Galilee, Samaria and Judea

There are two Galilees, called Upper and Lower Galilee, and Phoenicia and Syria surround them. On the west they are bounded by the edge of the territory of Ptolemais and by Carmel, a mountain that once belonged to the Galileans and now belongs to the Tyrians. Next to Carmel lies Gaba, called the City of Horsemen because the horsemen discharged by King Herod settled there. On the south the Galilees are bounded by Samaria and Scythopolis, as far as the streams of the Jordan. On the east they are cut off by the district of Hippos, by Gadara and by Gaulanitis, where the borders of Agrippa’s kingdom also run. Their northern parts end at Tyre and the Tyrian country. Lower Galilee stretches in length from Tiberias to Chabulon, whose neighbor on the coast is Ptolemais. In breadth it runs from a village called Exaloth, which lies in the Great Plain, to Bersabe. From Bersabe too the breadth of Upper Galilee begins, and it runs as far as the village of Baca, which marks the border of the Tyrians’ land. In length Upper Galilee runs from Thella, a village near the Jordan, to Meroth. [a]

Large as they are, and ringed by so many foreign nations, the two Galilees have always held out against every attack of war. For the Galileans are trained for war from infancy and have always been numerous. Cowardice has never gripped the men, nor has the land ever been short of men. The whole country is rich and good grazing land, and planted with every kind of tree, so that its easy yield invites even the man least fond of working the soil. So the inhabitants have cultivated all of it, and no part lies idle. The cities, too, lie close together, and the many villages everywhere are so crowded with people, thanks to the land’s abundance, that the smallest of them has more than fifteen thousand inhabitants.

In short, though one might rank Galilee below Perea in size, one would prefer it for its strength. Galilee is all under cultivation and fruitful from end to end, while Perea, though much larger, is for the most part desert and rough, and too wild to grow cultivated fruits. Yet it has its soft, fruitful parts too, and its plains are planted with trees of every kind, above all the olive, the vine and the palm. It is well watered by torrents coming down from the mountains, and by springs that never fail even when the torrents dry up in the heat of the Dog Star. Perea’s length is from Machaerus to Pella, and its breadth from Philadelphia to the Jordan. On the north it is bounded by Pella, which we have just mentioned, and on the west by the Jordan. Its southern limit is the land of Moab, and on the east it is cut off by Arabia and Silonitis, and also by the territory of Philadelphia and by Gerasa. [c]

The country of Samaria lies between Galilee and Judea. It begins at a village called Ginea, which lies in the Great Plain, and ends at the toparchy of Acrabbene. In nature it differs from Judea not at all. Both countries are made up of hills and plains. Their soil is soft for farming and very fruitful, and they are well wooded and full of fruit, both wild and cultivated. Neither is naturally parched anywhere, but for the most part they are watered by rain. All their streams are remarkably sweet, and because of the abundance of good grass their cattle give more milk than those elsewhere. But the greatest proof of their excellence and plenty is that both teem with people. [d]

On their border lies the village called Anuath Borceos. This is the northern limit of Judea. Its southern parts, measured lengthwise, are bounded by a village on the borders of the Arabs, which the Jews there call Jordan. In breadth Judea stretches from the river Jordan to Joppa. The city of Jerusalem lies at its very center, and for this reason some have called the city, not without good sense, the navel of the country. Nor is Judea cut off from the delights of the sea, for its coastal lands reach as far as Ptolemais. It is divided into eleven districts. Jerusalem rules over them as the royal city, standing above the whole surrounding country like the head above the body. The other cities after it head the toparchies into which the land is divided. Gophna is second, and after it Acrabetta; then Thamna and Lydda, Emmaus and Pella, Idumea and En-gedi, Herodium and Jericho. After these come Jamnia and Joppa, which lead the peoples around them. Besides these there are the district of Gamala and Gaulanitis, Batanea and Trachonitis, which also form part of Agrippa’s kingdom. This last country begins at Mount Lebanon and the springs of the Jordan, and in breadth it reaches to the lake of Tiberias; in length it stretches from a village called Arpha as far as Julias. Its inhabitants are a mixture of Jews and Syrians. So, as briefly as I could, I have described the country of the Jews and the lands around it. [e]