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Published: September 18th 2013
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The second day of touring was intense: Caesarea, the region of Samaria, the Plains of Sharon, Megiddo, the Valley of Jizreel, Mount Carmel, Kishon Valley, Haifa and Tiberias.....yes, I am serious.
Driving out of Tel Aviv, we learned about the kibboutz, the Hebrew word for communal settlement. The original kibboutz were built on the communist model - babies were taken at 3 months of age and were cared for by the community; education was provided as well as other basic needs. Residents worked only on the kibboutz and were not permitted to take jobs outside. For the past 30 years, the kibboutz operate as private businesses - they are privately owned and workers receive a salary.
Of all the mesmerizing places we visited, Caesarea is one of the sites that stood out the most for me, and many of my traveling companions. There is much to see and is so well preserved that one can almost hear the crowds of the famous amphitheater. Caesarea was a port city built by Herod the Great during the latter part of the first century B.C.E. on a site given to him as a gift by Caesar Augustus. The site included a temple,
a theater and a large amphitheater. An aqueaduc supplied Caesarea with fresh water. The seaport itself was named Sebastos (Greek for Augustus). Caesarea became the residence of the Roman procurators who governed Judea during the first century C.E, and the official headquarters for the Roman military forces. The centurion Cornelius resided here and in the year 36 C.E. Peter was present as Cornelius and his family because the first non-Jews to become baptized Christians (Acts 10:1-48). Some years later Paul was removed from Jerusalem, under arrest, because of an assassination plot against him, and taken to Caesarea to appear before the Governor Felix for trial. Governor Festus, who succeeded Felix, obliged the Jews who opposed Paul in Jerusalem to present their charges against him in Caesarea, Paul appealed to Caesar rather than face trial in Jerusalem (Acts 25:1-12). Paul was allowed to present a defense for Christianity before Festus and King Agrippa. From Caesarea Paul set sail, as a prisoner, for Rome.
Samaria is identified with ruins called Shomeron, about 55 km N of Jerusalem. Much of Samaria's history is associated with 14 kings of Israel, from Omri to Hoshea. There was much animosity and rivalry between Samaria and
Jerusalem, the respective capitals of the northern and southern kingdoms. Samaria was eventually destroyed due to its idolatry and moral corruption (2 Kings 17:7-18). In 742 B.C.E. Assyria laid siege to Samaria, and if finally fell in 740 B.C.E. In Roman times, Samaria's spendor was due to the building program of Herod the Great, who renamed the city Sebaste (a feminine Greek form for the name Augustus), in honor of the first emperor.
The Plains of Sharon is an area noted for its fertility (Isaiah 35:2) In the Song of Solomon the Shulamite describes herself as "a mere saffron of the coastal plain", meaning just a common flower amonthe the many growing in Sharon (The Song of Solomon 2:1).
Megiddo was built on a mound known today as Tell el-Mutesellim (Tel Megiddo), which rises nearly 21 m above the valley below, and is situated about 90 km N of Jerusalem. The first mention of Megiddo in the Bible is in Joshua 12, listing the King of Megiddo among the 31 that Joshua defeated in the initial conquest of the Promised Land. Its geographic location, and elevation, allowed it to control the major trade and military routes that intersected
there. Biblical history tells of many decisive battles that were fought at Megiddo.
The Valley of Jezreel is a term generally used to designate the plain extending from the Carmel Range to the Jordan River. It was in the Low Plain of Jezreel that Gideon and his 300 men looked on as the forces of the Midianites, Amalekites, and Easterners turned against each other in confustion (Judges 7:12-22). Later, the Israelite army, under King Saul, camped by the spring in Jezreel when facing the Philistines. It was from there that the report was received about the deaths of Saul and his son Jonathan (2 Samuel 4:4).
Mount Carmel was a fertile region often mentioned with Lebanon, Sharon and Bashan (Isaiah 35:2). Historically, Mount Carmel is associated with the activities of the prophets Elijah and Elisha. 1 Kings 18 tells of Elijah requesting King Ahab to assemble the people here to witness the test between Baal and the true God Jehovah. King Saul erected a monument at Carmel to commemorate his victory over the Amalekites (1 Samuel 15:12). When David was running from Saul, "Nabal the Carmelite" grazed his flocks in Carmel's mountainous pastoral regions.
The Kishon River
is one of the largest in Israel. The Bible first mentions the Kishon River at Joshua 19:24-26 as part of the border of the tribe of Asher. Judges 5 speaks of Deborah's battle, stating that "the river of Kishon swept them away...." 1 Kings 18 describes Elijah's slaughter of the Baal prophets at the Kishon.
Haifa is the 3rd largest city in Israel, built on the slopes of Mount Carmel. Its history spans about 3000 years. It has been conquered and ruled by the Phoenicians, Persians, Hasmoneans, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, Ottomans, British and Israelis.
Tiberias was built by King Herod about 21 C.E. and was named after the Roman emperor Tiberius Caesar. It is situated about 25 km ENE of Nazareth. The only mention of Tiberias in the Bible is at John 6:23.
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