Biblical Places

A strategic city between Har Gerizim and Har Eval in central Kena'an. Avraham received God's promise of the land at Shekhem. Ya'akov bought a plot here and Joseph's bones were eventually buried here. Yehoshua assembled all Israel at Shekhem for a covenant renewal. In the NT, Yeshua spoke with the Samaritan woman at a well near this ancient city.

"Well of the oath" or "well of seven." Located on the edge of the Negev, 80 km southwest of Yerushalayim. Avraham and Yitz'chak both dug wells and made covenants here. The proverbial phrase "from Dan to Beersheba" defined the full settled extent of Israel. Ya'akov departed from Be'er Sheva on his journey to Paddan-Aram.

One of the oldest inhabited cities in the world, in the Jordan Valley near the north end of the Dead Sea. Yehoshua's siege — six days of marching and a shout on the seventh — brought down its walls in the first major battle of the conquest. Eliyahu and Elisha ministered near here. In the NT, Yeshua passed through Yericho and called Zacchaeus down from his sycamore tree.

The central hill country city of Efraim where the Tabernacle was set up after the conquest and remained for roughly 300 years through the period of the judges. The entire assembly gathered here to divide the land. Channah prayed desperately here for a son, and Shmu'el grew up serving in the Tabernacle. When the Ark was captured by the Philistines after the battle at Aphek, Shiloh was effectively abandoned.

The northernmost city of Israel, originally called Laish, captured and renamed by the tribe of Dan after they failed to secure their allotted territory in the southwest. Jeroboam I set up one of his two golden calves here after the kingdom divided, turning it into a rival worship center. The phrase "from Dan to Beersheba" marked the full length of the land. The Tel Dan Stele, found here, contains the earliest extra-biblical mention of the "House of David."

"House of God." Avraham camped here twice on his early journeys. Ya'akov named this place after his vision of a ladder reaching to heaven, with angels ascending and descending, and God renewing the covenant promise to him. It became an important worship site throughout the period of the judges and monarchy. After the kingdom divided, Jeroboam placed a golden calf here as a rival sanctuary to Yerushalayim.

The camp where Miriam and Aharon spoke against Moshe over his Cushite wife; Miriam was struck with leprosy and shut outside the camp seven days before the people moved on.

One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Kena'an, 30 km south of Yerushalayim. Avraham settled near Chevron and purchased the Cave of Machpelah here as a burial site for Sarah — the first land the patriarchs owned in Kena'an. The patriarchs, matriarchs, and David's first seven years as king are all connected to Chevron.

"House of bread" in Hebrew. Located in the hill country of Yehudah, 8 km south of Yerushalayim. Rachel died near here. It was the hometown of David and the birthplace of Yeshua, fulfilling Micah's prophecy: "But you, Beit Lechem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel" (Micah 5:2).

A village on the eastern slope of Har HaZetim, about 3 km from Yerushalayim. Home of Miryam, Martha, and Lazarus. Yeshua raised Lazarus here, a sign that provoked the Sanhedrin to formally plot his death. During Passion Week, Yeshua stayed in Beit Anya each evening and walked daily to Yerushalayim. The anointing of Yeshua's feet by Miryam also took place here. The ascension of Yeshua occurred on the road near here.

Built by Herod the Great on the Mediterranean coast and named in honor of Augustus Caesar — a marvel of Roman engineering with an artificial harbor. The Roman administrative capital of Judea. Cornelius, the first Gentile convert, was a centurion stationed here; Shim'on (Kefa) came here to share the Good News. Sha'ul was held in Kaisareia for two years under Felix and Festus before appealing to Caesar and sailing for Roma.

The great capital of the Assyrian empire, on the eastern bank of the Tigris River. God sent Yonah to preach repentance to Nineveh — the largest city of its age, a three-day walk across — and astonishingly, the entire city including the king fasted and repented. Yeshua later pointed to Nineveh's response as a rebuke to his own generation's refusal to believe. The city was destroyed in 612 BC by a coalition of Babylonians and Medes.

The southernmost of the five major Philistine cities, on the coastal plain near the Egyptian border. Shimshon was captured, blinded, and imprisoned here, and pulled down the temple of Dagon in his final act, killing more Philistines in his death than in his life. The prophets pronounced judgment on Gaza repeatedly. In Acts, the apostle Philip was directed to a desert road near Azza where he encountered and baptized an Ethiopian official.

