Difference between revisions of "Bethlehem"

<p> '''Beth'lehem.''' ''(house of bread).'' One of the oldest towns in Palestine, already in existence, at the time of Jacob's return to the country. Its earliest name was '''Ephratah''' , '''Ephrath''' or '''Ephratah''' . See &nbsp;Genesis 35:16; &nbsp;Genesis 35:19; &nbsp;Genesis 48:7. </p> <p> After the conquest, Bethlehem appears under its own name, '''Bethlehem-Judah''' . &nbsp;Judges 17:7; &nbsp;1 Samuel 17:12; &nbsp;Ruth 1:1-2. The book of Ruth is a page from the domestic history of Bethlehem. It was the home of Ruth, &nbsp;Ruth 1:19, and of David. &nbsp;1 Samuel 17:12. It was fortified by Rehoboam. &nbsp;2 Chronicles 11:6. </p> <p> It was here that our Lord was born, &nbsp;Matthew 2:1, and here, that he was visited by the shepherds, &nbsp;Luke 2:15-17, and the Magi. Matthew 2. </p> <p> The modern town of ''Beit-lahm'' lies to the east of the main road from Jerusalem to Hebron, six miles from the former. It covers the east and northeast parts of the ridge of a long gray hill of [[Jura]] limestone, which stands nearly due east and west, and is about a mile in length. </p> <p> The hill has a deep valley on the north and another on the south. On the top, lies the village in a kind of irregular triangle. The population is about 3000 souls, entirely Christians. The Church of the Nativity, built by the empress Helena, [[A.D.]] 330, is the oldest Christian church in existence. It is built over the grotto where '''Christ''' is supposed to have been born. [[A]] town in the portion of Zebulun, named nowhere, but in &nbsp;Joshua 19:15. Now known as ''Beit-lahm.'' </p>

<p> '''Bethlehem''' (''bĕth'le-hem'' ), ''house of bread.'' 1. [[A]] town in the "hill-country," about six miles south of Jerusalem, situated on a narrow ridge running eastward, which breaks down in abrupt terraced slopes to the deep valleys below. The town is 2527 feet above the sea. It is one of the oldest in Palestine. Nearby was Rachel's burial-place (still marked by a white mosque near the town), and called Ephrath, &nbsp;Genesis 35:19; the home of Naomi, Boaz, and Ruth, &nbsp;Ruth 1:19; birthplace of David, &nbsp;1 Samuel 17:12; burial-place of Joab's family, &nbsp;2 Samuel 2:32; taken by the Philistines, and had a noted well, &nbsp;2 Samuel 23:14-15; fortified by Rehoboam, &nbsp;2 Chronicles 11:6; foretold as the birthplace of Christ, &nbsp;Micah 5:2; the birthplace of Jesus, &nbsp;Matthew 2:1; was visited by the shepherds, &nbsp;Luke 2:15-17, and by the Magi, &nbsp;Matthew 2:1-23. It is noticed over 40 times in the Bible. It has existed as a town for over 4000 years. It was a small place until after the time of Christ; was improved and its wall rebuilt by Justinian; now has about 5000 inhabitants, nearly all nominally Christians, mostly of the Greek church. It Is now called Beit-lahm. It is surrounded by nicely-kept terraces covered with vine, olive, and fig trees. The church of the Nativity, the oldest in Christendom, built in a.d. 330 by the empress Helena, stands over the grotto reputed to be the place of our Lord's birth, and is the joint property of the Greeks, Latins, and Armenians, who have separate convents adjoining it. The "plain of the Shepherds" is about a mile from the town. </p>