Tabor

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

a mountain not far from Kadesh, in the tribe of Zebulun, and in the confines of Issachar and Naphtali. It has its name from its eminence, because it rises up in the midst of a wide champaign country, called the Valley of Jezreel, or the great plain. Maundrell tells us that the area at the top of this mountain is enclosed with trees, except to the south, from whence there is the most agreeable prospect in the world. Many have believed that our Lord's transfiguration took place on this mountain. This place is mentioned,  1 Samuel 10:3 . It is minutely described by both Pococke and Maundrell. The road from Nazareth lies for two hours between low hills; it then opens into the plain of Esdraelon. At about two or three furlongs within the plain, and six miles from Nazareth, rises this singular mount, which is almost entirely insulated, its figure representing a half sphere. "It is," says Pococke, "one of the finest hills I ever beheld, being a rich soil that produces excellent herbage, and is most beautifully adorned with groves and clumps of trees. The ascent is so easy, that we rode up the north side by a winding road. Some authors mention it as near four miles high, others as about two: the former may be true, as to the winding ascent up the hill. The top of it, about half a mile long, and near a quarter of a mile broad, is encompassed with a wall, which Josephus says was built in forty days: there was also a wall along the middle of it, which divided the south part, on which the city stood, from the north part, which is lower, and is called the meidan, or place, being probably used for exercises when there was a city here, which Josephus mentions by the name of Ataburion. Within the outer wall on the north side are several deep fosses, out of which, it is probable, the stones were dug to build the walls; and these fosses seem to have answered the end of cisterns, to preserve the rain water, and were also some defence to the city. There are likewise a great number of cisterns under ground for preserving the rain water. To the south, where the ascent was most easy, there are fosses cut on the outside, to render the access to the walls more difficult. Some of the gates, also, of the old city remain, as Bab-el-houah, ‘the gate of the winds,' to the west; and Bab-el-kubbe, ‘the arched gate,' a small one to the south. Antiochus, king of Syria, took the fortress on the top of this hill. Vespasian, also, got possession of it; and, after that, Josephus fortified it with strong walls. But what has made it more famous than any thing else is the common opinion, from the time of St. Jerom, that the transfiguration of our Saviour was on this mountain." Van Egmont and Heyman give the following account:

"This mountain, though somewhat rugged and difficult, we ascended on horseback, making several circuits round it, which took us up about three quarters of an hour. It is one of the highest in the whole country, being thirty stadia, or about four English miles, a circumstance that rendered it more famous. And it is the most beautiful I ever saw, with regard to verdure, being every where decorated with small oak trees, and the ground universally enamelled with a variety of plants and flowers, except on the south side, where it is not so fully covered with verdure. On this mountain are great numbers of red partridges, and some wild boars; and we were so fortunate as to see the Arabs hunting them. We left, but not without reluctancy, this delightful place, and found at the bottom of it a mean village, called Deboura, or Tabour, a name said to be derived from the celebrated Deborah mentioned in Judges."

Pococke notices this village, which stands on a rising ground at the foot of Mount Tabor westward; and the learned traveller thinks, that it may be the same as the Daberath, or Daberah mentioned in the book of Joshua, as on the borders of Zabulon and Issachar. "Any one," he adds, "who examines the fourth chapter of Judges, may see that this is probably the spot where Barak and Deborah met at Mount Tabor with their forces, and went to pursue Sisera; and on this account, it might have its name from that great prophetess, who then judged and governed Israel; for Josephus relates, that Deborah and Barak gathered the army together at this mountain."

"From the top of Tabor," says Maundrell, "you have a prospect which, if nothing else, will reward the labour of ascending it. It is impossible for man's eyes to behold a higher gratification of this nature. On the north- west you discern at a distance the Mediterranean, and all round you have the spacious and beautiful plains of Esdraelon and Galilee. Turning a little southward, you have in view the high mountains of Gilboa, fatal to Saul and his sons. Due east you discover the sea of Tiberias, distant about one day's journey. A few points to the north appears that which they call the mount of Beatitudes. Not far from this little hill is the city Saphet: it stands upon a very eminent and conspicuous mountain, and is seen far and near." Beyond this is seen a much higher mountain, capped with snow, a part of the chain of Antilibanus. To the south-west is Carmel, and on the south the hills of Samaria.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Ta'bor. (A Mound). Mount Tabor .