A small town in lower Galil where Yeshua grew up after the family's return from Mitzrayim. He returned here as an adult, read from the scroll of Yesha'yahu in the synagogue, and declared it fulfilled in their hearing. The crowd's rejection — "Isn't this Joseph's son?" — and his saying "No prophet is accepted in his hometown" led him to relocate his ministry base to Kfar Nachum on the shore of the Kinneret.

A major commercial city on the narrow isthmus connecting mainland Greece with the Peloponnese, with ports on two seas. Sha'ul spent 18 months here on his second missionary journey, the longest stay in any single city. He worked as a tentmaker with Aquila and Priscilla. The two letters to the Corinthians address significant conflicts over divisions, sexual immorality, spiritual gifts, and the resurrection — making them among the most practically rich letters in the NT.

One of the largest cities in the Roman Empire, a leading port and religious center in Asia Minor, home to the Temple of Artemis — one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. Sha'ul ministered here for nearly three years on his third journey, resulting in a riot among the silversmiths who made Artemis shrines. The letter to the Ephesians addresses the church's cosmic identity. Yochanan later lived here, and the book of Revelation opens with a letter to Ephesos.

The intellectual and cultural capital of the Greek world. Sha'ul visited during his second missionary journey and was provoked by the city full of idols. He engaged Epicurean and Stoic philosophers and was invited to address the Areopagus (Mars Hill), where he proclaimed the "unknown god" as the God who made everything. His reception was mixed — some mocked, some believed, including Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris.

A Roman colony in Macedonia, named after Philip II of Macedon. Sha'ul and Shila established the first church in Europe here on his second journey. He began by speaking with a group of women at a riverside, including Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth, who became the first European convert. Sha'ul and Shila were beaten and imprisoned here but freed by an earthquake; the jailer and his household believed. The letter to the Philippians is among Sha'ul's most affectionate letters.

The capital of Roman Macedonia and a major port city on the Via Egnatia. Sha'ul preached here for three Sabbaths before Jewish opposition forced him to move on to Berea. Despite the brief stay, a church took root and Sha'ul wrote them two letters — among the earliest NT writings — addressing their suffering under persecution and their questions about believers who had died before the Messiah's return.

Capital of the Roman Empire and the dominant power over the known world. Sha'ul wrote his most comprehensive theological letter to the believers in Roma before he arrived — a careful exposition of the gospel and its implications. He eventually reached Roma as a prisoner after appealing to Caesar, and spent two years under house arrest. According to tradition, both Sha'ul and Shim'on (Kefa) were martyred in Roma under the Emperor Nero.

A city in northern Mesopotamia where Terach stopped and eventually died on his family's journey from Ur toward Kena'an. Avraham departed from Charan at age 75 when God renewed his call. Later, Ya'akov fled to Charan to escape Esav's anger and to find a wife among his relatives. He served his uncle Lavan there for 20 years — seven years each for Le'ah and Rachel, and six years for his flocks.

The capital of the Roman province of Syria and the third-largest city of the empire, on the Orontes River. Disciples were first called "Christians" (Christianoi) here. Antiocheia became the launch point for the Gentile mission — Sha'ul and Bar-Navah (Barnabas) were sent out from here on all three missionary journeys. The controversy over Gentile table fellowship, the Antioch incident between Sha'ul and Shim'on (Kefa), shaped the early understanding of the gospel.

The plateau east of the Dead Sea and Yarden, inhabited by descendants of Lot's son Moab. Israel camped in the plains of Mo'av before entering Kena'an, and Moshe died on Har Nevo overlooking the land. Balak king of Mo'av hired Balaam to curse Israel. Ruth was a Moabite woman whose loyalty to Na'omi and to Israel's God brought her fully into the covenant people — and into the lineage of David.

The mountainous region south and east of the Dead Sea, inhabited by descendants of Esav. Esav was also called "Edom" (red) after the red stew he sold his birthright for. Israel and Edom clashed repeatedly — Edom refused Israel passage through their territory during the wilderness wandering. When Bavel destroyed Yerushalayim, Edom gloated and even aided the attackers, prompting the harshest prophetic condemnation in Ovadyah (Obadiah). Herod the Great was Idumean — of Edomite descent.

"The Great Sea" or "Western Sea" in the OT, forming Israel's western boundary and the western edge of the known world for most of biblical history. Yonah sailed from Yaffo into this sea before the storm and the great fish. Sha'ul sailed across it on all his missionary journeys and was shipwrecked in a violent storm in the sea near the island of Malta during his voyage to Roma as a prisoner.

