LOWER GALILEE PART 2

IsraelNovember 2008

Bet She’an or Scythopolis, one of the ten cities of the Decapolis, 27 km south of the Sea of Galilee

Bet She'an dates back to the Chalcolithic Period (4th century BCE)It came under the rule of the Egyptians in the 15th century BCELater, it became a Canaanite city & was allotted to the tribe of Manasseh (Josh 17:11)It was here that the Philistines hung the body of Saul from its ramparts (1 Sam 31:10)It was an Israelite city in the time of SolomonIn the 3rd century BCE, it became a Greek city & named “Scythopolis”In 64 BCE it was taken by the Romans, rebuilt, & made the capital of the Decapolis

According to our Israeli guide, it was easy for the archaeologists to excavate Bet She’an as it was built like a typical Roman city as described by Vitruvius’ 10-volume architectural treatise (1st century BCE)Seen here are the limestone columns of the cardo, the main street which was about 180 m long & 7 m wide

The main street of Palladius Street is paved with basalt slabsIn the middle, flagstones cover a deep drainage channel beneath

There were shops on each side of the street & the floors were covered with mosaic

The city’s patron god was Dionysus, the god of wine

Dionysus’ temple has four columns of 10 m high which supported a triangular stone

Further down, there is a row of shops with mosaic floors constructed in the 6th century

A Corinthian column A mosaic floor

Much of the Silvanus Street was destroyed in the 749 CE earthquake

Can you guess what these are?

Here is the answer

The Roman bathhouse

This 7,000-seat theatre with 3 tiers of seating was built in the 1st century CE; only the lowest tier remains today

The stage is on the right side

Part of the stage wall with marble columns

Arches play a very important role in Roman architectureThe topmost stone—the capstone or keystone—holds the whole arch intactFrom a series of arches, the Romans built bridges, aqueducts, & gates

A severe earthquake in 749 CE devastated the city; see how the arch fell as a result of the earthquake

Bet She’an was left pretty untouched since that earthquake

The impact of the earthquake

The Golan Heights which Israel captured from Syria during the Six-Day in June 1967

Our next stop was Megiddo or Armageddon (from the Hebrew word, Har-Megiddo, meaning “hill of Megiddo”)

Inhabited from the Chalcolithic period, Megiddo has approximately 26 levels of occupation

Tel Megiddo is a key location on the Via Maris or “Way of the Sea” (Matt 4:15), as the Romans called the major north-south corridor that led from Damascus through Galilee down to EgyptAccording to our Israeli guide, it took Pharaoh Neco of Egypt in 609 BCE just days to reach Megiddo where he fought King Josiah & killed the latter (2 Kings 23:29) while it took the children of Israel 40 years to reach the Promised Land

Megiddo overlooks the Jezreel Valley, the site of many battles (Judges 1:22-27; 5:19; 2 Kings 23:29-30) & the final battle between good & evil (Rev 16:16); Mount Gilboa is in the background

The hills in the background (left to right): southern mountains of Nazareth, Mount Tabor (site of the transfiguration of Jesus), & Hill of Moreh

The city gate of Middle Bronze Period

The remains of the Canaanite altar of sacrifice

The ruins at Megiddo

The water cistern is so devised that the townspeople would not have to leave the safety of the city walls to collect waterA vertical shaft was dug within the city to the depth of the nearby spring & then a tunnel was built to connect to the water sourceYou can walk down 183 steps into the shaft, which is 36.5 m deep, & then along the tunnel, which stretches another 65.5 m, & then walk up 80 steps to reach the exitMake sure you have strong knees before you visit Israel!

The bottom of the cistern that dates back to the 12th century BCE

The well-concealed exitWe can only conclude that these people were really ingenious