A Pisgah-Sight of Palestine, Book 5 · Part 1 · Chapter 7 – Chapter 8
CHAP. VII. Objections, against Zebulun, answered.
Philol.
YOu, very confidently, make Iordan continue his un…ixit stream, clean through the Galilean-sea (a course somewhat irregular in nature) without alleadging any authority for the proof of so improbable a passage.
Aleth.
Excellent Authors avouch the same.aHist. lib. 5. pag. 618. Tacitus, amongst others, tells us of this River, Unum, atque alterum lacum integer perfluit, tertio …etinetur; One, and another lake (viz. the waters of Merom, and Galilean-sea) it runneth through entire, but is stopped in the third; namely, in Asphaltite-lake, or Dead-sea. More full is the testimony of Philostorgius, and deserveth our serious perusall thereof. Who speaking of this River, foreign, Which (saith he) passeth through the lake of Tiberias, cutting it in the middle, and flowing clean through it in its own proper channell. Which cutting of the lake, implies the entire continuance of Iordans water; otherwise, that knife doth not cut the loaf, but is cut by the loaf, which is broken in the dividing thereof.
Philol.
I wonder you pass over Shimron-Meron in such silence, which appears a place of great note, yea, a Royall City in the days of Ioshua, as the Coronet thereupon doth inform us.
Aleth.
I confess it signed with a Coronet, and with something more, a flag of uncertainty, having nothing sure of the location thereof, the chiefest cause that I willingly declined the mention of it. However, we will scrue our selves into as much certainty of this place, as may be extracted out of Scripture: and observe, the four first wreaths of my scrue are undoubtedly, the fifth and last more then probably true, as followeth.
1 Shimron-Meron was one of thebJosh. 12. 20. Royall Cities, whose King Ioshua destroyed.
2 The same City is elsewhere called plainlycJosh. 11. 1. Shimron, without any addition.
3 It lay on the northern part of the land, because the King thereof associated in the northern, and seconddSee book. 1. cap. 8. §. 3. combination of the Canaanites against Ioshua.
4 A City named Shimron, was alloted to the Tribe ofeJosh. 19. 15. Zebulun.
5 Most probably this is the same Shimron, whose King was destroyed by Ioshua.
This is all, which my best industry could collect out of Scripture, or good Authors, concerning the situation of this place.
Philol.
What mean you by that third smooty circle, which (as the Meteor Halo about the Sun) surroundeth the Levites City of Iockneam?
Aleth.
It signifieth nothing, being a meer aberration of the Graver, which (now but obscure) will in process of Printing, wholly disappear. And I could hartily wish, no other faults in our Maps, would be of longer continuance.
Philol.
You make the Galilean-sea all along the east boundary of this Tribe. Whereas I am altogether of the minde of Masius, that no part of Zebulun touched on that sea; with him principally grounding my opinion on the Scriptures silence, which mentioneth not any conterminating of this Tribe thereupon. Which might soon have been spoken, yea surely would not have been omitted, had Zebulun been so situated.
Aleth.
That Zebulun bordered on this sea, may cleerly be demonstrated; first from Iacobs prophecy, that he should dwell foreign fGen 49. 13.At the haven of the Seas. Seas in the plurall, pointing at his position betwixt the Mediterranean, and Galilean seas, the west and east bounds of his possession. Now lest any should seek to wave these words by an Enallage in Number (a figure, we confess, frequent in Hebrew) Zebuluns bounding on the Galilean-sea, is unfallibly collected out of thegMat. 4. 13. Gospell, where Christ is said to dwell in Capernaum which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Z…bulun, and Naphtali.
Philol.
Christ his feeding of five thousand, with five loaves, and two fishes, is misplaced in your Map, as which ought to be set on the east side of the Sea of Galilce.
Aleth.
