i 



; A: ;. riVfi 



PALESTINE. 



talUy of llr-h. 1 I>M about > uiilm to the uorth of Jerusalem. Tho 

 \allry uf Jrrruiiah, in the u.irth-out of Jmbna, u long and sterile. It 

 U eotiueetml by * narrow pass with the viill. y of Klah, which i* 

 out 1.) tradition as the MatM of David'* victor; over Goliah. Thin U 

 on* of the pluanUt parts of Judatt. East of Jerusalem lie* the 

 alley of JUuaba|>l>4U [jKBUtALKU.] To the south of Jerusalem ou 

 tbo roaJ u> Uothleheui lies the valloy of Kepbami, which u upwards 

 at mile* long. Noar Hebron U the valley of Mature, where wu the 

 sepulchre at Abraham. South of Jerusalem U the vale of 

 about 40 uiilet long, celeb rau-d for ltd grape* and wine. Between the 

 Dwd 8ca and the centre of Judwa lie tbo deserts of St Sab* and 

 Mil 



Ou the east aide of the Jordan lie the rich posture-laud* of Argob 

 and Hahan, extending from Mount Harmon to the river Yarniak, a 

 few mile* south of the Lake of Qeoneaareth. South of this was the 

 land of Qilead, the limits of which aru not prvtaeely defined, but it may 

 be oouaidered as lying between the rivers Yarmak and Jabbok. It is 

 mountainous, and more so in the northern than in the southern part. 

 Some portions of it are very fertile, and others are beautifully wooded. 

 South of the Jabbok was the laud of Hoab, of which only a small part, 

 that namely to the north of the Arnoii, belonged to Palestine. This 

 portion was occupied by the Atuoritea when the Israelites took 

 possession of the country. 



The south of Palestine U skirted by the great sandy desert which 

 steads to Egypt and Sinai. It bears various names, of which that 

 of the Desert of I'arau seems to be used in the widest extent. 



Laku and Rtrert. There are no considerable rivers on the sea- 

 coast of Palestine, the greater number of the streams being only 

 mountain torrents which flow down from the hills that run parallel 

 to the coast. The Leunlet C Litany ') is not, strictly speaking, a river 

 of Palestine. It rises at the base of the Lebanon Mountains in the 

 neighbourhood of Baalbec, and flows in a south-westerly course to 

 the MediU-i-rancan, into which it fulls a little to the uorth of Tyiv. 

 The most important river of Palestine U the Jordan, which ri-es 

 nearly in the latitude of Tyre, and flows southward through the 

 valley between the two great mountain ranges already noticed, and, 

 after traversing the lakes of Semechonitis (Bohr el-Hulih) and Gen- 

 neeareth, falls into the Dead Sea. Its source, or what is generally 

 considered to be its source, is a cave on the north-east side of the 

 village of Paulas, or Banias. The true source however seems to be a 

 stream which ries in the hill of Tel-l-Kadi, about 3 miles north east 

 of Panias. After a course of about 15 miles, the river runs into the 

 Bahr-el-Hnleb, the waters of Merom of the Old Test iment, and the 

 l-*ke Samochonitia of Josephus. The size of this lake varies with 

 th season of the year. Josephus makes it 7 miles long by half that 

 breadth, which appears to be about the average size. The reeds which 

 are used for writing grow on it* margin. There are numerous water- 

 fowl upon it, and it abounds in fish. Tho waters are muddy, and are 

 said to be unwholesome. 



After a course of 10 miles from the point where it quits this lake, 

 the Jordan enters the Sea of Tiberias, Lake of Qennesareth, or Sea 

 of Galilee of the New Testament This lake is from 12 to 16 miles 

 long, and from 6 to 9 miles wide. It U surrounded by mountains, 

 and all travellers describe its scenery as exceedingly beautiful. The 

 water is cool and clear, and contains a great quantity of excellent fish. 

