Abilene (biblical)
Encyclopedia
Abilene or simply Abila was a plain, a district in Coele-Syria
, of which the chief town was Abila Lysaniou
(Abilan de tên Lusaniou). The limits of this region are nowhere exactly defined, but it seems to have included the eastern slopes of Anti-Lebanon
range, and to have extended south and southeast of Damascus
as far as the borders of Galilaea
, Batanaea
, and Trachonitis
. According to Flavius Josephus, Abilene was a separate Iturea
n kingdom until 37 AD.
Abilene, when first mentioned in history, was governed by a certain Ptolemaeus
, son of Mennaeus, who was succeeded, about 40 BC, by a son named Lysanias
. Lysanias was put to death in 33 BC, at the instigation of Cleopatra, and the principality passed, by a sort of purchase apparently, into the hands of one Zenodorus
, from whom it was transferred (31 BC) to Herod the Great
. At the death of the latter (4 BC) one portion of it was annexed to the tetrarchy of his son Herod Philip II, and the remainder bestowed upon that Lysanias
who is named by Luke
(iii. 1).
Immediately after the death of Tiberius
(37 AD), Caligula
made over to Herod Agrippa, at that time a prisoner in Rome
, the tetrarchy of Philip and the tetrarchy of Lysanias, while Claudius
, upon his accession (41), not only confirmed the liberality of his predecessor towards Herod Agrippa, but added all that portion of Judaea
and Samaria
which had belonged to the kingdom of his grandfather Herod the Great, together (says Josephus) with Abila, which had appertained to Lysanias, and the adjoining region of Libanus
. Lastly, 53, Claudius granted to Agrippa II
the tetrarchy of Philip with Batanaea and Trachonitis and Abila – Lusania de hautê egegonei tetrarchia. (Joseph. Ant. xiv. 4. § 4, 7. § 4, xviii. 7. § 10, xix. 5. § 1, xx. 6. § 1, B. J. i. 13. § 1, xx. 4.) Josephus, at first sight, seems to contradict himself, in so far that in one passage (Ant. xviii. 7. § 10) he represents Caligula as bestowing upon Herod Agrippa the tetrarchy of Lysanias, while in another (Ant. xix. 5. § 1) he states that Abila Lysaniou was added by Claudius to the former dominions of Agrippa, but, in reality, these expressions must be explained as referring to the division of Abilene which took place on the death of Herod the Great. We find Abila mentioned among the places captured by Placidus
, one of Vespasian
's generals, in 69 or 70 (Joseph. B. J. iv. 7. § 5), and from that time forward, it was permanently annexed to the province of Syria
.
Coele-Syria
Coele-Syria , or Cœle-Syria or Celesyria, traditionally given the meaning 'hollow' Syria, was the region of southern Syria disputed between the Seleucid dynasty and the Ptolemaic dynasty. Rather than limiting the Greek term to the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon, it is often used to cover the entire area...
, of which the chief town was Abila Lysaniou
Abila Lysaniou
Abila Lysaniou or Abila Lysaniae or Abila was an ancient city, on the Abana River and capital of ancient Abilene, Coele-Syria. The site is currently that of the village Suk Wadi Barada , circa northwest of Damascus, Syria...
(Abilan de tên Lusaniou). The limits of this region are nowhere exactly defined, but it seems to have included the eastern slopes of Anti-Lebanon
Anti-Lebanon
The Anti-Lebanon mountains is the Western name for the Eastern Lebanon Mountain Range , which are a southwest-northeast-trending mountain range between Syria and Lebanon. Its Western name comes from the Greek word for ‘opposite’. The majority of the mountain range lies in Syria. The border between...
range, and to have extended south and southeast of Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
as far as the borders of Galilaea
Galilee
Galilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
, Batanaea
Batanaea
Batanaea or Batanea was an area of the Biblical Holy Land, north-east of the Jordan River, to the east of Trachonitis. It was one of the four post-Exile divisions of the area of Bashan...
, and Trachonitis
Trachonitis
Trachonitis was a region that once formed part of Herod Philip's tetrarchy. It now lies within the boundaries of modern Syria.It appears in the Bible only in the phrase tes Itouraias kai Trachbnitidos choras, literally, "of the Iturean and Trachonian region"...
. According to Flavius Josephus, Abilene was a separate Iturea
Iturea
Iturea is the Greek name of a region in the Levant during the Late Hellenistic and early Roman periods. It is mentioned only once in the Christian Bible, while in historical sources the name of the people, the Itureans , occurs...
n kingdom until 37 AD.
Abilene, when first mentioned in history, was governed by a certain Ptolemaeus
Ptolemy (son of Mennaeus)
Ptolemy or Ptolemaeus , son of Mennaeus was tetrarch of Iturea and Chalcis from about 85 BCE to 40 BCE, in which year he died. He tried to extend his kingdom by warlike expeditions ; and ruled the Lebanon, threatened Damascus, subjugated several districts on the Phoenician coast, and once had...
