GALILEE A REGION OF GREAT NATURAL FERTILITY AND RICHNESS.

THE province to which our attention is now called was by no means the least favoured, nor the least important portion of the Holy Land. On account of its astonishing fruitfulness, its many resources, and its hardy population, it ranked next to Jerusalem in importance; 'it was the bulwark of Jerusalem' in more senses than one. The Gospels, in those portions of them which relate to Galilee, place it in an exceeding fertile region, whose surface was covered with 'cities and villages' which were crowded with a dense population, and full of energy and life. Most travellers in that country, and those writers who have studied its physical characteristics, represent it as being of great natural fertility and beauty, remarkably diversified by mountain and hill, valley and plain, springs, rivers, and lakes, while its climate is the 'nearest possible approach to a perpetual spring.' Josephus, Tacitus, the Babylonian Talmud (A.D. 500), Antoninus Martyr (A.D. 600), and almost any number of authorities since the time of the latter, have been unanimous in praising the natural beauties and resources of Galilee. Here is 'the most fertile soil in all Palestine.' To one its beautiful lake is 'the eye of Galilee.' The Rabbis compared the lake to 'gliding waters.' 'The shores of Tiberias formed one of the gardens of the world.' To another the Plain of Gennesareth is 'the unparalleled garden of God.' The Rabbis testify again that the shores of the lake were 'covered with cities, villages, and market-places.' Pliny speaks of the 'Lake of Genesara' as 'skirted by pleasant towns,' among which he mentions Julias, Hippos, Tarichaea, and Tiberias. The Hebrews said: ' The land of Naphtali is everywhere covered with fruitful fields and vines; and the fruits of this region are renowned for their wonderful sweetness¹.' 'If Nature could influence mind, if it could create genius, Naphtali would be the land of poets.' ' For sixteen miles about Sepphoris the region was fertile, flowing with milk and honey.' 'Galilee is a land of water-brooks, abounding in timber, fertile and beautiful.' The words of the dying lawgiver in regard to the four tribes which settled in this section lead us to expect that they were to occupy a region of great richness and beauty, or, in other words, applying to the territory what was said of the people, a land ' full with the blessing of Jehovah² All that we know of the country since confirms the impression given by Moses. Rcnan, with glowing language, speaks of this region as 'a country very green, and full of shade and pleasantness, the true country of the Canticle of Canticles and of the songs of the well-beloved.'

In addition to these testimonies the statements of Josephus are of special importance, since, as military governor of the province, he knew thoroughly its characteristics and resources. Of the country in general he says: — 'It is throughout rich in soil and pasturage, producing every variety of tree, and inviting by its productiveness even those who have the least inclination for agriculture; it is everywhere tilled, no part allowed to lie idle, and everywhere productive³.' And he speaks of the Plain of Gennesareth as 'admirable both for its natural properties and its beauty.' 'Such is the fertility of the soil that it rejects no plant, and accordingly all are here cultivated by the husbandman; for so genial is the air that it suits every variety. The walnut, which delights beyond other trees in a wintry climate, grows here luxuriantly, together with the palm-tree, which is nourished by heat; and near to these are figs and olives, to which a milder atmosphere has been assigned. One might style this an ambitious effort of Nature, doing violence to herself in bringing together plants of discordant habits, and an admirable rivalry of the seasons, each, as it were, asserting her right to the soil; for it not only possesses the extraordinary virtue of nourishing fruits of opposite climes, but also maintains a continual supply of them. Thus it produces those most royal of all, the grape and the fig, during ten months, without intermission, while the other varieties ripen the year round.' He goes on to speak of ' the genial temperature of the air,' of the plain being ' irrigated by a highly fertilising spring,' and of the fish, similar to those found in the Lake of Alexandria.

