Jericho
Located about 5 miles from the north end of the Dead Sea and 10 miles west of the Jordan River, Jericho is said to be the oldest continually inhabited city in the world. Some scholars estimate that a city had already been in that spot for several thousand years by the time Joshua and his army arrived.
Joshua's so-called "battle of Jericho" is the city's special claim to fame. It was one of the great walled city's of the ancient world, and owing to its location just across the Jordan River it was the first major battle for the invading Israelites. God prescribed an unusual method for His people to attack the city, and a week later "the walls came a-tumblin' down." In the New Testament, Jericho is featured as one of Jesus' final stops on His journey toward Jerusalem for the eventful week we know as "Holy Week." The encounters with both Bartimaeus and Zacchaeus occur in Jericho. A sycamore tree in Jericho today (right) still recalls the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus. Meanwhile, the one parable of Jesus that includes specific place names (The Good Samaritan, Luke 10:30-37) mentions a journey from Jerusalem to Jericho. |