1. One of the most interesting and remarkable of the single mountains in Palestine. It rises abruptly from the northeastern arm of the plain of Esdraelon, and stands entirely insulated, except on the west, where a narrow ridge connects it with the hills of Nazareth. It presents to the eye, as seen from a distance, a beautiful appearance, being symmetrical in its proportions and rounded off like a hemisphere or the segment of a circle, yet varying somewhat as viewed from different directions.

The body of the mountain consists of the peculiar limestone of the country. It is now called Jebel-Et-Tur . It lies about six or eight miles almost due east from Nazareth. The ascent is usually made on the west side, near the little village of Deburieh - probably the ancient Daberath,  Joshua 19:12 - though it can be made with entire ease in other places. It requires three quarters of an hour or an hour to reach the to the top. The top of Tabor consists of an irregular platform, embracing a circuit of half an hour's walk, and commanding wide views of the subjacent plain from end to end.

Tabor does not occur in the New Testament, but it makes a prominent figure in the Old Testament. The book of Joshua,  Joshua 19:22, mentions it as the boundary between Issachar and Zebulun, see  Joshua 19:12. Barak, at the command of Deborah, assembled his forces on Tabor, and descended thence, with "ten thousand men after him," into the plain, and conquered Sisera on the banks of the Kishon.  Judges 4:6-15. The brothers of Gideon, each of whom "resembled the children of a king," were murdered here, by Zebah and Zalmunna.  Judges 8:18-19.

There are, at present, the ruins of a fortress round all the summit of Tabor. The Latin Christians have now an altar here, at which their priests from Nazareth, perform an annual mass. The Greeks also have a chapel, where, on certain festivals, they assemble for the celebration of religious rites.

The idea that our Saviour was transfigured on Tabor prevailed extensively among the early Christians, and still reappears, often, in popular religious works. It is impossible, however, to acquiesce in the correctness of this opinion. It can be proved from the Old Testament, and from later history, that a fortress or town existed on Tabor, from very early times, down to B.C. 53 or 50; and as Josephus says that he strengthened the fortifications there about A.D. 60, it is morally certain that Tabor must have been inhabited during the intervening period that is in the days of Christ . Tabor, therefore, could not have been the Mount of Transfiguration; See Hermon ; for when it is said that Jesus took his disciples "up into a high mountain apart, and was transfigured before them",  Matthew 17:1-2, we must understand that he brought them to the summit of the mountain, where they were alone by themselves.

2. Tabor is mentioned in the lists of 1 Chronicles 6, as a city of the Merarite Levites, in the tribe of Zebulun.  1 Chronicles 6:77. The list of the towns of Zebulun. Joshua 19, contains the name of Chisloth-tabor.  Joshua 19:12. It is, therefore, possible, either that Chisloth-tabor is abbreviated into Tabor by the chronicler, or that, by the time these later lists were compiled, the Merarites had established themselves on the sacred mountain, and that Tabor is Mount Tabor.

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

("height, mound"); ( Tabar related to Tsabar ).

1.  Psalms 89:12, "the N. and S. Tabor (i.e. the W.) and Hermon (E. of Jordan) shall rejoice," etc. Their existence and majestic appearance are a silent hymn to their Creator's praise; the view from Tabor comprises as much of natural beauty and sacred interest as any in the Holy Land. Accurately corresponding to its name; a large isolated mound-like mountain, 1865 ft. high, N.E. of Esdraelon plain. On the W. however a narrow ridge connects it with the hills of Nazareth, which lies six or eight miles off due W. The southern end of the lake of Galilee lies 12 miles off to the E. It consists of limestone; thick stone; thick forests of oak, etc., cover the sides, affording covert to wolves, boars, lynxes, and reptiles. The summit is a mile and a half in circuit, surmounted with a four-gated fortress' ruins, with an Arabic inscription on one of the gateways recording its building or rebuilding by the sultan Abu Bekr.

Named among Issachar's boundaries ( Joshua 19:22), but the fortified city at Mount Tabor's base may be meant there. (See Chisloth Tabor ) From Tabor Barak descended with his 10,000 men into the plain, at Deborah's command, and conquered Sisera at the Kishon ( Judges 4:6-15). (See Kedesh .) Here Zebah and Zalmunna slew Gideon's brothers ( Judges 8:18-19). Herder makes Tabor to be meant when Hoses says of Issachar and Zebulun ( Deuteronomy 33:19), "they shall call the people unto the mountain, there they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness." The open glades on the summit would form a suitable sanctuary, and were among "the high places" which ensnared Israel in idolatry; so  Hosea 5:1, "a net spread upon Tabor."

