Bible atlas, encyclopedia and color maps for Bible study

Colored Bible Study Cards

Color maps of the ancient world of the Old and New Testaments.

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What did ancient geographers think the world looked like at the time of the birth of Jesus Christ?

More than 2000 years ago, when Jesus of Nazareth was born, the second Holy Temple still stood in Jerusalem. The Great Pyramid of Giza was already 2,500 years old, and the Library of Alexandria had not yet been destroyed. But the Colosseum in Rome had not yet been built.

It’s a little creepy to imagine the political geography of that time, and the context of the events that coincided with the “storyline” of the life of Jesus Christ.

At the same time, the part of the continent in which Jesus lived in geographical terms was described much better than the periphery. Moreover, on the maps of that time, the Mediterranean Sea was the center of the world.

Atlasobscura.com writes about this.

The best geographical scientific guide to the world where Jesus was born was compiled by a man named Strabo. He was born in the city of Amasya (northern modern Turkey).

One of the great works of his life was the 17 books of “Geography”, in which he described in detail (as far as possible for that time) the contours of the cities and cultures of the world, and, in fact, geography.

Strabo (c. 64/63 BC - c. 23/24 AD) - ancient Greek historian and geographer. The author of “History” (not preserved) and the almost completely preserved “Geography” in 17 books, which serves as the best source for studying the geography of the ancient world.

Amasya was located on the edge of the Roman Empire. When Strabo was born, the city had only been a couple of years before it became part of the provinces of the empire. But Strabo was part of an elite family, and was raised in the Greek academic tradition.

Strabo as imagined by an artist from the Age of Discovery. Image: Strabo comprehended rhetoric, grammar, philosophy - the most commonly studied disciplines of that time, read Aristotle and studied mathematics.

He probably would have remained living on the outskirts of the empire if he had not been an impatient traveler. He spent several years in Egypt and went south to Ethiopia. The westernmost point of his travels is Italy, the easternmost is Armenia. That is, he was one of the most active travelers of his time.

According to Strabo and his contemporaries, the world looked like this: the globe was divided into five sections, with two cold poles at both ends, two temperate zones and one hot one in the very center.

The inhabited world, like a huge island, was confined to the northern quarter of the globe and was surrounded by the ocean. At least that's what it was supposed to be, since no one in those days could circumnavigate the known world.

To the south of the Mediterranean Sea was a continent (Africa, sometimes called Libya), to the east was Asia, and to the north was Europe.

Geographers of the time knew that India was in the Far East, Ethiopia in the far south, Iberia (modern Spain and Portugal) in the west, and Scythia in the north.

Great Britain was already quite famous. Even Mediterranean scientists had an idea that Scandinavia existed, but did not imagine its size.

Strabo's World Map (Image: Paolo Porsia/flickr) Besides continents like North and South America, the biggest missing piece of their knowledge was China. At the same time, in the second year of our era, the census of the Han Dynasty showed that about 57.5 million people lived in the territories under its control.

The Roman Empire, which had about 45 million inhabitants, at that time seemed to have no idea that China even existed.

In collecting information about distant lands, Strabo relied mainly on the stories and charts of sailors who traveled with the coasts in sight in his own travels. And his information about India was obtained from the works of historians who described the military campaign of Alexander the Great, who reached India 300 years earlier.

Ancient Galilee. Image: And in this world, the land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River (modern Israel and Palestine) was not very interesting from a geographical point of view. This area was not particularly rich or accessible. But according to the Greek and Roman worldviews, the area was strategically important for securing overland passage to Egypt.

Strabo's works include a short description of the history of the Jewish people. He explains how "an Egyptian named Moses" led a group of followers who believed that God was "one thing that embraces us all." And Moses led them to the place where Jerusalem now stands.

Strabo continues: “He easily gained possession of these territories, since the lands here were not capable of arousing envy or becoming a reason for competition. For this rocky land, although well supplied with water, was surrounded by barren and waterless territory.”

Shortly before the birth of Jesus, this area was ruled by King Herod the Great, whom Rome appointed as ruler of all the Jewish people.

After his death, the kingdom was divided between his three sons, but in the end their reign was, to put it mildly, unsuccessful.

Since then, as Strabo writes, order in Judea has “degenerated.” There was a brief period (during the life of Jesus) of relative peace.

But the calm won't last long. In 70 AD, there was a revolt against Roman rule and the Second Temple was destroyed.

Essentially, Jesus of Nazareth lived in an unstable place, far from the center of that Universe. A place where people could be particularly interested in a new religious vision of how to navigate a troubled world.

Biblical atlas. Tim Dowley

Thirty colored cards. From Abraham to the first Christian churches. Explanatory texts for each card. Index of geographical names.

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Exodus and conquest of the Promised Land

1. ISRAEL'S PASSAGE THROUGH JORDAN, Joshua 3:7–17; 4:19–24

From the plains of Moab, Joshua sent two spies to inspect Jericho. After hiding with the harlot Rahab, they hid for three days in the highlands west of Jericho before returning back (Joshua 2).

When the people began to cross the Jordan, the water stopped to the north near the city of Adam. Jesus ordered two monuments of 12 stones to be erected as a reminder that the Lord dried up the waters of the Jordan, as He did with the Red Sea (Joshua 4:23). The second generation was circumcised at Gilgal. It was spring, 40 years had passed since Israel left Egypt. The people celebrated Easter. And the very next day the manna stopped falling, and Israel ate the fruits of the ground (Joshua 5). Gilgal later became an important religious center, especially in the days of Samuel and Saul (1 Sam. 7:16; 11:15). Although there are several suggested locations, none of them match the description of Gilgal.

2. CONQUEST OF JERICHO, Joshua 6

This is one of the most memorable events of the Old Testament. Jericho is the eastern gate to the Promised Land, and therefore naturally was the first step on the path of conquest. While the priests blew trumpets made from rams' horns, the people made one circle around the city every day for six days. On the seventh day they walked around the city seven times, and when the priests blew the trumpets and the people shouted, the walls of Jericho fell.

Tell Jericho (es-Sultan) is a small place (about 2.5 hectares) next to a strong spring. Archaeologists have varying opinions regarding the date of the city's destruction. The outer wall consisted of two parts: 1) a lower “retaining” wall of stone almost five meters high, and 2) an upper wall of clay and brick, standing on a stone wall. The upper mud and brick wall had collapsed towards the base of the retaining wall. Some archaeologists date the destruction of the wall and the burning of the city to 1550 BC. (end of the Middle Bronze Age). Others have found evidence that the wall stood in the Late Bronze Age and was destroyed around 1400, in the days of Joshua. The fall of the mud-brick wall to the foot of the stone retaining wall corresponds to the biblical description of the wall falling “below itself” (lit. translation of v. 19). The fragments of the clay-brick wall created a gentle entrance to the city.

The city was burned. Only Rahab and her family were saved. Joshua condemned anyone who would restore Jericho to the curse, which was fulfilled 550 years later, in the days of King Ahab of Israel (1 Kings 16:34).

3. THE CONQUEST OF AI, Joshua 8:1–29

The conquest of Jericho showed Israel the result of faith and obedience to God. The crushing defeat at Ai showed the consequences of sin. Joshua sent men to investigate “Ai, which is near Beth-aven, on the east side of Bethel” (Joshua 7:2). They reported that Ai was a small city, and it would only take “two... or... three thousand men, and [they] would smite Ai” (v. 3). But because of Achan's sin, Israel suffered a crushing defeat. The Valley of Achor (“trouble”), where Achan was stoned, is probably the Wadi Kelt, a deep canyon in the desert southwest of Jericho (Joshua 7; cf. 15:7).

Bethel is located on the Road of the Patriarchs, a north-south watershed route through the Highlands. Ai (“ruin”) is located to the east, on the road from Jericho. Although the Ai of the days of Abraham (Gen. 12:8; 13:3) can be identified with the early Canaanite ruin of et-Tell, there are no ruins there that date back to the days of Joshua (Late Bronze Age). The name Gai probably passed on to a nearby village. Several sites with Late Bronze Age ruins have been discovered nearby. The best candidate so far is al-Makatir, 1 km west of al-Tell, where Late Bronze Age ruins have been discovered; another candidate is the ruin of Nisia.

The description of the conquest of Ai from a geographical point of view is very detailed. Joshua set up an ambush between Bethel and Ai, possibly in the upper reaches of Wadi Suvenita (Shibana Canyon). The main camp was north of Ai, and a valley separated it from the city (Joshua 8:12). If Ai is located in Makateer, then the Israelite camp was on the same mountain range as et-Tell, only to the west of it, as marked on the map. If Ai was located in et-Tell, then the camp of Joshua was north of Wadi Gaya (see also map 1–9).

From Gilgal, Joshua could have gotten to Ai by going up the Zeboim desert route or along the Jericho-Ophrah route. The blue arrow marks the route through the Tzevoim desert. At night, Joshua redeployed his troops to a wider valley (ragr) east of Ai (Joshua 8:13). The King of Gai saw this maneuver and went on the offensive. The Israelites, pretending to flee east to the desert, led the Canaanites away from the city. At the right moment, Joshua raised his spear, signaling to those sitting in ambush behind Ai. The soldiers ran, took Gai and set him on fire. The Canaanites, caught between the ambush and the main forces of the Israelites, were destroyed. The king's body was hanged from a tree and then buried under a pile of stones at the city gates. This first victory in the hill country near Bethel and Ai was achieved where, many years earlier, God had made a covenant with the forefathers of Israel (Gen. 13; 28:13–19).

