mentioned in the Bible. 1. The first wall was built by David and
Solomon, and surrounded what was known as "the city of David." It
included Zion, Moriah, Ophel, and the southern portion of the Tyropoeon
Valley. The lines of this wall may still be traced and the ancient
foundations shown in various places. 2. The second wall, including Acra,
extended in a curved line from the tower Antonia, north of the Temple,
to a point not yet marked with certainty, on the northern border of
Mount Zion. The location of Calvary and the place of the Saviour's
burial depend upon the question, whether this wall ran outside or inside
of the place where now stands the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. For, as
these were "outside the gate," if the wall include the traditional
localities, they are wrongly located, and the true places must be sought
elsewhere, perhaps near the so-called Grotto of Jeremiah, north of the
city. We indicate both localities, but regard the northern as
preferable. 3. The third wall was not built until after the time of
Christ, but was begun by Herod Agrippa, and was completed not long
before the Roman siege. This section was called "the new city," and
included Mount Bezetha, and the region north and northwest of Mount
Zion. Only a small portion of the wall can be located with certainty.
VII. =History of Jerusalem.= This may be briefly noticed under seven
periods.
1. _The Patriarchal Period_ (B.C. 2000-1300). The earliest mention of
Jerusalem is that in Gen. 14:18, which, taken with Psa. 76:2, seems to
indicate the place, though the identity is questioned by some scholars.
In the time of Abraham, B.C. 1918, according to the common chronology,
Jerusalem was the seat of a kingdom under the priest Melchizedek, who
received homage and tithes, as God's representative, from the patriarch.
At that time it was a centre, not only of political power, but of a
religious worship which was recognized by Abraham as divine and
spiritual.
2. _The Jebusite Period_ (B.C. 1300-1003). The next reference to
Jerusalem (and the earliest certain account) is at the time of the
conquest, B.C. 1210. At that period it was held by the Jebusites, a
race of Canaanite origin, small in numbers, but of indomitable courage
and resolution, since they were able to hold their city for four
centuries against all the power of Israel. Their king, Adoni-zedek
(Josh. 10:1), may have been a descendant of the pious Melchi-zedek, as
the names are similar; but the ancient purity of the people's worship
had been lost in the idolatry of the surrounding races. The little city
of Jebus, as it was then called, formed a confederation with the other
clans of the south to resist Joshua's invading host. But in the decisive
battle of Beth-horon the Canaanites were routed, their five kings were
slain (among them the king of Jerusalem), and the alliance was broken
up. For the present, Jerusalem was not attacked, but its territory was
assigned to the tribe of Benjamin. (Josh. 18:28.) Soon after the death
of Joshua, however, it was besieged by the united tribes of Judah and
Simeon, as dangerous to the northern frontier of the former. From Judges
1:8, and the history of Josephus, we learn that the lower city (perhaps
on Acra) was taken and burned; but the fortress was found impregnable
"by reason of its walls and also of the nature of the place."
(Josephus.) The city was soon rebuilt (Judges 19:11), and remained in
Jebusite hands through all the age of the Judges and the reign of Saul.