Jewish tradition states that liers in wait in Tabor and Mizpah intercepted and murdered Israelites going from the northern kingdom up to Jerusalem to worship in Jehovah's temple (compare  Hosea 5:2).  Jeremiah 46:18, "as Tabor is among the mountains," i.e. as it towers high and unique by itself, so Nebuchadnezzar is one not to be matched as a foe. The large, beveled stones among the ruins at the top belong to Roman times. The Lord's transfiguration Jerome and others assigned to Tabor. But the buildings on Tabor (see Josephus, B.J. 4:1, section 8, and  1 Chronicles 6:77) are inconsistent, with the solitude "apart" of which the narrative ( Matthew 17:1-2) speaks. Moreover, the transfiguration took place near Caesarea Philippi; this fact, and the reference to the "snow," accord best with Mount Hermon being the scene ( Mark 8:27;  Mark 9:1-3).

2. The city of the Merarite Levites ( 1 Chronicles 6:77). (See Chisloth Tabor;  Joshua 19:12).

3. "The plain of Tabor." Eelon, rather "the oak of Tabor" ( 1 Samuel 10:3). Identified by Ewald with the oak of Deborah (or Tabor differently pronounced), Rebekah's nurse ( Genesis 35:8), and the palm of Deborah the prophetess ( Judges 4:5; the distance from Rachel's sepulchre at Bethlehem is an objection), and the oak of the prophet of Bethel ( 1 Kings 13:14).

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

An isolated mountain of Galilee, on the northeastern side of the plain of Esdraelon, an arm of which extends beyond the mountain in the same direction. It is of limestone formation, conical in form, and well-wooded, especially on the north side, with fine oaks and other trees and odoriferous plants. It rises 1,350 feet above the plain at its base, which  Isaiah 400 feet above the Mediterranean, and by a winding path on the north-west side one may ride to its summit in an hour. There is a small oblong plain on the summit, surrounded by a larger but less regular tract, perhaps a mile inn circumference. The prospect from Mount Tabor is extensive and beautiful. Dr. Robinson and many others speak of it as one of the finest in Paletine; and Lord Nugent declared it the most splendid he could recollect having ever seen from any natural height. See   Jeremiah 46:18 . Its general features are the same as those of the view from the heights of Nazareth, five miles to the west. See  Psalm 80:12 .

On the summit of Tabor a fortified town anciently stood, probably of the same name,  1 Chronicles 6:77 . This was in existence, and was garrisoned by the Romans in the time of Christ, which conflicts with the tradition that makes Tabor the scene of the transfiguration. Ruins of ancient walls enclose the area of the summit; and at various points there are remains of fortifications and dwellings, some of which are of the age of the crusaders, and others of more ancient date. Tabor lay on the borders of Issachar and Zebulun,  Joshua 19:12,22 . The host of Barak encamped upon it, before the battle with Sisera,  Judges 4:6,12,14 . At a later day it appears to have been desecrated by idolatry,  Hosea 5:1 .

Morrish Bible Dictionary

1. A conspicuous mountain in Galilee, about seven miles east of Nazareth. It formed a boundary to Issachar and Zebulon. Its sides are well wooded, and on the summit is an irregular plain of about a mile in circuit, with ruins of fortifications. The height of it is 1,843 feet.  Joshua 19:22;  Judges 4:6-14;  Judges 8:18;  Psalm 89:12;  Jeremiah 46:18;  Hosea 5:1 . It is now called Jebel et Tor, 32 41' N, 35 23' E . Tradition makes this the mount of Transfiguration; but it is more probable that some part of mount Hermon was chosen for the transfiguration. This has good moral associations (cf.  Psalm 133:3 ), and would be more private than Tabor.