Contrary to the view of critics that the lack of archaeological evidence casts doubt on the historicity of the story, the geographical details are evidence of its reality. The Bible locates Ai in relation to two other cities (Josh. 7:2), describes a valley and hill to the north (8:12), a large valley east of Ai (8:13), and a route leading through the desert to Jericho ( 8:15).

4. DESIGN OF THE ALTAR, BLESSINGS AND CURSE, Joshua 8:30–35

It is curious that the narrative does not say anything about Israel's capture of the Hill Country from the center to the north. It seems that places like Shechem and Shiloh (Joshua 18:1) came to Israel relatively easily. The Canaanites either fled from there (Ex. 23:28; Deut. 7:20; Josh. 2:24), or collaborated with Israel (cf. map 3-8), or we simply have no description of the battles that took place there.

In obedience to the commandment of Moses (Deut. 11:29–30; 27:1–5), the people built an altar on Mount Ebal and offered sacrifices to God. There the list of the Law of Moses was written on the stones and the blessings and curses from the Law were read while half the people stood at Mount Gerizim and half at Mount Ebal. The ceremony was a confirmation of Israel's covenant relationship with the Lord, showing that God was faithful to His promises. It is no coincidence that it took place in Shechem, where the Lord first promised Abraham that his descendants would inherit the earth (Gen. 12:6–7).

The Bible in figures and facts. Tim Dowley

The nature of the Bible. Jewish calendar. Religions in Biblical Times. Names of God. Biblical names and their meanings. Chronological tables.

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Abraham's path to Canaan is the path of our sanctification to the glory of the Lord.

P.M.

An experienced and wise builder, the higher he builds a wall, the more often he checks it with the base: is there any curvature? is there any evasion? Otherwise, destruction is inevitable.

Shouldn’t we, Christians who have reached the last centuries, look more carefully and more often at the life and hope of the men who paved the way of faith? To go back is to stretch forward! Looking into the past means seeing the future! To listen to the ancient hymns of faith is to catch the sounds of the solemn symphony of paradise! These are the paradoxes of true Christianity.

GOD'S FRIEND IS THE FATHER OF MANY

After the narration of large-scale, world-transforming events (the global flood, the settlement of nations), Holy Scripture focuses our attention on a man named Abraham. The great example of faith of this righteous man shines like a bright star from ancient times. The life of this patriarch left a bright streak in the darkness of the universal paganism of those distant times. What a rich scattering of blessed truths was found by those who, reading the holy lines, followed Abraham to Canaan, who together with him sought the longed-for city, whose artist and builder is God (Heb. 11:10)!

Two objects, two things became a symbol of Abraham’s life - a tent and a pilgrim’s staff. “And Abraham lived... as a stranger...” (Genesis 21:34). Abraham, ardently responding to God's call, became a man of tireless pursuit. His heart stretched further and further, his gaze was constantly directed to the horizon, his marching camp was always in motion. The tempting sights that met along the way could not seduce him - he hurried forward. Serious obstacles blocking the road were unable to stop the movement - he overcame them. Abraham joyfully called himself a stranger and stranger on earth and did not even have in his thoughts the fatherland from which he came (Heb. 11, 1315).

In the life of Abraham, born at the dawn of human history, there are so many gospel and New Testament deeds. The glorious hour of redemption of the world was very far away, but Abraham came so close to Calvary with his whole being: spirit, soul and body, when he lifted up his son Isaac on the altar. Therefore, Abraham, who believed, is called the friend of God, for he also, although in part, learned what it means to sacrifice his only begotten son.

God-inspired Scripture impartially notes Abraham’s exploits and failures, right steps and mistakes. The Bible does not idealize its heroes by hiding their sins; does not make them special people, not like us, weak and ordinary. This is why the Holy Book is valuable, telling about those who are simple and stumble, but who deeply trust in God and passionately love Him, and therefore are transformed into strong winners, into heroes of faith, into ascetics of God.

VOCATION

“You Yourself, Lord God, chose Abram, and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and gave him the name Abraham.” Neh. 9, 7

Let us transport our thoughts back to ancient times, when the world was still young, and turn our gaze to that land that many theologians call the cradle of humanity, for, as they believe, it was here, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, that the Garden of Eden once bloomed and smelled fragrant.

Mesopotamia (as this land was called) in the time of Abraham (2000 BC) was already well settled. There were many cities here, protected by powerful stone walls. The largest of them is Babylon, whose inhabitants could be enlightened every day when looking at the gloomy ruins of the Tower of Babel. To the south of it there was another city, no less interesting for us, Ur of the Chaldeans, in which lived a man who later became the father of all believers.

If we could examine this city, we would pay attention to two phenomena, one of which would perhaps surprise us a lot, the other would greatly upset us. The first is the high degree of technical, cultural, and economic development of the ancient city. Archaeological excavations convince us of this. Ur of the Chaldeans, liberated from soil layers, impressed archaeologists. It had schools, shops, squares, and two-story houses. Numerous clay tablets discovered by scientists contain historical writings and records of trade transactions.

The second phenomenon is depressing. The inhabitants of the city were fanatical pagans. The best central places in the city were occupied by huge idol temples. The people, in a state of darkness, made sacrifices to the moon god. Pagan orgies took place in the temples, which, as a rule, included elements of cruelty and immorality. This is how seemingly incompatible things were combined: civilization and paganism, and already in ancient times the truth was clear: education and culture do not make a person purer and more humane. Our modern world is crying out loudly about this. There is no cure for sin for him except in the Blood of the Lamb of God.

Abraham's kinship was no different from the majority and also wandered at heart in the darkness of paganism. Later, the leader of the people of Israel, Joshua, bitterly reminded Abraham’s descendants of this: “Your fathers lived across the river from ancient times... and served other gods” (Joshua 24:2).

An important question involuntarily arises: why did God pay attention to a man born in the city of idols? What distinguished Abraham from the crowd of Noah’s sons, who had completely forgotten the covenants of their forefather? There was certainly something in this man that attracted God’s gaze, for the Lord is impartial, turning wonderful words of call, words of salvation specifically to him.

We can confidently and confidently say that neither strength, nor subtle mind, nor other abilities will find God’s favor. The sons of Cain possessed all this. Among them were people of a lyrical soul, like Jubal, and skilled sculptors of iron and copper, like Tubalcain, and successful breeders, like Jabal (Genesis 4: 20-22). However, the all-consuming waters of the flood, these instruments of God's wrath, hid forever the rebellious race of proud wicked people.

Abraham did not have any special strength or outstanding abilities. Moreover, he was distinguished by a certain inferiority - he did not have children. It is this detail that breaks the brevity of Abraham's genealogy. “And Sarah was barren and childless” (Genesis 11:30). Was it not precisely this depressing circumstance that prompted Abraham to reflect and yearn for the unknown God, Who has the power to give new life? The thought of calling out to dead gods, behind whom stand demons and who do not serve, but require service, hardly occurred to Abraham; do not help, but burden; they do not liberate, but enslave; they do not give, but take away; They don’t save, but they destroy. Abraham, apparently, was aware of the general madness of his compatriots and, convinced of the powerlessness of idols, rushed with his heart into the alluring distance of Heaven to find a merciful God who would want to help him, weak and needy.

And if in general terms it happened as we assume, then Abraham knew the fundamental difference between the living, true God and the false gods. The true God does not require the service of human hands, as if he needed anything. He Himself gives life and breath and everything to everything (D. Ap. 17). When Abraham’s descendants forgot this great truth, the Lord reminded them: “I will not accept a bull from your house, nor a goat from your folds; For all the beasts of the forest are Mine, and the cattle on a thousand mountains. I know all the birds on the mountains and the animals in the fields before Me. If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the universe and all that fills it are Mine” (Ps. 49:9-12). The Lord Almighty is the One who fills all in all (Eph. 1:23). He is a blessing God, a giving God. If in false religions the flow of gifts flows from people to the deity, then in true religion the flow of gifts flows from a loving, good God to people.

This amazing truth was repeatedly emphasized by the Son of God, the Lord Jesus: “...The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). From this wonderful news, the tormented soul involuntarily comes into joyful excitement and warms up, for, being in the distant foreign land of sin, she heard the familiar voice of the Father, who longs to save and revive her.

Dear friend, who has not yet believed in the true God, who has not responded to His good call! The Holy Book (Bible) convinces you that the true God, who possesses everything, does not take away, but gives and enriches: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” ( James 1:17). True Christianity does not fetter or infringe on the soul, but, on the contrary, it liberates and liberates.

There is only one thing that the Lord takes from us. The Lamb of God took upon Himself our sins, our evil, and carried this immeasurably heavy burden to the cross. He died. He has risen. And thus he opened the treasures of heaven for us.

Abraham was also stirred in soul when he heard God's call. His heart was not attached to the temples and temples of the pagan city. This is evidenced by his ardent response to God's call. It is incredible that a person, satisfied with everything, not looking for something better, not yearning at heart, blindly devoted to the religion of his fathers, would so easily leave his habitable place and change his satisfying way of life. And would he have heard the voice of God?

Friends, Christians, how many of us, who once wandered on the paths of destruction, were allowed by Divine wisdom to experience sorrow, pain, damage, and oppression, so that we could sober up our minds and hearts and begin searching for the One who came to serve and give His soul for the redemption of many!

Christ's parable about inviting those invited to dinner clearly reflects the reality of earthly life (Luke 14: 16-24). Attachment to transitory values blinded the minds of the people invited to the feast and they neglected the hospitality of the master, did not want to taste the joy of celebration, because they did not consider that their life was dull and empty. This is a race of people happy without God, a race of sons joyful without a Father, a race of creatures content without a Creator. But what a misfortune to be a happy person without God, what a sadness to be a joyful son without the Father, what anguish to be a contented creature without the Creator!

