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THE "SHEPHELAH"
1. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
The region of Israel referred to as the Shephelah (Lowlands) pertains to the transitional area that separates the Coastal Plains to the west on the Mediterranean Sea and the Hill Country of Judah to the east. This region is relatively narrow, about 8 miles in width (east-west) and about 35 miles in length (south to north). This area is commonly called the foothills of the Judean mountains.
This primarily Eocene limestone region was a highly-valued part of the Judean Kingdom, for it served as a fortification line against the formidable enemies of the 12th-10th centuries B.C., the Sea Peoples, commonly called the Philistines of the Bible. The Philistines (see a summary below) primarily inhabited the lower plains of the coastal regions, while frequently attempting to control the ridge route in the Judean hills up through the area surrounding Jerusalem. The 5 Philistine cities to the west of the Shephelah were Gaza, Ashdod, Askelon, Ekron, and Gath (where Goliath was from).
The Shephelah region extends through 5 main valleys: Lachish Valley, Guvrin Valley, Elah Valley, Sorek Valley, and the Aijalon Valley. Each valley boasts of rich alluvial soil, and is connected to the next. The natural connection between valleys was vitally important, for this allowed excellent communication between the cites in each valley. Also, the eye contact allowed by the rolling terrain between each town and village added to the military strategy in keeping the area secure from enemy attack.
The Biblical references to the Shephelah are as follows:
1. I Chron. 9:27, 22:28 Reference to the olive and sycamore/fig trees abundant here.
2. I Chron. 26:10 Uzziah built towers in the desert, digger many wells for his cattle, both in the Shephelah and in the plains.
3. II Chron. 28:18 Ahaz felt the pressure of the Philistines who invaded the cities in the Shephelah.
The following are the 5 valleys of the Shephelah and their towns and cities that played an important role in Biblical history:
1. Towns and Cities in the Lachish Valley
Lachish (see individual page)
Eglon Joshua 10:3-37
2. Towns and Cities in the Guvrin Valley:
Mareshah II Chron. 11:8, 14:9
Libnah Joshua 10:29-31, II Kings 8:22, 19:8
3. Towns and Cities in the Elah Valley:
Gath I Samuel 5:8; 7:14; 17:4,23; 21:10, II Samuel 21:10; II Chron. 11:8
Azekah Joshua 10:10,11; I Samuel 17:1f (David vs. Goliath); II Chron. 11:9; Jer. 34:7
Socoh I Samuel 17:1 (David vs. Golaith)
Adullum Joshua 12:15, I Samuel 22:1-23:13 (David fleeing from Saul)
Keilah I Samuel 23:1-14
Jarmuth Joshua 10:3,5
4. Towns and Cities in the Sorek Valley
Ekron Joshua 13:3, I Samuel 5:10 (the Ark dwells here for a while), I Samuel 17:52 (Philistines
are chased this far after David defeats Goliath), II Kings 1:2,3
Timnah Judges 14:1-5 (Samson/Delilah)
Bethshemesh Judges 1:33, I samuel 6:9-19 (The Ark is sent here on a cart from Ekron), II
Kings 14:11-13
Zorah, Eshtaol Judges 16:31 (Samson is buried betwen these two cities), 18:2-13, II Chron.
11:10
5. Towns and Cities in the Aijalon Valley
Gibbethon I Kings 15:27, 16:15-17
Gezer Joshua 10:33, 16:10, Judges 1:29, I Kings 9:15-17 (Solomon fortifes this city. Later,
Shishak for Egypt would invade and take the city), I Chron. 20:4
Emmaus (One of three possible locations). Luke 24:13
Aijalon I Sameul 14:31 (Philistienes are chased to this city from Michmash after Jonathan’s
victory), II Chron. 11:10
A Brief Summary of the “Philistines”
Who were the Philistines? The Bible is understandably hostile to these People of the Sea, describing them as a pleasure-loving, warlike society of pagans, ruled by tyrants who threatened ancient Israel’s existence. For the most part, they have been viewed as the unscrupulous enemy, for it was the Philistines who deployed Delilah and her deceitful charm to rob Samson. In a latter period, it was the Philistines who slew King Saul and his sons in battle at Mt. Gilboa, then cruelly hung the king’s headless body from the walls of Beth Shean. And now for 3,000 years, the rousing story of David’s victory over the awesome giant named Goliath has been told and retold, creating an indelibly negative image of the Philistines. But were they all about war and hostility? Who were these Philistines?