2. The 'plain of Tabor' in   1 Samuel 10:3 should be read the 'oak of Tabor' as in the R.V.

3. Levitical city in the tribe of Zebulun.   1 Chronicles 6:77 . The list of Levitical cities in  Joshua 21 does not contain this name. See Chesulloth

People's Dictionary of the Bible

Tabor ( Tâ'Bôr ), A Mound ; or Mount Tabor.  Judges 4:6. A single limestone mountain in central Palestine. It rises abruptly from the northeastern arm of the plain of Esdraelon, and stands entirely isolated except on the west, where a narrow ridge connects it with the hills of Nazareth. It is six miles east of Nazareth, and about 50 miles north of Jerusalem. As seen from a distance, it presents the appearance of a beautiful flattened cone, being symmetrical in its proportions, and rounded off like a hemisphere or the segment of a circle. Tabor makes a prominent figure in the Old, but is not named in the New Testament. It was the boundary between Issachar and Zebulun.  Joshua 19:12;  Joshua 19:22. Barak, at the command of Deborah, assembled his forces on Tabor, and descended thence, with "ten thousand men after him," into the plain, and conquered Sisera on the banks of the Kishon.  Judges 4:6-15. The brothers of Gideon, each of whom "resembled the children of a king," were murdered here by Zebah and Zalmunna.  Judges 8:18-19. There are the ruins of a fortress on the summit of Tabor.

Holman Bible Dictionary

Issachar, and Zebulun ( Joshua 19:12 ,Joshua 19:12, 19:22 ), where the tribes worshiped early ( Deuteronomy 33:18-19 ). Barak gathered an army at Tabor to defend against Sisera ( Judges 4:6 ). Apparently, it was the site of false worship ( Hosea 5:1 ). Tradition holds that Tabor was the site of Jesus' transfiguration ( Mark 9:2 ), although no evidence exists to validate the claim.

2. Levitical city ( 1 Chronicles 6:77 ), apparently replacing Nahalal in the earlier list ( Joshua 21:35 ). It may be khirbet Dabura.

3. The “Plain of Tabor” ( 1 Samuel 10:3 ) was apparently near Gibea.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

The "plain of Tabor" ( 1 Samuel 10:3 ) should be, as in the Revised Version, "the oak of Tabor." This was probably the Allon-bachuth of  Genesis 35:8 .

Copyright Statement These dictionary topics are from M.G. Easton M.A., DD Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition, published by Thomas Nelson, 1897. Public Domain.

Bibliography Information Easton, Matthew George. Entry for 'Tabor'. Easton's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ebd/t/tabor.html. 1897.

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

TABOR . 1. A town in the tribe of Zebulun, given to Levites descended from Merari (  1 Chronicles 6:77 ). Its site is unknown. Perhaps it is to be identified with Chislothtabor in the same tribe (  Joshua 19:12 ). 2. A place near Ophrah (  Judges 8:18 ). 3. The Oak (AV [Note: Authorized Version.] ‘plain’) of Tabor was on the road from Ramah S. to Gibeah (  1 Samuel 10:3 ). 4. See next article.

H. L. Willett.

Webster's Dictionary

(1): ( v. i.) To play on a tabor, or little drum.

(2): ( v. i.) To strike lightly and frequently.

(3): ( v. t.) To make (a sound) with a tabor.

(4): ( n.) A small drum used as an accompaniment to a pipe or fife, both being played by the same person.

King James Dictionary

TA'BOR, n. Eng. tap. A small drum used as an accompaniment to a pipe or fife.

TA'BOR, To strike lightly and frequently.

Her maids shall lead her as with the voice of doves, taboring upon their breasts.  Nahum 2

1. To play on a tabor or little drum.

Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary

See Mount Tabor

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

(Heb. Tabor', תָּבוֹר , a Mound ), the name of three spots in Palestine, all closely related to each other, if not indeed actually identical. (See Aznothitabor); (See Chisloth-Tabor).

'''I.''' Mount Tabor (Sept. Γαιθβώρ [v.r. Ταφώθ ], Ὄρος Θαβώρ , Θαβώρ , but Τὸ Ι᾿Ταβύριον In Jeremiah and Hosea, and in Josephus [Ant. 5, 5, 3; War, 4:1,1, etc.], who has also Ἀταρβύριον , as in Polybius, 5, 70,6; Vulg. Thabor), a mountain ( הִר ,  Judges 4:6;  Judges 4:12;  Judges 4:14, elsewhere without this epithet,  Joshua 19:22,  Judges 8:18;  Psalms 79:12;  Jeremiah 46:18  Hosea 5:1), one of the most interesting and remarkable of the single mountains in Palestine. It was a Rabbinic saving (and shows the Jewish estimate of the attractions of the locality) that the Temple ought of right to have been built here, but was required by an express revelation to be erected on Mount Moriah.

