The east border has some well-known landmarks — Riblah, the Sea of Chinnereth, and the Jordan to the Dead Sea (Numb, xxxiv, 10-12). The line ran down the valley of Coele-Syria and the Jordan, thus exclud- ing the whole kingdom of Damascus, with Bashan, Gilead, and Moab. It would seem, however, that the country east of the Jordan was excluded by Moses, not
PALESTINE
554
PALESTINE
because he repjardcd it as bc5'ond the proper boundaries of the land of Israel, but because it had already been apportioned by bira to the tribes of Keubeu, Gad, and Manasseh (xxxii, 1-33; xxxiii, 50-5-1).
The Israelites were never in actual possession of all this territory, though David extended his conquests beyond it, and Solomon for a time exacted tribute from its various tribes and nations. The southern seaboard, and a large section of the Shephelah, remained in the hands of the warlike Philistines. The Phoenicians held the coast-plain north of Carmcl; and the chain of Leb- anon, from Zidon northward, continued in possession of the Giblites and other mountain tribes (Judg. iii, 1-3). It is worthy of note that the sacred writer, when reck- oning up the regions still to be conquered, was guided not by the words of the Abrahamic covenant, but by the description of Moses (Josh, xiii, 2-6). The rea- son why this whole land was not given to the Israel- ites is plainh^ stated : the Lord kept some of the ab- original inhabitants in it for the purpose of chastising the criminal slothfulness and the thoughtlessness and rebellion of his people (Judg. iii, 4; see Masius and Keil, ad loc.'). Such, then, is the land described by Moses ; but the name Palestine was never given to so extensive a region.
3. The boundaries of the land allotted b>/ Moses and Joshua to the tirelre tribes are given in the following passages — those of the land east of the Jordan in Numb. xxxii and Josh, xiii, 8-32; on the west side in Josh. xv-xix. The south border was identical with that described by Moses (comp. Numb, xxxiv, 3-5 ; Josh. XV, 2-4). The icest border was also the same ; the pos- sessions of the western tribes reaching in every instance to the sea (Josh, xv, 11 ; xvi, 3, 8 ; xvii, 0, 10 ; xix, 29). The north border had Zidon as its landmark on the coast. Thence it was drawn south-east across Leba- non, probably along the line of the ancient Phoenician road by Kulaat esh-Shukif to Ijon and Dan (Josh, xix, 28 ; 1 Kings xv, 20) ; thence it passed over the south- ern shoulder of Hermon, and across the plateau of Hau- ran to the northern end of the mountains of Bashan (Numb, xxxii, 33; Deut. iii, 8-14; Josh, xii, 4-6). The only landmark on the east border is Salcah (Josh. xii, 5; xiii, 11: Deut. iii, 10). From Salcah it appears to have run south-west along the border of the Arabian Midbar to the bank of the river Arnon (Josh, xii, 1,2). Here it turned westward, and followed the course of that river to the Dead Sea, thus excluding the territory of Moab and Edom. See Tribe.
The country allotted to the tribes was thus consider- ably smaller than that described by Moses; and it was very much less than that given in covenant promise to Abraham. Even all allotted was never completely con- quered and occupied. The Philistines and Phoenicians still possessed their cities along the coast (Judg. i, 19, 31) ; some of the northern tribes held their mountain fastnesses (ver. 33), and the Geshurites and Maacha- thites continued in their rocky strongholds in Bashan (Josh, xiii, 13).
4. The land distributed in the prophetic vision of Eze- hielis conterminous on the south, west, and north with that of Moses. Its eastern boundary is different. Its landmarks are Ilazar-enan, Ilauran, Damascus, Gilead, and "the land of Israel by Jordan" (xlvii, 17, 18). The last point is indefinite, but probably it means that sec- tion east of the Jordan, in j\Ioab, which was assigned to lieuben. This land, therefore, includes, in addition to that of Moses, the whole kingdom of Damascus, and the possessions of Keuben, Gad, and half Jlanasseh.
5. Present fAmits. — The country to which the name Palestine is now usually given does not exactly corre- spond with any of these. It is smaller than them all. Its boundaries have never been laid down with geo- graphical precision, but thej- may be stated approxi- mately as follows : On the south a line drawn from the lower end of the Dead Sea to Beersheba and Gaza ; on the west, the Mediterranean ; on the north, a line drawn
from the mouth of the river Litany to Dan, and thence across the southern foot of Jcbel es-Sheik to the plain of Jedun oi)posite the northern end of the llaurau mountains; on the east, a line running from the north- eastern angle through Jerash to Kerak and the Dead Sea. The length of Palestine is thus 130 English miles. Its breadth on the south is 70 miles, and on the north about 40. Its superficial area may be esti- mated at 7150 square miles. Its southern extremity, the end of the Dead Sea, is in lat. N. 31° 5'; and its northern, at the mouth of the Litany, 33° 25'. Its most westerly point, at Gaza, is in long. E. 34° 30' ; and its most easterly, at Jerash, 36°. See Sykia.