As we clear away the centuries of archaeological debris, we also clear away the misconceptions that have accumulated about these Philistines. It was in 1821 when new light on the Philistines came about, for it was Jean Francois Champollion who deciphered the first ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics and a new intriguing new resource for the study of these ancient people. As the war reliefs of Ramsesses III were finally able to be read at Medinet Habu, these reliefs told stories, in words and pictures, about the arrival and subsequent defeat of the Sea Peoples.
Among these invaders were the “prst,” the Philistines, whom Ramesses III defeated in the 8th year of his reign, 1190 B.C. Specifically, the reliefs reveal how the Sea Peoples looked and how they fought. These Philistine warriors had great sailing vessels with bird heads at either end (in comparison to the Egyptian boats which had lion-headed prows and undecorated sterns), round shields (Egyptians had rectangular shields), ornamented feathered headdresses on each soldier, and long spears and daggers. About the battle itself, Ramsesses wrote, “Those (ie. The Philistines) who entered the river mouths were like birds ensnared in the net.” Later, Ramesses (1198-116 B.C.) would eventually allow the Sea Peoples, including the Philistines, to settle on the southern coastal plain of Palestine, the location where the Bible places them....Israel’s formidable enemy along the coastal plains of the Mediterranean Sea!
Historically, the Sea Peoples, including the Philistines, first appeared in the eastern Mediterranean in the second half of the 13th century B.C. At that time, the Egyptians to the south and the Hittites to the north were in power. These two kingdoms were weak, however, both politically and militarily. In wave after wave of land and sea assaults the Sea Peoples attacked Syria, Palestine, and even Egypt itself. In the last and mightiest wave, the Sea Peoples, including the Philistines, stormed south from Canaan in a land and sea assault on the Egyptian Delta.
As the Philistines settled along the Mediterranean Sea in Canaan, they developed into an independent political force and a threat both to the disunited Canaanite city-states and to the already settled Israelites who have now been in Canaan for over two centuries. With their presence in this region, the Philistines influences Israel with certain cultural and military distinctives. At such sights as Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath, Gezer, Ashdod, Ekron, and even north at Megiddo and Beth Shean, archaeology reveals that these people were quite refined in their culture, pottery (Mycenea ware), and burial customs (anthropoid coffins), similar to those of the Egyptians themselves. Today, over 50 archaeological sites reveal remains that depict Philistine presence or influence in one form or another.
The Biblical references to the Philistines origins are few and sometimes unclear. The earliest appears in the Table of Nations (Genesis 10:14). The probable meaning of this verse, insofar as it relates to the Philistines, is “and the Caphtorim, out of whom came the Philistines.” This seems to indicate that the Caphtorim first settled in Egypt long before they settled in Canaan.
In other Biblical references, the Philistines seem to be synonymous with the Cherethites, that is Cretans (Zephaniah 2:5, Ezekiel 25:16) Thus, this would link their original home to the island of Crete. Also, and with perplexing issue, the Philistines are even mentioned in relationship to the Patriarchs in the story about Abraham, who “lived in the land of the Philistines” at Beersheba (Genesis 21:22-34). Was King Abimelech a Philistine? Or simply perhaps is this reference to “Philistines” an anachronism, that is, an identification inserted by a later writer or editor despite the fact the events themselves occurred in a period hundreds of years before the arrival of the Philistines themselves?
Most commonly, the historical references to the Philistines we read about in Scripture begin with the period of the Judges. Most known is the Samson episode (Judges 13-16) which must be understood against the background of the territorial conflict between the Philistines and the Israelite tribes of Dan and Judah. The distance between the tribe of Dan and Judah with that of Timnah (where Delilah was from) is only a matter of a few miles.
