‘npnes or7dy 55), exclaimed Rachel at his birth : ‘wrestlings of God have I wrestled.’ She had pre- vailed in a great wrestling match with her sister, for the grace and blessing of God (Dillmann on Gn 305), as evidenced in the birth of sons; there- fore she called him Naphtali.
The information regarding Naphtali given in Scrip. is extremely scanty, and it is not greatly augmented by tradition. rag Pseudo-Jon. and Jerus. say that he was swift of foot, and that he was the first to tell Jacob that Joseph was alive. This may be due, however, to a certain under. standing of Gn 49%. When the family went down into Egypt he had four sons (Gn 46"). The Targg. above cited say that he was one of the five whom Joseph presented to Pharaoh (Gn 472). According to ‘The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs,’ he died in his 132nd year. Like all his brethren except Joseph, he found sepulture in the land of Egypt.
According to the figures given in Nu 1* 2”, when the people were numbered in the wilderness of Sinai, the tribe of Naphtali occupied the sixth place with 53,400 men over 20 years old, ‘able to go forth to war.’ Before entering Canaan Naphtali had fallen to the eighth place with 45,400 (Nu 268°), The position of Naphtali in the march through the desert was with Dan and Asher, on the north side of the tent of meeting (Nu 2”). These three together formed the ‘ camp of Dan,’ numbering in al! 157,600 fighting men
See Dor.
£86 NAPHTALI
When the host moved forward, they acted as rear- guard, setting forth ‘hindmost by their standards’ (Na 2531).
With the probable exception of Barak, Naphtali added no distinguished name to Israel’s historic roll. The prince and representative of the tribe in the wilderness of Sinai was Ahira’ ben Enan (Nu 1° 25). He having perished in the desert, the prince chosen to represent Naphtali in the division of the land was Pedahel ben ‘Ammihud (Nu 34%). The Naphtalite Nahbi ben Vophsi went with the spies from the wilderness of Paran (Nu 13). At the close of David’s reign, Jeremoth ben ‘Azriel was over the tribe (1 Ch 27). The mother of Hiram, the cunning artificer in brass, whom Solomon brought from Tyre, is claimed for Naphtali in 1 K 74, but in2Ch 2 is given to Dan. That Barak belonged to Naphtali has been questioned on the
ound that Jg 5° seems to associate him with
ssachar; but, owing to the confusion of the text
(Moore, Judges, in loc.), this point is extremely doubtful, and it is natural to infer, from his resi- dence in Kedesh (Jg 4°) and his influence with the mountain tribes (Jg 4"), that he was connected with Naphtali.
Naphtali was the last but one to receive his
ortion in the land of promise (Jos 19°*), This involved no disadvantage ; the district that fell to him included some of the finest land in Palestine, rich and beautifully diversified. On the east it was bounded by the Sea of Galilee and the Upper Jor- dan. Josephus (Ant. ν. i. 20) says it Packie! east- ward to Damascus. This is improbable, and lacks corroboration. The northern border coincided with that of Israel’s possession ; while west, south-west, and south, Naphtali marched with Asher, Zebulun, and Issachar. These marches cannot be traced with certainty ; but recent identifications of ancient sites, due chiefly to Col. Conder, make possible
an approximation (see names of cities in Naphtali). Beginning at the confluence of Wady el-Bireh with the Jordan, the line might run westward, following the northern side of the valley, including Adami (ed-Damieh, about 10 miles north of Beisén), to Tabor, the lower slopes of which are Panes
indicated by Aznoth-Tabor, ‘the ears of Tabor.’ It would then run northward by way of Ziddim (Hattin) and Hukkok (Yakik) to Hannathon (Kefr Andn); thence turning westward, taking in the lands of Ramah (er-Rdmeh), until it touched the border of Asher, whence, running northward to almost opposite Tyre, it turned eastward, and again northward, dividing with Asher the districts now known as Beldd Beshdrah and Beldd esh-shukif, the larger portion of which fell to Naphtali. These boundaries include the land lying around the springs of Jordan. This, however, soon passed to Dan (Jos 1957) by means of the raid described in Jg 18, which Naphtali does not seem to have either resisted or resented, possibly because of the close kinship of the tribes. Laish, held by its Pheenician inhabit- ants until attacked by Dan, and Hazor, which is subsequently found in the hands of Jabin, must be added to Beth-shemesh (not yet identified) and Beth-Anath (‘Ainitha, 6 miles ΝΥΝ, of Kedes), as cities out of which Naphtali did not drive the Canaanites. Kedesh in Galilee (Jos 207; see KEDESH - NAPHTALI) was set apart as a city of refuge, and this city, along with Hammoth-dor and Kartan, with their suburbs, was given to the Levite family of Gershon (Jos 21%, 1 Ch 67),
The lofty region to the north-west of the Sea of Galilee formed by far the larger part of the territory of Naphtali. It is in every sense a pleasant land— a country of healthful air and noble scenery. It is
lentifully watered, and, compared with the rest of ,
alestine, well wooded. Olive and lemon trees are specially abundant, while the fig, the mulberry,