1. Description. — Mount Tabor rises abruptly from the north-eastern arm of the plain of Esdraelon and stands entirely; insulated, except on the west, where a narrow ridge connects it with the hills of Nazareth. It presents to the eye, as seen from a distance, a beautiful appearance, being so symmetrical in its proportions, and rounded off like a hemisphere or the segment of a circle, yet varying somewhat as viewed from different directions, being more conical when seen from the east or west. The body of the mountain consists of the peculiar limestone of the country. It is studded with a comparatively dense forest of oaks, pistacias, and other trees and bushes, with the exception of an occasional opening on the sides and a small uneven tract on the summit. The coverts afford at present a shelter for wolves, wild boars, lynxes, and various reptiles. Its height is estimated at 1300 feet from the base, and 1865 from the sea-level (Tristram, Land of Israel, p. 498). Its ancient name, as already suggested, indicates its elevation, though it does not rise much, if at all, above some of the other summits in the vicinity. It is now called ebel et-Tu; a name which some have tried to identify with Tabor, as if it were a contraction. But Jebel et Tur means simply the "fort-hill," and is used to designate the Mount of Olives and Gerizim, as well as Tabor. It lies about six or eight miles almost due east from Nazareth. The ascent is usually made on the west side, near the little village of Debirieh, probably the ancient Daberath ( Joshua 19:12), though it can be made with entire ease in other places. It requires three quarters of an hour or an hour to reach the top. The path is circuitous and at times steep, but not so-much so as to render it difficult to ride the entire way. The trees and bushes are generally so thick as to intercept the prospect; but now and then the traveler as he ascends comes to an open spot which reveals to him a magnificent view of the plain. One of the most pleasing aspects of the landscape, as seen from such points, in the season of the early harvest, is that presented in the diversified appearance of the fields. The different plots of ground exhibit various colors, according to the state of cultivation at the time. Some of them are red, where the land has been newly ploughed up, owing to the natural properties of the soil; others yellow or white, where the harvest is beginning to ripen or is already ripe; and others green being covered with grass or springing grain. As they are contiguous to each other, or intermixed, these part-colored plots present, as looked down upon from above, an appearance of gay checkered work which is singularly beautiful. The top of Tabor consists of al irregular platform half a mile long by three quarters wide, embracing a circuit of half an hour's walk and commanding wide views of the subjacent plain from end to end. A copious dew falls here during the warm months. Travelers who have spent the night there have found their tents as wet in the morning as if they had been drenched with rain.

It is the universal judgment of those who have- stool on the spot, that the panorama spread before them as they look from Tabor includes as great a variety of objects of natural beauty and of sacred and historic interest as any one to be seen from any position in the Holy Land. O1n the east the waters of the Sea of Tiberias, not less, than fifteen miles distant, are seen glittering through the clear atmosphere in the deep bed where they repose so quietly. Though but a small portion of the surface of the lake can be distinguished, the entire outline of its basin can be traced on every side. In the same direction the eye follows the course of the Jordan for' many miles, while still farther east it rests upon a boundless perspective of hills and valleys, embracing the modern Hauran, and farther south the mountains of the ancient Gilead and Bashan. The dark line which skirts the horizon on the west is the Mediterranean the rich plains of Galilee fill up the intermediate space as far as the foot of Tabor. The ridge of Carmrel lifts its head in the north-west, though the portion which lies directly on the sea is-not distinctly visible. On the north and north-east we behold the last ranges of Lebanon as they rise into the hills about Safed, overtopped in the rear by the snow-capped Hermon, and still nearer to us the Horns of Hattin, the reputed Mount of the Beatitudes. On the south are seen, first the summits of Gilboa, which David's touching elegy on Saul and Jonathan has fixed forever in the memory of mankind, and farther onward a confused view of the mountains and valleys which occupy the central part of Palestine. Over the heads of D Û hy and Gilboa the spectator looks into the valley of the Jordan in the neighborhood of Beisan (itself not within sight), the ancient Bethshean, on whose walls the Philistines hung up the headless trunk of Saul, after their victory over Israel. Looking across a branch of the plain of Esdraelon, we behold Endor, the abode of the sorceress whom the king consulted on the night before his fatal battle. Another little village clings to the hill-side of another ridge, on which we gaze with still deeper interest. It is Nain, the village of that name in the New Test., where the Savior touched the bier and restored to life the widow's son. The Savior must have often passed at the foot of this mount in the course of his journeys in different parts of Galilee. It is not surprising that the Hebrews looked up with so much admiration to this glorious work of the Creator's hand. The same beauty rests upon its brow today, the same' richness of verdure refreshes the eye, in contrast with' the bald aspect of so many of the adjacent mountains. The Christian traveler yields spontaneously to the impression of wonder and devotion, and appropriates as his own the language of the psalmist ( Psalms 89:11-12) —

"The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine; The world and the fullness thereof, thou hast founded them. The north and the south thou hast created them; Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name."

