Commentary on Joshua - Keil & Delitzsch - David Cox

Keil and Delitzsch <strong>Commentary</strong> on the Old Testament
Carmel (i.e., fruit-field), which has acquired celebrity from the history of Elijah (1
Kings 18:17ff.), is a wooded mountain ridge which stretches in a north-westerly
direction on the southern side of the Kishon, and projects as a promontory into the
sea.
Its name, "fruit-field," is well chosen; for whilst the lower part is covered with laurels
and olive trees, the upper abounds in figs and oaks, and the whole mountain is full of
the most beautiful flowers. There are also many caves about it (vid., v. Raumer , Pal.
pp. 43ff.; and Ritter , Erdk. xvi. pp. 705-6). The Shihor-libnath is not the Belus , or
glass-river, in the neighbourhood of Acre, but is to be sought for on the south of
Carmel, where Asher was bounded by Manasseh (Josh 17:10), i.e., to the south of
Dor, which the Manassites received in the territory of Asher (ch. 17:11); it is
therefore in all probability the Nahr Zerka , possibly the crocodile river of Pliny (
Reland , Pal. p. 730), which is three hours to the south of Dor, and whose name ( blue
) might answer both to shihor (black) and libnath (white).
Verse 27. From this point the boundary "turned towards the east," probably
following the river Libnath for a short distance upwards, "to Beth-dagon," which has
not yet been discovered, and must not be identified with Beit Dejan between Yafa
and Ludd (Diospolis), "and touched Zebulun and the valley of Jiphtah-el on the north
of Beth-emek, and Nehiël, and went out on the left of Cabul," i.e., on the northern side
of it. The north-west boundary went from Zebulun into the valley of Jiphtah-el , i.e.,
the upper part of the Wady Abilîn (v. 14). Here therefore the eastern boundary of
Asher, which ran northwards from Wady Zerka past the western side of Issachar and
Zebulun, touched the north-west corner of Zebulun. The two places, Beth-emek and
Nehiël (the latter possibly the same as Neah in v. 13), which were situated at the
south of the valley of Jiphtah-el, have not been discovered; they may, however, have
been upon the border of Zebulun and yet have belonged to Ashwer. Cabul , the
koo'mee Chabooloo' of Josephus (Vit. §43), in the district of Ptolemais, has been
preserved in the village of Kabul , four hours to the south-east of Acre ( Rob. Bibl.
Res. p. 88, and Van de Velde , R. i. p. 218).
http://207.44.232.113/~bible/comment/ot/k&d/josh/jos119.html (2 of 3) [13/08/2004 01:19:08 p.m.]