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"Jericho"

The Oldest City in the World

Tuesday, ‎December ‎24, ‎2013

Fourth Day of my Holy Land Trip, Mount Zion, Jerusalem

My Holy Land Trip

"Jericho"

The Oldest City in the World

Christ Healing the Blind:

Jericho is a city located near the Jordan River in the West Bank. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho Governorate. In 2007, it had a population of 18,346. The city was occupied by Jordan from 1948 to 1967, and has been held under Israeli occupation since 1967; administrative control was handed over to the Palestinian Authority in 1994. It is believed to be one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world.

Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of more than 20 successive settlements in Jericho, the first of which dates back 11,000 years (9000 BC), almost to the very beginning of the Holocene epoch of the Earth's history.

A Panoramic view of Jericho:

Jericho is described in the Hebrew Bible as the "City of Palm Trees". Copious springs in and around the city attracted human habitation for thousands of years. It is known in Judeo-Christian tradition as the place of the decisive Battle of Jericho which secured the Israelites' return to the Promised Land from bondage in Egypt, led by Joshua, the successor to Moses.

The Sycamore Tree which is Zacchaeus:

Zacchaeus was a chief tax-collector at Jericho^] A descendent of Abraham he was a poster child for Jesus' personal, earthly mission to bring salvation to the lost. Tax collectors were despised as traitors (working for the Roman Empire, not for their Jewish community), and as being corrupt.

Because the lucrative production and export of balsam was centered in Jericho, his position would have carried both importance and wealth. In the account, he arrived before the crowd who were later to meet with Jesus, who was passing through Jericho on his way to Jerusalem. Described as a short man, Zacchaeus climbed up a sycamore fig tree so that he might be able to see Jesus. When Jesus reached the spot he looked up into the branches, addressed Zacchaeus by name, and told him to come down, for he intended to visit his house. The crowd was shocked that Jesus, a Jew, would sully himself by being a guest of a tax collector.

The Sycamore Tree which is Zacchaeus, was climbing to see Jesus:

Moved by the audacity of Jesus' undeserved love and acceptance, Zacchaeus publicly repented acts of corruption and vowed to make restitution for them, and held a feast at his house.

The Sycamore Tree which is Zacchaeus, was climbing to see Jesus:

The story of Zacchaeus is used by some to illustrate the saying of Jesus: "Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God" Matthew 5:8, because the name Zacchaeus means pure. Zacchaeus also becomes a contrast of character with the Rich Young Ruler Luke 18:-23. Both Zacchaeus and the Rich Young Ruler were wealthy men, but one felt self-righteousness and would not give up his possessions, the other gave half his possessions to feed the poor.

The Sycamore Tree which is Zacchaeus, was climbing to see Jesus:

Jericho is a green oasis in the Jordan Valley which lies 7 km west of the River Jordan, 10 Km north of the Dead Sea and 30 Km east of Jerusalem. It lies 250 meters below sea level and thus it is considered to be the lowest city in the world.

The origin of the name "Jericho" is Semitic. To the Canaanites it meant "The Moon". In Syriac the name meant "Scent and odour". The city is called "The city of Palm" and "The Garden of God".

Jericho Today, the oldest city in the world:

Jericho is the oldest city in the world. The ruins of the oldest civilization discovered in Jericho are 10,000 years old. There are a lot of important and beautiful historical places to visit in Jericho, such as Old Jericho, River Jordan where Jesus Christ was baptized, Mount of Temptation, Hisham Palace, Ein Al-Sultan (Elisha) spring, Sycamore tree, Monastery of Saint George (Wadi Kelt), Hasmoneans (Herod) Palace, Monastery of Dier Hajlah, Kumran Caves, Dead Sea, and a lot more. The nice climate of the city is conducive to tourism both domestic and International.

The average temperature in January is 8.5 degrees and the lowest average annual temperature is 17 degrees. The average annual temperature is 23.5 degrees and the highest average annual temperature is 30.5 degrees. The average annual amount of rainfall is 150 millimeters, and the average annual humidity is 52%.