Defective people reacted differently to the master’s invitation: lame, blind, beggars. They perked up and hurried to the house of fun. Their misfortune helped them appreciate the invitation to the feast. A holiday has come into their lives - they are at the master’s rich table! The weeping were comforted and rejoiced, the hungry and thirsty were fed and satisfied, the poor were clothed in bright clothes and the poor were enriched. So the happy became unhappy, and the unhappy became happy. The first became last, and the last became first.

Let us keep our lips from murmuring in times of suffering, for every sorrow, accepted by us with gratitude, becomes a wave carrying our life's boat to the shores of our eternal Motherland. May the Savior be glorified for everything that He allows in our lives!

INTERCEPTED INITIATIVE

“The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham in Mesopotamia, before he moved to Haran, and said to him: get out of your land and from your kindred... and go to the land that I will show you.” D. Ap. 7, 2—3

Repeatedly in the Word of God, the most important events from the life of the patriarchs or from the history of the Israeli people are clarified and explained in the books of the prophets or in the New Testament Scriptures. In the first account of the calling of Abraham in the book of Genesis, we do not find God’s words to Abraham, who was still living in Ur of the Chaldeans, but the first martyr Stephen, in his speech to the Sanhedrin, unambiguously says about this: “The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham in Mesopotamia, before his resettlement to Harran..."

“Get out of your land...” Hearing these words of the only living God, Abraham began to hastily get ready for the journey. But what is it? Some kind of revolution has taken place! We read with surprise: “And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot... and Sarah... and went out with them from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan...” (Gen. 11, 31). Did Abraham’s father really awaken in his heart and was ready to leave everything, sacrifice everything? Did he, having heard the call of God, joyfully respond to it? If so, then this is very gratifying! Maybe Lot also attracted the attention of Almighty God? Maybe Lot also heard his name from the mouth of the Lord? Unfortunately no. Nowhere in Scripture do we find that God spoke His word to these people. Only Abraham heard the Lord. Only Abraham entered into a personal relationship with God.

Perhaps the reader will object: “Was it so important for everyone to hear the call of God? Isn’t it much more important that they left and went to Canaan?” The further fate of these people shows how significant this detail is, how important the beginning is, how important the incentive is, what a key role the starting point plays. Only Abraham achieved the desired goal, the rest left the race, left this glorious field and sadly ended their days.

Unfortunately, in modern Christianity, only a few experience the foundation of their spiritual structure, reflect on the first step of following Christ, on the starting point of genuine Christian life, which is called rebirth. Many frivolously, together with friends, with kinship, join Christianity, and then boldly challenge prudence: “Why unnecessary worries! I am a church member, I am a successful Christian! More than that, I am a positive influence on others.” But Terah (Abram’s father) did not lag behind on the way to Canaan and even led a group of travelers. And Lot cheerfully hurried after his relatives. However, both of them found earthly cities that suited their carnal life, their tastes, their searches. Here the great difference between these people and Abraham, who was looking for a city whose artist and builder was God, was revealed.

It is impossible to become a true Christian only by virtue of convictions. It is impossible to become a disciple of Christ only by sympathizing with His teaching. It is impossible to enter the Church of Christ together with relatives and friends, only formally regretting one’s sins. All this means climbing into the courtyard of God's flock (John 10:1). The true door is Christ! And in true Christianity, the determining factor is a personal relationship with Christ.

Friend, have you grieved deeply for your sins? Did your soul cry, painfully feeling the distance of your Father’s house? Has the spirit of repentance and tenderness descended on you? (D. Ap. 2, 37). Have you cried out in fear, “What must I do to be saved?” (D. Ap. 16, 30). Have you felt the Father's embrace? (Luke 15:20). Has your lifestyle changed radically? (Eph. 4:22-24). Do you personally follow Christ? (John 21, 22). If you answer these questions with a decisive “Yes!”, then you are truly happy, if “No!”, then be sure that you will not enter Canaan, although you may have left Ur of the Chaldeans. You will certainly find your Haran, as Terah found it, or your Sodom, as Lot found it.

"Bulletin of Truth", No. 2, 1999.

Popular Bible Encyclopedia. Tim Dowley

The Bible is a source of inspiration and spiritual support for countless people. However, a number of important questions inevitably arise before today's reader who seeks to correctly understand the Holy Scriptures.

What were the ancient countries described in the Bible like?
When, where, against what background did the events of Sacred History unfold and who were its heroes?
When and how did the books of the Old and New Testaments originate?
Who was the author of this or that text?
The reference material collected in the Lion Biblical Encyclopedia helps to answer such questions.

The encyclopedia consists of twelve parts . In three of them—on people mentioned in the Bible, place names, and theological terms—the dictionary entries are arranged in alphabetical order. In other sections, information is distributed by topic and accompanied by special photo essays. At the end of the publication there is an alphabetical index that allows you to quickly find the necessary texts and illustrations.

The main task of the encyclopedia is to provide the reader with accurate, scientifically based information in an interesting and accessible form. The book contains about 400 photographs and drawings. It contains modern scientific information, but is not overloaded with special terms and is designed for a wide range of readers seeking a deeper understanding of the Holy Scriptures. Everyone who participated in the creation of the book hopes that with its help the world of the Bible will become closer and clearer to readers.

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Our inheritance 7. Ancient maps

The Creator gave Abraham the entire territory within the absolute and objective boundaries of Eretz Israel

Israel's borders have changed at different times in history. In the beginning this was the territory promised to Abraham. Its boundaries can be considered theoretical. Then it speaks of the land conquered by Yehoshua, and finally of the land to which Ezra and his companions returned the name Israel after their return from Babylonian captivity. Each of these territories has its own significance and separate status under Jewish law.

G-d's Promise

“On that day Hashem made a covenant with Abraham, saying: To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the river Euphrates” (Bereishit 15:18). Although only two borders are mentioned here - northern and southern, they cover a large area in comparison63

disagreement with other descriptions of Eretz Israel in the Torah. It includes the Gaza strip and, according to some wise men, Transjordan.

The same boundaries are mentioned in the book of Shemot (23:31): “And I will draw your borders from the sea of Suph to the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the river.” The Sea of Suf is the northern shore of the Gulf of Eilat, and the Sea of the Philistines is the Mediterranean Sea; the “river” refers to the Euphrates, and the desert is Sinai ( see map 1

Gift to Abraham

The Ramban notes that G‑d three times declared His intention to give Abraham a land in which his descendants would live. When Abraham first entered the Holy Land, G‑d promised him: “To your descendants I will give this Land” (Bereishit 12:7). Nothing was said about boundaries, and Abraham's possessions were limited only to the territory through which he wandered, because in those days this was the only way to establish one's legal rights to a particular piece of land.

The second time Abraham heard this promise was when he passed through the many trials that awaited him in the Land of Israel, and Hashem decided to reward him. “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you stand, north and south, east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and to your descendants forever” (Bereishit 13:14). According to Malbim, Hashem gave Abraham all the territory within the absolute and objective boundaries of Eretz Israel. Abraham looked at her with his spiritual gaze, capable of discerning places where the holiness of Israel turned into the mediocrity of chutz laaretz. From that very moment, Eretz Israel began to manifest its inherent holiness.

For the third time, G-d determined the boundaries of the Land of Israel and indicated the ten nations that occupied it at that time. At the same time, He strengthened His covenant with Abraham, assuring him that no sins would deprive his descendants of the right to this land. This promise was marked by the Covenant of Circumcision. From now on, Eretz Israel becomes the “eternal property” of the descendants of Abraham. Even if in the future they are expelled from this land, they will still return in time and take possession of it.

At this moment, the special Providence of the Almighty came into force in relation to the Land of Israel and Abraham. The Creator concluded his promise with the following words: “And I will be their G‑d” (Genesis 17:8). Thus, He seemed to say: “Only I will rule over you and this Earth (when your descendants inherit it), and no intermediaries - stars, constellations or other celestial forces - will have any influence on you.”

Ten nations that are seven

Rashi, quoting a midrash, reports: although G‑d promised that the descendants of Abraham would inherit the territory occupied by ten nations, only seven of them were actually conquered: the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizites, the Amorites, the Jebusites, the Girgashites, and the Rephaim. The lands belonging to three other nations - the Kenites, Kinizites and Kadmonites - will come into the possession of the children of Abraham only in the future, when the coming of Moshiach will bring harmony, open borders and true peace to all nations. Therefore, when we read in Scripture about the “seven” nations that inhabited Eretz Israel, we are talking only about those that were conquered by Yehoshua and with whom Moshe ordered to start a war.

Three remaining nations

Although Hashem promised Abraham that Eretz Israel would unite the lands belonging to all ten nations, and that this would require their violent conquest, this prophecy can only be fully fulfilled in the era of Moshiach.

Each of these ten peoples embodied one of the highest forces of impurity. These forces can be arranged in a hierarchical order. Yehoshua conquered the peoples representing the six lower powers militarily, and the seventh people emigrated and assimilated. At that time, the Jewish people had not yet reached such a level of spiritual purity as to be able to overcome all ten forces of uncleanness. The sin of the golden calf weakened him, and we still feel the effects of this fall. Only in the era of Moshiach, when all peoples fully realize their spiritual potential, will this work be completed. And then, four thousand years later, the prophecy given by G-d to Abraham will finally come true.