3. _The Royal Period_ (B.C. 1003-587). With the accession of David a new
era began in Israel, and every part of the kingdom soon felt the strong
hand of its new master. He was not one to brook a foreign fortress in
the centre of his realm, and in the first year of his reign over united
Israel he marched against it, and demanded its surrender. Trusting to
their strong situation, the Jebusites refused, and, as an insult, placed
"the blind and the lame" on its walls in mockery of his attempt. But,
under the valiant Joab, the height was scaled, the fortress was taken,
and Jerusalem was thenceforth "the city of David." (2 Sam. 5.) David
made it his capital, brought thither the ark of the covenant, and
surrounded it with a new wall. Solomon enriched it with treasures, and
with its greatest glory, the Temple on Mount Moriah. After the division
it remained the capital of Judah, though close to the border of the Ten
Tribes. It was taken without resistance from Rehoboam, by Shishak, the
king of Egypt, and robbed of its wealth, 930 B.C. In the reign of
Jehoshaphat it was restored to something like its former prosperity; but
under his son Jehoram, B.C. 840, it was taken by a sudden attack of the
Philistines and Arabians, and again plundered. Under Athaliah it became
a shrine of abominable Baal worship, but was reformed by Jehoiada in the
earlier days of the reign of Joash. Joash, however, in his later years
allowed the people to relapse into idolatry, with the usual result; for,
about B.C. 800, the powerful Hazael, king of Syria, overran the
Shefelah, defeated the Judaites, and was only kept from entering the
city by a gift of its treasures. Amaziah, the next king, elated by a
victory, offered battle at Beth-shemesh to Joash, king of Israel, then
the most powerful state between Egypt and Assyria. He was defeated; and,
as a result, Jerusalem was entered by the Israelites, its wall was
thrown down, and it was again plundered. The city suffered during the
wicked reign of Ahaz, but was restored and divinely protected from its
Assyrian besiegers in the good reign of Hezekiah. After the death of
Josiah it was entered by the Egyptians under Necho; but its final
destruction was wrought by Nebuchadnezzar, of the Babylonian empire.
Twice he visited it with a heavy hand, setting up one king after
another; and, when his vassal Zedekiah again rebelled, he besieged it
for more than a year, with some intermissions, and at last, in B.C. 587,
made a breach in its walls and took it by storm. Then, for the first
time, the city was absolutely destroyed, and made a heap of ruins, while
its people were carried into captivity.
[Illustration: NATURAL FEATURES OF JERUSALEM.]
4. _The Period of Restoration_ (B.C. 587-70 A.D.). After lying desolate
for 50 years, the city was again occupied under Zerubbabel, by the
decree of Cyrus, B.C. 536. For nearly a century it remained unwalled and
was thinly inhabited, until its wall was rebuilt by Nehemiah, B.C. 445.
Thenceforward it grew rapidly, and soon became again the metropolis as
well as the capital of the Jewish state. Alexander the Great visited it,
B.C. 332, and gave the Jews certain privileges in his empire. The city
was taken by Ptolemy Soter, king of Egypt, B.C. 320, because the Jews
would not fight on the Sabbath. In B.C. 203 it was taken by Antiochus,
the king of Syria, and, after a revolt, again by his son, Antiochus
Epiphanes, in B.C. 170 and B.C. 168. The latter capture was followed by
a bitter persecution of the Jewish religion, in which thousands of
lives were sacrificed. But a deliverer arose, in the family of the
priest Mattathias, whose son, Judas Maccabeus, rescued the city and
restored the worship in the Temple. Under the Maccabean princes
Jerusalem was generally prosperous, though with occasional reverses. The
Romans first besieged and took the city under Pompey, B.C. 65. Herod the
Great beautified the city, erected many buildings, and rebuilt the
Temple throughout. But the most terrible of all scenes in Jerusalem's
annals, were those which took place in the revolt of the Jews against
the Roman empire, and the destruction of the city by Titus, A.D. 70. For
years it was the arena of riot, of the bloody strife of factions, and of
massacre, which scarcely ceased during the final siege. At last the city
and Temple were taken by Titus, demolished and burned, and for a second
time Jerusalem was left an utter desolation.
5. _The Roman Period_ (A.D. 70-637). For fifty years after its
destruction Jerusalem is not mentioned, and probably remained
uninhabited. But, after the attempt of the false Messiah Bar-cocheba to
rebuild the city and Temple, and restore the independence of the
Jews,--an attempt which was only quelled by calling forth all the power
of the empire,--the emperor Hadrian resolved to establish a heathen city
upon its site. He named it Ælia Capitolina, built on Moriah a temple to
Jupiter, and allowed no Jews to enter the walls, a prohibition which
remained until the empire became Christian. Constantine, the first
Christian emperor, restored the ancient name; and his mother, Helena,
made a pilgrimage to the city, A.D. 326, which now began to be regarded
as a sacred place by Christians. At this time the first Church of the
Holy Sepulchre was built, over the place where Helena discovered the
tomb of Jesus. The emperor Julian, A.D. 362, out of hatred to the
Christians, undertook to rebuild the Temple, and make it once more a
Jewish centre; but was defeated in his plans by earthquakes and the
leaping forth of subterranean fires, as is related by Ammianus
Marcellinus, himself a heathen, the friend and companion in arms of the
emperor. He states: "Horrible balls of fire, breaking out near the
foundations, with frequent and reiterated attacks, rendered the place
from time to time inaccessible to the scorched and blasted workmen; and,
the victorious element continuing in this, obstinately and resolutely
bent, as it were, to drive them to a distance, the undertaking was
abandoned." In 529 A.D. the emperor Justinian founded a church upon the
site where now is the Mosque el Aksa, and a tide of pilgrims, increasing
with each generation, began to pour upon the holy places. In 614 A.D.
