From the tribe of Benjamin, this was a border city of the northern kingdom after the kingdom split in two. It was a very strategic site, not only because it was a border city, but also because of where along the border it was located. It was just west of the Jordan river. Travellers going east into Moab had to go through Jericho. And therefore, it was also a gateway into the northern kingdom. In the earlier days of the Canaanites it bore military significance; it was a fortress city. King Ahab wanted to restore it to that significance, as a defence against Moab on the other side.
34 In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation at the cost of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.