The remote region surrounding the Upper Jordan River was home to two small nations that are frequently overlooked regarding their role in Israelite history: Geshur and Maacah. The land occupied by these two nations fell within the allotted territories of Naphtali and Manasseh, but Israel was never able to drive them out (Joshua 12:5; 13:1-13), […]
Author Archives: Administrator
The Land of Midian
The heartland of Midian was located immediately east of the Gulf of Aqaba, although the Midianites’ nomadic lifestyle often took them far beyond this region and even into the land of Israel. The Bible mentions the Midianites as early as Joseph’s time (Genesis 37:25-36) and as late as Isaiah’s time (Isaiah 60:6), but they may […]
Assyria Advances on Jerusalem
Isaiah 10:24-34 Like the climax of a nail-biting thriller, Isaiah 10:24-34 traces the movements of an overwhelming force of Assyrians closing in on the city of Jerusalem, but just when all seems lost and the enemy is shaking his fist over the city, the Lord delivers his people. It is not clear if this story […]
Zerah the Cushite
2 Chronicles 14 The book of 2 Chronicles contains the sole mention of an otherwise unknown battle between King Asa of Judah and Zerah the Cushite. Prior to his description of the battle, the Chronicler notes that Asa had undertaken a campaign to fortify many of the towns throughout Judah, since the land was at […]
Earthquakes in the Bible
Throughout much of the ancient Near East earthquakes were at the same time familiar yet terrifying, and the great power demonstrated by them was often associated with God himself. While the most intense seismic activity of the region typically occurs far north of Israel around Pergamum, Ephesus, Melidu, and Tushpa, the land of Israel experiences […]