Jericho is a biblical city in Palestine

What is this city famous for?The Russian language includes the phrase "Jericho pipes." It means a loud cry foreshadowing a catastrophe. We also know that Jericho is the oldest city in Palestine, and probably on the entire planet. Archaeologists have discovered that people have lived in this place for ten thousand years incessantly! Jericho is also interesting in terms of geographic location: it is located 250 m below sea level. This is the deepest city on earth. And, of course, it costs us to open the Bible, as we soon stumble upon the mention of Jericho.

In the Old Testament it is mentioned in the books:Deuteronomy, Judges, 2 Chronicles, Joshua. But in the Gospel the biblical city in Palestine is also not overlooked. Approaching him, our Lord healed the blind from birth. Entering the city walls on the way to Jerusalem, Jesus Christ met Zacchaeus, who was not very tall, and therefore climbed onto the fig tree to see the Messiah because of the people around him. By the way, this tree is still alive, and it is shown to those who want it.

“All these are legends,” a person who does not believe will sayThe bible. What do the “City of Palm Trees” say (according to one of the versions, hence the name of the city of Yeriho) facts, that is, material evidence? Indeed, at the end of the 19th century, when the first British archaeological expedition arrived in the biblical city, it was a quiet provincial village. English scientists in 1868 dug up quite a bit. After 40 years, another expedition arrived in the village, this time consisting of Germans. This mission, which was led by archaeologist E. Sellin, immediately began to dig deep. As a result, in 1908, scientists discovered the ancient city wall.

Today, through the efforts of archaeologistsThe biblical city in Palestine revealed 23 layers of civilizations left. The first settlement to the west of the market square of modern Jericho belongs to the 8th millennium BC. er But this is not important: the settlement was not a camp of wild nomads, but a city. This is evidenced by a powerful eight-meter tower, dating from the era of pre-ceramic Neolithic. The settlement of the Bronze Age (7300 BC) struck scientists with the scale of the city fortifications. It is almost hard to believe that such powerful walls could be erected by people who did not know iron.

There are quite a few artifacts in later eras in Jericho:the necropolis of the period of chalcolith, the ruins of the winter residence of King Herod, the palace of the period of Arab culture of the 7th century. But what allows us to say that Jericho is a biblical city in Palestine? First, it is the source at the Tel-as-Sultan hill, called the key of Elisha. In the Fourth Book of Kings (2: 19-22) we read that the city was good for everyone, except that the water in it was not good. The Prophet Elisha threw salt in there, making the source drinkable. Not far from the city stands a mountain on which Jesus Christ fasted for 40 days and was tempted by the Devil.

But what does “Jericho pipes” mean?The book of Joshua tells us that the ancient Jews decided to seize this very good place in the oasis, because they promised to support Yahweh. The army surrounded the biblical city in Palestine and began to trumpet loudly and publish battle cries. As a result, powerful fortifications collapsed, and the Israelis slaughtered all the inhabitants except for one house of the collective workers and harlots Rahab. Does this mystical story have any material evidence? Indeed, the fortress wall of a huge city (17 hectares, which is unheard of in antiquity) collapsed in several places at once. But the reason for this was not a trumpet, but an earthquake.