Learned men are much perplexed about the position of this miracle. A miracle, so remarkable in it self, that of all the passages betwixt Christs conception, and the introduction to his passion, this onelyonly, and the descent of the Dove at his baptisme are recorded in all four Evangelists. Yet some difficulty appears in the particular place thereof.hL…k. 9. 10. Luke termeth it the desert of Beth…aida; but Saint Iohn iJohn 6. 23.who wrote the last, (therefore supplying the omissions, and explaining the doubts in other Gospells) assigneth the particular place to be near Tiberias, both being Cities on the west side of the sea, so that north of Tiberias, betwixt it*The Reader is intreated with his eye to …emove the p… cture of the peoples feeding, a little north of Tiberia…. and Bethsaida, (in a desert named from the latter, because leading to it) this miracle is properly placed.
Philol.
But immediately at the ending thereof, the Disciples are said to sail foreign,kM… k. 6. 46. unto the other side unto Bethsaida, or as Saint Iohn says, towards lJoh. 6. 17.Capernaum (both these being Cities not far asunder.) Wherefore, if they crossed over the Sea to go to Bethsaida, they were not already on the same side thereof when the miracle was wrought, and by consequence were then on the other [the eastern] side of the Sea.
Aleth.
By foreign, is meant the opposite shoar, on the same side of the Sea, but so that it was over a reach, or bay which they crossed therein, sailing (not athwart the breadth of the Sea from west to east, but) almost foreright the length of the lake, from a place near Tiberias to the land ofmMat. 14. 34. Gennesaret, on the north end of the lake, betwixt Bethsaida and Capernium. Thus, such who on the Severn Sea sail from Bristoll to Barstable, may be said in some sense to cross the water, as well as those that saile from Barstable to Cardif…e. And thus, in placing this miracle we have not onelyonly followed the judgment ofnIn his Harmony on the Text. worthy Calvin, but also the eyes ofoSee our Zebulun § 26. Biddulph a modern traveller, who beheld the place.
CHAP. VIII. Objections against Issachar answered.
Philol.
WHat vast mountains have you made those of Gilboa to be? the highest of them four miles perpendicular: Surely the battell betwixt Saul, and the Philistines could scarce be fought on such ascents. Yea, David might well have spared his wish,a2 Sam. 1. 21. Let there be no dew, neither let there be rain upon you, whose tops, (as you have exalted them) may be presumed higher then the clouds themselves.
Aleth.
I confess them to be of the largest size, store of room and want of other matter to fill it, gave the occasion to their greater growth. Which fault is amended in the following Map of Manasseh, where behold them reduced to a more moderate proportion, less then many of the mountains in Wales.
Philol.
How comes a parcell of mount Ephraim to straggle into the Map of Issachar? It being proper for those mountains to be confined to their own Tribe of Ephraim, whence they fetcht their denomination.
Aleth.
I may say the Tribe of Ephraim had the Preemption, but not the Monopoly of them. I mean his turn was first served, and he had the best and most of those mountains in his possession, whence they deservedly took their name. Yet so, that some part of mount Ephraim ranged south ward into the Tribe of Benjamin, (as mountbCompare Josh. 18. 22. wth 2 Chr. 13. 4 Zemaraim) and some branched northward into Issachar, as Shamir in mount cJud. 10. 1.Ephraim; certainly in this Tribe,dJudg. 10. 1. 2 because Tola a man of Issachar was buried therein.
Philol.
It followeth not, because he was extracted from this Tribe, that therefore the place of his buriall was in the same, finding many mens interments in Scripture, casuall, out of the Tribes of their nativity. Thus Saul and Ionathan being Benjamites, were notwithstanding buried in the Tribe of Gad, ate1 Sam. 3. …. 12. Iabesh Gilead: as also Ishbosheth and Abner their Countreymen got graves atf2 Sam. 4. 12. Hebron in the Tribe of Iudah: so infirme is your inference, that Shamir in mount Ephraim was in Issachar, because Tola an Issacharite was intombed therein.
Aleth.
You instance onelyonly in persons, some forcibly, others treacherously slain, which occasioned their hasty, tumultuary, and extravagant interment. Remember also that Saul and Ionathan, (though intermediately at Iabesh Gilead) were finally intombed in theg2 S…m. 21. 14. sepulchres of their Father, in the land of Benjamin, as we may presume that Tola his corps a peaceable Judge (no violent detention, or disturbance appearing to the contrary) did rest in the possessions of that Tribe; the Iews generally being as ceremonious to be buried in their own land, as to be married in their own linage.