Joshua 11:2

And to the kings that were on the north of the mountains, and of the plains south of Chinneroth, and in the valley, and in the borders of Dor on the west,

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(2) Chinneroth—i.e., Ginizer, the Gennesaret of the New Testament.

Dor is identified as Tantûra.

Benson Commentary

Joshua 11:2. On the north of the mountains — Rather, according to the Hebrew, On the north in the mountain. That is, either mount Lebanon, called the mountain by way of eminence, or in the mountainous country. This seems to be the general designation of all the particular places following: they were in the northern parts of Canaan, as those mentioned chap. 10 were in the southern parts. And of the plain, &c. — Hebrew, in the plain, southward from Chinneroth, on the lake of Gennesareth. Dor — A place upon the coast of the midland sea.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

11:1-9 The wonders God wrought for the Israelites were to encourage them to act vigorously themselves. Thus the war against Satan's kingdom, carried on by preaching the gospel, was at first forwarded by miracles; but being fully proved to be of God, we are now left to the Divine grace in the usual course, in the use of the sword of the Spirit. God encouraged Joshua. Fresh dangers and difficulties make it necessary to seek fresh supports from the word of God, which we have nigh unto us for use in every time of need. God proportions our trials to our strength, and our strength to our trials. Joshua's obedience in destroying the horses and chariots, shows his self-denial in compliance with God's command. The possession of things on which the carnal heart is prone to depend, is hurtful to the life of faith, and the walk with God; therefore it is better to be without worldly advantages, than to have the soul endangered by them.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

On the north of the mountains - Rather, "northward in the mountains." The reference is to the mountain district of Galilee, called Joshua 20:7 "mount Naphtali."

On the plains south of Chinneroth - literally, "in the Arabah south of Chinneroth." The words describe the northern portion of the "Arabah" (see Deuteronomy 1:1), or depressed tract, which extends along the Jordan from the lake of Gennesaret southward.

Chinneroth - Identical with the later Gennesaret (see Numbers 34:10). The lake derived its name from a town on its banks (compare Joshua 19:35).

In the valley - The northern part of the same flat district mentioned in Joshua 9:1. This "valley" is the level plain adjacent to the sea and extending from Carmel southward.

Borders of Dor - Render "highlands of Dor." Dor was a royal city, and gave its name to the district around it (compare Joshua 12:23; 1 Kings 4:11). Its importance was derived from its having an excellent and well-sheltered haven, and from the abundance among its rocks of the shellfish which furnished the famous Tyrian purple. The site of Dor is identified by travelers as the modern Tantura or Dandora - a name which is itself only a corruption of the ancient Dor. It lies near the foot of Carmel some six miles north of Caesarea.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

2. the kings that were on the north of the mountains—the Anti-libanus district.

the plains south of Chinneroth—the northern part of the Arabah, or valley of the Jordan.

the valley—the low and level country, including the plain of Sharon.

borders of Dor on the west—the highlands of Dor, reaching to the town of Dor on the Mediterranean coast, below mount Carmel.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

On the north of the mountains, Heb. on the north (which may be the general designation of all the particular places following, that they were in the northern parts of Canaan, as those mentioned Jos 10, were in the southern parts) in the mountain; either in or near the famous mountain of Lebanon, called the mountain by way of eminency; or in the mountainous country. South of Chinneroth, Heb. in the plain lying southward from Chinneroth, or the lake of Gennesaret. See Deu 3:17 Luke 5:1.

Dor; a place upon the coast of the midland sea.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And to the kings that were on the north of the mountains,.... Of Libanus and Antilibanus, with others near them; so Josephus (t) says, the kings about Lebanon being Canaanites, fought against them, i.e. the Israelites; for Lebanon lay to the north of the land:

and of the plains south of Cinneroth; or Gennesaret, of the land and lake of which we read in the New Testament, Matthew 14:34; and seems to have respect chiefly to the famous plain of Jezreel, or Esdraelon, of which See Gill on Hosea 1:5,

and in the valley; which may more especially design the valley of Jezreel, as it is called in the above place, and distinguish it from other plains; it was two miles broad, and ten long:

and in the borders of Dor, on the west; which fell to the lot of the tribe of Manasseh, Joshua 17:11; which Pliny (u) calls Dorum, and mentions it along with the promontory of Carmel; so Josephus says (w), in Phoenicia, near Mount Carmel, is a city called Dora, four days' journey distant from Judea; that is, that part of the land of Israel particularly so called; some copies read Idumea. According to Jerom (x), it was nine miles from Caesarea of Palestine, as you go to Tyre; and in his time a desert. It was a haven in the Mediterranean sea, and lies three leagues from the castle of the "pilgrims" near Mount Carmel; and, as a traveller says, is now so decayed, that there is nothing more extant than a large and high tower, which the inhabitants still call Dorteite (y).