 Its margin is the resort of innumerable birds. The course of the 

 Jordan is distinctly traced in a smooth current right through the 

 middle of the lake. 



The Jordan flows from the southern angle of this lake through a 

 narrow valley, the level of which is lower than that of the large 

 valley around it, which we have before spoken of as the valley of the 

 Jordan (El Qhor). This lower valley is about three-quarters of a 

 mile in breadth, and is covered with trees and luxuriant herbage. In 

 the winter it is inundated by the river. In the summer the Jordan U 

 fonlable in many places. Its course when it leaves the lake is very 

 rapid, but it diminishes in speed as it proceeds. At its junction with 

 the Dead Sea it is 200 or 300 feet broad. The whole course of the 

 river is about 150 miles, taking into account the windings of the 

 trram. 



The very remarkable lake which r.ceives the waters of the Jordan 

 occupies the site of the plain of Siddim, where stood Sodom and the 

 other cities which God destroyed by fire in the time of Lot (Gen., 

 xiv. ; xix. 24, 2i). The Dead Sea and iU desolate shores are already 

 fully noticed in the article DCAC SKA. 



The following are the moat important tributaries of the Jordan and 

 its lakes. On the eastern aide the Yarmak, or Mandhur, tho Hieromas 

 uf the Romans, and the Jabbok (Kerka), both of which flow westward 

 into the Jordan, the former entering it a little to the south of the 

 Lake of Oennosareth, the latter at a point about half-way between 

 that lake and the Dead Sea; and the Arnon (Modjeb), which flows 

 into the Dead Sea, dividing Palestine from the land of Moab. On 

 the western aide, the Brook Daphne, which flows into the Lake Samo- 

 cho4iitii ; the Brook of Capernaum which flows into the take of 

 <;mju.areth; the Brook Aenon, whi 



which flows into tho modern Bay of Acre a little to the south of 

 Ptolemais ; the Kishon, which flows from Mount Tabor through the 

 plain of Jezre-'l, and falls into the same bay at the foot of Mount 

 Carmel; tho Chorseus and Kanah, which fall into the sea on the north 

 and south of Ctesarea respectively ; the Jarkon, which falls into thu 

 sea at Joppa ; and the Eshcol and Besor, which fall into the sea near 

 Askelon and Gaza respectively. The extreme southern limit of the 

 coast is formed by tha Kiver of Egypt, which is supposed to be the 

 Brook El Arii>h. 



Climate. The climate of Palestine is temperate and the weather U 

 not very variable. There ore, properly speaking, only two seasons. 

 The winter lasts from October to the beginning of April, and is dis- 

 tinguished principally by continual showers, which are calle 1 in 

 Seripture the early and the latter rains. In summer, which lasts 

 from June to September, there is a continuance of clear weather, with 

 scarcely any rain ; but very heavy dews fall in the night 



Political Itivitiont. The political divisions of the country were 

 very different at different periods of its history. The first uotie 

 poosoon of the country is when Abraham came from Mesopotamia to 

 dwell in it It was then iuhabit<-d by the Canaanites, who 

 divided into the families of the Sidoniaus, Hittites, Jebusites, Am> 

 Giryasites, Hivites, Arkites, Siuites, Arvadites, Zemarites, and Iliuua- 

 thites. Of these, the Sidouians inhabited the strip of coast about 

 Sidon, between Lebanon and the Mediterranean, being a part of the 

 district known in history under the name of Phoenicia ; the Hittites 

 dwelt about Hebron ; the Jebusites about Jebus or Jerusalem ; the 

 Amorites in the mountains west of the Jordan ; the Girgnsites about 

 the upper part of the river round Gergesa ; the Hivites in the country 

 to the north of Shechem ; the Arkites around Area, and the Sinitc.-, 

 near them; the Arvadites in the little island Aradus ; the /em 

 and Hamathites about Si:;.yra and Hauiath. The Philistines inhabited 

 the sea-coast in the south-west of the country. The land of Canaan 

 having been conquered by the Israelites after their departure from 

 Kgi pt, Joshua divided it by lot among the twelve tribes. Keuben, 

 Gad, and half the tribe of Manassch had their possessions on the east 

 of the Jordan ; tho other tribes were located on its western side. 