There can be no doubt that this land had been remarkably favoured by Nature. The Hebrew phrase, 'a land flowing with milk and honey,' might best express the exceeding fertility and richness of Galilee at the time of Christ. The capabilities of the soil were perhaps fully developed by skilful labour. The industrious farmers devoted their chief attention to the crops best adapted to their soil, and which at the same time found the readiest market; hence, in many cases, meadow and pasture land were turned into tillage, because the cultivation of grain and fruits was found to be more profitable than the raising of cattle. The rich fields were sometimes so parcelled out that the plough could no longer be employed, and the soil must be turned up with the spade. Yet in the open fields where the plough was used the workmen prided themselves on being able to turn and lay a furrow with skill⁴, which would never have been attempted in the stony fields of Judaea.

With such a soil, and under such thorough cultivation, it is not surprising that the country became a paradise in beauty. All the trees and fruits of Palestine flourished here to perfection. It was even asked why the fruits of Gennesareth were not found in Jerusalem at the time of the feasts, and the reply was made, 'so that no one may be tempted to come to the feasts merely for the sake of enjoying those fruits.' Here were found all the productions which made Italy rich and beautiful, with the additional advantage that here also 'the palm and the balm-tree flourished in great luxuriance; 'in the eyes of the Romans' these palm groves were beautiful and lofty.' In a word, forests in many cases covered its mountains and hills, while its uplands, gentle slopes and broader valleys, were rich in pastures, meadows, cultivated fields, vineyards, olive-groves, and fruit trees of every kind. Here in this 'garden that has no end' flourished the vine, the olive, and the fig; the oak, the hardy walnut, the terebinth, and the hot-blooded palm; the cedar, cypress, and balsam; the fir-tree, the pine, and sycamore; the bay-tree, the myrtle, the almond, the pomegranate, the citron, and the beautiful oleander. These, with still many other forest, fruit, and flowering trees, and shrubs, and aromatic plants, together with grains and fruits, to which should be added an infinite profusion of flowers, made up that wonderful variety of natural productions which adorned and enriched the region where was the home of Jesus.

The two last paragraphs have been left as they were originally written in 1873, partly for the reason that, when this work first appeared as an essay, the statements in this section were thought by some persons to be very much overdrawn; but the Rev. Dr. Zeller, who spent eighteen years as a missionary in Nazareth, and whose knowledge of the region is extensive and intimate, examined the work, and his first criticism was that the facts with regard to the natural fertility of Galilee had been underrated. It is hardly necessary to add anything, from still other sources, to this important and decisive testimony. But it should be remembered that Dr. Zeller bases his conclusion upon his acquaintance with the country in its decay.

The characteristic now referred to is one for which Galilee was always celebrated. In Solomon's time this region furnished many of the luxuries required for the table and the palace of the king. Of the twelve commissariat officers who supplied for the royal establishment enormous quantities of fine flour, meal and barley, and great numbers of fat oxen, pasture-fed oxen, sheep, harts, roebucks, fallow-deer, and fatted fowl⁵, four, and perhaps five, were stationed within the limits of the province we are now considering. Hence, not only the abundance, but the great variety of its productions may properly be inferred.

Furthermore with regard to forests, it is probable that in ancient times this was a well-wooded country. Scattered notices in the Old Testament justify this conclusion, and, for a single later testimony, to which many more examples might be added, we may refer to Josephus⁶, where he speaks of the hills about. Jotapata being stripped of timber to be used in carrying on the siege of that place. The soil of Galilee is well adapted to forest culture, and were proper care taken, the region might, in a generation or two, be enriched by a noble growth of oak and other trees.

It is hardly within the limits proposed to ourselves to speak of the condition of the country in our own time: yet we may call attention to the works of Tobler, Ritter, Arnaud, and Tristram, where will be found brief notices of some of the present productions of this region, such as wheat, barley, millet, pulse, indigo, rice, sugar-cane, oranges, the cherry, pear, and apricot, the mulberry, and still other grains, fruits, shrubs, and plants, including tobacco.

1) Neubauer (p. 180) gives references to Tal. Bab., Megilla 6a, and Berakuth 44a.

2) Deut. xxxiii. 23.

3) Wars, III. iii. 2, 3.

4) Luke ix. 62; xvi. 3.

5) I Kings iv. 22, 23.

6) Wars, III. vii. 8.