Jezreel Valley
Encyclopedia : J : JE : JEZ : Jezreel Valley
The Jezreel Valley Arabic (Sahel Zir'in) سهل زرعين or Marj Ibn Amer (the meadow of the son of Amer) مرج بن عامر (Hebrew: עמק יזרעאל; "Emek Yizrael", also known as the Plain of Esdraelon) is a large plain and inland valley in the north of Israel. It takes its name from the city of Jezreel, Arabic Zir'in زرعين, located on a low hill on the southern edge and overlooking the valley. The Jezreel Valley is south of the Lower Galilee in the North District of Israel.
The Jezreel Valley is the location of a number of important settlements both ancient and modern. The ancient city of Megiddo is located in the south and west of the valley. The largest modern settlement in the Jezreel Valley is the city of Afula,Arabic عفولة also known as the "Capital of the Valley". Afula may have been the ancient bronze age city of Ophrah according to the Old Testament. The Hebrew judge Gideon resided in Ophrah.
The Jezreel Valley was the site of many important historical battles including the first recorded battle in history. It is significant to Christian believers as the site of the future Battle of Armageddon marking the End of Days and the Second Coming.
In the 1920's the American Zion Commonwealth bought much of the land from foreign owners and founded the modern day city of Afula.
In Biblical Times
In the Bible, the Valley of Jezreel lies to the north of Jezreel between the ridges of Gilboa and Moreh, an offshoot of Esdraelon, running east to the Jordan River (Joshua 17:16; Judges 6:33; Hosea 1:5). It was the scene of the signal victory gained by the Israelites under Gideon over the Midianites, the Amalekites, and the "children of the east" (Judg. 6:3). Two centuries after this victory, the Israelites were here defeated by the Philistines. Saul and Jonathan with the flower of the army of Israel fell (1 Samuel 31:1-6).
This name later grew to refer to the entire plain of Esdraelon. Only this plain of Jezreel and the one north of Lake Huleh were then accessible to the chariots of the Canaanites (compare 2 Kings 9:21; 10:15).
External links
- [Jezreel Valley Regional Council Official website] (In Hebrew)
- [Jezreel Valley College] (In Hebrew) [(English)]
- [Emek Medical Center] (In English)
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