Jericho Municipal Office:

The amount of rainfall in the Jericho area is less than that of the surrounding mountains and the coastal regions, thus Jericho area relies entirely for drinking and irrigation on subterranean wells and springs such as the Ein Al-Sultan spring. The source of this water is situated in the distant mountains. Ein Al-Sultan spring in considered being the main source for agriculture. It has an output of 680 cubic meters an hour and a salinity of 600 fractions in one million. It provides a steady output throughout the year. It is used equally for drinking water and for irrigating.

In addition to its tourist sites, Jericho is considered to be an important area for agriculture. It is famous for its citrus fruits, dates, bananas, flowers and winter vegetables.

The area within the municipality limits is about 45 square kilometers, and the population of the city of Jericho alone is 17,000. If we include the population of the surrounding villages and refugee camps the number goes up to 25,000 inhabitants.

The origin of the name, "Jericho" is Semitic. The common people pronounce it "Riha". To the Cananaites it meant "the moon". The word is derived from the verb "yerihu", and "Yarah". Al-Yarah in the language of southern Arabia means "a month" and "moon". In Hebrew "yarihu" is the most ancient known city in the Jewish Bible. "Riha" in Syriac means "scent and odor".

Jericho Municipal Office:

The Battle of Jericho is a battle in the biblical Book of Joshua, (Joshua 6:1-27) the first battle of the Israelites during their conquest of Canaan. According to the narrative, the walls of Jericho fell after Joshua's Israelite army marched around the city blowing their trumpets.

Before crossing into the land west of the River Jordan, Joshua sent two spies to look over the land. The king of Jericho heard that two Israelite spies were within his city and ordered them to be brought out to him. The spies were tasked with ascertaining where the guards were placed, whether anyone disliked the king and could help them, what weaponry and armor the guards had, when the guards changed shifts, how much food, water, and other supplies the city had, and the height and width of the walls so as to determine how to overcome the city.

Jericho City, the oldest city in the world:

The woman with whom the spies were staying was named Rahab and she protected them by hiding the two men on her roof. She tells them how the citizens of Jericho had been fearful of the Israelites ever since they defeated the Egyptians via the Red Sea miracle (some 40 years prior), and agrees to cover for them on condition that she and her family are spared in the upcoming battle. The spies agree provided three conditions are met:

She must distinguish her house from the others so the soldiers will know which one to spare

Her family must be inside the house during the battle, and

She must not later turn on the spies.

Rahab agrees to the conditions: she hangs a scarlet rope outside her window to distinguish her house from the others.

Safely escaping the city, the two returned to Joshua and reported that the "whole land was melting with fear."

Inter Continental Hotel, Jericho, on the way to Dead Sea:

The biblical account describes the Israelites being led by Joshua and crossing the Jordan into Canaan where they laid siege to the city of Jericho. There, God spoke to Joshua telling him to march around the city once every day for six days with the seven priests carrying ram's horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day they were to march around the city seven times and the priests were to blow their ram's horns. And Joshua ordered the people to shout. The walls of the city collapsed, and the Israelites were able to charge straight into the city. The city was completely destroyed, and every man, woman, child and animal in it was killed by Joshua's army by God's command. Only Rahab and her family were spared, because she had hidden the two spies sent by Joshua. After this, Joshua burned the remains of the city and cursed any man who rebuild the city of Jericho would do so at the cost of his firstborn son. It is generally accepted that the biblical date for the fall of the walls is the 28th of Nisan, according to the Hebrew calendar.

On the way to Dead Sea, Jericho:

The Book of Joshua or Book of Jehoshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land. Joshua forms part of the biblical account of the emergence of Israel which begins with the exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, continues with the book of Joshua, and culminates in the Judges with the conquest and settlement of the land. The book is in two roughly equal parts. The first part depicts the campaigns of the Israelites in central, southern and northern Canaan, as well as the destruction of their enemies. The second part details the division of the conquered land among the twelve tribes. The two parts are framed by set-piece speeches by God and Joshua commanding the conquest and at the end warning of the need for faithful observance of the Law (torah) revealed to Moses.