Open warfare between the Philistines and Judah began with the battle of Eben-ezer (I Samuel 4). Here, the Israelites were thoroughly routed, and the Ark of the Covenant was captured. Later, after experiencing illnesses, death, and destruction to their Philistine god Dagon and its temple, the ark is returned up through the Sorek Valley to Beth Shemesh on a cart pulled by oxen. Incidentally, temples of Dagon have been found at Gaza, Ashdod, and at Beth Shean. The other gods/goddesses of the Philistines included Baal-zebub who had is oracular temple at Ekron, and Ashtoreth where a temple is listed in I Samuel 31:8-13 located at Beth Shean.
However, the Philistines followed up their victory by advancing all the way to Shiloh (apparently destroyed. See Jeremiah 7:12-14, Psalm 78:60), and then northward on the Via Maris to capture Megiddo and Beth Shean.
This gave them control of most of the territory west of the Jordan River. This Philistine dominance lasted several generations, until the time of Saul (Jonathan assaulted the Philistines at Michmas. See I Samuel 13-14) and more notably David. Under David’s military leadership, the tide for control had now turn
The best known story comes from I Samuel 17, where David defeat Goliath in the Elah Valley.
The Bible lists Goliath’s armor specifically in I Samuel 17:5-7. The Israelites then pursued the defeated Philistines all the way back to their home towns of Gath and Ekron (two of the 5 Philistine centers. Gaza, Ashdod, and Askelon were the other three). However, after Saul’s own personal pursuit of David (I Samuel 18-26), David ironically sought refuge among the Philistines and enters the service of the Philistine king of Gath, Achish. As the Philistine troops gathered at Aphek, David is sent back to Ziglag, while the Philistines battle Saul on Mt. Gilboa. Later, as David is anointed as king, he establishes his rule over the Philistines for good. I Chronicles 18:1 summarize David’s accomplishments, “In the course of time, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and he took Gath and its surrounding villages from the control of the Philistines.
In the following history of the Divided Kingdom, Biblical references can be seen as to the continual tension that still existed between the Israelites and the Philistines. According to these texts, the Philistines brought silver as tribute to Jehoshaphat (871-849 B.C., II Chron.17:11); the Philistines angered King Jehoram and came to attack Judah (849-841 B.C., II Chron. 21:16,17); Uzziah King of Judah went out and made war against the Philistines (780-741 B.C., II Chron. 26:6); Hezekiah smote the Philistines as far as Gaza (715-687 B.C., II Kings 18:8); and the Philistines made raids on the Shephelah and the Negev of Judah (II Chron. 28:18). The prophets (Amos 1:6-8, Isaiah 9:12) make additional reference to the Philistines as well. Thus, apparently the Philistines posed a continued threat to Judah throughout the Divided Kingdom.
Culturally, based on discoveries of large numbers of ancient texts, we know the Philistines could write. However, they apparently wrote in Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian, Egyptian, Ugaritic, Hittite, Hebrew, Moabite, Aramaic, and Greek, but not Philistine. The absence of Philistine inscriptions is especially anomalous because we know so much about the Philistines in other areas of life. However to prove this theory wrong, a script was found at the Philistine city of Ashdod, dating to 1,200-1150 B.C, that is unknown. It may very well be a script related to the inscription found in Transjordan at Deir Alla, and might represent an Aegean-based language, the location where the Philistines originally came from.
Finally, the pottery and cultic vessels that has been found at Philistine cities is some of the most impressive pottery to be found in Israel. Typically, the pottery demonstrates their high artistic and aesthetic abilities. The furnishings found at houses are illuminating clues to the daily life of the Philistines at a time when they were not only prosperous but when they had already assimilated local Canaanite culture. The pottery found is still colorful and artistically made. The Cypriot influence in Philistine pottery is most striking not only in the colors represented, but also in the shapes of the vessels themselves. The archaeological finds also include remains of a metal industry that was ahead of its time.
Thus, the world and culture of the Philistines brings us an enlightened and more complete understanding of the Old Testament history of the Bible.