Sea of Galilee in the Bible Encyclopedia - ISBE

(he thalassa tes Galilaias): 1. The Name: This is the name 5 times given in the New Testament (Mt 4:18; 15:29; Mk 1:16; 7:31; Jn 6:1) to the sheet of water which is elsewhere called "the sea of Tiberias" (Jn 21:1; compare 6:1); "the lake of Gennesaret" (Lk 5:1); "the sea" (Jn 6:16, etc.), and "the lake" (Lk 5:1, etc.). The Old Testament names were "sea of Chinnereth" (yam-kinnereth: Nu 34:11; Dt 3:17; Josh 13:27; 19:35), and "sea of Chinneroth" (yam-kineroth: Josh 12:3; compare 11:2; 1 Ki 15:20). In 1 Macc 11:67 the sea is called "the water of Gennesar" (the Revised Version (British and American) "Gennesareth"). It had begun to be named from the city so recently built on its western shore even in New Testament times (Jn 21:1; 6:1); and by this name, slightly modified, it is known to this day--Bachr Tabariyeh. 2. General Description: The sea lies in the deep trough of the Jordan valley, almost due East of the Bay of Acre. The surface is 680 ft. below the level of the Mediterranean. It varies in depth from 130 ft. to 148 ft., being deepest along the course of the Jordan (Barrois, PEFS, 1894, 211-20). From the point where the Jordan enters in the North to its exit in the South is about 13 miles. The greatest breadth is in the North, from el- Mejdel to the mouth of Wady Semak being rather over 7 miles. It gradually narrows toward the South, taking the shape of a gigantic pear, with a decided bulge to the West. The water of the lake is clear and sweet. The natives use it for all purposes, esteeming it light and pleasant. They refuse to drink from the Jordan, alleging that "who drinks Jordan drinks fever." Seen from the mountains the broad sheet appears a beautiful blue; so that, in the season of greenery, it is no exaggeration to describe it as a sapphire in a setting of emerald. It lights up the landscape as the eye does the human face; and it is often spoken of as "the eye of Galilee." To one descending from Mt. Tabor and approaching the edge of the great hollow, on a bright spring day, when the land has already assumed its fairest garments, the view of the sea, as it breaks upon the vision in almost its whole extent, is one never to be forgotten. The mountains on the East and on the West rise to about 2,000 ft. The heights of Naphtali, piled up in the North, seem to culminate only in the snowy summit of Great Hermon. If the waters are still, the shining splendors of the mountain may be seen mirrored in the blue depths. Round the greater part of the lake there is a broad pebbly beach, with a sprinkling of small shells. On the sands along the shore from el-Mejdel to `Ain et-Tineh these shells are so numerous as to cause a white glister in the sunlight. The main formation of the surrounding district is limestone. It is overlaid with lava; and here and there around the lake there are outcrops of basalt through the limestone. At eT- Tabgha in the North, at `Ain el Fuliyeh, South of el-Mejdel, and on the shore, about 2 miles South of modern Tiberias, there are strong hot springs. These things, together with the frequent, and sometimes terribly destructive, earthquakes, sufficiently attest the volcanic character of the region. The soil on the level parts around the sea is exceedingly fertile. See GENNESARET, LAND OF. Naturally the temperature...