Mysterious Khivits

One of the six peoples conquered by Joshua were the Hivites. However, Abraham did not receive any promises regarding the people bearing this name. The mysterious nickname contains a deep meaning. In Aramaic, hiwi means "snake"; the name of the people alludes to the serpent who seduced Adam and Chava. According to Jewish tradition, this creature is the archetype of evil and deceit. All past and future evil in any of its manifestations - hidden or openly gross - originates from this vile serpent. The Girgashites/Khivits were not actually conquered, but managed to escape and subsequently mixed with other peoples, to whom their vices were passed on.

As already stated, the ten immoral pagan peoples who occupied the territory of Eretz Israel personified ten aspects of evil that can only be suppressed by the equal power of holiness. We are talking about spiritual purity, which the people of Israel will be able to achieve only in the era of Moshiach. The very names of these peoples give us a clue to future events, as a result of which the planet will be cleansed of vice. The serpentine forces of evil will be driven out (girgash) and swept away.

After this, the era of healing of wounds (refua) will begin, which will end with the Divine Revelation - the opening of the Face of the Eternal (kadmoni). As a result of all these events, the world will turn into the Garden of Eden, but this time there will be no snake (hiwi) in it.

Only with love for the Almighty

God directly tells us that the expansion of the borders of the land we occupy depends on our willingness to serve Him and fulfill the laws of the Torah, as it is written: “And when Hashem your God expands your borders, as He swore to your fathers... you will observe everything these commandments... to love Hashem your God and to walk in his ways...” (Deuteronomy 19:8). G-d decided that the Jews who lived in the era of Yehoshua were worthy of receiving the lands of the seven nations. The territory inhabited by three nations remained unconquered due to the sins committed by the Jews. In the future, if the Almighty wants, we will circumcise our hearts and remove from them the last impurity that prevents us from fulfilling the will of Hashem. And then the true, perfect borders of Eretz Israel will appear. This is what He promised the patriarchs, and to their credit this promise will come true.

Map 1: Borders promised to the forefathers. Includes the territories of the Ten Nations. Today the exact location of these borders is unknown. Some authorities include in them the entire Sinai Peninsula, others draw the eastern boundary along the Euphrates to the Persian Gulf.

with permission from Shvut Ami Publishing House

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Book of Great Journeys

Once upon a time, or rather, four thousand years ago, there lived in a certain kingdom-state, or, more precisely, in the land of the Chaldeans, in the city of Ur , one of the descendants of Shem, whose name was Terah (Terah).

And Terah had three sons: Haran, Nahor and Abram...

As you, of course, have already guessed, the reader, the son of Terah, Abram (אברם, that is, “father of the heights”) is the righteous ABRAHAM. You remember from Scripture that at first his name sounded exactly like that, without the double letter A.

He, Avram (or Abraham) Farrovich, the forefather of Arabs and Jews in the flesh and Orthodox Christians in spirit , will be the main character of our story.

But before moving on to the life story of this amazing man, let’s try to figure out what kind of city Ur of the Chaldeans was, in which the family of his father, Terah, lived.

Where was Ur of the Chaldees?

In the twenties of the last century, the English archaeologist Leonard Woolley made a sensational discovery: he excavated the remains of the ancient Sumerian city of Ur in southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), a little south of the Euphrates Babylon. Since then, in almost all biblical atlases and maps, including the map we have given here, the “path of Abraham” begins from Ur of Sumer, that is, from Southern Mesopotamia.

From there, from the very SOUTH of Mesopotamia, according to Woolley and modern biblical atlases, Abraham set off - although it is not clear why! - to the NORTH of Mesopotamia, to the city of Harran, and only then, having made a huge unnecessary detour, again moved south and came to the Holy Land, which was then also called the Land of Canaan. If we consider that having passed through Canaan, Abraham moved further to Egypt, and then returned to the Holy Land again, it turns out that, in total, he had to travel about three and a half thousand kilometers! Try, dear reader, to walk from Moscow to sunny Madrid - it will be almost the same distance. Just don’t forget to take your wife, nephew and a certain number of servants with you! And, most importantly, numerous flocks of goats that cannot move for more than four hours a day and that must constantly stop to chew grass and bleat a little cheerfully. Because of these goats, your maximum movement speed will not exceed five kilometers per day (1).

But don't be scared, it's not all that scary. of the three and a half thousand kilometers of the “path of Abraham” can be safely taken away . An ancient legend, and indeed many modern researchers, point out to us that the archaeologist Woolley got excited when he announced that he had discovered the homeland of Abraham not far from the Persian Gulf. Woolley really excavated the city of Ur, one of the largest centers of the Sumerian kingdom, but, most likely, this SUMERIAN Ur has nothing in common, except for the name, with CHALDEAN Ur!

Most likely, Ur of the Chaldeans should be looked for much further north : not in Iraq, but in today's Turkey, only 30 kilometers north of Harran (which you can easily find on our map) and 45 kilometers from the modern Turkish-Syrian border. Now this city is called Urfa , more precisely, Shanly-Urfa, that is, in Turkish, Glorious Urfa. Here in Urfa, right under the fortress wall, Muslim residents still show the cave, the birthplace of Abraham. And not far from Urfa there are several villages and settlements that not so long ago bore the names “Serukh” (that was the name of Abraham’s great-grandfather), “Nachor” (Abraham’s grandfather and brother), “Terah” (Abraham’s father) and “Aran” (Abraham’s brother) )!

During the time of Alexander the Great, the city of Ur-Urfa will have another name - Edessa. This name is probably more familiar to you, because it was here, in Edessa, during the time of Christ that the pious King Abgar , the first Christian ruler in the history of mankind , ruled, the same one for whom the Lord left His image not made by hands on the board. And in Byzantine times, the great Teacher of the Church, St. Ephraim the Syrian , who left a prayer for us, which we read during Great Lent: “Lord and Master of my life, do not give me the spirit of idleness, despondency, covetousness and idle talk. Grant the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love to Thy servant. To her, Lord, King, grant me to see my sins and not condemn my brother, for blessed are you forever and ever. Amen".

Now let's return to Terah and his three sons.

How Abram took Sarah as his wife

So, Terah, who lived in Ur of the Chaldeans, near the present Turkish-Syrian border, had three sons: Haran, Nahor and Abram. When Aran, the eldest son, died, he left three children: the boy Lot and the beautiful sisters Milka and Iska . The brothers of the deceased did not leave the orphans without their care: the middle one, Nahor, took his niece Milka as his wife (they did not see anything sinful in such marriages then), and the youngest, Abram, took his niece Iska. In addition, the kind-hearted Abram took upon himself the care of Lot, Milkin and the Artificial brother.

However, perhaps it was not only compassion for the orphan that forced Abram to marry his young niece. Iska was only ten years younger than Abram and was distinguished by her exceptional beauty. Perhaps that is why Abram, who fell deeply in love with her, more often addressed his wife not by name, but called her Sarah , which in Hebrew means “mistress,” “princess,” “mistress” (by the way, the same ancient root SAR is also heard in Russian word KING). At least, that’s what St. Petersburg writes in his interpretations. Ephraim the Syrian: “Arran gave birth to Lot, Milkah and Iska , that is, Sarah, who was named so because of her beauty . ”

But what St. will write about this beautiful couple. Demetrius of Rostov: “This holy duo, united in flesh and spirit, Abraham and Sarah, was among the infidel race like a grain in thorns, like a spark in the ashes and like gold among the crony. While all the nations sank into idolatry and lived godlessly, committing unspeakable evil and ungodly iniquities, they both knew the one true God... They glorified and preached His holy name to others whom they could, instructing them in the knowledge of God... Thus, in those days times Abraham and Sarah were chosen vessels of God, bearing His name before the pagans and kings” (Cell Chronicler).

Abraham's Assurance

So, according to Scripture and Church Tradition, by the time of Abraham, humanity in its overwhelming majority had forgotten the Most High God and fell into paganism. They replaced the truth of God with a lie, - the Apostle Paul speaks about this falling away in the Epistle to the Romans, - and worshiped and served the creature instead of the Creator (1:25).

But how then did it happen that Abraham himself did not fall into paganism along with everyone else? The simplest answer could be the following: Abraham, as we know, traced his descent from the righteous Shem and Eber, the very same ones who refused to participate in the construction of the Tower of Babel. It was the great-grandson of Shem, Eber, as some Holy Fathers believed, who preserved the language spoken by people from the Creation of the world to the confusion of Babylon - the language of the Ebers, or Hebrew . One would like to assume that there could be no pagans in his glorious family!

Alas, this is not true. In the Book of Joshua, the Lord speaks through his Prophet: Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Your fathers lived beyond the river of old, Terah the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods . But I took your father Abraham from beyond the river and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed (Josh. 24:2,3).

And, indeed, according to Church Tradition, Terah not only fell into idolatry, but also lived off the fact that he sold idols in his shop! By the way, the very name Terah (תרח “Terah”, which can mean “moon”) does not sound very “monotheistic”...

There is an ancient legend that explains the faith of young Abram as a sudden epiphany . This legend can be found in the works of Blessed Jerome, and in the Litsevoy Code of John IV the Terrible, in St. Demetrius of Rostov, and in the Jewish Haggadah, and even in the Muslim Koran. We will present it as presented by one of the most outstanding biblical scholars today, Fr. Oleg Stenyaev, whose most interesting lectures under the general title “The Family Life of the Old Testament Patriarchs” we will very often quote:

“When Abram was a little boy,” Fr. Oleg, his father Farrah was engaged in selling idols, making them and selling them. And so little Abram once sat, looked out the window and thought about God: which of the gods should he choose, who should he worship? He saw the stars, the moon - what beauty! And he thought: “This is my god - the moon! The stars will help her!” But the moon and stars set, and Abram said: “I don’t like gods who set!”