, son of Mennaeus, who was succeeded, about 40 BC, by a son named Lysanias
Lysanias
Lysanias was the ruler of a small realm on the western slopes of Mount Hermon, attested to by the Jewish writer Josephus and in coins from circa 40 BC. There is also mention of a Lysanias dated to 29 AD in the gospel of Luke. It has been debated whether these are the same person.- Lysanias in...
. Lysanias was put to death in 33 BC, at the instigation of Cleopatra, and the principality passed, by a sort of purchase apparently, into the hands of one Zenodorus
Zenodorus son of Lysanias
Zenodorus was the ruler of a small principality in the vicinity of Damascus described by Josephus as the "house of Lysanias", 23-20 BCE. Though Josephus doesn't seem to know it, Zenodorus was actually the son of Lysanias, for a funerary inscription found at Heliopolis was dedicated to "Zenodorus...
, from whom it was transferred (31 BC) to Herod the Great
Herod the Great
Herod , also known as Herod the Great , was a Roman client king of Judea. His epithet of "the Great" is widely disputed as he is described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis." He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including his...
. At the death of the latter (4 BC) one portion of it was annexed to the tetrarchy of his son Herod Philip II, and the remainder bestowed upon that Lysanias
Lysanias
Lysanias was the ruler of a small realm on the western slopes of Mount Hermon, attested to by the Jewish writer Josephus and in coins from circa 40 BC. There is also mention of a Lysanias dated to 29 AD in the gospel of Luke. It has been debated whether these are the same person.- Lysanias in...
who is named by Luke
Luke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist was an Early Christian writer whom Church Fathers such as Jerome and Eusebius said was the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles...
(iii. 1).
Immediately after the death of Tiberius
Tiberius
Tiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
(37 AD), Caligula
Caligula
Caligula , also known as Gaius, was Roman Emperor from 37 AD to 41 AD. Caligula was a member of the house of rulers conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Caligula's father Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius, was a very successful general and one of Rome's most...
made over to Herod Agrippa, at that time a prisoner in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, the tetrarchy of Philip and the tetrarchy of Lysanias, while Claudius
Claudius
Claudius , was Roman Emperor from 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, he was the son of Drusus and Antonia Minor. He was born at Lugdunum in Gaul and was the first Roman Emperor to be born outside Italy...
, upon his accession (41), not only confirmed the liberality of his predecessor towards Herod Agrippa, but added all that portion of Judaea
Judea
Judea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
and Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
which had belonged to the kingdom of his grandfather Herod the Great, together (says Josephus) with Abila, which had appertained to Lysanias, and the adjoining region of Libanus
History of ancient Lebanon
The history of ancient Lebanon traces the course of events in what is now known as Lebanon from the beginning of history to the beginning of Arab rule.- Prehistoric Times :The earliest known settlements in Lebanon date back to earlier than 5000 BC...
. Lastly, 53, Claudius granted to Agrippa II
Agrippa II
Agrippa II , son of Agrippa I, and like him originally named Marcus Julius Agrippa, was the seventh and last king of the family of Herod the Great, thus last of the Herodians. He was the brother of Berenice, Mariamne, and Drusilla...
the tetrarchy of Philip with Batanaea and Trachonitis and Abila – Lusania de hautê egegonei tetrarchia. (Joseph. Ant. xiv. 4. § 4, 7. § 4, xviii. 7. § 10, xix. 5. § 1, xx. 6. § 1, B. J. i. 13. § 1, xx. 4.) Josephus, at first sight, seems to contradict himself, in so far that in one passage (Ant. xviii. 7. § 10) he represents Caligula as bestowing upon Herod Agrippa the tetrarchy of Lysanias, while in another (Ant. xix. 5. § 1) he states that Abila Lysaniou was added by Claudius to the former dominions of Agrippa, but, in reality, these expressions must be explained as referring to the division of Abilene which took place on the death of Herod the Great. We find Abila mentioned among the places captured by Placidus
Placidus
Placidus is Latin for "placid, gentle, quiet, still, calm, mild, peaceful" and can refer to:*Flavius Arcadius Placidus Magnus Felix , Consul of Rome*Placidus de Titis , 1603–1668, astrolger...
, one of Vespasian
Vespasian
Vespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...
's generals, in 69 or 70 (Joseph. B. J. iv. 7. § 5), and from that time forward, it was permanently annexed to the province of Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
.
External links
- Smith, WilliamWilliam Smith (lexicographer)Sir William Smith Kt. was a noted English lexicographer.-Early life:Born at Enfield in 1813 of Nonconformist parents, he was originally destined for a theological career, but instead was articled to a solicitor. In his spare time he taught himself classics, and when he entered University College...
(editor); Dictionary of Greek and Roman GeographyDictionary of Greek and Roman GeographyThe Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, first published in 1854, was the last of a series of classical dictionaries edited by the English scholar William Smith , which included as sister works A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities and the Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and...
, "Abilene", LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, (1854)