Valley of Salt

The Valley of Salt is a dry valley near the southern part of the Dead Sea.

Two important battles in the Old Testament happened in this valley.

First, David won a major victory over the Edomites there. One of David’s top warriors, Abishai, killed 18,000 Edomite soldiers during this battle (2 Samuel 8:13; 1 Chronicles 18:12).

Later, King Amaziah of Judah also defeated the Edomites in the same valley. After the battle, he captured the city of Sela. Sela was an important Edomite town in the nearby hills (2 Kings 14:7; 2 Chronicles 25:11).

We do not know the exact location of the Valley of Salt. Some think it is Wadi el-Milh (which means “salt valley”), east of Beersheba in Judah. But many believe it is es-Sebkha, a dry and salty plain just south of the Dead Sea. This area leads toward the hill country of Edom.