![]() ![]() Archaeological remains from some of the Jordan Valley's earliest sites suggest the region was once home to elephants, lions, hippopotami, rhinoceroses, leopards, boars, ibexes and alligators (Thompson 1992a: 955-956). While it is unclear if the Jordan was ever really navigatable (Thompson 1992a: 958), the river and zor did provide an appropriate habitat for a surprisingly wide variety of wild animals in antiquity. But with springtime rains, the river can still overflows its banks, spilling out of the zor ('the jungle of the Jordan') and onto the g hor (the Jordan River Valley). Both deeper and wider in antiquity (Thompson 1992: 956), under normal conditions today the Jordan is never more than 100 ft wide (and generally only a fraction of that) and less than 10 ft deep, due to the diversion by both Israel and Jordan of water that once flowed into it. Basically rounded by flowing flood waters through the centuries, these hills, called the katar (Arabic), are barren and generally uncultivable (Thompson 1992: 955).įlowing within the zor's full 65-mile length is the Jordan River, actually twisting and turning for a total of 135 miles. Here, stretching for a few hundred yards on both sides of the zor, are uniquely shaped eroded marl hills. The boundary between the ghor and the zor is also a very distinctive feature. I agree with Thompson's (1992b: 960-961) summary that 'jungle' or 'thicket' is probably the best understanding of the writer's original meaning. Yet, knowing the geography and ecology of the region, and following the Arabic zor ('thicket'), the Jewish Publication Society translated each passage as the 'jungle of the Jordan.' The NIV translated it as 'thickets of the Jordan' (while offering a note at each reference suggesting the alternate meaning of 'flooding'). The thought of the translators seemed to have been the river's springtime flooding of its banks. From the verb g'h (Hebrew 'to rise up'), it suggests the nouns 'pride' or 'swelling.' Thus the KJV translated it: the 'swelling of the Jordan' (Jer 12:5 49:19 50:44) and 'pride of the Jordan' (Zech 11:3). The zor is probably what the Old Testament referred to as ga'on hayyarden. Maybe a mile wide in antiquity, the z or is greatly diminished today, only. This is the Jordan's river bed and it has constantly changed its course down through history. ![]() Calling it the 'jungle of the Jordan,' Glueck (1946: 63) noted that while the vegetation looks attractively green, it is composed of rank varieties of thorns and thistles growing shoulder high. This name points to the luxuriant green tropical growth through which the Jordan River twists and turns its way south. Within the ghor of the Jordan Valley is a secondary valley, another 100-200 ft deeper, called the zor (Arabic 'thicket). As part of this great fault line, the Jordan River Valley has experienced numerous earthquakes, many during the Biblical period. Continuing through the Jordan Valley, Sea of Galilee and the Hulah Valley, it finally ends in Lebanon's Beqah Valley (Thompson 1992a: 956). The Jordan River Valley, itself, is an extension of the major earthquake fault line known as the Great African Rift Valley that runs through the Red Sea's eastern finger (the Gulf of Aqaba) and Arabah to the Dead Sea. Referred to locally as the ghor (Arabic 'bottom' or 'depression'), most of the flat Jordan Valley has been cultivated throughout history. Relatively flat, the floor of the Jordan Valley stretches from 2 miles wide in the north to 11 miles wide where it empties into the Dead Sea, near Tall el-Hammam (Ibrahim 1997:248). Rising to over 3,900 ft, these mountains keep the valley's temperature mild, even during the rainy winter season (Ibrahim 1992: 958). Enclosing the valley's entire length are the western mountains of Judah and Samaria and the eastern Jordan plateau. The Jordan River Valley stretches 65 miles from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea, all below sea level. So here is some of what we know about the ecosystem surrounding Tall el-Hammam for the past 5,000 years. ![]() Since this dig will continue for a number of years, I decided a better understanding of the geology, geography and ecology of the area would help me better interpret our archaeological data. Spending a month excavating in the Jordan Valley at Tall el-Hammam last winter caused me to rethink some of what I thought I knew about the region. This article was first published in the February 2007 ABR Electronic Newsletter. Ancient Near Eastern and Biblical Chronologies.People, Places, and Things in the New Testament.People, Places, and Things in the Hebrew Bible.Inspiration, Authority, Biblical Criticism and the Documentary Hypothesis. ![]() Ancient Manuscripts, Translations, and Texts.Amazing Discoveries in Biblical Archaeology.Life & Ministry of Jesus & the Apostles. ![]()
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