that Simon may have been called fTyXwrijs ' because of his personal character either before or after his call,' as St. Paul (Gal \^*) styles himself irepicra-oTipws ^TjXwTTjs . . . tQv . . . Trapadoffecjv. See also Cana- N^AN. E. H. TiTCHMARSH.
ZEBEDEE (Ze/SeSttios) is mentioned several times in the Gospels, but always as the father of James and John. Like his sons, he was a fisherman, and he and they were partners with Simon (Lk 5^"). He was with James and John in a boat when they Avere summoned by Jesus (Mt 4'^'), and their call as disciples left him with the hired servants (Mk r^"), and broke up the partnership with Simon. There is no record of any direct association of Zebedee with Jesus. John Herkless.
ZEBULUN. — 1. Description. — Our knowledge of the limits of Zebulun are even more indefinite than in the case of Naphtali (wh. see), and for the same reasons. It was bounded on the east by that tribe, while on the south it seems to have touched the northern edge of the plain of Esdraelon, and to have included a portion of it towards the Kishon at the foot of Carmel. On the west the slopes towards the plain of Acre, and on the north the plain of Suchnin, seem to have been the boundaries. Josephus, indeed, tells us (Ant. v. i. 22) that 'the tribe of Zebulun's lot included tlie land that lay as far as Genne«ft,ret, and that which belonged to Carmel and the sea.' The latter portion seems to have been implied in the promises of Gn 49^^ and Dt 3318, but it is excluded in Josliua's (Jos W-^*^) division of the land. The seeming contradiction may perhaps be explained by supposing that Zebulun possessed a detached portion in Haifa (N3'n), for the emphasis in the repetition of n»;N fjin and Q'd: ^in (Gn 49'3) clearly assigns that port to this tribe. This would agree also with tlie statement of the Rabbis : ' Zebulun Avas going out to the seas,' ' Zebulun Avas diligent in business (N'cDpns),' ' Zebulun Avas bringing in merchandise in ships ' (Ber. Rab. §§ 72, 99 ; Waikrn Rah. § 25 ; Yalkut Shimeoni, § 161 ; Mid. Tanh. ; PesiJcta Zutartn and Zohar on Gn 49^3), Still the main body of Zebulun touched no sea. Apart from the south - Avest portion in the plain of Esdraelon, tlie tribal lands consist of undulating hills and narroAV valleys, Avhich, hoAvever, Aviden out at places into small but extremely fertile plains, the chief of which are the plain of Toran in the east, the plain of Suchnin in the north, and el-Battauf or the plain of Asochis in the centre. Zebulun is not so wild in scenery as Naphtali, nor has it the same variety of climate, being AvhoUy situated in Lower Galilee (M. Shebiifh, ix. 2). It varies in elevation from 365 feet in the plain to 1780 feet at Tell Jefdt. It possesses no perennial stream of any size, and has no lake of any kind except that from the beginning of the rainy season el-Battauf is flooded. It remains in this condition all winter, and often contains a large quantity of Avater till June or July. This must always have been, and still is, in itself a fruitful source of malaria, as also through the springs it feeds in the direction of Gennesaret. ElseAvliere Zebulun is Avell supplied Avith springs. Tlie rock of the district is the same soft Avhite limestone Ave meet Avith in Naphtali. Of this there are great barren ridges especially to the north of the plain of Toran and Avest of el-Battauf ; but, as aa'c have observed in Naphtali, they might easily be trans- formed into orchard land. The other hills, Avliich for the most part run east and west, are covered Avith loAV prickly oak. There is nothing of the nature of forests noAv except in the Avest and south- Avesf; — beside Shefd-'Anir and el-Hdritiye, still there is abundant evidence to shoAv tliat in the 1st cent, other places, especially in the north, Avere Avell
ZEBULUN
ZEBULUN
847
wooded (BJ III. iii. 2 and vii. 8). The chief busi- ness of the population is now and must always have been agriculture. At the present time good crops are reaped in the plains and valleys and on the hill sides. Everywhere we meet with fruits of all kinds, olive trees in the valleys, and around all the villages, orchards and vineyards, with an abund- ance of figs and pomegranates. Oh the hills, flocks of sheep and goats are pastured. But, fruitful as the land now is, it was formerly more so. We are told that in the early centuries ' the land for sixteen miles around Sepphoris flowed with milk and honey' (Jerus. Biccur. i. 8), and that means the whole tribe of Zebulun. Olive oil was plentiful around Jotapata — Tell Jefat {BJ iii. vii. 28) ; Araba in the north was a great grain market ; wliile Suchnin, close by, produced the best wine, and Shikmona in the south was famous for its pomegranates, just as Kefr Kenna is renowned to-day for the size and quality of those it produces. Antoninus Martyr (6th cent. ) draws a most enchanting picture of the regions around Nazareth, and he compares the district to Paradise (Itiner. § 5). He was doubtless controlled to a great extent by sentiment, but it must be admitted that even at the present day many of the valleys, especially to the west of iNazareth, and above all that of Seffurieh, justify his description, with their profusion of flowers, fruits, and greenness so pleasing to the eye in contrast to the white rocks. 2. People and historical associations. — As in the rest of Galilee, the Jewish population here had come in during the later days of the Maccabees and the reign of Herod. During the century pre- ceding our Lord's Advent, Zebulun had passed through more stirring times than any other tribe of Israel. Its chief town, Sepphoris (Dio-Csesarea), — the traditional home of the parents of Mary, — had been repeatedly taken, and immediately after the death of Herod, when the young child Jesus was safe in Egypt, it had been twice besieged and captured, once by Judas the son of Hezekiah (BJ II. iv. 1 ; Ant. xvil. x. 5), and then by the troops of Varus assisted by a detachment of Arabs (BJ II. V. 1 ; Ant. XVli. X. 9). On the latter occasion the city was burned, and many of the inhabitants were sold into slavery. Such an event would be long impressed on the minds of the people, especially those of Nazareth, who from three miles distant would view the scene from the hill tops around their city. They would lament many a friend and brother there, and during the years to come they would be making efforts to redeem their relatives from slavery. When the boy Jesus was ten years old, the land was again to pass through the horrors of war, when Judas and his Zealots held out till overcome by Gessius Floras (Ant. xviil. i. 6 ; cf. BJ II. vii. 1 ). Thenceforward for many years there was peace, industry, and progress. The people of Zebulun are not to be thought of as poor. We learn that the inhabitants of Sepphoris had ample means. It was one of the cities rebuilt and fortified by Herod, who made it again the capital of Galilee (Ant. XVIII. ii. 1) ; and amongst its inhabitants were .senators and citizens (Jerus. Horaioth iii. 5). We read also of a city named Zebulun in this district. It is described as 7r6Xis avSpQv, and was said to have houses like those of Tyre, Sidon, and Berytus, and to possess all sorts of good things (BJ ii. xviii. 9). But whatever may have been the extent of Zebulun's trade on the sea, the people would be familiar with, and at least engage in the carrying trade on land, for the great Via Maris of ancient and modern times passes along the plains of Toran and el- Battauf westward to the sea, so that, whatever wealth the people may have become possessed of, they would at least be familiar with the sight of earth's treasures.