2. History. — Tabor is not expressly mentioned in the New Test., but makes a prominent figure in' the Old. The book of Joshua ( Joshua 19:22) names it as the boundary between Issachar and Zebulon (see  Psalms 89:12). Barak, at the command of Deborah, assembled his forces on Tabor, and, on the arrival of the opportune moment, descended thence with "ten thousand men after him" into the plain, and conquered Sisera on the banks of the Kishon ( Judges 4:6-15). The brothers of Gideon, each of whom resembled the children of a king, were murdered here by Zebah and Zalmunna (8, 18, 19). Some writers, after Herder and others, think that Tabor is intended when it is said of Issachar and Zebulon in  Deuteronomy 33:19, that "they shall call the people unto. The Mountain; there they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness." Stanley, who holds this view (Sinai And Palestine, p. 351), remarks that he was struck with the aspect of the open glades on the summit as specially fitted for the convocation of festive assemblies,-and could-well believe that in some remote, age it may have been a sanctuary of the northern tribes, if not of the whole nation. The prophet in  Hosea 5:1 reproaches the priests and royal family with having "been a snare on Mizpah and a net spread upon Tabor." The charge against them probably is that they had set up idols and practiced heathenish rites on the high places which were usually selected for such worship. The comparison in  Jeremiah 46:18, "As Tabor is among the mountains and Carmel, by the sea," imports apparently that those heights were proverbial for their conspicuousness, beauty, and strength.

After the close of Old-Test. history, Tabor continued to be a strong fortress. In the year B.C. 218, Antiochus the Great got possession of it by stratagem and strengthened its fortifications. The town existed on the summit in New-Test. times; but the defenses had fallen into decay, and Josephus caused them to be rebuilt (War, 4. 1, 8).

3. Present Condition. — Dr. Robinson ( Bibl. Res. 2, 353) has thus described the ruins which are to be seen at present on the summit of Tabor: "All around the top are the foundations of a thick wall built of large stones, some of which are beveled, showing that the entire wall was perhaps originally of that character. In several parts are the remains of towers and bastions. The chief remains are upon the ledge of rocks on the south of the little basin, and especially towards its eastern end; here are in indiscriminate confusion, walls and arches and foundations, apparently of dwelling- houses, as well as other buildings, some of hewn, and some of, large beveled stones. The walls and traces of a fortress are seen here, and farther west along the southern brow, of which one tall pointed arch of a Saracenic gateway is still standing, and bears the name of Bab el-Hawa, Gate of the Wind. Connected with it: are loopholes, and others are seen near by. These latter fortifications belong to the sera of the Crusades; but the large beveled stones we refer to a style of architecture not later than the times of the Romans, before which period, indeed, a town and fortress already existed on Mount Tabor. In the days of the Crusaders, too, and earlier, there were here churches and monasteries. The summit has many cisterns, now mostly dry." The same writer found the thermometer here, 10 A.M. (June 18), at 98 ° Fahr., at sunrise at 64 ° , and at sunset at 740. The Latin Christians have now an altar here, at which their priests from Nazareth perform an annual mass. The Greeks also have a chapel, where, on certain festivals, they assemble for the celebration of religious rites. Stanley, in his Notices of Localities Visited with the Prince of Wales, remarks, "The fortress, of which the ruins crown the summit, had evidently four gateways, like those by which the great Roman camps of our own country were entered. By one of these gateways my attention was called to an Arabic inscription, said to be the only one on the mountain." It records the building or rebuilding of "this blessed fortress" by the order of the sultan Abu-Bekr on his return from the East A.H. 607. In 1873 the monks began the construction of a convent on the north-east brow of the mountain.

