The remaining nine tribes and a half were settled on the western side of the Jordan.

The canton of the tribe of JUDAH was bounded on the east by the Dead Sea, and on the west by the tribes of Dan and Simeon, both of which lay between it and the Mediterranean Sea. Judah was reckoned to be the largest and most populous of all the twelve tribes; and its inhabitants were the most valiant; it was also the chief and royal tribe, from which, in subsequent times, the whole kingdom was denominated. The most remarkable places or cities in this tribe were Adullam, Azekah, Bethlehem, Bethzor, Debir, or Kiriathsepher, Emmaus, Engedi, Kiriath-arba or Hebron, Libnah, Makkedah, Maon, Massada, Tekoah, and Ziph.

The inheritance of the tribes of DAN and of SIMEON was within the inheritance of the tribe of Judah, or was taken out of the portion at first allotted to the latter. The boundaries of these two tribes are not precisely ascertained; though they are placed by geographers to the north and south-west of the canton of Judah, and consequently bordered on the Mediterranean Sea. The principal cities in the tribe of Dan were Ajalon, Dan or Leshem, Eltekeh, Eshtaol, Gathrimmon, Gibbethon, Hirshemesh, Joppa, Modin, Timnath, and Zorah. The chief cities in the tribe of Simeon, were Ain, Beersheba, Hormah, and Ziklag.

The canton allotted to the tribe of BENJAMIN lay between the tribes of Judah and Joseph, contiguous to Samaria on the north, to Judah on the south, and to Dan on the west, which last parted it from the Mediterranean. It did not contain many cities and towns, but this defect was abundantly supplied by its possessing the most considerable, and the metropolis of all, the city of Jerusalem. The other places of note in this tribe were Anathoth, Beth-el, Gibeah, Gibeon, Gilgal, Hai, Mizpeh, Ophrah, and Jericho.

To the north of the canton of Benjamin lay that allotted to the tribe of EPHRAIM, and that of the other HALF TRIBE OF MANASSEH. The boundaries of these two districts cannot be ascertained with precision. The chief places in Ephraim, were Bethhoron the Nether and Upper, Gezer, Lydda, Michmash, Naioth, Samaria, Shechem, Shiloh, and Timnath-Serah. After the schism of the ten tribes, the seat of the kingdom of Israel being in Ephraim, this tribe is frequently used to signify the whole kingdom. The chief places in the half tribe of Manasseh, were Abel-meholath, Bethabara; Bethshan (afterwards called Scythopolis), Bezek, Endor, Enon, Gathrimmon, Megiddo, Salim, Ophrah, and Tirzah.

To the north, and more particularly to the north-east of the half tribe of Manasseh, lay the canton of ISSACHAR, which was bordered by the celebrated plain of Jezreel, and its northern boundary was Mount Tabor. Some writers make this tribe to extend to the Mediterranean Sea; but for this hypothesis there is no foundation. The chief cities of Issachar, were Aphek, Beth-shemesh, Dothan, Kishon, Jezreel, Naim or Nain, Ramoth, and Shunem.

On the north and west of Issachar resided the tribe of ZEBUlun. Its chief places were Bethlehem, Cinnereth or Chinnereth, Gathhepher, Jokneam, Remmon-Methoar, and Shimroncheron.

The tribe of ASHER was stationed in the district to the north of the half tribe of Manasseh, and west of Zebulun: consequently it was a maritime country. Hence it was said (Judg. v. 17.) that Asher continued on the sea-shore, and abode in his creeks. Its northern boundary was mount Libanus or Lebanon; and on the south it was bounded by mount Carmel, and the canton of Issachar. Its principal cities were Abdon, Achshaph, Helkath, Mishal, and Rehob. This tribe never possessed the whole extent of district assigned to it, which was to reach to Libanus, to Syria, and Phenicia, and included the celebrated cities of Tyre and Sidon.

Lastly, the tribe of NAPHTALI or Nephtali occupied that district in the northern part of the land of Canaan, which lay between mount Lebanon to the north, and the sea of Cinnereth (or Gennesareth) to the south, and between Asher to the west, and the river Jordan to the east. Its chief places were Abel or Abel-Beth-Maachah, Hamoth-dor, Harosheth of the Gentiles, Kedesh, and Kiriathaim.

