Bible map of cities in ancient Israel
Map of cities in the ancient nation of Israel, during Old Testament Bible Times.
Where to find more Bible maps
The Casual English Bible® has more than 900 Bible maps, many in 3D style. You can search for maps by place name, such as "Sea of Galilee."Dedicated Bible map search engine
But you can also search for maps by Bible book, such as searching for all the maps in the book of Joshua. In addition, you can search by country, region, or era on a timeline, such as when Israel had kings or when Jesus was on earth. Here's a link to the dedicated Map Search Engine.For more Bible features
Cities of Israel
Bible map of Assyria’s provinces in Israel
Edom, Israel, Judah
Bible map of Judah and Edom
Bible map of Judah and Edom
Bible map of Judah, Edom, Paran Desert, King's Highway in the time of King Josiah, after Assyrians erased Israel from the political map.
Judah, Edom, Paran Desert, King's Highway
Israel, Judah capture land
Israel, Judah capture land
Land grab
Israel and Judah take land from Syria and Edom
Israel, Judah, and Moab are the big winners in a land grab. Each nation fought for control over their individual corners of the region.Assyria weakens Syria
Assyria attacks Syria, leaving it too weak to defend itself against an opportunist like Israel's King Jeroboam. Jeroboam II recovered territory Israel lost to Syria. He restores Israel’s border from Lebo-hamath in the north (about 50 miles/80 km northwest of Damascus), to the Dead Sea in the south. A prophet named Jonah, son of Amittai, said it would happen. Jonah came from the town of Gath-hepher.God helped make it happen
The LORD helped Jeroboam do these things because he saw how desperate the people had become. There was no one else willing to help them, free or slave. One more reason the LORD helped is because he promised not to let anyone erase them from the world. Those are the reasons he helped Jeroboam II, son of Jehoash.Edom and Judah gain land, too
Edom can't stop the young king of Judah, Amaziah, still in his early 20s and ambitious. After taking Edom, he challenges Israel to a battle. He loses, gets captured, and for punishment, Israel's soldiers knock down part of Jerusalem's city walls. Many citizens are taken as slaves.Moab's last stand
As for Moab, the combined armies of Judah and Israel can't break through the defenses of Moab's capital city, Kir-hareseth. Moab’s king saw he was losing the city. So, he took 700 swordsmen and tried to punch through Edom’s line and scatter the enemy. He failed and had to retreat.King sacrifices his son on city wall
Then he killed his oldest son, who would have succeeded him as king. He burned the body on top of the city wall as a sacrifice for everyone to see. Israel saw it, too. Angry and disgusted, they went home.Where to find more Bible maps
The Casual English Bible® has more than 900 Bible maps, many in 3D style. You can search for maps by place name, such as "Sea of Galilee."Dedicated Bible map search engine
But you can also search for maps by Bible book, such as searching for all the maps in the book of Joshua. In addition, you can search by country, region, or era on a timeline, such as when Israel had kings or when Jesus was on earth. Here's a link to the dedicated Map Search Engine.For more Bible features
Israel and Judah grab land
Elijah’s chariot of fire
Elijah's chariot of fire
Elijah's walk into the wind
Elijah didn't die, according to Bible writers. He was carried away on the wind while his colleague, Elisha, watched as "horses of fire pulling a chariot of fire charged at the men—driving between them and separating them. Then a powerful wind knocked Elijah off his feet and carried him into the sky" (2 Kings 2:11). Elisha started screaming, “Father! Father! Israel’s chariots and calvary!” (2 Kings 2:12).Experts try to explain what happened
Scholars don’t agree about how to explain what just happened. Was it a theophany—a physical expression of a spiritual or celestial event? Or was it physical and literal—horses that could toast a hotdog? Was it physical and metaphorical—lightning and a tornado or maybe an intense thunderstorm associated with a powerful dust storm? Or was it a vision of heaven’s military carrying Elijah away.Did Elijah die?