The northern region of ancient Israel, from the Jezreel Valley to the Dan area, west of the Yarden and Kinneret. Isaiah prophesied that "Galil of the nations" would see a great light — quoted in Matthew as fulfilled by Yeshua's ministry here. Galil was Yeshua's primary ministry region: he grew up in Natzeret, based himself in Kfar Nachum, preached the Sermon on the Mount, and called his disciples from around the Kinneret. His Galilean accent was noticed by those in Yerushalayim.

The central hill country between Galil to the north and Yehudah to the south. Also the name of the capital city of the Northern Kingdom. After Assyria conquered the North in 722 BC, foreign peoples were settled here and intermarried with the remaining Israelites, creating a mixed population the Jews called Samaritans. Yeshua deliberately passed through Shomron and engaged the Samaritan woman at Ya'akov's well, and the Samaritan leper was the one who returned to give thanks.

A region in the northwest Arabian peninsula and Sinai, inhabited by descendants of Avraham and Ketura. Moshe fled to Midyan after killing an Egyptian overseer, married Tzipporah (daughter of Yitro, a Midianite priest), and spent forty years shepherding before God appeared to him in the burning bush at Har Sinai. Later, the Midianites oppressed Israel for seven years until Gid'on defeated their army of 135,000 with only 300 men.

The Mesopotamian empire centered on the city of Bavel, in the Euphrates plain of modern Iraq. Under Nebuchadnezzar, Bavel destroyed Yerushalayim and the Temple in 586 BC and deported Judah's leadership — beginning the 70-year exile prophesied by Yirmeyahu. Daniel, Chananyah, Misha'el, and Azaryah served at the Babylonian court. Cyrus the Great conquered Bavel in 539 BC and released the exiles. In Revelation, "Babylon" appears as a symbolic name for Roma, the great oppressive empire of the NT era.

The vast empire stretching from India to Ethiopia under Cyrus, Darius, and Xerxes (Ahasuerus). Cyrus the Great issued his famous decree in 538 BC allowing the Jewish exiles to return to Yerushalayim and rebuild the Temple — fulfilling Yesha'yahu's prophecy that named Cyrus a century before his birth. Ezra and Nechemyah both served under Persian kings. The story of Esther and Mordechai takes place in the Persian capital of Shushan (Susa).

The river flowing south from Har Chermon through the Kinneret to the Yam HaMelach, forming the natural eastern boundary of Kena'an. Israel crossed it on dry ground under Yehoshua when the priests carrying the Ark stepped in and the waters stopped. Eliyahu parted it before being taken up, and Elisha crossed back alone. Naaman dipped in it seven times and was healed of leprosy. Yochanan the Immerser baptized in the Yarden, and Yeshua came to be immersed here at the start of his ministry.

The lowest point on earth (c. 430 m below sea level), a hypersaline terminal lake at the south end of the Yarden. Called the Salt Sea or Eastern Sea in the OT, it formed the eastern boundary of Yehudah and the southern boundary of Kena'an. Nothing can live in its highly concentrated brine. Sodom and Gomorrah were located near its southern shores before their destruction. The Qumran community, who preserved the Dead Sea Scrolls, lived in the cliffs above its northwestern shore.

A wilderness along the Sinai coastal plain where God first gave manna and quail, distinct from the Wilderness of Sinai proper, which Israel would not reach for several more stops.

The dominant military empire of the ancient Near East in the 8th–7th centuries BC, centered on Nineveh and Assur on the Tigris River. Ashur conquered the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BC under Sargon II, deporting its population — the ten tribes. Their deportation policy created the "ten lost tribes" and left only Yehudah intact. Yonah was sent to preach repentance in Nineveh, Ashur's capital. Sennacherib's later siege of Yerushalayim was miraculously repelled in Hizkiyahu's day.

The Aramean kingdom centered on Dameshek (Damascus), occupying modern Syria. Avraham's family came from Paddan-Aram. The Aramean kings — Ben-Hadad, Hazael, and others — clashed frequently with Israel in a cycle of war and uneasy peace. Elisha ministered near the border with Aram and predicted Hazael's brutal campaigns. Naaman, the Aramean army commander, was healed of leprosy by Elisha, becoming a rare example of a Gentile worshiper of Israel's God.

A lush mountain range jutting into the Mediterranean near modern Haifa, 25 km long. Eliyahu challenged the 450 prophets of Baal here in the defining confrontation of his ministry: fire fell from heaven on his drenched sacrifice while the prophets of Baal called in vain all day. Eliyahu then killed the false prophets at the Kishon River below. The Shunammite woman traveled to Har HaKarmel to find Elisha after her son died. Its lush forests made it a symbol of beauty and abundance.

