Dynasty of Jewish kings belonging to the family also known as the Maccabees.
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When Israel divided after Solomon's death (926 BC), the northern 10 tribes under Jeroboam became the northern kingdom, or Israel. The Assyrians destroyed them in 722 BC.
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Mountain at the northeast edge of the Valley of Jezreel. Site of the battle between Deborah and Barak and Jabin, king of Hazor.
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Modern term referring to the area of Israel and the countries surrounding it.
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Refers to the land between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, as well as the surrounding area. The patriarchs came from here. The empires of Assyria, Persia, and Babylon were here.
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A strong leader of the people of Israel before Israel had kings. God brought judges to power to save the people from their enemies.
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Inserting a sharpened stake between the rib cage of a living victim, putting the stake into the ground so it stood erect, and leaving the victim hanging until the stake pierced a vital organ causing the victim to die. Impaling was one of the metho...
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During Biblical times, city gates protected the entrance to the city and functioned as the center of city life. In various chambers inside the gatehouse, people paid their taxes, settled legal matters, and even met the king. The city gates also pr...
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Valley to the west of Jerusalem that was at one time the city sewage dump and the place where Judean kings sacrificed their children. This valley, with its filth, rottenness, and burning flesh, came to symbolize hell.
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King of Judah of the 7th and 8th centuries BC (2 Kings 18). When King Hezekiah learned that the dreaded Assyrian army had arrived in Israel, he recognized the threat his exposed water supply posed for Jerusalem's survival. He dug a tunnel through ...
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Perhaps the most well-known Philistine soldier. He taunted the Israelites and ridiculed God, but fell when David threw a stone.
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Nickname given by Ezekiel to the northern kingdom. It means "her tent" and probably refers to the Baal high places the northern kingdom built.
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City near Bethel, north of Jerusalem, that was destroyed by Joshua. It controlled the approach to the mountain range from the east.
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"Temple of Nymphs"; an ornamental fountain with statues.
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Nickname given by Ezekiel to the southern kingdom. It means "tent worshiper," a reference to the Baal worship of Judah.
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Only part of this chamber was left standing after the city was destroyed following the Assyrian conquest of the Northern Kingdom in the eighth century BC. The street (foreground) was removed by archaeologists after they discovered an earlier gate ...
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Another name for the Second Jewish Revolt against Rome (AD 132-135). The leader of the revolt was a man named Bar Kochba.
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Body of water east of Greece dotted with many islands. Scholars believe the Philistines came from this area.
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The king of the Philistine city of Gath, who twice gave refuge to David. (1 Sam. 21:10-15).
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A Roman political office; meant one-fourth of a kingdom. When Herod died, his three sons and others received parts of his kingdom; two sons become tetrarchs, one an ethnarch.
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Small boxes and the accompanying leather straps worn by observant Jews during prayer. The boxes are placed on the forehead and near the heart and bound in place by the leather straps. (See Deut. 6.)
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Nation or area north and east of Israel. Old Testament: a bitter enemy of Israel. New Testament: large province (including Israel) under Roman control. At the time of Jesus, a large Jewish community lived in its capital, Damascus.
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When Israel divided after Solomon's death (926 BC), the tribe of Judah under Rehoboam became the southern kingdom, or Judah. In 586 BC, God punished the people for their sins by exiling them to Babylon for 70 years. Jesus was born of this tribe.
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Name given to the Promised Land after the Second Jewish Revolt (AD 132-235). It is derived from the word Philistia and was used by the Romans to denigrate the Jews.
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Synonym for being a ruler, judge, or official, because the gate compartments functioned as courthouses.
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In this revolt of AD 132-135, the Romans totally removed the nation of Israel. Also known as the Bar Kochba Revolt.
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Means "council." Jewish supreme court; highest religious council, composed of 70 members and the high priest. The number 70 traditionally was based on Moses' appointment of 70 elders (Num. 11:16) to administer Israel's affairs. Used by t...
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Name of a city and a region, The city was founded by Omri, king of Israel c.a. 880 BC, and Ahab built a magnificent palace there. Samaria became a center for Baal worship. It was destroyed by the Assyrians in 722 BC. During Jesus' time, it was a d...
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Descendants of Ptolemy I (one of the generals of Alexander the Great) who ruled over Egypt from 323 BC until 198 BC. Israel was under their control during this time. Generally, they were benevolent rulers, though they sought to spread the influenc...
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Special seat in a theater.
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Large mound or hill composed of layers of debris from several different periods of settlement.'
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Country along the Mediterranean Sea to the north of Israel. The people worshiped Baal in the same fertility cults as did the Canaanites. Jezebel came from here.'