4. Traditional Importance. — In the monastic ages, Tabor, in consequence partly of a belief that it was the scene of the Savior's transfiguration, was crowded with hermits. It was one of the shrines from the earliest period - which pilgrims to the Holy Land regarded as a sacred duty to honor with their presence and their prayers. Jerome, in his Itinerary of Paula, writes, "Scandebat montem Thabor, in quo transfiguratus est Dominus; aspiciebat procul Hermon et Hermonim et campos latissimos Galilneae (Jesreel), in quibus Sisara prostratus est. Torrens Cison qui mediam planitiem dividebat, et oppidum juxta, Naim, monstrabantur." This idea that our Savior was transfigured on Tabor prevailed extensively among the early Christians (see Robinson, Bibl. Res. 2,358 sq.), who adopted legends of this nature, and often reappears still in popular religious works. — If one might choose a place which he would deem peculiarly fitting for so sublime a transaction, there is certainly none which would so entirely satisfy our feelings in this respect as the lofty majestic, beautiful Tabor. It has been thought difficult, however, to acquiesce in the correctness of this opinion. The summit of Tabor appears to have been occupied by a town as early as the time when the Israelites took possession of the country ( Joshua 19:22). Indeed, such a strong position would scarcely be left unoccupied in those stormy times of Syria's history. Accordingly, as above seen, it is susceptible of proof from the Old Test., and from later history, that a fortress or town existed on Tabor from very early times down to B.C. 50 or 53; and, as Josephus says that he strengthened the fortifications of a city there, about A.D. 60, it is certain that Tabor must have been inhabited during the intervening period, that is, in the days of Christ (comp. Polybius, 5, 70, 6; Josephus, Ant. 14:6, 3; War, 2, 20, 1; 4:1. 8; Life, § 37). But as in the account of the transfiguration it is said that Jesus took his disciples "up into a high mountain apart and was transfigured before them" ( Matthew 17:1-2), we must understand that he brought them to the summit of the mountain, where they were alone by themselves ( Κατ᾿ Ἰδίαν ) . Yet it is not probable that the whole mountain was occupied by edifices, and it is quite possible that a solitary spot might have been found amid its groves, where the scene could have taken place, unobserved. The event has, indeed, been referred by many to Mount Hermon, on the ground that our Lord's miracle immediately preceding was at Caesarea Philippi; but the interval of a whole week (" ‘ six days,"  Matthew 17:1,  Mark 9:2, "eight days,"  Luke 9:28) decidedly favors the idea of a considerable journey in the interval. (See Transfiguration).

Some Church traditions have given also to Tabor the honor of being Melchizedek's hill, from which he came forth to greet Abraham, so that here is another king's dale, rivaling that at Gerizim, if tradition is to be followed. The whole legend will be found at full length in Athanasius (Opp. 2, 7 [Colon. 1686]). That father tells us that Salem, the mother of Melchizedek, ordered him to go to Tabor. He went, and remained seven years in the wood naked, till his back became like a snail's shell.

The mountain has been visited and described by multitudes, of travelers, especially (in addition to those named above) Russegger (Reis. 3, 258), Hasselquist (Voyage, p. 179), Volney ( Voyage, 2, 272), Schubert (Morgenl. 3, 175), Burckhardt (Syria,.p. 332), Stephens (Travels, 2, 317), Nugent [lord] (Lands, etc., 2, 198); see also Reland, Palaest. p. 334;' Hackett, Illustr. of Script. p. 304; Thomson, Land and Book, 2, 136; Porter, Handb. p. 401; Badeker, Palest. p. 364; Ridgaway, The Lord's Land, p. 371.

II. The Plain (or rather Oak) Of Tabor ( תָּבוֹר אֵלוֹן ; Sept. Ἡ Δρῦς Θαβώρ ; Vulg. Quercus Thabor) is mentioned only in  1 Samuel 10:3 as one of the points in the homeward journey of Saul after his anointing by Samuel It was the next stage in the journey after "Rachel's sepulcher at Zelzah." But, unfortunately, like so many of the other spots named in this interesting passage, the position of the Oak of Tabor has not yet been fixed. (See Saul). Ewald seems to consider it certain (Gewiss) that Tabor and Deborah are merely different modes of pronouncing the same name, and he accordingly identifies the oak of Tabor with the tree under which Deborah, Rachel's nurse, was buried ( Genesis 35:8) and that again with the palm under which Deborah the prophetess delivered her oracles (Gesch. 1, 390; 2, 489; 3. 29), and this again with the Oak of the old Prophet near Bethel (ibid. 3, 444). But this, though most ingenious, can only be received as a conjecture, and the position on which it would land us "between Ramah and Bethel" ( Judges 4:5) — is too far from Rachel's sepulcher to fall in with the conditions of the narrative of Saul's journey, so long as we hold that to be the traditional sepulcher near Bethlehem. We can only determine that it lay somewhere between Bethlehem and Bethel, but why it received the epithet "Tabor" it is impossible to discover. Yet we see from the names Chisloth-Tabor and Aznoth-Tabor that the mountain gave adjunct titles to places at a considerable distance. (See Zelzah).