A ridge east of Yerushalayim across the Kidron Valley, named for its ancient olive groves. David wept here when fleeing Absalom's coup. Zecharyah prophesied that the LORD himself would stand on it when he comes to judge the nations. In the NT, Yeshua taught his disciples here about the end of the age (the Olivet Discourse), was arrested at Gat Shmanim (Gethsemane) at its base, and later ascended to heaven from its slopes.

A peak in the land of Mo'av (modern Jordan), overlooking the Yarden and Yericho from the east. God brought Moshe to the summit of Har Nevo and showed him the full sweep of the promised land — from Dan in the north to the Negev in the south — before his death at age 120. Moshe died on this mountain and was buried by God himself in an unmarked grave in the valley below; "no one knows his burial place to this day" (Deut 34:6). Israel mourned him for 30 days in the plains of Mo'av below.

A mountain near Shekhem from which blessings were pronounced when Israel entered Kena'an — six tribes on Gerizim for blessing, six on Har Eval opposite for curses (Deut 27–28). The Samaritans considered it the true holy mountain where Avraham offered Yitz'chak and where God's temple should stand. They built a rival temple here, destroyed by John Hyrcanus in 128 BC. The Samaritan woman asked Yeshua whether Gerizim or Yerushalayim was the right place to worship.

The camp where Moshe struck the rock at Horeb to bring forth water, and where Israel fought and defeated Amalek while Aharon and Chur held up Moshe's hands.

Originally the Jebusite stronghold captured by David, called the "City of David." Over time "Zion" became a poetic name for Yerushalayim, for the Temple Mount, and ultimately for the eschatological city of God. The Psalms of Zion (46, 48, 76, 84, 87, 122) celebrate God's presence and protection there. In the NT, the term Har Tzion appears in Hebrews and Revelation as the heavenly reality of which earthly Yerushalayim is a shadow.

The city of David and center of Israelite worship. David established it as his capital c. 1000 BC; Shlomo built the First Temple there. Destroyed by Bavel in 586 BC, it was rebuilt under Zerubbavel, Ezra, and Nechemyah. In the NT it is the scene of Yeshua's passion and resurrection, and the birthplace of the community of believers at Shavuot (Pentecost). The city fell to Rome in 70 AD.

The ancient port on the Mediterranean coast, one of the oldest ports in the world. Cedar timber from Lebanon was floated here for Shlomo's Temple. Yonah boarded a ship at Yaffo trying to flee from God's commission to Nineveh. In Acts, Shim'on (Kefa) stayed in Yaffo, raised Tabitha from the dead, and received his vision of the sheet with clean and unclean animals — a breakthrough moment for the Gentile mission.

The land promised by God to Avraham and his descendants, spanning the territory from the river of Mitzrayim to the Euphrates in its fullest form, and roughly corresponding to modern Israel, the West Bank, and Lebanon in its practical extent. Named after a grandson of Noach. The Canaanite peoples who inhabited it worshiped Baal and other gods. Under Yehoshua, the twelve tribes conquered and settled the land — though never completely driving out its inhabitants as commanded.

An olive grove at the foot of Har HaZetim, across the Kidron Valley from Yerushalayim. "Gethsemane" is an Aramaic transliteration of Gat Shmanim — "oil press." Yeshua frequently withdrew here with his disciples. On the night of his arrest he prayed in anguish, asking that the cup pass from him yet submitting to the Father's will — the gospels record his sweat became like drops of blood. Yehudah Ish-Keriot led the temple guard here to arrest him, knowing Yeshua's habit of going there.

"Place of the skull" in Aramaic (Gulgolta) and Latin (Calvaria). The site outside Yerushalayim's walls where Yeshua was crucified between two criminals. Joseph of Arimathea's unused tomb was nearby, where his body was laid. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built by Constantine in 335 AD, traditionally encloses both the site of the crucifixion and the tomb of the resurrection — the two most theologically significant locations in the world for the Christian faith.

"Graves of craving" — the camp where a plague struck the people while they gorged themselves on the quail God sent in response to their complaint about the manna.

The Mesopotamian city where Avraham was born and where God first called him. A sophisticated Sumerian city-state with ziggurats and a literate urban culture. Avraham's father Terach took his family from Ur Kasdim heading toward Kena'an but stopped in Charan. God's call to Avraham — "Go from your land, from your relatives, and from your father's household to the land I will show you" — was the break that set the covenant story in motion.