What remains of the story is the teaching that Elijah never died. Jews today set a cup of wine out for Elijah at every annual Passover meal known as a seder. Some teach that Elijah will come before the Messiah comes, as one prophet seemed to predict (Malachi 4:5). Jesus later taught that John the Baptist fulfilled that prophecy (Matthew 11:14).Elisha's request
Before the windstorm, while still on the walk, Elisha asked if he could take Elijah's role as the lead prophet: “Please, let me be the one to inherit the position you’re leaving behind" (2 Kings 2:9). And that's what happened. A group of prophets in Jericho said so: “The ministry of Elijah now rests on Elisha’s shoulders” ( 2 Kings 2:15).Elisha's ministry
The Hebrew word for “ministry” is ruah, which has many meanings: breath, wind, spiritual essence of a person, spirit being. In the context of the story, the prophets seemed to recognize that Elijah’s ministry as Israel’s leading prophet had just fallen to Elijah’s apprentice, Elisha.For more Bible features
Boss of Edom, Moab
Boss of Edom, Moab
Bosses of the Promised Land
Kings of Israel and Judah controlled their neighbor countries of Edom and Moab for part of the era of Israelite kings. Moab had apparently lived under the dominance of Israel since David conquered the nation (2 Samuel 8:12). This likely meant, in part, that they paid annual tribute to Israel’s king—essentially tax payments. This marks a turning point in the history of the northern Jewish kingdom, the beginning of the end of their empire.2 Kings 1-4, Israel's king, about to die
"1When King Ahab of Israel died, Moab decided to declare its independence from Israel. 2Israel’s King Ahaziah fell through the latticework of an upper window in Samaria. Injured, he wanted to know if he would recover. So, he sent messengers to ask Baalzebub, god of the people in the city of Ekron. 3But a messenger from the LORD told Elijah, a prophet from the town of Tishbe, to go and intercept the king’s people. Elijah was to say, “Tell me this, why are you going to Ekron to consult Baalzebub? Don’t we have a God here in Israel? 4Take this message as a reminder that we do. Tell the king the LORD says this: ‘You won’t leave your sickbed. You’ll die there.’” Elijah delivered that message."2 Kings 2:1-9, Moab declares independence
Israel declares war
1King Ahab’s son, Joram, became king of the northern Jewish nation of Israel. By that time, Jehoshaphat was into his 18th year as king of Judah. Joram reigned a dozen years.
2In God’s eyes, Joram was a poor excuse of a king. But Joram wasn’t as wretched and evil as his parents, Ahab and Jezebel. Joram tore down the Baal pillar [1] his father built. 3Still, he continued King Jeroboam’s long tradition of sinning.
Moab stops paying Israel
4King Mesha of Moab bred sheep. When King Ahab was alive and Israel was powerful, Mesha had to pay him to live in peace. Mesha gave Ahab 100,000 lambs and wool from 100,000 sheep. 5But Ahab was dead now. So, Mesha was done with that. He declared his independence by refusing to make those payments.Israel declares war
6King Joram mustered his army, pulling fighters in from all over Israel. They marched out of Samaria. 7Along the way, Joram sent a message to King Jehoshaphat in Judah: “Moab’s king has rebelled. Will you join the battle with me and fight Moab?” Jehoshaphat said, “I will. We are one. My people are your people. My horses are your horses. 8Which way should we go?” Joram said, “We’ll attack from the south, from Edom’s desert.”Moab's last city refuses to fall
Israelites defeat much of Moab's army and finally surround the last city, where Moab's king reigns. He sacrifices his son on the city wall, and Israelites give up and go home. The writer doesn't say why.
For more Bible features
Map of Israel, Judah, Moab, and Edom
Israel and Judah, one nation divided
Israel and Judah, one nation divided
CONSTANT WAR
Israel and Judah live in perpetual hostility toward one another. They are brothers in blood, united to their common and revered ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But they remain bitter rivals for as long as they exist...until one at a time, invaders from what is now Iraq, erase them from the world map. JUDAH AND SYRIA FIGHT ISRAEL War between Israel and Judah continued throughout the lives of King Asa and King Baasha of Israel. King Baasha reinforced the border town of Ramah. He wanted to shut the door on anyone trying to come or go between Israel and Judah.King ASA BUYS AN ALLY
Asa collected all the silver and gold in the Temple treasury. He told some officials to deliver it to King Ben-hadad at Damascus in Syria. Ben-hadad was the son of Tabrimmon and grandson of Hezion. Asa sent this message to Ben-hadad: “Let’s become allies. King Baasha of Israel is trying to invade and defeat me. I need your help. Please accept this gift of silver and gold. Then walk away from your treaty with Baasha, join forces with me, and help me push Baasha back where he belongs.It's a deal