the city was taken by the Persian king, Chosroes II., the churches were
destroyed, and multitudes of priests and monks were slain; but 14 years
afterward it was retaken by the emperor Heraclius, and held, though but
for a short time, by the Christians.
6. _The Mediæval Period_ (A.D. 637-1517). In 637 Palestine and Jerusalem
passed under the dominion of the Moslems, then ruled by the Caliph Omar;
but the holy places were respected, and the Christians were allowed to
retain their churches. Under the Fatimite caliphs of Cairo the
Christians were persecuted, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was
several times destroyed and rebuilt. The pilgrims from Europe brought
trade and tribute, so that the city flourished, in spite of frequent
pillagings and captures by various Arab and Turkish hordes. On July 15,
1099, it was taken by the Crusaders, after a terrible assault, and for
88 years was the seat of a Christian kingdom. Saladin reconquered it in
1187; and various changes in its government and several sieges followed,
until 1517, when it finally passed under the rule of the Turks, who have
since been its masters.
7. _The Modern Period_, from A.D. 1517 until the present, has witnessed
comparatively few changes in the city's condition. The present wall was
built by the sultan Suleiman in 1542. In 1832 it was seized by Mohammed
Ali, Pasha of Egypt, but was again restored to the sultan, through the
interference of the European powers. It is now a city of a population
variously estimated at from twenty to fifty thousand.
OUTLINE FOR TEACHING AND REVIEW.
Have two blackboards (or a large one), and use one for the outline of
the lesson, the other for the map.
I. Teach the _Names_. Salem, Jebus, Jerusalem, Ariel, Ælia Capitolina,
El Khuds.
II. _Location._ 1. Latitude. 2. Longitude. 3. Distances. 4. Elevation.
III. _Geologic Formation._
IV. _Valleys._ Draw a rough map showing the valleys, and name them,
indicating them by initial letters on the map. 1. Kedron. 2. Tyropoeon.
3. Hinnom.
V. _Mountains._ Describe each, and indicate by initial letter. 1. Zion.
2. Acra. 3. Moriah. 4. Bezetha. 5. Olives. Peaks: (1.) Scopus. (2.)
"Viri Galilæi." (3.) Ascension. (4.) Prophets. (5.) Offense. (6.) Evil
Counsel.
VI. _Walls._ Draw them on the board, describe and name. First. (David.)
Second. Third. (Agrippa.)
VII. _History._ 1. Patriarchal. (Melchizedek.) 2. Jebusite.
(Adoni-zedek.) 3. Royal. (David, Jehoshaphat, etc.) 4. Restoration.
(Zerubbabel, Alexander, Ptolemy, Antiochus, Judas Maccabeus, Pompey,
Herod, Titus.) 5. Roman. (Bar-cocheba, Hadrian, Constantine, Julian,
Justinian, Chosroes.) 6. Mediæval. (Omar, Crusaders, Saladin.) 7.
Modern. (Suleiman, Mohammed Ali, etc.)
[Illustration: PANORAMA OF JERUSALEM, FROM THE MOUNT OF OLIVES.]
