Tel Aviv Day 2
We arrived in Tel Aviv. We were welcomed to the Holy Land by a representative who assisted us with our luggage and introduced us to our guide.  

We also briefly saw Tony at the airpot long enough to give him the luggage and get a quick picture. We are looking forward to seeing Tony and Sandi in Jerusalem.


As we traveled north on our way to our hotel in Tiberias, we stopped along the way.  Here are a few photo's from a short stop at a little mall.

The modern city of Tel Aviv encompasses the ancient city Joppa.
It is significant in both Old and New Testaments. 
  • Joppa (Roman)
  • Yafo (Hebrew, "the beautiful one")
  • Joppeh (Greek)
  • Yafa (Arabic)

Now send men to Joppa, and send for Simon whose surname is Peter.  He is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. he will tell you what you must do. (Acts 10:5-6)

Modern Tel Aviv

This city is the largest all-Jewish community in the world. It is the second largest city in Israel. Thirty percent of the population of Israel lives in this vicinity. It was founded in 1908 as an extension of Jaffa (the ancient city of Joppa). The name means "hill of spring" and is taken from the Hebrew word telabib.

Then I came to the captives at Tel Abib, who dwelt by the River Chebar; and i sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days (Ezekiel 3:15)

The population of Tel Aviv was dispersed by a Turkish general during World War 1, but returned immediately afterward. By 1921, Tel Aviv had again became established, and in that year became independent of Jaffa.  Because of the 1947 United Nations resolution declaring Jerusalem to be an international city, Tel Aviv is the site for most of the diplomatic activity relating to israel. Israel's declaration of independence was read here on May 4, 1948. Most foreign embassies are located here. Only recently has the United States begun to move its embassy to Jerusalem.

Ancient Joppa

Tradition traces the origins of Joppa back to the flood. In pre-Biblical times, Joppa was an ancient seaport of the Canaanites.

The first fortified city on the hill of Joppa dates from 1800 B.C. The soldiers of Pharaoh Thutmose III captured the city by trickery in the 15th century B.C. by sending large baskets of gifts into the walled city as a token of friendship. The "gifts" inside the baskets turned out to be 200 soldiers who captured the city by surprise. The city later fell into the hands of the Philistines who held it until the time of Solomon.

Joppa is mentioned several times in the Bible. When Joshua led the occupation of the Promised Land, he appointed Joppa to Dan. However, the Philistines prevented Dan from occupying the area, and the tribe moved northward.

And the children of Dan said to him, "Do not let your voice be heard among us, lest angry men fall upon you, and you lose your life, with the lives of your household!" Then the children of Dan went their way. And when Micah saw that they were to strong for him, he turned and went back to his house (Judges 18:25-26)

Solomon made Joppa a port city that served as the Mediterranean gateway to Jerusalem. The port was never totally adequate because it was too shallow for large vessels to dock, and goods had to be conveyed to shore by smaller transfer boats. It did, however, serve as the main port for Israel until the present century.

King Solomon received the timbers for his temple through this seaport.

And we will cut wood from Lebanon, as much as you need; we will bring it to you in rafts by sea to Joppa, and you will carry it up to Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 2:16)

Jaffa is mentioned four times in the Hebrew Bible.
  1. As one of the cities given to the Hebrew Tribe of Dan (Book of Joshua 19:46)
  2. As port-of-entry for the cedars of Lebanon for Solomon's Temple (2 Chronicles 2:15)
  3. As the place whence the prophet Jonah embarked for Tarshish (book of Jonah 1:3)
  4. As port-of-entry for the cedars of Lebanon for the Second Temple of Jerusalem (Book of Ezra 3:7)

Jaffa is mentioned in the Book of Joshua as the territorial border of the Tribe of Dan, hence the nowadays term "Gush Dan", used for the center of the coastal plain. Many descendants of Dan lived along the coast and earned their living from ship making and sailing. In the "Song of Deborah" the prophetess asks "Shy doeth Dan dwell in ships?

After the Canaanite and Philistine domination, King David and his son King Solomon conquered Jaffa and used its port to bring the cedars used in the construction of the First Temple from Tyre. The city remained often in Jewish hands even after the split of the Kingdom of Israel.