On the way to Dead Sea, Jericho:

Almost all scholars agree that the book of Joshua holds little historical value for early Israel and most likely reflects a much later period. Rather than being written as history, the Deuteronomistic history – Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings – was intended to illustrate a theological scheme in which Israel and her leaders are judged by their obedience to the teachings and laws (the covenant) set down in the book of Deuteronomy.

Although tradition holds that the book was written by Joshua, it is probable that it was written by multiple editors and authors far removed from the times it depicts. The earliest parts of the book are possibly chapters 2–11, the story of the conquest; these chapters were later incorporated into an early form of Joshua written late in the reign of king Josiah (reigned 640–609 BCE), but the book was not completed until after the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians in 586, and possibly not until after the return from the Babylonian exile in 539.

On the way to Dead Sea, Jericho:

The first scientific investigation of the site of Jericho was carried out by Charles Warren in 1868, but amounted to no more than a site-survey (Warren's prime interest was in establishing the modern equivalents of Biblical locales). In 1907-09 and again in 1911 digging was carried out by two German archaeologists, Carl Watzinger and Ernest Sellin. Watzinger and Sellin believed that they would be able to validate the Biblical story of Jericho's destruction by Joshua and the Israelites, but concluded instead that the city was unoccupied at the generally-accepted time of Joshua, ca. 1400 BC

Jericho - The most excavated site in Israel:

These results were tested in 1930-36 by John Garstang, at the suggestion of William F. Albright, the doyen of Palestinian archaeology at the time. Garstang discovered the remains of a network of collapsed walls which he dated to about 1400 BC, the time he believed the Israelites were on their conquest that had apparently fallen in a dramatic fashion as opposed to being ruined by abandonment or decay from natural forces. Garstang's work thus reversed the conclusions of the earlier diggings.

Elisha Spring Fountain, Jericho:

In 1990, biblical archaeologist (with a particular focus on Canaanite pottery), and Research Director of the inerrantist Associates for Biblical Research Bryant G. Wood proposed that the pottery recovered during the excavations of Garstang and Kenyon pointed to a destruction date of the city ca. 1400 BC rather than 1550 BC, as concluded by Kenyon. Wood's main argument was that Kenyon's conclusion was based on the expensive, imported Cypriot pottery that was not found at the excavation site and that she ignored the vast amount of local pottery that was recovered. In addition to the ceramic data, Wood appealed to stratigraphy, a scarab series uncovered by Garstang, and a carbon-14 sample of a single charcoal piece found in the destruction debris as further evidence in favor of the later 1400 BC destruction date. Wood's proposal did not settle the debate and he was forced to defend his argument against direct criticism, specifically from Piotr Bienkowski

The Tower of Jericho is an 8.5-metre-tall (28 ft) stone structure, built in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic a period around 8000 BC. It is among the earliest stone monuments of mankind.

The Wall of Jericho was discovered by John Garstang during the excavations of 1930 to 1936, which he suggested were those described in the Book of Joshua in theBible and dated to around 1400 BCE.^[3] Kathleen Kenyon discovered the tower built against the wall inside the town during excavations between 1952 and 1958, in trench I. Kenyon provided evidence that both constructions dated much earlier, to the Neolithic stone age, and were part of an early proto-city. The tower highlights the importance of Jericho for the understanding of settlement patterns in the Sultanian period in the southern Levant.

The Tower of Jericho:

The tower was constructed with an internal staircase of twenty two steps and is almost 9 metres (30 ft) in diameter at the base, decreasing to 7 metres (23 ft) at the top with walls approximately 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) thick. The construction of the tower is estimated to have taken 11,000 working days.

Jericho by Night - The oldest continuously occupied city in the world - At the background the Dead Sea and Jordan:

In front of the Sycamore Tree which is Zacchaeus, was climbing to see Jesus: