iv. THE RoAvDs OF THE OT.—The mention in the OT of the then existing roads is naturally of a
* Of. e.g. the illustrations in W. Max Miller, Asien wu. Huropa, Pah Wied Josephus (Ant. vill. vii. 4) records that Solomon caused the roads leading to Jerusalem to be paved with black stone, it is certain that he attributes to this monarch the work of a later age. A stone pavement is mentioned in the OT in 2 K 1617, Ezk 4017, Neh 38(?), 2 Ch 7, cf. Aristeas, 38.
{ BJ in. vi. 2. Of. vii. 8, where it is recorded how Vespasian, when he had determined to besiege Jotapata, first despatched workmen in the direction of the city to level the mountain road, which was difficult for foot-passengers to traverse and wholly impracticable for horsemen. Josephus adds that in four days they succeeded in making a wide military road.
§ On the other hand, it may be assumed that the Phoenicians understood how to build some kind of bridge, for the deep Litany gorge which is crossed by the undeniably ancient road between Zidon and the Merj ‘Ayyan cannot be passed in any other way (cf. Robinson, BRP iii. 50).
|| Whether the word 772) (kibhrah, Gn 3516 487, 2K 519) really stands for a larger measure of length, is very uncertain.
370 ROADS AND TRAVEL (IN OT)
ROADS AND TRAVEL (IN OT) ©
a
somewhat incidental character, and is influenced exclusively by regard to the scenes of the ary that is being narrated. Nevertheless, it is worth while to enumerate the most important of these roads, since we thus obtain at all events a view of the condition of things at the time. They were supplemented by the later Roman roads, which as a rule followed the old lines of communication (cf. the following article).*
1. We shall first examine the roads that con- nected Palestine with the surrounding countries.— (a) From Arabia it was possible to reach Palestine by a variety of roads. One led in a straight line from Elath, by way of Lysa (Wady Lussan), to Gaza.+ At Aboda (‘Abde) it met the road coming from Hebron by Beersheba and Elusa. The por- tion of this road lying between Lysa and Elath is probably to be identified with ‘the way to the Yam Suph’ mentioned in Nu 14% 214, Dt 1% 21. Another road ran up from Elath to the north through the ‘Arabah depression. The traveller who made choice of it in order to reach Judah, might either make his way to Hebron by the ancient Ascent of ‘Akrabbim ; or he might journey through the ‘Arabah as far as the south end of the Dead Sea and thence gain the hills and reach Hebron by way of Zuwére et-Tahta and el - Fok ; or he might pursue his way along the west side of the Dead Sea and make use of the ascent at En- gedi (see below). These roads must have been under the control of the Israelites at the time when Solomon opened the sea trade from ‘Ezion- geber. Close by the watershed a road parts from the‘Arabah route and goes down to the metropolis, Petra. This city, however, may be reached also by a direct road over the high land. From Petra a main road leads by et¢-7ajila to Kerak in Moab. This may perhaps be identified with ‘the king’s highway’ of Nu 20”. But it is extremely doubt- ful whether it is the same that is referred to in the parallel narrative, Dt 28, for here the road from
lath to Ma‘én and thence (coinciding with the great Pilgrim Road) to the east side of Moab suits much better. The Pilgrim Road itself, which leads on further by Edre‘i and Muzérib (probably the ancient Ashtaroth-karnaim) to Damascus, marks an old established and very important connexion between Syria and Arabia, and also opens up, by means of various branches running westwards, a further connexion between Arabia and Palestine. At Edre‘i it takes up a road coming from Dumah (Dumdt al-Jandal), The oasis of Tema mentioned in the OT (Job 6”, Is 21) may be reached both from Dumah and from the southern continuation of the Pilgrim Road. Along these roads travelled not only peaceful caravans, but also the Bedawin tribes upon the occasion of their forays upon the civilized districts east of the Jordan, or their plundering campaigns to the west of that river.
(6) Palestine was connected with Hgypt by two roads. One of these (‘the way of the land of the Philistines,’ Ex 13!) ran along the shore of the Mediterranean, and is probably identical with the present caravan road which leads past Kantarat el-Khazne.t By this road Sargon advanced against the Egyptians, and defeated them at Raphia ; and Necho doubtless availed himself of it when he set out to march through Palestine (2 K 23"), Ata later period Titus made his way from Egypt to Judea along this road, his halting- places being Ostrakine, Rhinocorura, Raphia,
* Of maps to be consulted on what follows, we should re- commend, in addition to the two accompanying ones and large English ones of the PHF’, the special maps of the ZDPY, vols. iii, and xix. Of. also Bartholomew-Smith’s Map of Palestine (Edin., T. & T. Clark, 1901).
t Regarding the stations of the Peutinger Table, cf. Buhl, Gesch. der Edomiter, p. 18.