The sun appeared - the ancient Egyptians revered the sun as the god Ra, the Slavs, our ancestors, revered the sun as the god Yarilo... But the sun also set.

And then the little boy understood what many were unable to understand... an inner voice... suggested to this boy the idea of the unity of God. Young Abram realized that God is the One who created the sun, the stars, the moon, and the earth.

And he destroyed all the idols in his father’s store while he was not at home. There was also a large idol there that Abram could not move. And when the father returned, he looked at the mess that had been created and sternly asked little Abram: “Who did this?!”

Abram replied: “This big one killed all the little ones!” The father then cried out: “Are you laughing at me? He can’t walk!” To which Abram, this youth of God, remarked: “Why, father, do you worship him if he cannot even walk?”

A scandal arose: the inhabitants of Ur of the Chaldeans found out about what had happened. According to the legend of Jews, Muslims and some Christians... the ruler of Ur of the Chaldeans was then none other than Nimrod, the builder of the Tower of Babel.

And so he called Abram for interrogation..."

Here we, perhaps, will interrupt the lecture of Fr. Oleg, because we have an obvious chronological inconsistency.

Could King Nimrod judge Abraham?

Righteous Abraham was born in 3544 from the Creation of the world, approximately two thousand years before the birth of Christ. And the wicked Nimrod was “covered with a tower” about seven centuries earlier: we have already said that King Nimrod died during the destruction of his main brainchild, the pillar of Babylon, that is, in 2794 from the Creation of the world (2). It turns out that Nimrod could not judge Abram...

However, it is quite possible to assume that by “Nimrod” in this legend we must understand not him himself, but one of his spiritual successors. Remember, in the article “Kings and Rivers” we wrote that King Nimrod is the first totalitarian ruler on earth, and all subsequent usurpers and tyrants are, so to speak, “another Nimrods”? The last Nimrod will be the Antichrist.

Most often in connection with Abraham, the name of King Sargon the Ancient - the first emperor and great conqueror in the history of mankind . (In the name SAR-gon, by the way, we see the same root as in the name SARA and in the word KING). However, here too there is a discrepancy: Sargon lived, although much later than Nimrod, but still a little earlier than the time of Abraham (if, of course, the historians again did not confuse anything with the dating!). So, we cannot say for sure which of the tyrants-Nimrods the legend about the trial of Abraham refers to. In the end, it could very well be some small Ursko-Chaldean “nimrodishka”...

Well, let's leave this question to the experts. But, since we mentioned King Sargon the Ancient, who lived in the same or ALMOST the same times as Abraham, then let's pay attention to this.

An ancient Turkish legend tells how King Sargon went to Turkey to defeat some enemies. The legend describes how Sargon and his army had to make their way through the jungles of Eastern Turkey , which were teeming with game and exotic birds. But what is this jungle in Eastern Turkey, filled with abundant vegetation and a variety of game? It is now a fairly dry region. Its nature cannot be called abundant and varied. There are no jungles around for thousands of kilometers...

Remember how we have repeatedly said that the landscape of the Earth has changed radically in the several millennia that have passed since the Flood? During the time of Abraham, north of present-day Turkey and slightly north of Crimea, the Great Glaciation zone had already begun. And Türkiye itself was full of lush pastures and lush impenetrable forests.

So, it is quite possible that Abraham’s wanderings did not pass through such deserted and gloomy landscapes as it might seem to a modern traveler...

But let us return to the trial of Nimrod.

Trial and exile

“Little Abram,” we again quote Fr. Oleg Stenyaev, stands in front of the tyrant, and he asks him: “What God do you believe in? Answer, child! Abram responds: “I believe in God, who gives life and takes it away.” Then Nimrod says: “So it’s me! I give life when I cancel an execution, and I kill when I pronounce a death sentence! The boy looked at this pagan monster and said to him: “The sun rises in the east. Command it to rise in the west!” And this ruler became terribly angry, he ordered the fireplace that he had to be lit, and threw Abram into this oven.

The fact is that the word וּר “ur” can mean “fire”, and this name Ur of the Chaldeans can mean “Chaldean fire”. And when the Scripture says that they left Ur of the Chaldeans, it can be translated that they fled from there to escape the fire (3).

And so this tyrant looks at Abram, but Abram, like those three youths in the oven in the days of the prophet Daniel, walks, prays, glorifies the one Lord... Then Nimrod calls him from there and says: “Get away with your family so that you are not here! »

This is how it happened that Abram, although he did not suffer from the fire of the Chaldeans, was forced to leave the city of Ur (let’s call it in the Slavic manner “YAR-city” or “FIRE-city”) and move to the city of Harran. And his father Terah was forced to migrate with him.

This is how the story of Abraham's great wanderings begins.

Abraham in Haran . Father's death

So, we found out that King Nimrod could not judge young Abram. Two options: either by the name “Nimrod” the tradition means one of the tyrants of a later time, or, and this also cannot be excluded, the story of this trial is not Church Tradition, but just a pious legend. Unfortunately, we are not always able to separate Tradition (with a capital letter) from tradition (with a small letter)...

Let's continue our story about Abraham's wanderings.

“Thus,” says St. Demetrius of Rostov, - Terah came out of the Chaldean land, from a city called Ur, came out with his son Abraham and with his grandson Lot, the son of Arran, and with his granddaughter and daughter-in-law Sarah, the wife of Abraham... When they came to Harran, Terah was there and settled. Terah did not reach the land of Canaan and settled in Haran because he was old and weak in body; there he died, having been two hundred and five years old from his birth . Nahor arrived in Haran when his father was dying, and together with Abraham he buried Terah’s body. After this, Nahor began to live here along with his entire household, but neither he himself nor his tribe abandoned idolatry, for his grandson Laban was also an idolater, as will later become clear” (Cell Chronicler).

Let us pause our narrative here and talk a little about Abram and Terah as FATHER AND SON. Let's start with the distant ancestors of Abram and Terah.

Righteous Noah, the builder of the Ark, fervently believed in the Most High God, his son Shem, his grandson Arphaxad, his great-grandson Cainan, his great-great-grandson Eber believed in God... and then? And then it’s no longer a fact. At some point - we don’t even know exactly when - Babylonian atheism and polytheism overwhelmed this blessed family... There is only one consolation: the descendants of Shem were PATRIARCHAL people. These people preserved paternity and sonship and maintained the patriarchal system.

And so, look, on the one hand, young Abram decisively breaks his father’s idols, these idols for him are an abomination and demonism. He probably hurt his father that day... But at the same time , when danger arises, father and son come out of Ur of the Chaldeans TOGETHER. “Tara is a pagan,” writes St. John Chrysostom, out of love for his son, decided to go with him.”

The Orthodox thinker and biblical scholar Evgeniy Avdeenko, who recently left us, writes wonderfully about this family: “The Patriarch led the resettlement, it could not have been otherwise, and the son, who had a revelation from God, completely obeyed his father and did not leave him when Farrah stopped. The pagan father was not allowed to enter the land of promise. And Abraham set off from Harran no sooner than he had waited for the peaceful death of his father.

An important conclusion follows from this story: even with differences in beliefs, you must have peace with those who gave birth to you . Even if you have different faiths, you need to maintain peace with those who gave birth to you. This is called "sonship." Abraham was born into an unbeliever, as we would now say, but in fact a pagan family. The first condition of salvation, which even precedes faith and knowledge of the One True God, is sonship...

And it is clear that the Cainites will quarrel between us and our fathers. It is clear why the Cainites are revolutionaries. Revolution is the rupture of paternal relations. And now in Russia at the end of the 20th, beginning of the 21st century, they are trying to present our fathers as funny, narrow-minded people. We are presented with their political beliefs. If we don’t care about this, we are told that our fathers are atheists and fighters against God. God-fighters are those who quarrel between us and our fathers. This is Cain's work. Only peace with our fathers will allow us not to transfer their problems and delusions into our lives...

Parent, king, priest, when one of them is absent, it is not good, incomplete. An orphan, a democrat, an atheist, a cosmopolitan - each is an unhappy person in his own way. When I have a fatherland on Earth, and in my father’s fatherland there is a king, a priest. When they are in fullness, the people of the priesthood, the kingdom, then it is easier for a person to say from the heart: “Our Father who is in Heaven...” (Life of Abraham).

After centuries of silence

Reader, let me remind you that we are in Harran. The first migration of Abraham - from Ur of the Chaldeans to Harran - was, as we assumed, not at all as distant as shown in modern biblical atlases. Thirty kilometers separating Ur-Urfa from Harran is a very short distance. And he was still very young then...

Then years passed, dozens of years - and then God Himself spoke to Abram...

“...when was the last time God spoke to man before Abraham? God spoke to Noah. From Noah to Abraham there was no revelation from God; it is not in Scripture. Between Noah and Abraham there are ten generations, centuries of silence. We asked: how did the Church survive Babylon? These were centuries of silence. The revelation of God after such silence is the most significant. It is perceived as a new revelation. ... therefore, the first Christians subtly felt the circumstances of God's revelation to Abraham after such a significant, ten-generation, break... When Stephen (the first of the Christian martyrs) sets out the foundations of his faith before the Sanhedrin, he begins from Abraham and this first revelation of God to Abraham . Christians felt what revelation was like after centuries of silence...” (E. Avdeenko. Life of Abraham).

So, here they met again, this time in Harran: Man and God. God appeared to Abraham and ordered him to go to Canaan, a land lying almost a thousand kilometers to the southwest.

By that time, Abraham was no longer young, he was seventy-five, his wife, Sarah, sixty-five. At this age, we usually begin to take stock of life, but Abraham, as it turned out, still had everything ahead...