(t) Antiqu. l. 5. c. 1. sect. 18. (u) Nat. Hist. l. 5. c 19. (w) Contr. Apion. l. 2. c. 9. (x) De loc. Heb. fol. 92. I.((y) Rauwolff's Travels, par. 3. c. 1. p. 211. Ed. Ray.

Geneva Study Bible

And to the kings that were on the north of the mountains, and of the plains south of {b} Chinneroth, and in the valley, and in the borders of Dor on the west,

(b) Which the evangelists call the lake of Gennesaret, or Tiberias.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

2. that were on the north] Or, that were “northwards in the mountains,” i.e. “the mountains of Naphtali” (Joshua 20:7), the mountainous region of Galilee.

the plains south of Cinneroth] Literally, “in the Arabah, south of Chinneroth,” i.e. the “Ghôr” of the Jordan, the northern portion of the depressed tract which extends along the Jordan from the Lake of Gennesareth southwards.

Cinneroth] or Chinnereth, or Chinneroth, was the name of a fortified town in Naphtali (Joshua 19:35), situated on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and giving its earliest name to that lake (Numbers 34:11).

and in the valley] “In the wild feeldis,” Wyclif; i.e. “the lowlands,” the level plain bordering the sea between Akko and Sidon.

in the borders of Dor] Rather, the highlands of Dor. Dor was an ancient royal city of the Canaanites (Joshua 12:23), situated on the coast of the Mediterranean, 14 miles south of the promontory of Carmel, and 7 north of Cæsarea. The district, of which it was the capital, was afterwards within the allotted territory of Asher, but was assigned to Manasseh (Joshua 17:11), but the Israelites could never obtain possession of this strong city (Joshua 17:12; Jdg 1:27), though they made the inhabitants pay tribute in the days of Solomon (1 Kings 4:11). What is here rendered “the borders of Dor,” is rendered “the coast of Dor” Joshua 12:23, and the “region of Dor” 1 Kings 4:11. The original word Napheth, thus variously translated, means an “elevated tract,” and hence a coast as being raised above the water. Dor stood on a rocky promontory, behind which lies a beautiful and fertile plain, extending southward to Sharon, and northward to Carmel. This plain is the “coast” or “region” of Dor. Dor was one of the Phœnician seats of commerce, deriving its importance from (i) its well-sheltered haven, (ii) the abundance amidst its rocks of the murex, a shell-fish yielding the famous purple dye. It was still a flourishing town in the Roman age, and afterwards became the seat of a bishop, who was, in the days of the Crusades, a suffragan in the province of Cæsarea. The modern Tantûra or Dandora is a corruption of the ancient name. It is now represented by a little fishing village, consisting of some thirty houses, while the site of the old city lies to the north of it, covered for a space of half a mile with massive ruins.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 2. - On the north of the mountains. Rather, to the northward, in the mountain district. Not necessarily the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon range, but the mountains of Galilee, which lay within the boundaries of Naphtali. The LXX. reads צדון for צְפון and therefore renders κατὰ Σιδῶνα adding τήν μεγάλην from ver. 8. The plains south of Chinneroth. Rather, the Arabah south of Chinneroth (see note on Joshua 3:16). The word Arabah is given untranslated in Joshua 18:18. This was, no doubt, the great Ghor, or depression of the Jordan, or at least the northern part of it, extending for some distance south of the town of Chinneroth (Joshua 19:35; Deuteronomy 3:17). This town gave its name to the lake or inland sea now better known to the student of Scriptures as the sea of Tiberias, or lake of Gennesareth (see Numbers 34:11). "As we enter upon the geological character of the basin which contains the sea of Galilee, we see at once that it is simply one element of the Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea, which extends due north and south for a distance of sixty hours. This is the Ghor, or Sunken Valley of the Arabah" (see note on Joshua 3:16)," extending from Hasbeya to the AElanitic gulf as a continuous cleft - the deepest one known to us" (Ritter, 2:241). He goes on to enumerate the various signs of volcanic agency