Does The Bible Mention Mecca?

Recently, some have misconstrued certain verses to fit their narrative that Mecca is the Bible. One way they do this is in the book of Psalm where it says, "Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them. Who passing through the valley of Baca(or weeping or sorrow) make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools," (Psalm 84:5-6 KJV). Some have claimed that Baca is another word for Mecca; however, there are many issues with this claim.

According to one scholar named Mark W. Chavalas, a Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, "While the meaning of Baca in Ps.(Psalm) is not clear ... it is most certainly not historically connected ... Further, there is no geographic evidence that the Psalmist referred to a geographic toponym(a place name) in distant Arabia."

Works Cited:

Chavalas, Mark W. 10 Apr. 2023.