Ben-hadad agreed to Asa’s deal. Then he unleashed his commanders and their armies. They attacked Israel and captured the cities of Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, and all the territory of Chinneroth and all the tribal land of Naphtali. When Baasha heard what Syria was doing, he stopped work on Ramah and retreated to the safety of his capital at Tirzah.Taking down Ramah
King Asa drafted all the men in Judah, no exceptions. He mobilized everyone to carry stones and timber that Baasha used to fortify Ramah. He used the material to fortify the town of Geba in the tribe of Benjamin, along with the town of Mizpah. (1 Kings 15:16-22)Israel, Judah: One nation divided
Solomon’s Galilee
Solomon's Galilee
SOLOMON GIVES AWAY 20 CITIES IN GALILEE
From 1 Kings 9:10- 14. Solomon spent 20 years building two houses. One house for God, the Temple. One house for himself, the palace. 11King Hiram of Tyre supplied Solomon with all the wood he needed for these building projects. Hiram sent gold along with cedar and cypress from the Lebanon forests. In return, Solomon gave him a bonus gift of 20 towns in Galilee, along Israel’s northern border with Lebanon.Hiriam's reaction: "Worthless"
12But when Hiram saw the 20 villages he got as a gift for his 20 years of trouble, he felt cheated. 13He told Solomon, “My friend, you call these cities?” Hiram decided to call them “Worthless.” And that’s what he named the region. 14But Hiram felt obligated to give Solomon a gift in return. He sent a little less than four tons of gold.Tallying the gold
Four tons of god would be about 720 gold bars today, weighing a total of 9,000 pounds or 4,000 kilograms. In ancient Hebrew measurement, it was 120 talents, at an estimated 75 pounds or 34 kilograms per talent. The weight of a talent varied by era and location. To haul that much gold today, it would take about five of the half-ton pickup trucks or seven well-built minivans or 60 Radio Flyer classic red wagons. When the writer used the word "worthless" he wrote it in Hebrew, the language of the Israelites. And in Hebrew the word is Cabul. It seems that the name stuck. There’s an Israeli city called Kabul, near the northwest border with Lebanon. The population is mostly Arab. Some scholars suggest this was one of the 20 cities Solomon gave to Hiram. Israel captured the city in 1948 in Operation Dekel, an offensive that also led to the capture of Nazareth and about 30 other Arab towns in western Galilee.Good Galilee
The fertile part of Galilee is south, at the Jezreel Valley. Solomon kept that for himself.Solomon’s 12 administrative districts
Solomon's 12 administrative districts
Solomon replaces tribal leaders
He sets up 12 districts and appoints directors
Excerpt from 1 Kings 4: 7Solomon created 12 administrative districts in Israel. [3] Each district provided a month’s worth of food for the king and the royal family. 8These are the names of Solomon's 12 supervisors of his administrative districts. They became taxing machines to fund the kingdom.Solomon's administrative districts 1-6
Ben-hur Hills of Ephraim 9Ben-deker Cities of Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth-shemesh, and Elon-beth-hanan; 10Ben-hesed Arubboth, Socoh, and all the land of Hepher 11Ben-abinadab, he married Taphath, Solomon’s daughter Naphath-dor 12Baana son of Ahilud Cities of Taanach, Megiddo, Beth-shan, by the town of Zarethan below the town of Jezreel, and from Beth-shan to Abel-meholah and the other side of Jokmeam 13Ben-geber Ramoth-gilead, villages of Jair son of Manasseh, in Gilead, and the territory Argob in Bashan, with 60 large cities protected by walls and gates locked with bronze barsSolomon's administrative districts 7-12
14Ahinadab son of Iddo Mahanaim 15Ahimaaz, he married Basemath, Solomon’s daughter Tribal territory of Naphtali 16Baana son of Hushai Asher’s tribal land and Bealoth 17Jehoshaphat son of Paruah Issachar’s tribal land 18Shimei son of Ela Benjamin’s tribal land 19Geber son of Uri, governor of the district Gilead, with Amorite territory of King Sihon, and King Og’s land of Bashan.RICH KING SOLOMON
20Judah and Israel filled the land with happy people, who could eat and drink all they wanted. 21Solomon controlled a long swath of land from the Euphrates River southward to the borders of Egypt and Philistine territory. All the people in that stretch of land paid taxes to Solomon for all his life.Solomon's groceries
22Solomon’s household needed this much food every day:- Four tons (3,600 kilograms) [4] of the highest quality flour,
- Eight tons (7,200 kilograms) of coarsely ground grains known as meal,
- 2310 grain-fattened cattle,
- 100 sheep, or goats, deer, gazelle, and poultry such as geese.