Q. In the book of Nehemiah it mentions a DRAGON'S WELL in Jerusalem. Did DRAGONS exist in Old Testament times? WHERE was this well located? A. When Nehemiah had returned to Jerusalem in order to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, he inspected the city one night before reconstructing them. One place he visited is mentioned in Nehemiah 2: "And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, EVEN BEFORE THE DRAGON WELL, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire." (Nehemiah 2:13, KJV)
So then, what is this "dragon well?" The New Interpreter's Bible Commentary thinks it could be another name for the natural spring named En-rogel mentioned in 1Kings 1:9. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE) thinks it was a well dug in this area. An alternative name for this particular well is JACKAL'S WELL, a translation found in the New American Standard Bible and New International Version Bible translations. The Hebrew word translated "dragon" in Nehemiah 2:13 is "tanniym," (Strong's Concordance Number #8577). Now this word can mean a sea serpent, jackal, dragon, serpent, crocodile or even a whale. This word is used for the rod of Moses that became a snake when giving a sign of his mission from Jehovah to Pharaoh of Egypt (Exodus 7:9). The context of Ezekiel 29:3, where this word is also found, indicates it could mean "sea monster" or "crocodile." The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon says this word can mean "serpent, dragon, sea monster." In the context of Nehemiah 2:13 it makes more sense that the Hebrew word "tanniym" would best be translated as referring to a land animal such as a (big poisonous) snake or a jackal, which is like a fox, coyote, or wolf, rather than to a sea monster or crocodile. The well might have gotten its name from the wild jackals that wandered nearby, as the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia speculates. The translation "dragon's well" is indeed colorful but somewhat misleading in modern English. For if "tanniym" doesn't mean "jackal" here, it probably then refers to a snake rather than some large legendary or mythological monster. | 