Rosel Minaret A 44
El Kala'a (Citadel) A 45
Hippicus (Tower of David) A 46
Greek Monastery A 57
Russian Colony A 75-87
Hospital A 77
Church A 81-82
Talitha Kumi A 85
German Hospital for Children A 92
Watchtower on the Road to Yafa A 97
Wely Rimr Monument A 98
Mosque and Tombs of David B 23
Buildings and Gardens of the Armenian Monastery B 27-36
Armenian Seminary B 28
St. James Church of the Armenians B 35
English Protestant Church B 42
Girl's School of the English Mission B 43
Muristan B 47
Mar Hanna (Greek Church) B 47
Yafa Gate B 48
Latin Patriarchate B 56
Church of the Sepulchre B 57
Kaukab Minaret B 60
Latin Monastery of St. Salvador B 65-66
Hospice of St. John, and German School B 62
Mulawieh Minaret B 78
Russian Consulate B 81
Pilgrims' Houses B 84
Arabian Protestant Church B 91
Jebel Abu Tôr (Hill of Evil Counsel) C 7-9
Tree of Judas C 8
Road to Bethlehem C 13
Mount Zion C 19-29
Suburb of Neby Daud C 20-24
Gate of Zion C 25
Synagogues of the Ashkenasim C 28 and B 32
Hamra Minaret C 72
Damascus Gate C 79
Hill of the Grotto of Jeremiah C 95
Place where Peter Wept D 17
Dwellings for Pilgrims of the Ashkenasim D 21
Gate of Herod D 89
Mosque el Aksa E 16-22
Dung Gate E 19
Moghreb Minaret E 20
Rothschilds' Hospital E 22
Kubbet es Sakhra (Dome of the Rock) E 31-36
New Convent of the Roman Catholic Sisters of Zion E 62-63
Barracks (Castle of Antonia) F 55-56
Haram esh Sherif (Site of the Temple) G 15-39
Former Serai G 52
Valley of Hinnom (Wady er Rababi) I 1-E 14
Golden Gate I 30-31
Gate of St. Stephen (Bab Sitti Mariam) I 56
Moslem Tombs J 27 and J 70
Road to Gethsemane J 55 to N 53
Road from the Valley of Kedron to the Gate of Zion K 2 to N 4
Slope toward the Wady Sitti Mariam
(Valley of Kedron or Jehoshaphat) Foreground
DESCRIPTION OF MODERN JERUSALEM.
I. =Location.= The modern city of Jerusalem stands upon the ruins of the
ancient, but does not include much of Mount Zion, which was the most
important part in Bible history. It occupies the northern part of Zion,
the hills Acra, Moriah, and part of Bezetha, embracing within its walls
an area of about 210 acres. Its population has been variously estimated,
but is supposed to number about 22,000, of which 12,000 are Jews, 5,000
Moslems, and 5,000 Christians. The view represents it from the eastern
side, having in the foreground the Valley of the Kedron, or of
Jehoshaphat, called by Mohammedans _Wady Sitti Mariam_, "The Valley of
our Lady Mary." On the south, or left of the picture, is the Valley of
Hinnom (_Wady er Rababi_), and beyond it the Hill of Evil Counsel
(_Jebel Abu Tôr_), the traditional place where Judas made the agreement
to betray his Lord. On the northwest, outside the wall, is the extensive
Russian establishment for pilgrims of the Greek Church, containing the
consulate, houses, and a large church. Near it is a Protestant mission
church. North of the wall, on the right of the picture, is a cave called
the Grotto of Jeremiah, supposed by some to represent the place of the
crucifixion and burial of Jesus. The roads running out of the city, and
the places adjoining them, will be described in connection with the map
of the Environs of Jerusalem, page 82.
II. =Walls.= The present walls were built by the Sultan Suleiman, in
1542, on the site of a mediæval wall. Though imposing in appearance,
affording a fine view of the city, and sufficiently strong to protect it
from marauders of the desert, they would be of little avail against
modern methods of warfare. They are in most places 38 feet high, and
contain 34 towers. They form an irregular quadrangle, which may be
roughly described as 3,930 feet long on the north, 2,754 feet on the
east (the front of the engraving), 3,245 feet on the south, and 2,086
feet on the west, making the entire wall 12,015 feet, or 2.292 miles
long.