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Means "the separate ones." Descended from the Hasidim ("pious ones"); considered obedience to Torah to be the heart of a godly life. Separated from sinful ways and people in their desire to be faithful. Believed strongly in God...
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Five standing stones (or masseboth) were found in the high place of the gate at Dan. This high place is similar to the ones Josiah destroyed in his reform (2 Kings 23:8) because they were used in the fertility rites of the culture. Standing stones...
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Word means "dry" or "parched." Desert on the southern edge of Israel, south of the Judea Mountains. The Israelites wandered here during their 40 years in the wilderness. Home of Jacob, father of the 12 tribes, and many desert n...
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Fertility Cults of CanaanOnly recently have scholars begun to unravel the complex religious rituals of Israel's Canaanite neighbors. Much of our knowledge of the origins and character of these fertility cults remains tentative and widely debated. ...
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The southern part of Israel is called the Negev. It is a "tame" desert, with occasional rain in some area, and some land that is valuable for livestock and certain crops.The arid Negev (Negev means "dry") lies south of the Hebr...
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Mount Carmel, which literally means "God's vineyard," is a mountain range running about thirteen miles southeast in the western Jezreel Valley. This part of Israel receives thirty inches of rain each year and is the most heavily forested...
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Megiddo stands on the southern edge of the Jezreel Valley and is probably the most famous battlefield in the world. In biblical times, Megiddo was one of three cities that guarded the Via Maris trade route. Standing near a critical mountain pass, ...
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Because of its strategic position in the Valley of Elah, the city of Azekah was often attacked and destroyed. Both Assyria and Babylon traveled through the valley of Elah and destroyed Azekah during ancient times.The city of Lachish (located south...
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Jerusalem's Hinnom Valley marked the western and southern edges of Jerusalem, beginning along the Western Hill and ending where the Tyropean and Kidron Valleys meet. In the Old Testament, it was often the site where people of Judah sacrificed thei...
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By cutting through the layers of civilization and examining the artifacts, structures, and even human remains, archaeologists can reconstruct the lifestyle of a community. Pottery styles change over time, and since pottery is virtually imperishabl...
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Jesus used various word pictures and ideas that were familiar to the people of his time in order to communicate effectively with both religious Jews and pagans.The Bridegroom ImageFor example, Jesus described his deep love for his followers in ter...
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FormIn order to make sense of covenants, people followed a certain pattern that governed the content and form of a covenant. A summary document representing the entirety of the relationship was usually provided. As the superior party, God alone de...
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City gates played a significant role in ancient life. Because openings in city walls created a weak place, ancient people strengthened their gates to prevent their city from being easily invaded. Building a gatehouse inside the city wall became a ...
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Tel Azekah is a five-acre site overlooking the Valley of Elah. The Judea Mountains stand to the east. The Mediterranean Sea, located about twelve miles to the west, can be seen from the tel.Archaeologists have identified at least four levels of ci...
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Assyrian Conquests
During the 700s BC, the Assyrian empire made many conquests in the land of Israel. Because God's people had ignored his commands and began turning to pagan gods, they had become weak, both morally and physically. As judgment for...
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The Temple CourtsThe remains of Israel's first temple lie buried beneath the present-day Temple Mount. But at Tel Arad, a city located in the Negev, archaeologists discovered the remains of a temple modeled after Jerusalem's First Temple.Although ...
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The town of Arad is not important in the sense of great Bible events, but it does give a sense for the lives of common people during the time of Israel's monarchy. The ruins of a small temple from Hezekiah's time are significant in understanding t...
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A Great CityLachich guarded the southern approach to Jerusalem. It's impressive ruiins remind us that thousands of people once called this strategic city their home.Once one of Israel's largest cities, Lachish covers an impressive eighteen acres. ...
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The Greatest CityLocated at the most critical mountain pass on the Via Maris, Megiddo was the greatest city in the ancient world.In ancient times, Megiddo towered above the Plain of Jezreel. It was located along the Via Maris, the primary trade ro...
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Its LocationThe Via Maris entered the Great Rift Valley from the east and continued south to the Sea of Galilee. It then turned southwest into the Valley of Jezreel and cut through the ridge of Mount Carmel to reach the coastal plain. After arrivi...
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At the bottom of the vertical shaft, the workers of Megiddo dug a horizontal tunnel nearly 220 feet long, to the cave where the spring was located.Apparently, one crew began in the cave and another one at the bottom of the shaft. The chisel marks ...
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AssyriansThe Assyrian empire was located in Mesopotamia near the Euphrates River. Their reputation was so fierce that Jonah fled in fear when God commanded him to speak in Ninevah, Assyria's capital (Jonah 1:1?3).Assyrian soldiers were equipped wi...
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Who Was Baal?
