Timnath-heres (Timnath-serah)

TIMNATH-HERES

tim-nath-he'rez (timnath cherec, "portion of the sun"; Codex Vaticanus Thamnathares; Codex Alexandrinus Thamnathar; heos): This is the form of the name given to Joshua's property and place of burial in Judges 2:9. The name in Joshua 19:50; Joshua 24:30 is Timnath-serah. "Serah" simply reverses the order of the letters in "Heres." Scholars are divided in opinion as to which form is correct. It is possible that the change from Heres to Serah may have been deliberate, in order to avoid a form which might savor of idolatry-sun-worship. The Jews and Samaritans hold that Heres is the original form.

W. Ewing