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THE

UNITARIAN BAPTIST ADVOCATE.

"For effecting a recovery and re-establishment of the long-lost truth." SIR ISAAC NEWTON. "One Lord, one Faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of all.”

No. XXI.]

PAUL.

SEPTEMBER, 1838. [VOL. II., N. S.

TRAVELS IN PALESTINE AND SYRIA.

By GEORGE ROBINSON, Esq.; illustrated with Maps and Plans, in 2 vol.: vol. 1, Palestine-Vol. 2, Syria. H. COLBURN, 1837.

[THE intelligent Christian knows that to the due appreciation and right understanding of the records of his religion as much collateral knowledge as he can gain is peculiarly valuable. With a mind imbued with gratitude and reverence for our Saviour, he will thankfully receive any authentic addition to the facts respecting the natural scenery of Palestine, of Galilee in particular, and the situations near the lake which was favoured with so large a share of our Lord's presence and labours. In this view we have been greatly interested in reading the two volumes which we have placed at the head of this article : the former in particular is most applicable to the Christian's use, and of that volume the 12th chapter, from which we persuade ourselves that our readers will be pleased with our selections.-ED.]

Sept. 5.-This morning M. de Breuvery and myself set out on an excursion to Mount Tabor, Tiberias, Cana, and other interesting places of Galilee. M. Cadalvene was prevented by illness from accompanying us. 'The horses and guide that we had engaged the preceding day, having been allowed to pass the night in the court-yard of the convent, and the gates being opened for us by one of the lay brothers, at 2 A.M., we issued forth into the street, and bent our course in the direction of Mount Tabor, which

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lies to the east of Nazareth. In our way thither, it being night, we saw little of the country, except what bordered immediately upon the road; but it appeared to be covered with trees, of which those we saw were stunted oaks. In about two hours, reaching the foot of the mountain, near the village of Debora, situated on its western side, we commenced ascending by a path winding through a forest of oak-trees and other shrubs, with which this side is particularly clothed. The first part of the ascent is comparatively easy; towards the middle it becomes more precipitous. Here we alighted, and led our horses by the bridle. Even in this state, it was a matter of difficulty with them to mount up, as there was no hold for their feet on the rocky bed over which we occasionally passed. At length, after a laborious ascent of nearly an hour, during which we halted frequently to repose, we arrived at the highest summit of the mountain. To one standing at its base, it appears to terminate in a peak; whereas we came out upon a plain area of an oval form, and about a mile in circumference. At this moment the sun burst forth in all the splendour of an oriental sunrise, and presented to our delighted view one of the finest and most interesting prospects it is possible to conceive. In the direction of the east-north-east, and, as it were, at our feet, lies a beautiful expanse of water, imbedded in mountains; it is the lake of Gennesareth. At its northern extremity is the snow-capped Hermon.

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The valley of the Jordan opens to the east, beyond which the loses itself in the desert of Haouran.* The spaeye cious plain of Esdraelon opens to the south towards Jerusalem, bounded in that direction by the mountains of Israel," and on the east by those of Gilboa. The ridge of Carmel closes the view to the south-west. The giant mountain to the north-east, by the Hebrews called Hermon, is the highest summit of the Anti-Libanus The white vapoury clouds which are still hanging upon its lower acclivities, and those of its sides which are not yet exposed to the sun's rays, remind me of the " copious dews" that fell in the days of the Psalmist (see Psal.

range.

A word given to any solitude, whether barren or fertile, and sometimes applied to extensive pasture-lands.

cxxxiii, 3), and to which was compared the precious "ointment upon the head, that ran down unto the beard, even Aaron's beard, and went down even unto the skirts of his garments." At its feet lay the cities of Nain and En-Dor. At the gates of the former our Lord raised to life the widow's only son. (Luke vii, 14). In the latter dwelt the sorceress consulted by Saul a short time before the fatal battle of Gilboa. (1 Sam. xxviii, 21). Stretching out from its northern base is the lake whose very name awakens feelings of the liveliest interest-the scene of many of Christ's miracles, and the dwelling-place of most of his apostles. The Jordan speaks of the baptism of Christ; by which holy institution the children of his adoption now receive power to enter into the promised land of the heavenly Canaan. The plain of Jezreel, or of Esdraelon, also called the Great Plain (the Armageddon of the Apocalypse), was the most fertile part of the land of Canaan, and in the distribution made by Joshua, fell to the lot of the tribe of Issachar, "who here rejoiced in their tents." (Deut. xxxiii, 18). In various parts of its extended surface, some of the more peacefully inclined Bedouin tribes (but still members of the great family of Ishmael) are to this day seen living under tents surrounded by their flocks, for the sake of the rich pasture it affords. Thus did the patriarchs of old wander with their cattle amongst the towns and villages of Canaan, and feed them, even in the most populous districts, without molestation. In the first ages of Jewish history, as well as during the Roman Empire and the Crusades, and even in latter times, it has been the scene of many a memorable contest, and perhaps no soil has ever been so saturated with human gore as that of the plain we now see at our feet.* Here it was that Barak, descending with his ten

