Hazor/Dan/Caesarea Philippi (Galilee Day 2)

Greetings blog fans!

I've decided to use this Succot holiday to make some much needed progress on the blog. It has been way too long since an update, so I am now posting my second update of the day. Today's previous update detailed our travels throughout Galilee on the first day of our field study. And now here is a summary of what we learned and where we went on day two!

We began the second day of our Galilee of the Gentiles field study at the Hazor Tel, after a brief stop to review where we were according to syllabus map #12. The Bible calls the city of Hazor the “King of all these cities.” Hazor was the chief city in the North, and it was significantly larger than Jerusalem. Hazor was approximately 200 acres, compared to Jerusalem’s 12 acres. In addition, Hazor was at the beginning of the trade route coming from the north into southern Canaan. According to Mesopotamian documents this great Mesopotamian city-state is mentioned as being part of the tin-trading route. We learned that if you have control of the tin-trading route, you would have significant power in the ancient world.

After Joshua conquers Jericho and Ai, his next logical move would be to take Hazor. He already has the belly and feet of the Levant (french word for Israel), so it would make sense to take “the head of all these kingdoms” next. The King of Hazor realizes this and begins to formulate a strategy in Joshua 11:1. He calls on most of the kings in the surrounding areas to help him. All of the cities listed in this biblical text are in position to control significant passes and routes. Almost every single important pass (with the exception of Dothan) is covered in these verses. These kings all come together and withdraw to Mt. Merom in order to withdrawal and surprise Joshua. Soon after, Joshua attacks the coalition at Merom and destroys them. He completely destroys and burns the city, and kills the King of Hazor. The text then states, “Hazor used to be the head of all these kingdoms.” We noted that the destruction level from the 13th century supported the claim that Joshua burnt the city. Dr. Wright stated that the destruction level was so intense that the basalt cracked and was preserved.

We then moved onto discuss the rough times that were ahead for the Kingdom of Israel. Around 733 BC the Assyrian “cat” returns and makes a move down the coast. Israel is isolated to its heartland only, and 10 years later the Northern Kingdom is wiped out completely. The prophet Isaiah mentions the coming of the “mighty floodwaters of the river – the king of Assyria with all his pomp.” Later on in chapter 9 Isaiah discusses how God humbled Naphtali and Zebulon, which correspond to Nazareth and the area from Hazor to Capernaum, respectively.

The next stop we made was at Tel Dan, where we discussed the story of Jeroboam in I Kings 12. According to this chapter Jeroboam sets up an altar to Baal at Dan and tells the Israelites that Ball brought them out of Egypt. The evidence of Baal worship at Tel Dan is significant. We examined the remains of the Bamah, which is a raised platform where Baal was worshipped.

The city of Dan is also mentioned in Jeremiah 18:14. This passage asks if the springs at Dan ever stop flowing. The author is using this point to illustrate that nature always does what its told, with one notable exception. In verse 15 we discover that the exception is mankind. According to Jeremiah 18:15, “My people have forgotten me; they burn incense to worthless idols, which made them stumble in their ways and in their ancient paths.” In verse 16 the writer tells us that the land will be laid to waste due to the lack of obedience displayed by the Israelites.

One of our last stops on Day 2 was at Caesarea Philippi. This city was the center for the worship of several pagan gods. The central god worshipped was the goat god Pan. Pan was a god of hunting and fertility. It is in this context that Jesus brings his disciples to the region of Caesarea Philippi. This story is described for us in Matthew 16:13-20. At the end of the story Jesus turns to his disciples and says, “On this rock, I will build my church.” In this passage Jesus was not only referring to Peter, but to the region of Caesarea Philippi as well. I believe he was saying that his kingdom could be built in this city and replace all of the evil of the goat pan with the goodness of the one true God. This ultra-pagan city would prove to be a perfect training ground for the disciples as they prepared to take the good teachings to the ends of the earth (which the rabbis taught was the Aegean Sea). Cities in Israel like Beth Sha'an and Caesarea Philippi were perfect models for what the disciples would encounter in Turkey. Preparation like this allowed them to change cities in Turkey from 95% hellenistic to almost totally Christian in under 100 years.