V. The next remarkable division was made by king Solomon, who divided his kingdom into twelve provinces or districts, each under a peculiar officer. These districts, together with the names of their respective presidents, are enumerated in 1 Kings iv. 7-19. From the produce of these districts every one of these officers was to supply the king with provisions for his household, in his turn, that is, each for one month in the year. The dominions of Solomon extended from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt: they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life. (2 Kings iv. 21.) Hence it appears that the Hebrew monarch reigned over all the provinces from the river Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, even to the frontiers of Egypt. The Euphrates was the eastern boundary of his dominions; the Philistines were westward, on the Mediterranean sea; and Egypt was on the south. Solomon therefore had, as his tributaries, the kingdoms of Syria, Damascus, Moab, and Ammon; and thus he appears to have possessed all the land which God had covenanted with Abraham to give to his posterity.

VI. Under this division the Holy land continued till after the death of Solomon, when ten tribes revolted from his son Rehoboam, and erected themselves into a separate kingdom under Jeroboam, called the Kingdom of Israel. The other two tribes of Benjamin and Judah, continuing faithful to Rehoboam, formed the Kingdom of Judah. This kingdom comprised all the southern parts of the land, consisting of the allotments of those two tribes, together with so much of the territories of Dan and Simeon as were intermixed with that of Judah: its royal city or metropolis was Jerusalem, in the tribe of Benjamin. The kingdom of Israel included all the northern and middle parts of the land, occupied by the other ten tribes; and its capital was Samaria, in the tribe of Ephraim, situated about thirty

miles north-east of Jerusalem. But this division ceased, on the subversion of the kingdom of Israel by Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, after it had subsisted two hundred and fifty-four years.

VII. The Holy Land fell successively into the hands of the Syrian kings, the Greeks and Romans. It was in the possession of the lastmentioned people in the time of Jesus Christ, when it was divided into five separate provinces, viz. Galilee, Samaria, Judæa, Peræa, and Idumæa.

1. GALILEE. This portion of the Holy Land is very frequently mentioned in the New Testament: its limits seem to have varied at different times. It comprised the country formerly occupied by the tribes of Issachar, Naphtali, and Asher, and by part of the tribe of Dan; and is divided by Josephus into Upper and Lower Galilee.

Upper Galilee abounded in mountains; and from its vicinity to the Gentiles who inhabited the cities of Tyre and Sidon, it is called Galilee of the Nations or of the Gentiles (Isa. ix. 1. Matt. iv. 15.), and the Coasts of Tyre and Sidon. (Mark vii. 31.) The principal city in this region was Cæsarea Philippi; through which the main road lay to Damascus, Tyre, and Sidon.

Lower Galilee, which lay between the Mediterranean sea and the lake of Gennesareth, was situated in a rich and fertile plain, and, according to Josephus, was very populous, containing upwards of two hundred cities and towns. This country was most honoured by our Saviour's presence. Hither Joseph and Mary returned with him out of Egypt, and here he resided until his baptism by John. (Matt. ii. 22, 23. Luke ii. 39-51. Matt. iii. 13. Luke iii. 21.) Hither he returned after his baptism and temptation (Luke iv. 14.): and, after his entrance on his public ministry, though he often went into other provinces, yet so frequent were his visits to this country, that he was called a Galilean. (Matt. xxvi. 69.) The population of Galilee being very great, our Lord had many opportunities of doing good; and, being out of the power of the priests at Jerusalem, he seems to have preferred it as his abode. To this province our Lord commanded his apostles to come and converse with him after his resurrection (Matt. xxviii. 7. 16.): and of this country most, if not the whole, of his apostles were natives, whence they are all styled by the angels men of Galilee. (Acts i. 11.) The Galileans spoke an unpolished and corrupt dialect of the Syriac, compounding and using (ain) for (aleph), ➜ (caph) for (beth), (tau) for (daleth); and also frequently changed the gutturals. This probably

1 Dr. Lightfoot, to whom we are indebted for the above remark, has given several instances in Hebrew and English, which are sufficiently amusing. One of these is as follows: A certain woman intended to say before the Judge, My Lord, I had a picture, which they stole; and it was so great, that if you had been placed in it, your feet would not have touched the ground. But she so spoiled the business with her pronunciation, that, as the glosser interprets it, her words had this sense. Sir, slave, I had a beam and they stole thee away; and it was so great, that if they had hung thee on it, thy feet would not have touched the ground. Lightfoot's Chorographical Century of the land of Israel. ch. lxxxvii. (Works, vol. ii. p. 79.) Sce additional examples in Buxtorf's Lexicon Chaldaicum, Talmudicum et Rabbinicum, p. 434.