Lech-lecha me-artsekha

When Socrates was offered a choice at his trial - to drink a cup of poison or be forever expelled from his native Athens, he chose poison. This was not the case with Abraham...

We talked to you about how important it is for every person to have an earthly Fatherland. But the will of the Lord is even more important. The court, not of man, but of God, ruled that Abram must leave his native place forever and go “there, you don’t understand where”...

Here's how Holy Scripture talks about it:

And the Lord said to Abram: get thee out of thy land, from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land that I will show thee ; and I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing; I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse those who curse you; and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed. (Gen.12:1-3)

“Let us not pass these words without attention,” St. calls on us. John Chrysostom, - but let us consider what a difficult command is given... Leave, he says, what is known and reliable, and prefer the unknown and unprecedented . See how from the very beginning the righteous man was taught to prefer the invisible to the visible and the future to what was already in his hands. He was not commanded to do something unimportant; (commanded) to leave the land where he had lived for so long, to leave all his kinship and his entire father’s house, and to go where he did not know or care. (God) did not say to what country he wanted to resettle him, but with the uncertainty of His command he tested the piety of the patriarch: “Go,” he says, “to the land that I will show you.” Think, beloved, what an exalted spirit, unpossessed by any passion or habit, was required to fulfill this command...” (Conversations on the Book of Genesis).

Harran Annunciation

In the very first article of this series, we talked about the Proto- or First Gospel, the first good news about the coming of the Savior to the world, heard by the first people when they were expelled from Paradise. The unfortunate Adam and Eve were consoled by the news that the catastrophe into which the original sin had driven them would come to an end. When the deadlines are fulfilled, the Seed of the Woman, Christ the Messiah, will appear in the world, Who will defeat the head of the tempter-serpent and deliver those who accept Him from the power of death and hell.

Adam the Primordial later passed on this faith in the Seed of the Woman, in the promised Savior of the world, like a burning torch in a relay race, to his son Seth, and he to his descendants, the Sethites. Motivated by this faith, Noah built the Ark. Driven by this faith, Shem buried the head of Adam in the very place where, in a few thousand years, the One for whom they were waiting would be crucified... Then this torch of faith was almost blown out by the winds of paganism - and again it caught fire in the hand of God’s chosen one. And the time will come when this torch will reach a provincial Galilean town, where at the spring the young Virgin will hear the mysterious greeting of the Archangel Gabriel...

But before this main Annunciation there were still almost two thousand years left. The deadlines have not yet been fulfilled, but God has already chosen the land from which that very source will flow, and that person who will become the ancestor of that very Virgin...

God says to Abraham: I will make you a great nation. What people are we talking about here? Of course, about Israel, about the Jewish people, who will give the world the Mother of God and the Savior, but, no less, about NEW Israel, about Orthodox Christians , the spiritual descendants of Abraham.

And what does this promise mean: ... and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed?

This is a prophecy about Jesus Christ, who is called the son of Abraham and came from the loins of Abraham according to the flesh, and through whom all nations and all nations will receive the greatest blessing.

“...The God of all promised to bless the nations with the seed of Abraham; and this seed is the Lord Christ Himself.” (St. Theodoret of Cyrus, Commentaries on the Epistles of St. Paul).

On the road

St. Anthony the Great, the father of monasticism, tells us that Abraham, having heard the call of God, “did not doubt or hesitate.” And for thousands of ascetic monks in Byzantine times, Abraham’s feat would become an example to follow. Many of the founders of the Palestinian monasteries: the Venerable Chariton the Confessor , Theodosius the Great , Savva the Sanctified , Gerasim of Jordan and not only them, just like the Father of the Heights, will move to the Holy Land from there, from present-day Turkey. And for the venerable Sergius of Radonezh and Seraphim of Sarov, the Holy Land will be monasteries in impenetrable Russian forests, and the Fire City of the Chaldeans will be our world with its burning passions, in which the devil Nimrod rules, and from which they will flee. Therefore, they, the ascetics of the Russian Land, without having visited Palestine, will repeat Abraham’s feat.

...But can we be sure that in those last days before the long journey, the Father of the Heights was never tormented by doubts? That he never caught the cautious, confused look of his beloved Mistress? That, preparing for the journey with the slaves, packing linen clothes, pouring wheat, dried dates and raisins into baskets, stacking pottery, tying tent poles and rolling straw mats, filling goatskin waterskins with water, sealing jugs of olive oil, he suddenly did not stop and did not look for a long time somewhere at his feet...

Abraham is seventy-five. He is not yet old at all, according to the concepts of that time, and he will live exactly one hundred more years. But you can’t call him young either, even according to the standards of that time... His wife Sarah is sixty-five. She is not just beautiful, but so beautiful that this will become a great temptation: two Hamitic kings, Egyptian and Gerar, will inflame with carnal passion for Sarah. However, this dazzlingly beautiful woman cannot be called young, even for that time...

Sarah and Abraham have wealth: small cattle, donkeys, camels, slaves, which they acquired in Haran. They also have a close relative, Lot, a brother and a nephew, whom they will not want to leave and will take with them. But they don’t have what was considered the most important thing back then: they don’t have children . God promised to make a great people from them, but it’s so hard to believe and for this you have to go so far...

“Better is a bird in the hand than a pie in the sky,” says worldly wisdom. For this beautiful couple, the bird in hand was the graves of their loved ones, their homeland, the youth they left here, the comfort created by continuous labor; smells, birds, hills, trees of the Chaldean Land... They remained the CRANE IN THE SKY - a strange promise of God and His strange command: lech-lecha me-artsekha, which translated into Russian simply means: get thee out of your land...

And Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. And Abram took with him Sarah his wife, Lot his brother's son, and all the property that they had acquired, and all the people that they had in Haran; and they went out to go into the land of Canaan; and they came to the land of Canaan. (Gen.12; 4-5)

NOTES.

1. Calculations for the speed of “moving with goats” are taken from the book “Daily Life in Biblical Times” by Israeli biblical scholar Liora Ravid.

2. Precise dating of the original biblical events is an extremely difficult task. Even the Orthodox Bible, the Septuagint, in its different editions can give rise to discrepancies. For our article, we took the dates of the destruction of the Tower of Babel (2794 from the Creation of the world) and the birth of Abraham (3544) from the report of L. Bolotin “Problems of the nihilistic attitude of secular science to Biblical chronology.”

Also, the difficulties of biblical chronology are discussed in some detail in L. Bolotin’s book “Wanderings in Time.”

3. In Urfa, Turkey, tourists are still shown the “pond of Abraham,” filled with “holy and inviolable” carp. Local residents say that Abraham, thrown into a fire, saved himself by turning the fire into water and the burning logs into carp. “A huge number of fat carp, fattened by visitors throwing bread at them, is not a very pleasant sight,” Wikipedia melancholy reports on this matter.

Biblical encyclopedia. Tim Dowley

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Galilee

GALILEE (in Hebrew - Galil, I. Nav. 20, 7; 21, 32; 1 Chron. 6, 76; in the 70 and in the New Testament Γαλιλαἱα) is the northern region of Palestine, especially known from the Gospel. Since this land was inhabited by many pagan tribes, the prophet Isaiah (9:1) calls it “pagan Galilee.” Subsequently, this name began to be applied to the entire mountainous hill lying between the Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea, to which the Ezdrilon plain adjoined. In the era of the Maccabees, we already see this area separated from Samaria and Judea. Galil. constituted one of the three main parts of Palestine west of the Jordan (Luke 17:11; Acts 9:31). It contained the lands of the ancient tribes of Asher, Nephealim, Zebulun and Issachar. Overall Galil. was a continuation of Lebanon and was so connected with it, as one might say, a root with a tree. It owes partly to this dependence its fertility, which even now places it much higher than Samaria and Judea. And indeed, Lebanon, accumulating moisture brought by the western winds, saturated with sea vapors, abounds in winter snow and irrigates the roots of forests with the treasures of moisture accumulated in its depths. Thanks to this, with more abundant rains, numerous streams are formed that irrigate the country. Therefore, the temperature is mild on the banks, hot in the Jordan Valley and always fresh in the mountains. The air there is life-giving. Especially in the past: forests, meadows, cultivated lands, fields covered with rye and wheat, orchards, vegetable gardens, vineyards, springs, lakes and rivers, numerous flourishing cities gave this country a varied and captivating character. In the blessing of Jacob and Moses relating to the northern tribes (Gen. 49, 13, 14, 20, 21; Deut. 33, 18, 19, 23, 24) there is an indication of these riches. In the first century AD it was a marvelous corner of Palestine. The description left to us by Josephus (V. Jude 3, 3, 2; 10, 8) paints us a truly wonderful picture. The mildness of the climate, the beauty of nature, the inexhaustible fertility of the soil - it was all here. Especially Lake Tiberias was the pride of the country. Constantly enlivened by fishermen's boats, it was distinguished along its banks by luxurious vegetation and abounded in trees of all species. The fertility of Galilee is no less glorified by the Talmud. “The country of Nephealim, says the Babylonian Talmud, is everywhere covered with fertile fields and vineyards. Fruits in this country are considered extremely palatable." Oil was especially produced here in abundance. That is why, as the Holy Scripture says (Deut. 33:24), Asher “dipped his foot in oil.” Wine was rarer and therefore more valuable. There was no shortage of flax either. Women made clothes from linen yarn, which was extremely fine. Despite the decline, the country still retains remnants of its former beauty. Forests are already rarer, but still, in addition to shrubs and aromatic plants, there are also numerous species of the plant kingdom: olive, fig tree, oak, terebinth, hazel, palm, cedar, cypress, pine, wild fig, mulberry, orange tree and luxurious pink laurel. Among the main products, in addition to rye and wheat, can be considered: indigo, rice, sugar cane, oranges, pears, apricots, etc. The fish in Lake Tiberias is excellent. The Ezdrilon plain is an abundant granary. There is nothing more beautiful and fresher than the Jordanian springs near Tell el-Qadi and Banya. Finally, the chalky limestone that forms Galilee is bored through the volcanic rocks in the vicinity of Safed and along the shores of Lake Gennesaret; hence the warm springs, located on the western shore of the lake. Hence the earthquakes that destroyed the country several times. In 1759 and 1837, Safed was reduced to ruins. The last earthquake killed 5,000 people in this ill-fated city.