The highest peak in the region at 2,814 m, permanently snow-capped, forming the northern boundary of the promised land. Called Sirion by the Sidonians and Senir by the Amorites. The melt water from Har Chermon feeds the Yarden River. Many scholars identify it as the most likely site of the Transfiguration of Yeshua — described as a "high mountain apart" — where his face shone like the sun and Moshe and Eliyahu appeared and spoke with him.

The rugged wilderness of the Sinai peninsula where Israel wandered for 40 years after the Exodus. Here the Tabernacle was constructed, the first military census was taken, and the laws of Leviticus and Numbers were given. It was a place of profound testing and provision — manna fell daily, water came from a rock, quail were sent. The long wilderness period followed Israel's refusal to enter Kena'an at Kadesh Barnea, and an entire generation died before the next entered the land under Yehoshua.

The arid, deeply eroded terrain between the hill country of Yehudah and the Dead Sea — a landscape of dramatic ravines and cliffs dropping steeply from 1,000 m to sea level. David fled here during Sha'ul's pursuit and composed psalms of thirst and refuge. Yochanan the Immerser lived and preached in this wilderness, calling the people to repentance. Yeshua was led by the Spirit into this wilderness immediately after his immersion and was tempted by the adversary for 40 days.

A store city built by Hebrew slave labor in the eastern Nile Delta (Goshen), named for Pharaoh Ramesses. Israel departed from here on the night of the Exodus, the fifteenth day of the first month.

Israel's first camp after leaving Rameses, in the eastern Nile Delta. Not to be confused with the Sukkot east of the Jordan where Ya'akov later built shelters for his livestock (Genesis 33:17).

Israel's camp "on the edge of the wilderness," the last stop before turning back toward Pi-hahiroth so Pharaoh's army could overtake them at the sea.

The camp "between Migdol and the sea," where Israel crossed the Reed Sea on dry ground and Pharaoh's pursuing army was destroyed. The precise crossing point is genuinely disputed among evangelical scholars.

A desert spring whose bitter water God made sweet for Israel by a piece of wood Moshe cast into it, three days after crossing the sea.

An oasis camp with twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, a welcome rest after the bitterness of Marah.

The mountain where God revealed himself to Moshe in the burning bush and later gave the Torah to Israel amid thunder, fire, and thick smoke. Called Sinai in Exodus and Numbers, and Horev (Horeb) in Deuteronomy and Kings. After the Exodus from Mitzrayim, Israel camped at Har Sinai for nearly a year while the covenant was established and the Tabernacle constructed. Eliyahu fled here after defeating the prophets of Baal and encountering God "in a still small voice." Its precise location remains debated.

The mountain on the border of Edom where Aharon died and was buried, and his priestly garments were transferred to his son Elazar.

A wilderness camp on the route around Edom, after the people's complaint about manna brought the plague of fiery serpents and the bronze serpent Moshe raised for healing.

A camp on the border of Moab, near the Zered valley, along Israel's route around Edom and Moab toward the plains opposite Yericho.

Israel's final encampment before crossing the Jordan, opposite Yericho. Bil'am was hired to curse Israel here, Moshe delivered the addresses recorded in Devarim, and Moshe died on nearby Mount Nevo.

The ancient capital of Lower Egypt, seat of Pharaoh's court through most of Egypt's Old and Middle Kingdom history and named directly by several prophets. During the Middle Kingdom (c. 2055-1650 BC) — the period encompassing Avraham's lifetime — the royal residence sat in this same Memphite region (Itjtawy, just south of Memphis proper). Later prophets pronounced judgment against it by name.

The southern region centered on Yerushalayim, named after the tribe of Yehudah. After the kingdom split, it became the Southern Kingdom — the seat of David's dynasty — while the Northern Kingdom took the name Israel. The exile to Bavel ended the monarchy, but Yehudah's identity persisted through the return under Zerubbavel and Ezra. In the Roman period, the Greek and Latin form "Judea" referred to the province governed from Kaisareia, and the people were "Jews" (Yehudim).

The great Nile civilization, the dominant superpower of the ancient Near East for millennia. Avraham traveled to Mitzrayim during famine. The entire family of Ya'akov descended here through Yosef's providential rise to power. After Yosef's generation died, Israel was enslaved for approximately 400 years until the Exodus under Moshe — the defining redemptive event of the OT, celebrated annually in Pesach (Passover). In the NT, Yosef, Miryam, and the infant Yeshua fled to Mitzrayim to escape Herod's massacre.