III. The City Of Tabor (Sept. Θαβώρ v.r. Θαχχεία ; Vulg. Thabor) is mentioned in the lists of 1 Chronicles 6 as a city of the Merarite Levites, in the tribe of Zebulun ( 1 Chronicles 6:77). The catalogue of Levitical cities in Joshua 21 does not contain any name answering to this (comp.  Joshua 21:34-35). But the list of the towns of Zebulun (ch. 19) contains the name of Chisloth- Tabor (ver; 12). It is therefore possible either that this last name is abbreviated into Tabor by the chronicler, or (which is less likely) that by the time these later lists were compiled the Merarites had established themselves on the sacred mountain, and that the place in question is Mount Tabor.

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

Tabor, 1

Ta´bor, a mountain on the confines of Zebulun and Naphtali, standing out in the north-east border of the plain of Esdraelon, the name of which appears among Greek and Roman writers in the forms of Itabyrion and Atabyrion, and which is now known by the name of Jebel Tur. Mount Tabor stands out alone and eminent above the plain, with all its fine proportions from base to summit displayed at one view. It lies at the distance of two hours and a quarter south of Nazareth. According to the barometrical measurements of Schubert, the height of Tabor above the level of the sea is 1748 Paris feet, and 1310 Paris feet above the level of the plain at its base. Seen from the south-west, it presents a semi-globular appearance; but from the north-west, it more resembles a truncated cone. By an ancient path, which winds considerably, one may ride to the summit, where is a small oblong plain, with the foundations of ancient buildings. The view of the country from this place is very beautiful and extensive. The mountain is of limestone, which is the general rock of Palestine. The sides of the mountain are mostly covered with bushes, and woods of oak trees (ilex and aegilops), with occasionally pistachio trees, presenting a beautiful appearance, and affording a fine shade.

This mountain is several times mentioned in the Old Testament (;;;; ); but not in the New. Its summit has, however, been usually regarded as the 'high mountain apart,' where our Lord was transfigured before Peter, James, and John. But the probability of this is opposed by circumstances which cannot be gainsaid. It is manifest that the Transfiguration took place in a solitary place, not only from the word 'apart,' but from the circumstance that Peter in his bewilderment proposed to build 'three tabernacles' on the spot . But we know that a fortified town occupied the top of Tabor for at least 220 years before and 60 years after the birth of Christ, and probably much before and long after; and the tradition itself cannot be traced back earlier than towards the end of the fourth century.

Tabor, 2

Tabor is also the name of a grove of oaks in the vicinity of Benjamin, in , the topography of which chapter is usually much embarrassed by the groundless notion that Mount Tabor is meant.

Tabor, 3

Tabor, a Levitical city in Zebulun, situated upon Mount Tabor .

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

tā´bẽr , tār´bôr ( תּבור , tābhōr  ; Codex Vaticanus Θαχχειά , Thachcheiá  ; Codex Alexandrinus Θαβώρ , Thabṓr ): One of the towns in the territory of Zebulun, given to the Merarite Levites (  1 Chronicles 6:77 ). The parallel list in  Joshua 21:24 f contains no name like this. There is no indication of its position. Some have thought that it may correspond to Daberath in the territory of Issachar (  Joshua 21:28 ), now represented by Debūriyeh on the western slope of Mt. Tabor; others that it may be the mountain itself; and yet others that it may be a city on the mountain, which probably was occupied from very early times. There is a Tabor mentioned as on the border of Issachar ( Joshua 19:22 ); but that is almost certainly the mountain. It has been suggested that Tabor in  1 Chronicles 6:17 may be a contraction of Chisloth-tabor (  Joshua 19:12 ), the modern Iksāl , 3 miles West of the mountain. No certainty is possible.