Biblical Hebrew Forum

[K Randolph <kwrandolph AT gmail.com>]

Jim:

On Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 11:46 AM, <JimStinehart AT aol.com> wrote:

>
> Karl:
>
> 2.  You wrote:  "Have you looked at a satellite picture of the Judean
> highlands around
>  Hebron? There's room for many towns south of Hebron while staying in the
>  highlands."
>
> There's plenty of room, but no towns and few people.


Within a few miles south there are Carmel, Ma'on, Karmil, Pnei Heber,
Samu'a, Yata is fairly good sized, Susya, Ruq'a, al Fawar, and several other
towns. Remember, that when Joshua was written, a town of only a few hundreds
was considered a significant city, the modern lists gives a significan
population today. Maybe not as many as in ancient times when the climate was
better, but still in many thousands. So what are you talking about, no towns
and few people?

There's no there there southeast of Hebron.  There's only the Judean Desert.
>

Look on a map, you have to go several miles before you reach the Judean
Desert. Or didn't you look?

>
> 3.  You wrote:  "Did you notice that there were two different towns named
> ZYP, one in verse 24, and the other in verse 55? Could there have been a
> third
> town as well?"
>
> It makes no sense to think of a site southeast of Hebron as being "an
> economic center".  There's nothing there.
>

How will repeating yourself make it so? Especially compared to ancient times
when the climate was better?

>
> My point is that the only logical place for the Ziph referred to at Joshua
> 15: 55 and II Chronicles 11: 8 is in or near the foothills northwest of
> Hebron,
> near or on the eastern edge of the Sorek Valley in the northeast Shephelah.
> That's where all the people and the towns were.
>

Didn't you notice, that if there are at least two places with the same name,
that the ZYP mentioned in 2 Chronicles 11:8 could be the other one listed,
or maybe even a third city? You need more evidence than that.


>  There were no towns southeast of the city of Hebron, nor in my view does
> the Bible make any such claim.
>

You haven't read Joshua 15, have you? There are many cities, and their
towns, listed to the south of Hebron. Shouldn't you read the chapter first,
before making such a claim?

>
> Jim Stinehart
> Evanston, Illinois
>

Karl W. Randolph.