III. =Gates.= Of these there are seven, two of which are closed. 1. The
Jaffa or Yafa Gate, called by Moslems, _Bab el Khalil_, "Hebron Gate,"
is in the western wall, near the Citadel of David. Through this gate
most travelers enter the city. 2. The Damascus Gate (_Bab el Amud_,
"Gate of the Column,") is in the middle of the northern wall (right of
the picture), and leads to the northward road, over Scopus, past the
(so-called) Tombs of the Kings, to Samaria and Damascus. 3. The Gate of
Herod (_Bab es Zahireh_) is in the northern wall (right of the picture),
but is kept closed during most of the year. 4. The Gate of St. Stephen
(_Bab es Sitti Mariam_, "Gate of our Lady Mary,") is in the eastern wall
(foreground of the picture), and is supposed by some to be the place of
Stephen's martyrdom. The road leads from it past the Garden of
Gethsemane, over Mount Olivet, and through Bethany. 5. The Golden Gate,
walled up, is in the eastern wall, and is shown in the picture in front
of the Dome of the Rock. Its Moslem names are _Bab el Taubeh_, "Gate of
Repentance," and _Bab ed Dahariyeh_, "Eternal Gate." 6. The Dung Gate,
called also the Moorish Gate (_Bab ed Mugharibeh_), is a small portal in
the southern wall, leading to the village of Siloam, but usually closed.
It is shown on the left of the picture. 7. The Zion Gate (_Bab en Neby
Daud_, "Gate of the Prophet David,") is in the southern wall, opening on
Mount Zion, indicated on the picture in the background on the left.
IV. =Quarters.= These are four in number, given to the different
religions; but to them may be added the Temple Enclosure, which forms a
separate section of the city. Their boundaries cannot be traced upon the
picture, but may be seen on the map of Modern Jerusalem, page 81. Two
important streets, crossing each other nearly at right angles, divide
the city into the four unequal sections called quarters. The streets are
David Street, running eastward from the Jaffa (Yafa) Gate, and Damascus
Street, southward from the Damascus Gate; though both have different
names in some places.
1. The Mohammedan Quarter occupies the northeastern half of the city,
and is the foreground of our view. Its principal objects of interest
are, the Church of St. Mary Magdalene, the Church of St. Anne, two
convents, two mosques, a building known as Pilate's Hall, and the narrow
and crooked street known as the Via Dolorosa, "The Sorrowful Way,"
through which Christ is (traditionally) said to have carried his cross;
a street crowded with places commemorating different events in the
passion of our Lord.
2. The Temple Enclosure, called by Moslems _Haram esh Sherif_, "The
Noble Sanctuary," is in the southeastern part of the Mohammedan Quarter
(on the left foreground of the picture). It occupies the site of the
Temple, and probably a part also of the Tower of Antonia. (See map and
description of Ancient Jerusalem, page 72.) It is now a quadrangle of
1,042 feet on the north, 1,530 east (along the front wall in the
picture), 922 south, and 1,601 west, embracing about 35 acres. Its most
prominent building is the _Kubbet es Sakhra_, "The Dome of the Rock,"
often called, but incorrectly, the Mosque of Omar. This is an octagonal
building, each of its sides being 67 feet long, 170 in height, and
surmounted by a dome. Directly under the dome rises a rough native rock,
standing at present nearly 5 feet above the pavement. Some regard this
as the place where the Ark of the Covenant rested in Solomon's Temple;
but most authorities consider it the site of the Altar of Burnt
Offering, and of Araunah's threshing-floor. (2 Sam. 24:18.) In the
southeast corner of the Enclosure stands the Mosque el Aksa (left of the
picture), adjoining the southern wall.
