming of Zion’s king:
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9 ESV)
This king is the Messiah who will bring salvation. Jesus is declaring himself to be this prophesied king. Chapter 9 goes on to say:
“As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double.” (Zechariah 9:11–12 ESV)
Because this prophecy is directly connected with the coming of the Messiah-King, some Bible scholars believe the phrase “because of the blood of my covenant with you” refers back to Genesis 49:10 and the Shiloh prophecy. The mention of the “blood of the covenant” alludes to the sacrificial system set up under Moses and practiced at the tabernacle in Shiloh. So within this prophecy of the Messiah, the reference to Shiloh evokes the sacrificial blood required to ratify God’s covenant. Jesus as the Messiah will shed his own blood as the ultimate sacrifice for sin.
6. As a Descriptor for Jesus
A few places in scripture seem to use “Shiloh” directly as a descriptor for the Messiah, Jesus Christ:
“Until Shiloh comes; And to him shall be the obedience of the people.” (Genesis 49:10 NKJV)
“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.” (Isaiah 53:5–8 NKJV)
In these verses, Jesus is described both as the “Shiloh” who will come and bring obedience of the people, as well as the suffering servant who is “afflicted” and will be “cut off from the land of the living.” Though the term Shiloh is not directly used in Isaiah 53, some scholars connect Shiloh’s suffering and sacrifice for sin hinted at in Genesis 49 with the vivid prophecy of Christ’s suffering as the sacrifice for sin in Isaiah 53.
7. As Pointing to the Peaceful Kingdom
Since Shiloh means “peace” or “tranquility,” it evokes the peaceful kingdom of the Messiah. Isaiah prophesies:
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6 ESV)
The reference to the Messiah as the “Prince of Peace” aligns with the imagery of Shiloh representing the authority, obedience, and tranquility that will come with Christ’s kingdom. Shiloh points prophetically to the Messianic age of peace.
8. To Represent Jesus’ Capital
Because Shiloh was the center of worship for Israel in the age of the Judges, some Bible scholars think it represents the future capital city where the Messiah will establish his millennial kingdom. Just as Shiloh was the religious capital in ancient Israel, the new Jerusalem will be the capital of Christ’s kingdom on earth during the millennium described in Revelation 20. Some interpreters view references to Shiloh in prophecy as pointing forward to Christ’s future capital in the Messianic kingdom.
9. In the Song of the Vineyard
Isaiah’s “song of the vineyard” in Isaiah 5 uses symbolism to depict Israel as a vineyard and laments Israel’s unfaithfulness and coming judgment. Verse 1 says:
“Let me sing for my beloved my love song concerning his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill.” (Isaiah 5:1 ESV)
Since Shiloh was located on a fertile hill, some scholars think the “fertile hill” in this verse alludes to Shiloh and evokes this earlier period in Israel’s history. The song goes on to detail Israel’s sins and the resulting devastation of the land.
So within this prophetic song, Shiloh may symbolize Israel’s beginnings as the people of God before their descent into idolatry and injustice.
10. In Haggai’s Prophecy
In Haggai 2, the prophet is encouraging Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem after the exile. God promises to help Zerubbabel and shake the nations through divine intervention:
“For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.”” (Haggai 2:6–9 ESV)
The mention of God giving “peace” in this temple may allude back to Shiloh as the former place of religious peace and worship. The new temple will surpass even Shiloh’s glory as the dwelling of God’s presence.
11. As Part of Personal Names
Since Shiloh refers to the Messiah, it became part of some Hebrew personal names:
- One of the daughters born to Judah through Tamar was named Shelah (Genesis 38:5). This is a variant spelling of Shiloh.
- Shelanites were descendants of Shelah (Numbers 26:20).
- Shilonite is used to describe Ahijah who was a prophet when Jeroboam ruled over the Northern Kingdom (1 Kings 11:29). It likely referred to being from Shiloh.
- Shallum means “the Shilohite” and is the name of several men in scripture including a king of Judah (2 Kings 15:13).
So the root word from Shiloh was sometimes incorporated into Hebrew names over time.
12. In the New Testament
There are no direct references to Shiloh in the New Testament. But Jesus and the apostles clearly understood and taught that the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah were fulfilled in Christ (Luke 24:27, 1 Peter 1:10-12).
So the New Testament proclaims Jesus as the fulfillment of prophecies like Genesis 49:10 that point to the coming of the Christ using words like Shiloh. As the Son of God, Jesus embodied the Messianic identity of the Prince of Peace and the true King of the Jews from the line of David destined to sit on an everlasting throne (Isaiah 9:7).
Conclusion
In summary, the term Shiloh has rich theological significance in scripture. It originated as the name of a city that was central to Israel’s worship in the Promised Land. But Shiloh grew to symbolize different aspects of God’s revelation and redemption through the Messiah.
As an important location, prophecy, and concept, Shiloh pointed Old Testament saints ahead to the coming of the Christ. And it helps modern readers see how Jesus fulfilled the Messianic prophecies in a beautiful way.