Rivers of the land of the Bible
Introduction
Rivers are frequently referred to in indicating
geographical boundaries of the land of the Bible. The RSV names the following
rivers: Abana, Ahava, Chebar, Euphrates, Gihon, Gozan, Hiddekel (Tigris),
Jabbok, Jordan, Kishon, Nile, Pharpar, Pishon and Ulai. The studies about these
rivers and their connection with the Land of the Bible give us the better
understanding of the Bible.
Rivers
of Eden:
Euphrates, Gihon, Tigris, Pishon are named as the rivers
of Eden in the Bible. Euphrates is the longest river of
Western Asia and one of the two major rivers in Mesopotamia. The river begins
in the mountains of Armenia. The Euphrates formed the northern boundary of the territories
promised by God to Israel (Gen 15:18 /josh 1:4). The river Gihon refers to a smaller
river in the Euphrates valley system. It was the site where Solomon was
anointed and proclaimed king (1King 1:33, 38). Tigris is a major
river flowing from the Taurus mountains
of Eastern Turkey, the Tigris and Euphrates flow roughly parallel to each other
for hundreds of miles in the “Land of the two Rivers” or Mesopotamia. Pishon
is one of the four rivers that flowed from the Garden of Eden (Gen 2:11). This
is also mentioned in Sir 24:25, where it is compared with wisdom.
Abana and Pharpar:
These are the chief rivers of Damascus. The Abana flowed through
the center of this great city with Pharpar. When Naaman the leper was asked to
bathe in the Jordan River seven times, he complained that he would rather bathe
in the Abana or the Pharpar (2 King 5:12).
Jabbok:
One of the main eastern tributaries of the Jordan River
(Duet 2:37). Near “the ford of Jabbok”, Jacob “wrestled with God” and heed his
name charged to Israel (Gen 32: 22-32).
Jordan:
The longest and most important river in Palestine. This
river is part of the Great Rift Valley that runs north to south into Africa.
The part north of the Sea of Galilee is called the Upper Jordan; the portion
south of the Sea of Galilee is the Lower Jordan. The most significant river in
the scripture, the Jordan divided the territory of Israel into Western and
Eastern Parts. David fled to the eastern side of Jordan after Absalom’s initial
success (2 Sam 17:22-24). The west side of the Jordan was the area generally
thought to have been promised to Abraham. John the Baptist carried out his
ministry in the Jordan River region (Mt3: 5-6, Mk 1:5, Lk3:3, Jn1:28). Jesus
carried out his ministry on the both side of the Jordan (Mt4:15, Mk 3:8, Jn10:40).
Nile:
The longest river in Africa and possibly the longest
river in the world. It flows north nearly 4000 miles from Lake Victoria in Tanzania
to the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile figured in the dream of Pharaoh interpreted
by Joseph (Gen 41: 1-36) and especially in the events of the Exodus (Exod 2: 7-8).
Moses was taken from the Nile (Exod 2:1) and the river was the target of the
Lord’s first two plagues on Egypt (Exod 7:15-24). The judgment on Egypt was
often described in terms of the drying up of the Nile (Ezek 29: 10).
Conclusion:
The more than 150 biblical references to rivers and
streams fall chiefly into six categories (a) Serving as a boundary or
geographic point of reference (b)A source of cleansing (c) A source of life (d) A place of Divine-
Human encounter (e) The agent of God’s
acts of provision either rescue or judgment (f) and as a symbol. As a conclusion, we can
say that the context of Bible is more spiritual than Historical.
Bibliography
- Eliade, Mircea. ed. The Eencyclopedia of Religion vol 12. New York: Macmillan Puplishing Company, 1987.
- Hahn, Scott. ed. Catholic Bible Dictionary. New York: Library of Congress Cataloging-in- Publishing Data, 2009.
- Herbert, Lockyer SR. Illustrated Dictionary of the Bible. Nashville: Library of Congress Cataloging-in- Publishing Data, 1986.
- Brown, Raymond. E., J. Fitzmyer, and R. E. Murphy. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Bangalore: Theological Publications in India, 2001.
Bro. M. Francis Amaladoss
Theology I Year
St. Joseph Seminary, Mangaore
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