Horonite

Horonite was the designation applied to Sanballat, one of the principal opponents of Nehemiah's mission to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. The term identifies him as a native of Horonaim in Moab or of Beth-horon in the hill country of Ephraim—the latter being the more commonly accepted identification, suggesting he was a Samaritan official with roots in the Beth-horon region that controlled the main pass between the coastal plain and Jerusalem.

Sanballat the Horonite appears throughout the Nehemiah memoir as a persistent adversary, mocking the rebuilding project, conspiring with Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem the Arab against Nehemiah, and attempting to lure Nehemiah into a meeting that would compromise the work. Despite his opposition, the wall was completed in fifty-two days. The Elephantine papyri from Egypt (fifth century BC) mention Sanballat's sons as governors of Samaria, providing extrabiblical confirmation of his status as a significant Samaritan official. His designation as a Horonite served to mark his foreign or provincial origin in contrast to the Jerusalem community whose interests he opposed.