Population and cities. Josephus Flavius (V. Jude 3, 4, 2) presents us with Galilee populated to the last corners, dotted with cities with a large population, the number of which he, however, exaggerates. In his work "Life", § 45, he counts 204 villages and 15 fortified cities. This population density will be understandable if we take into account the favorable climate conditions, the richness of the soil, and the income from industry and trade. In the Canaanite era, when this northern region was divided between the four tribes of Asher, Nephealim, Zebulun and Issachar, there were already 69 important cities, which the Bible lists by name (Joshua 19: 10-39). The tribe of Nephealim had 16 fortified cities - “eremibzor” (I. Nav. 19, 35-38). In the books relating to each of these tribes the names of these ancient cities can be found. We will cite the most famous ones from the New Testament, those mentioned by Josephus and the Talmuds, to give an idea of Galil. during the most important era of its history. Life was mainly concentrated on the shores of Lake Tiberias. Now only the dilapidated walls of Tabarie have preserved the movement that in former times enlivened these delightful shores. During the time of the Savior, the following cities lay towards the north: Magdala, the city of Mary Magdalene, Capernaum, where the Savior mainly lived; Chorazin, who was cursed by Christ; Bethsaida, the birthplace of the apostles Peter, Andrew and Philip. Towards the southern end of the lake is Tarichea, one of the places fortified by I. Flavius and taken by Titus (see I. Flav., V. Jud. 2, 20, 6; 3, 10,1, 5). In the same district, at some distance from the coast, were Bethmaon (now Maun) and Arbella (Irbit), mentioned in the Talmud, due to the production of widespread fabrics there, fortified by Josephus (J. 37). In the upper Galilee one can note: Kefar-Genania, whose inhabitants were mostly sellers of black clay pots; Akabara (now Akbara), where pheasants were bred and which was strengthened by I. Flavius (V. Jud. 2, 20, 6; Zh. 37); Sefat or Safed, one of the most important cities at the present time, is located on a hill from which a wonderful view opens. Meron (Meiron, almost always mentioned in the Talmuds along with Gush Galaba) was famous for its abundance of oil. This last one is the ancient Giskala, fortified by I. Flavius and held out against the Romans the longest (V. Jud. 2, 20, 6; 4, 2, 1, 5, now called El-Jish). The ancient biblical cities of Kadesh and Cana now exist under the same names. In the lower Galilee: Gobara (Kerbet Kabra), which, according to I. Flavius (J. 25, 46), with Senphoris and Tiberias, was one of the three large cities of Galilee; ancient Jotapata, famous for its defense against Vespasian and where I. Flavius was captured (V. Jud. 3, 4, 7-36; 8), currently Kerbet; Jefat (Shefaram), where the Sanhedrin moved its meetings after leaving Usha; Sippri, a very important city, about which the Talmud and I. Flavius speak (Ant. 14, 5, 3; 17, 10, 9; V. Jud. I, 7, 5, etc.), taken by Herod the Great, burned Varus, restored by Herod Agrippa, became the most important city, commanding all of Galilee; currently has another 3,500 inhabitants and is called Sefourier; Bethlehem (Neserje) “Bethlehem near Nazareth,” as opposed to Bethlehem of Judea; Samaria (I. Flav., Life, 24), which retained a Jewish population until the end of the 2nd century, exists under the name Semunea.

The most famous cities in the New Testament are Nazareth and Cana (Kefr-Kanna). Finally, in the Ezdrilon plain and in the Jordan plain one can note Naim (Nain), adjacent to Jebel Dai or Little Hermon, Bethsan or Scythopolis (Beisan), about which one rabbi said: “If paradise is in Palestine, then Beisan is the door to him" (I. Flav., V. Jud. 3, 3, 4, i.e. Jepim, ancient Engapin).

This brief survey, embracing only the chief cities of Galilee, shows us how everywhere, wherever we cast our gaze, on the hills and plains, there were large concentrations of a numerous, rich and active population.

Roads. Galilee had important advantages over other regions not only due to the richness of the soil and the large number of inhabitants, but also due to its geographical location and communications routes that connected it with neighboring countries. While Judea remained a closed country, Galil. was wide open. It was crossed by roads that stretched along the Phoenician shores to Samaria, to Gilead, to Avran, Damascus, as well as to Egypt and Assyria. They ran not only along the plain of Esdrilon, the Jordan Valley and the wide plateaus of the lower Galilee, but also crossed the labyrinth of the upper mountains. Galil. They are indicated by well-known trade routes, several destroyed khans (inns), and traces of Roman roads. From ancient times to the present day, Damascus has had access to the sea, although they have changed over the centuries and depending on political circumstances. The ports that served this great city as a storage place were: Tripoli, Beirut, Sidon, Tire, Acre or Caifa. The last three were the most convenient and therefore preferred to the others. One road, running at the foot of Hermon, passed through Banya, crossed the Jordan at Tell el-Qadi and through Abrica went in a straight line to Tire. To reach Akka or Kaifa, the other went in a southwesterly direction near Jizr Beshat Waqub, south of Lake Merom, crossing the border of both Galils. or stretched along the shore of Lake Tiberias to descend into the Ezdrilon plain. The third, with its branches, crossed the Jordan, south of Lake Gennesaret and connected with the network of roads of the great plain, which served as a meeting place for ancient peoples. The road that ran along the much-frequented shores of Lake Tiberias crossed the tribes of Nephealim and Zebulun and was precisely the “seaside road” of which Isaiah speaks (9:1), announcing the divine light that the Messiah was to shed on these countries. Galil. It was thus cut by a mass of roads that crossed it from east to west and converged on the most important points on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan. Other roads crisscrossed it in the opposite direction, running along the coastal plain from south to north or winding along the hills in the same direction, for example. via Safat and other important points.

Story. The Israelites, having settled in Palestine, retained many conquered Canaanites in their midst (Judg. 1, 30 - 33; 4, 2). This weakness was a source of frequent difficulties for them. On the other hand, thanks to the proximity of pagan peoples, the pagan element has always remained quite strong in this area (Joshua 9:1). He became dominant when Tiglaptelassar, king of Assyria, took into captivity the inhabitants of upper Galilee and the land of Nephealim (2 Kings 15, 29; I. Flav., Ancient 9, 11, 11, 1). Upon returning from captivity, in the era of the Asmoneans, the Jews were very few in number among these nations, which as a result oppressed them. One day they sent Maccabee to ask for protection from Judas, saying that the inhabitants of Ptolemais, Tire and Sidon and all the Galilean peoples had united against them in order to destroy them. Judas entrusted their protection to his brother Simeon, who went with an army of three thousand and inflicted a series of defeats on the pagans, about three thousand of whom fell under his blows, then brought with him to Judea, to the joy of all the people, the Galilean Jews with their wives, children and everything property (1 Mac. 5, 14 - 23, 55; I. Flav., Ancient 12, 8, 2). Under Jonathan Maccabee, the power of the Asmoneans quickly grew and spread to Galil. (Ancient 13, 2, 3; 4, 9; 5, 6). Jonathan defeated the commander Dmitry in Kadesh (1 Mac. 11, 63-74; Ancient. 13, 5, 6); but he ended up falling into a trap set for him by Tryphon, although the two thousand people he sent to Galil managed to return safely to Galil. (1 Mac. 12, 47-52; Ancient. 13, 6, 2). Galil. became part of the Asmonean kingdom and, no doubt, enjoyed general prosperity during the reign of John Hyrcanus. Perhaps it was during this era that the Jews began to settle in this area. It is clear that the fertility of the soil and the conveniences for trade should have attracted masses of immigrants from the less rich hills of Judea. In 47 BC Antipater, being the ruler of Judea, entrusted control to Galil. to his 25-year-old son Herod (Ant. 14, 9, 2), who later became king. After his death, Herod Antipas became tetrarch of Galilee and Perea (Ancient 17, 8, 1), which position he held until his exile, in 39 AD, i.e. during the period coinciding with the time of the earthly life of the Savior ( Luke 3:1; 23:7). The country then fell to Herod Agrippa I, after whom it passed to the Roman procurator of Judea, with the exception of a small district given to Herod Agrippa II. It remained in this position until the final collapse of the entire people. Galilee owes mainly to the Gospel the place it occupies in world history. It was there, in the “Galilean city of Nazareth,” that the Son of God was incarnated and spent his childhood and youth. There His first sermon was heard, with which He set out on the path of his ministry (See Luke 1, 26; 2, 4, 39; 4, 14, 16; Matt. 2, 22, 23; 4 12, 13; 21, 11; Mark 1, 9, 14). “Cana of Galilee” was the site of His first miracle (John 2:1,11; 4:46); “Capernaum of Galilee” served as His place of residence when He left Nazareth, and saw numerous signs of His power and His divine teaching (Matt. 4:13; 9:1; 11:20; Luke 4:31). The “Sea of Galilee” witnessed many of the most important events of His public life, such as the calling of the apostles, the taming of the storm, the miraculous catch of fish, etc. (Matt. 4, 18; 1.5, 29; Mark. | i, 16; 7, 31) . Jesus Christ walked throughout Galilee, generously pouring out signs of his goodness throughout the cities and villages. Crowds came from the most remote villages to see and hear Him (Matt. 4:23, 25; Mark 1:14, 28, 39; 3:7; Luke 4:44; 5:17; 23:5). There it was He who was transfigured on the mountain (Matt. 17:1; Mark 9:2; Luke 9:28); and, finally, he appeared to his apostles, also Galileans, after the resurrection (Matt. 26:32; 28:7, 10, 16; Mark 14:28; 16:7). Thus, Galilee was the cradle of the Christian faith, the place of activity and preaching of the Savior during a significant period of His ministry. Is it surprising that so many pages of the Gospel reflect the physical and moral appearance of this country. Miracles, sermons, parables of the Savior, the events of His daily life, all this is a picture that resurrects before our eyes the riches and beauty of nature, as well as the morals of this country. Let us recall separately the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 - 8); the resurrection of the son of the Nain widow (Luke 7:11 - 16); multiplication of loaves (Matt. 14:13-21; Mark 6:31-44); marriage in Cana of Galilee (John 2:1-11); the calling of Levi and his feast (Luke 5:27 - 39); parables of the sower, of the mustard seed (Matthew 13), etc. Nothing escaped the sight and attention of the Lord Christ. The sky, earth, sea, grain fields, flowers, meadow grass, fish, birds all served Him as the basis for His wondrous teachings. Being the birthplace of the Savior and the Apostles, Galilee, after the destruction of Jerusalem, became the religious center of the Jews, the site of their most brilliant schools and the residence of their most famous rabbis. In some places there are beautiful remains of their synagogues. Tiberias especially became their holy city. There, oral laws and traditions were established, to which the Savior so often hinted and from which, at the beginning of the 3rd century, a vast collection was formed called the Mishnah and the “repetition” or “second law,” later supplemented by the Gemara. Together these two collections formed the Talmud of Jerusalem. There also appeared the Masorah, or critical work on the Hebrew text of the Bible, the fruit of long and conscientious research. For the character and dialect of the inhabitants of Galilee, see under the word Galilean.