3. The Jewish Quarter is west of the Temple Enclosure. In the picture,
beyond the trees in the Enclosure, may be seen the steep side of the
Tyropoeon Valley. The Jews' Wailing Place, adjoining the Temple
Enclosure, is hidden in the picture by the Mosque el Aksa, but may be
located upon the map. Here the wall contains large blocks of stone,
which may have belonged to the foundations of the court of the ancient
Temple; and at this place a Jewish service of lamentation is held every
week, over the destruction of the Temple and the city. Two domed
buildings may be noticed on the hill beyond the Tyropoeon Valley, the
two synagogues of the Ashkenasim Jews. This quarter, once filthy and
mean, has been greatly improved by the liberality of Sir Moses
Montefiore.
4. The Armenian Quarter is west of the Jewish, in the southwestern
corner of the city. Its most prominent building is the Citadel of David
(_el Kabaa_), an irregular, castellated edifice, containing a lofty
tower. This _may_ occupy the site of the castle built by David, where a
Jebusite fortress had stood before, but the identification is not
certain. Two other buildings in this quarter are named upon the
panoramic view, the Church of St. James, and a seminary.
5. The Christian Quarter is in the northwestern part of the city,
between the Jaffa and Damascus Gates, in the picture. Its most important
locality is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where tradition has fixed
the scenes of the crucifixion and resurrection. The church is a group of
buildings, crowned with a dome, and erected at various periods. The Holy
Sepulchre itself is a marble shrine within the cathedral, 26 feet long,
by 18 broad, and 20 feet high. If the ancient wall can be certainly
shown not to have been _outside_ of this place, then the identity of the
holy places may be deemed measurably sure, since the cross and the
sepulchre were undoubtedly near the wall, but without it. Another place
of interest is the Muristan, a ruined castle, which was the headquarters
of the Knights Hospitallers during the Crusades.
V. =Fountains and Pools.= Most of these are without the walls, and only
one is shown in the picture. The identification of the ancient pools is
not easy, and explorers are not agreed with regard to their position and
modern name. 1. The _Birket Mamilla_, supposed by many to represent the
Upper Pool of Gihon (2 Kings 18:17; Isa. 7:3), lies 2,000 feet west of
the Jaffa Gate, and is now 240 feet long by 144 wide, but anciently much
larger. 2. The _Birket es Sultan_, supposed to be the Lower Pool of
Gihon, where Solomon was crowned (1 Kings 1:38), lies just outside the
southwestern corner of the wall, in the Valley of Hinnom. It is narrow,
but 500 feet long. 3. The _Birket es Silwan_, or Pool of Siloam (John
9:7), is in the Tyropoeon Valley, near its junction with the Kedron
Valley, just outside the limit of the picture, on the left. It is 52
feet long, and 18 wide. 4. The _Birket el Hamra_ ("red pond") lies south
of the Pool of Siloam, still further outside of the picture, and is
larger, but now nearly filled up, and without water. Some think that
this is the pool dug by Hezekiah. (2 Chron. 32:30.) 5. The spring
_En-rogel_, called by Christians the Fountain of the Virgin, and by
Moslems _'Ain Umm ed Deraj_ ("the spring the mother of steps," from the
28 steps leading down to it), is the only natural fountain near the
city. It lies in the narrowest part of the Kedron Valley, opposite the
stone Zoheleth. (1 Kings 1:9.) Its action is intermittent, rising and
falling suddenly, sometimes oftener than once a day. From this fact,
some have thought it to be the Pool of Bethesda. (John 5:2-9.) 6. But
most of the explorers regard the Pool of Bethesda as identical with
the _Birket Israel_, which may be found on the picture just within the
eastern (foreground) wall, between the gate of St. Stephen and the
northern wall of the Temple Enclosure, just behind the little domed
building by the wall, to the left of St. Stephen's Gate. This is 360
feet long, by 120 feet wide, and 80 feet deep, but half filled with
rubbish. 7. The _Birket Hamman_ ("Pool of the Bath"), generally known as
the Pool of Hezekiah, is within the wall, adjoining the Muristan on the
west, and hidden by it in the picture. It is supplied with water by an
underground conduit, from the _Birket Mamilla_. 8. To this list we might
add the vast covered reservoirs under the Temple, on Mount Moriah. These
aggregated in their capacity five million gallons, and furnished an
abundant supply of water for the Temple services.