#66 Josephus often mentions this very remarkable part of the Holy Land, and always under the appellation of the 'Great Plain,' and under the same name it is also mentioned by Eusebius and by Jerome. It has been a chosen place for encampment in every contest carried on in this country, from the days of Nabuchadonosor, king of the Assyrians, in the history of whose war with Arphaxad it is mentioned as the Great Plain of Esdraelon,' until the disastrous march of the late Napoleon Bonaparte from Egypt into Syria. Jews, Gentiles, Saracens, Christian crusaders, and anti-christian Frenchmen, Egyp

thousand men from Mount Tabor, discomfitted Sisera " and all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the men that were with him, &c. (see Judg. iv, et seq.) Here also it was that Josiah king of Judah fought in disguise against Necho king of Egypt, and fell by the arrows of his antagonist. (2 Kings, xxiii, 29). A recent traveller, who crossed the plain in its whole extent, computes it to be at least fifteen miles square, making allowances for some apparent irregularities. Though it bears the title of "plain," yet it abounds with hills, which in the view of it from the adjacent mountains, shrink into nothing. From this height, not a town or village is visible to the naked eye, and very few with the aid of the glass. In the direction of Nablous, lying among the mountains of Ephraim, we fancy we can distinguish Ebal and Gerizim, which we were prevented seeing on our way hither from Jerusalem. We cannot discern the Mediterranean. We had remained some time in the contemplation of these and the surrounding objects, replete with the deepest interest, when our attention was called to the scriptural and classic ground on which we were standing. Here Deborah and Barak assembled their army before the battle of Sisera (Judg. iv); and in the wars with the Romans which terminated the existence of the Jewish state, the top of Tabor was fortified by Josephus, who afterwards became the historian of his nation. A few paces from us were the ruins of a chapel, recording the scene of our Lord's transfiguration. "And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John, his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart," and was transfigured before them, &c. &c. (Matt. xviii). Three altars have been erected here, in commemoration of the three tabernacles, which St. Peter proposed to build, "one for thee (our Lord), and one for Moses, and one for Elias."

This almost insulated mountain, in shape an oblong with a truncated cone, rising fifteen hundred feet above the level of the plain in which it stands, and difficult of access,

tians, Persians, Druses, Turks and Arabs, warriors out of every nation which is under heaven,' have pitched their tents in the plain of Esdraelon, and have beheld the various banners of their nation wet with the dews of Tabor and of Hermon." (Clarke's Travels, vol. v, p. 255.)

must at all times have been a strong military position. Evidences of this nature are sufficiently indicated by the remains of walls and trenches by which it is surrounded, particularly on the north and north-east sides. There are also several cisterns for preserving rain-water, but no longer used for such purposes. At present it is only occupied by a few peasants, perhaps refugees, who cultivate a portion of it, just sufficient for their existence. They seemed surprised and uneasy at our visit, so seldom is their solitude broken in upon by strangers.

Having given directions to the guide to return with the horses by the path we came, we descended the precipitous side of the mountain, leading down into the plain of Saphet. Here we fell into the high road from Acre and the coast to Damascus. It brought us in a few minutes to a large caravansary, strongly fortified, and called Khan of Djebel Thor (Mount Tabor). A fair is held here once a-week, and is frequented chiefly by the shopkeepers of Tiberias, who barter their merchandise for cattle. We were invited to stop here during the heat of the day, but we did not like the appearance of the people, and so declined the offer.

*

From hence we traversed a fine undulating country, the soil of which was rich, though only partially cultivated, till we came to the river Jordan, distant about four hours from the Khan. During this interval, I suffered much from the heat; not a tree nor a shrub presenting itself to afford us the slightest shelter from the burning rays of the sun. Fortunately, I had brought with me a Bedouin keffie, or kerchief, which I fastened round my head, under my turban. In this manner I reached the Jordan. Here we took shelter under the arches of a ruined bridge which crosses the river a little below the village of Szammagh,+ near the spot where it issues from the lake. On the opposite bank there is a level plain of some extent, commanded by the Arabs, who make frequent incursions into these parts. At the approach of

*This was the case even in September -ED. + The Arabic word for fish.

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