The central place of worship for Israel, built by Shlomo on the threshing floor Araunah the Jebusite in Yerushalayim — completed c. 959 BC. Destroyed by Bavel in 586 BC, rebuilt under Zerubbavel (516 BC), and dramatically expanded by Herod the Great beginning c. 20 BC into one of the largest religious complexes of the ancient world. Yeshua was presented here as an infant, taught in its courts, cleansed it of money-changers, and predicted its complete destruction — fulfilled by Rome in 70 AD.

An oasis complex in the Wilderness of Zin that served as Israel's base twice: first when the twelve spies were sent into Canaan and the people refused to enter the land, and again at the start of the fortieth year, when Miriam died and Moshe struck the rock a second time.

"Village of Nahum," on the northwestern shore of the Kinneret. Yeshua's operational base during his Galilean ministry after leaving Natzeret. He called Andreas and Shim'on from their fishing boats nearby. He healed here frequently — the centurion's servant, the paralyzed man lowered through the roof, Jairus's daughter — and taught in its synagogue. Despite all this, Yeshua pronounced woe on Kfar Nachum for its unbelief.

One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and capital of Aram (Syria). Avraham's servant Eliezer was from Dameshek. The Aramean kings of Dameshek were a recurring threat to Israel. Elisha performed miracles here and predicted Hazael's brutal reign. Sha'ul (Paul) encountered the risen Yeshua on the road to Dameshek, where he was blinded and later healed and commissioned by Ananias.

A city in the valley of Siddim near the southern end of what is now the Dead Sea, associated with extreme wickedness and violence. Lot chose to settle near Sodom after separating from Avraham. God destroyed Sodom and its sister city Gomorrah with fire and sulfur; Lot's wife looked back and became a pillar of salt. The destruction became the quintessential biblical warning of divine judgment — referenced by every major prophet and by Yeshua himself.

The coastal plain southwest of Israel, inhabited by the Philistines — a sea-people who settled around 1200 BC. They maintained a confederation of five major cities: Azza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron. The Philistines were Israel's most persistent enemy through the period of the judges and into Sha'ul's reign, controlling key valleys and iron-working technology. David's victory over the Philistine champion Golyat (Goliath) at Emek HaElah turned the tide of the conflict.

A freshwater lake in northern Israel, 21 km long, fed by the Yarden from the north. The Hebrew name Kinneret (כִּנֶּרֶת) may derive from the word for harp, describing its shape. Called the Sea of Galilee, Lake of Gennesaret, and Sea of Tiberias in the NT. Yeshua called his first disciples from its shores, walked on its waters during a storm, calmed a storm from a boat, and appeared to his disciples after the resurrection on its beach with bread and fish.

A distant western trading destination repeatedly associated with valuable metals (silver, iron, tin, lead) and long-distance seafaring — "ships of Tarshish" became an idiom for the largest, most seaworthy trading vessels. Jonah fled toward it specifically because it was about as far in the opposite direction from Nineveh as a ship could sail. Its exact location is genuinely disputed among scholars; most commonly identified with Tartessus in ancient Iberia (southern Spain), though a minority favor Carthage or elsewhere in the western Mediterranean.

A prominent, isolated peak rising from the Jezreel Valley in lower Galilee. Deborah summoned Barak here to muster 10,000 men of Zebulun and Naphtali before descending to rout Sisera's army at the Kishon river below.

A spring at the foot of Mount Gilboa where Gideon's 32,000 volunteers were tested and reduced to 300, by how each man drank.

Samuel's hometown and base of judgment, in the hill country of Ephraim/Benjamin. He anointed Saul as king near here and later fled here with David from Saul's pursuit.

A valley in the Judean lowlands (Shephelah) where the Israelite and Philistine armies camped on opposing hillsides, the site of David's single combat with Goliath.

The hometown of the priest Mattathias and his sons, in the hill country northwest of Jerusalem. Mattathias's refusal to sacrifice to the Greek gods here, and his killing of a compliant Jew and the king's officer, opened the Maccabean revolt.

A small rocky island in the Aegean Sea, off the coast of Asia Minor, used by Rome as a place of exile. John received and wrote the Revelation while exiled here "on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus."

A priestly town in the territory of Benjamin, just northeast of Jerusalem, and the hometown of the prophet Jeremiah, son of Hilkiah.