 Keuben was bounded ou the south by the river Aniuii, and on the 

 north by the tribe of Gad, which inhabited part of the laud of Gilead 

 about the river Jabbok. On the north of Gad the half tribe of 

 Manasseh extended to Mount Hrrmou and the sources of the Jordan. 

 The whole of the southern part of the country, between the Dead 

 Sea and the Mediterranean, was at first allotted to Judah ; but this 

 district being disproportionately large, the western part of it was 

 given to Simeon and Dan. The small territory of Benjamin was 

 bounded by Dan ou the west, by Judah on the south, and by tli 

 Jordan on the east, and contained within its limits the city of Jeru- 

 salem. Ephraiin possessed the country about Shechem, between the 

 Mediterranean and the Jordan. To thu uorth of Ephraim lay the 

 second half of tiie tribe of Mauasaeh, also extending from the 

 terratiean to the Jordan and ou the coast as far north as Mount 

 Carmel, Issachar had the valley of Jezreel, to the north and east of 

 Manasseh. Zebulou lay next to the north, bounded by Aslier on the 

 west and by the Lake of Geuuesareth on the ea-t The land of 

 Xaphthali lay about the sources of the Jordan, north of Zebulon and 

 east of Asher, which last tribe possessed the sea-coast about Tyre and 

 a part of the valley of Lebanon. 



These tribes were united into one kingdom under Saul and David. 

 By the conquests of David the .territory of the Hebrews was extended 

 to the Euphrates and the -ELiuitic Gulf. But these conquests are 

 never included under the nam of Palestine. By the revolt of Jero- 

 boim, Palestine was divided into the two kingdoms of Judah aiTd 

 Israel, of which the former included the territories of the tribes of 

 Judah, Benjamin, Dan, and Simeon, having for its northern boundary 

 a line drawn from a point on the Jordan a little north of the I >. ad 

 Sea, westward to the Mediterranean at Joppa : the latter included all 

 the rest of Palestine to the north of this line. 



The kingdom of Israel was overthrown, and the people can i d 

 captive by the Assyrians. The country, being thus depopulated, was 

 next inhabited by the neighbouring heathen people and by colonies 

 from other parts of the Assyrian empire, who, mixing with th 

 tered remains of the tribes of Ephraim and Man isseh which we 

 about Samaria, formed the people spoken of in the New Te-taineut as 

 the Samaritans, who were regarded by the Jews as an impure race, 

 and between whom and the Jews there always existed a strong mutual 

 hatred. 



In the year B.C. 688, Nebuchadnezzar overthrew the kingdom of 

 Judah and carried the greater number of its inhabitants into captivity. 

 Many were however left in the land as subjects of the Babylonish 

 empire. Upon the conquest of Babylon by Cyrus, Palestine fell under 

 the dominion of the Persians, under whom it was divided for the 

 purposes of government into small circles, each of which had its 

 govrrnor. By an edict of Cyrus, the Jews were ]> imit'.-d to return 

 to Judaea and to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple, but they still 



h rises in the mountains of remained subject to Persia. When Alexander tho Great invaded Asia, 

 Ephraiin and flows into the Jordan between the Lake of Tiberias and Palestine submitted to him without a struggle. After hia deatn 



<he Dead Sea; and thu Brook Kedrou, which flows from the Mount of 

 Olives into the Dead Sea. 



possession of it was the subject of fierce contests between the Greek 

 kings of Egypt and of Syria. Having been driven to revolt by the 

 lie chief rivers which fall into the Mediterranean are the Belus, oppreauons of the Syrian kings, the Jem, under tha leading of the 