Baal was the primary god of the Canaanite fertility cults. He was often depicted as a man with the head and horns of a bull, who carried a lightening bolt symbolizing destruction and fertility.Baal supposedly won his dominance by def...
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Pagan GodsSurrounded by pagan neighbors, God's people often encountered people who worshiped other gods. Baal, Asherah, and other fertility gods played a significant role during Old Testament times.By Jesus' day, the baals were replaced by Greek a...
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Solomon's TempleConstruction of Solomon's Temple began about 950 BC on the Mount Moriah site chosen by David at God's leading. The temple sat on a high point of the ridge known as David's City, just north of the original city.Construction of this ...
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The WildernessWe may not want to face the wilderness, but the "rocks" of life are the very places where God often brings sweetness into our lives.Rugged wilderness covers much of Israel. The two most prominent deserts are the Judea Wilde...
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Who is Beelzebub?Baal-Zebul was the god of the Philistines; the name means "Exalted Baal" or "Prince Baal."In the Greek language of the New Testament, the name becomes Beelzebub. Jesus used the name Beelzebub for Satan, the pri...
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Mount Carmel, God's VineyardMount Carmel stood in the fertile and strategic Jezreel Valley. For God's people, it became a symbol of God's blessing on their land.' Mount Carmel, which literally means "God's vineyard," is a mountain range...
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The most strategic city in Israel, it guarded a key mountain pass of the international trade route Via Maris. It was one of the cities that Herod fortified. According to Revelation, it represents Armageddon, the final battle between God's people a...
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The city of AradAs far back as 3,000 BC, a large Canaanite city stood in the Negev, where the small town of Arad sits today. This city probably existed when Abraham and his family lived in Beersheba, a nearby desert region.Arad was eventually dest...
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The Old Testament view of sin and judgment created a model of reality separated into three different parts.The Holy
In the Biblical times, once something was given to God, it belonged to him alone and was considered holy. Anything devoted to God o...
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Israel is a land of hills and mountains. In fact, the first-time visitor to the country often is amazed at how little flat land there is. After several days, most travelers will notice that Israel is dotted with a certain kind of hill, one that is...
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How Could He?The story of the destruction of Jericho and the conquest of Canaan poses an ethical dilemma for many readers of the Bible. How could the God of love and mercy, the Father of Jesus, display such anger toward the inhabitants of the Prom...
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People in the ancient world worshipped a multitude of different gods. Each had its own story, its own myth, of the origin, the character, the blessings and curses they offered, and the worship each demanded. These myths often recalled ancient even...
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Give Us A KingYou may have learned somewhere that God did not want Israel to have a king. Most Christian churches teach this to youngsters early in Sunday school. But it is wrong. God did want Israel to have a king; he just had a certain kind of k...
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The False Claims of the CultsEach of the cults in Pergamum was a counterfeit, a clever copy of the things that God alone provides. Each god took credit or honor away from God, thus giving it to something human or of human invention. False Gods ...
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Give Us A King
Many Christians have been taught that God did not want his people to have a king. But in Deuteronomy 17:14-20, long before the people asked for a king, God said, "Be sure to appoint over you the king the Lord your God chooses.&...
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Both boys and girls attended school in Galilee. But only gifted boys continued their education beyond the age of 15, as girls were married by that age. Students probably attended school in the synagogue and were taught by the hazzan or a local Tor...
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The American concept of a king is usually negative. The Revolutionary War experience prompted most Americans to view kings as tyrants who cared little for the common person.Not all bad This view of kingship would not have been shared by most ancie...
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The wisest king of all, and accomplished many great things (including the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem), but broke almost every command God gave for a king.'
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Solomon was the wisest king of all, and he accomplished many great things, including the construction of the temple in Jerusalem.Yet the Bible judges Solomon by God's standards. The wisest human ruler who ever lived broke almost every command God ...
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The flat, fertile Valley of Jezreel was the breadbasket of ancient Israel. It is important strategically because the international trade route Via Maris crossed the valley just below the altar and continued through the mountain pass guarded by the...
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The photograph shows the spot where the tunnelers met nearly at midpoint. The ability of these people to cut this small tunnel without modern instruments or tools is astonishing. The fact that they were only 10 feet off horizontally and none at al...
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The water source for Megiddo was a spring at the base of the hill on which this strategic city was built. From its early history through the time of Solomon, the people reached the water by walking through a small postern gate and into a gallery (...
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Asclepius, the god who healed with moving water, was said to be the son of god Apollo and a woman named Coronis. His symbol was the snake, and he was known as the god of life because the snake seemingly resurrects itself (sheds its skin and is bor...
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The people of Megiddo (probably at the time of Ahab) constructed a wall to hide this cave from anyone outside the city.After the wall was built, the passageway to the cave was filled with dirt so that the side of the tel was unbroken and there was...
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