in this region; the frequent earthquakes, the form of the basin of Gennesareth (though he denies it to be a crater), the hot springs, the frequent eaves, the naphtha deposits and springs, the hot water springs to be found even in the Dead Sea, the lofty crystalline masses of the Sinaitic peninsula, and the porphyritic dykes found at the southern end Of the Ghor, as well as the general conformation of the country east of Jordan. The sea of Chinneroth, or Tiberias, is stated by Conder (Handbook, pp. 212, 216) to be 682.5 feet below the level of the Mediterranean. And in the valley. The Shephelah, or lowland district (see above Joshua 9:1). The borders of Dot. Rather, the heights, or highlands (נָפות Vulg. regionibus) of Dor. This elevated position was a remarkable feature of the neighbourhood, though the various translations of the word (as "coast," Joshua 12:23; "region," 1 Kings 4:11) rather obscure the prominence given to this physical characteristic in the Scripture narrative. Rosenmuller would translate it the "promontory" of Dor, for Dot (now Tantura, Tortura, or Dandora) was upon the sea coast south of Carmel, and nine Roman miles north of Caesarea. Thus situated, its position on a hill, though the hill is not a lofty one, would strike the observer, and it accounts for the peculiar form of speech noticed above, which is so common that in the LXX. it is usually given as part of the proper name, Ναφεδδώρ (cf. Ναφαθδώρ, ch. 12:23; Νεφθαδώρ, 1 Kings 4:11). And behind it are still higher rocky ridges, to which the name also applies. Dor, with its excellent harbour, was a noted place of commerce in ancient times, especially in the murex coccineus, from which the far famed Tyrian dye was obtained. These are a species of mussel, and Seetzen mentions two varieties, the murex trunculus of Linnaeus, and the Helix ianthina. The latter is of a whitish green, but when taken out of the water it passes from red to purple, and after death to violet. Its use has been superseded by that of the cochineal insect, but the Tyrian purple was in great demand in early times. Its costliness may be inferred from the fact that in each insect a little pouch behind the head, not the size of a pea, contains the dye. See Ritter, 4:280, 281; Pliny, ' Nat. Hist.' 9, 36 (60 in some editions); and' Epist.' 50, 10, 26. The allusions to it by Horace, Virgil, Juvenal, and other classical authors are too numerous for quotation. We may take as instances Virgil, Georg. 3:17: "Illi victor ego, et Tyrio conspectus in ostro" (cf. AEn. 4:262): and Juvenal, Sat. 7:134; "Spondet enim Tyrio stlataria purpura filo." The ruins of the ancient city still crown the steeps of its site (see Vandevelde's Memoir, and Conder's Handbook. Also Keil in loc.). On the west. The LXX. renders, "And to the Amorites on the sea coast" (see last note), leaving out all mention of the Canaanites. Joshua 11:2

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

Jabin also allied himself with the kings of the north "upon the mountains," i.e., the mountains of Naphtali (Joshua 20:7), and "in the Arabah to the south of Chinnereth" (Joshua 19:35), i.e., in the Ghor to the south of the sea of Galilee, and "in the lowland," i.e., the northern portion of it, as far down as Joppa, and "upon the heights of Dor." The town of Dor, which was built by Phoenicians, who settled there on account of the abundance of the purple mussels (Steph. Byz. s. v. Δῶρος), was allotted to the Manassites in the territory of Asher (Joshua 17:11; cf. Joshua 19:26), and taken possession of by the children of Joseph (1 Chronicles 7:29). It was situated on the Mediterranean Sea, below the promontory of Carmel, nine Roman miles north of Caesarea, and is at the present time a hamlet called Tantura or Tortura, with very considerable ruins (Wilson, The Holy Land, ii. 249, and V. de Velde, Journey, i. p. 251). The old town was a little more than a mile to the north, on a small range of hills, which is covered with ruins (Ritter, Erdk. xvi. pp. 608-9; V. de Velde, Mem. p. 307), and on the north of which there are rocky ranges, with many grottos, and houses cut in the rock itself (Buckingham, Syria, i. pp. 101-2). These are "the heights of Dor," or "the high range of Dor" (Joshua 12:23; 1 Kings 4:11).