Literature: Viguroux, Dictionnaire de la Bible, art. Galilee; N. Reland, Palestine. Utrecht 1714, I, 127-129, 180-184, 306-307; A.P. Stanleu, Sinai and Palestine, London 1866, 361-387; A. Neubauer, La geographie du Talmud, Paris .1868, pp. 177-240; V. Guerin, Galilee, Paris 1880, vol. I (art. 76-82, boundaries and general description) and II; Survey of western Palestine, Memoirs, London. 1881-1883, vol. I; S. Merrill, Galilee in the Time of Christ. Boston, 1881; London, 1885; Conder, Handbook to the Bible, London, 1887, art. 208; 311-314, 318; Tent Work in Palestine, London, 1889, art. 71-87; G. A. Smith, The historical Geography of the Holy Land, London, 1894, art. 414—435; F. Buhl Geographie des alten Palestina, Freiburg in Brisgau and Leipzig, 1896, Art. 72-74, 82, 107,103, 214-237. And also many articles and studies in the “Palestine Collection” and other publications of the Imperial Palestine Society.”

R.L.

Source of text: Orthodox Theological Encyclopedia. Volume 4, page 43. Petrograd publication. Supplement to the spiritual magazine “Strannik” for 1903.

Charts, tables and maps

Another very useful tool of Restorative Translation is the diagrams, tables and maps included in it.

Diagram "The Origin of Jesus Christ"

The first diagram on page 12 shows that the genealogy of Jesus Christ begins with God and continues until it reaches Jesus.

From this diagram we can see that there were two lines of Christ's genealogy. One line, the line of Mary, can be traced in the Gospel of Luke (see verses and names on the left side of the diagram), the other line, the line of Joseph, can be traced in the Gospel of Matthew (see verses and names on the right side of the diagram). In the marriage of Joseph and Mary, these two lines were united to produce Jesus Christ. You can read more about this in approx. 2 to Matt. 1:16 and other notes revealing some interesting and mysterious details in the genealogy of Christ.

Diagrammatic representation of the difference between the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God

On the spread of pages 32 and 33 is a detailed diagram depicting the difference between the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God, and also showing the three aspects of the kingdom of heaven.

Most Christians think that the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God are synonymous, and that the kingdom of heaven has always existed. However, when John the Baptist came, he told the people to repent, for the kingdom of heaven was at hand (Matthew 3:2). This means that at the time of John the Baptist the kingdom of heaven had not yet come. The Lord Jesus spoke the same words at the beginning of His ministry (Matthew 4:17). Even during the events described in Matt. 16, the kingdom of heaven had not yet come, but it was already near.

On the day of Pentecost, Peter used one of the keys of the kingdom that the Lord promised him in Matt. 16:19 to allow Jewish believers into the kingdom (Acts 2:38-42). It was from this moment that the kingdom of heaven began. It began the day the church began to be built.

The kingdom is one of the great and key truths in the Bible, and we need to see from the Scriptures that the kingdom of heaven is not the same as the kingdom of God. The diagram we are talking about shows that the kingdom of God exists from eternity past to eternity future and includes the kingdom of Israel in the Old Testament, the kingdom of heaven in the New Testament, and the millennial kingdom after the church age. In addition to this, we need to see that there are three aspects to the kingdom of heaven spoken of in Matthew.

You can read more about this diagram in the first chapter of the book “A Brief Definition of the Kingdom of Heaven.” You can order this book in printed form using this link.

Scheme "God's New Testament Economy"

In the appendix to the Restoration Version of the New Testament on page 1441 is a diagram that represents God's entire economy as revealed in the New Testament.

Witness Lee gives this outline in God's New Testament Economy and calls it the completion, the final harvest, and the distillation of his nearly 60 years of New Testament study. This diagram shows that the content of God's New Testament economy is a Person, and that Person is the wonderful Triune God—Father, Son, and Spirit—whose desire is to dispense Himself into His elect and redeemed people.

To fully understand this pattern and see a comprehensive overview of God's purpose and plan, we recommend that you read the book mentioned above, or at least the first chapter of the first chapter of this book. You can order this book in printed form using this link.

Diagram of the Seventy Weeks and the Coming of Christ with the Rapture of the Saints

Daniel 9:24A says, “Seventy weeks [weeks] are set apart for your people and for your holy city...”

Next, Daniel writes about what periods these seventy weeks (weeks) will consist of and what will happen during this time. The book of the prophet Daniel examines the destiny of Israel that God has appointed for them. This destiny is the maintenance of seventy weeks. According to the Bible, a week (week) here means seven years. Daniel also shows the reign of man from Nimrod to the Antichrist, its end and the coming of Christ. At that time all this was an inexplicable mystery, but in the New Testament this mystery is revealed, especially in the book of Revelation.

The seventy weeks chart at the end of the Restoration Version of the New Testament (before the maps) clearly presents to readers the details of what the prophet Daniel wrote about and what John wrote about in Revelation, including the seven seals, seven trumpets, seven bowls, and the end spoken of. in Matt. 24:14 and 6 (see note 2).

In one of his messages, Witness Lee, the author of this scheme, referring to teachers from among the Brethren, said: “In order to understand the prophecies in the Bible, two things must be considered: the great image in Dan. 2, which determines the course of development of the pagan world from Babylon to the ten kingdoms under the rule of the coming Antichrist, and the seventy weeks in Dan. 9. These two things are the guiding, fundamental principles for understanding and explaining prophecy” (Training for Elders, Book 5: Communication on the Modern Move of the Lord, p. 125).

Thus, the scheme of the seventy weeks in the Recovery Version helps readers understand something guiding and fundamental to the understanding and explanation of all prophecies in the Bible.

Map "Palestine in New Testament times"

The map “Palestine in New Testament Times” can become a source of interesting discoveries for you if, as you read the New Testament, you turn to it to see where the geographical objects mentioned in the New Testament texts were located: territories, cities, mountains, rivers and seas.

For example, by studying this map you can see that in New Testament times Judea and Samaria were under Roman rule. This territory was governed by a Roman procurator. During the ministry, crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, Pontius Pilate was the procurator of Judea and Samaria. And in the territories of Galilee and Perea, which were at some distance from each other and did not have common borders, there was a tetrarchy (government system) of Herod Antipas, who also ruled during the ministry, crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. This is the same Herod who imprisoned and beheaded John the Baptist (Matthew 14:1-12), who served in the territory of Perea. Herod also sought an opportunity to see Jesus (Luke 9:7-9), whose ministry took place mainly in the territory of Galilee, and wanted to kill Him (13:31). They met at the trial in Jerusalem, where the Lord did not speak to him, and Herod mocked Him, threw a magnificent robe over Him and sent Him to Pilate (23:6-12).

Map of "Paul's Travels"

On the map "Paul's Journeys" you can see the routes of the four journeys of the Apostle Paul described in Acts. Each journey uses a different type of line.

As this map shows, Paul's first three journeys began in Antioch (see Acts 13:1-3), which was the fourth largest city in the Roman Empire after Rome, Ephesus, and Alexandria. Paul's final, fourth journey began in Jerusalem and ended about two years later in Rome, where he lived for two more years, “preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things pertaining to the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness, without hindrance” (28:31).

This article is the end of an introduction to the Restoration Translation of the New Testament. If you have taken this course, we would appreciate your feedback about it. You can leave a review on this page.