Capernaum

VIEW:48 DATA:01-04-2020
the field of repentance; city of comfort
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary


CAPERNAUM.—The headquarters of Christ in His Galilæan ministry, after His rejection at Nazareth (Mat_4:13, Joh_2:12). Here he healed the centurion’s palsied servant (Mat_8:5-13, Luk_7:2-10), provided the half-shekel for the Temple tribute (Mat_17:24), taught in the synagogue (Mar_1:21, Luk_4:31, Joh_6:59), performed many miracles (Mar_1:23 to Mar_2:12, Luk_4:33-41), taught humility to the disciples (Mar_9:33), healed a nobleman’s son by a word from Cana (Joh_4:46). For its unbelief He denounced the city (Mat_11:23, Luk_10:15). Though it was evidently a town of considerable importance, the site is forgotten and is a matter of dispute. The two sites most in favour are Tell Hum and Khan Minyeh, both on the north side of the Sea of Galilee, the former about midway between the latter and the mouth of the Jordan. At Tell Hum are extensive ruins, including the remains of a synagogue. Khan Minyeh does not show such important remains, and, as these seem all to be Arab, the balance of probability is on the side of Tell Hum, whose name should probably be written Telhum, and regarded as a corruption of Caphar Tanhum, the Talmudic form of the city’s name (see the latest discussion on the subject in PEFST [Note: Quarterly Statement of the same.] 1907, p. 220). If the remains at Tell Hum are not Capernaum, it is difficult to say what important city they represent (see Sanday’s art. ‘Capernaum’ in Hastings’ DCG [Note: CG Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels.] ).
R. A. S. Macalister.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
Edited by James Hastings, D.D. Published in 1909


("the village of Nachum".) N.W. of sea of Tiberius, in the land of Gennesaret (now El Ghuweir. compare Mat_14:34 with Joh_6:17; Joh_6:21-24), a most populous and prosperous region. By some identified now with the mound at Khan Minyeh; by others with Tell Hum. Visited by Jesus for a few days (Joh_2:12); afterward "His own city" and home, to which He retired from Nazareth (where He was reared, as in Bethlehem He was born), when He heard that Herod Antipas, who often resided at Sepphoris, or Diocaesarea, near Nazareth, had imprisoned John the Baptist. Capernaum was less conspicuous, and more suited to be the center of the unobtrusive but energetic ministry of Jesus in Galilee. Remains of ancient potteries, tanneries, etc., still are seen at Tabiga, the manufacturing suburb of Capernaum The prophet Isaiah (Isa_9:2) had foretold that this region, namely, Zabulon and Nephthalim, the one most bordering on Gentile darkness, was to be the first to see the great light (Mat_4:12-16).
Designated "His own city" (Mat_9:1; Mar_2:1, "at home," KJV "in the house".) The scene of most of His mighty words, and therefore the most guilty in its impenitence. Mat_11:20-24; "exalted unto heaven" in privileges, it was doomed for neglect of them to be "brought down to hell." Josephus mentions a fountain in Gennesaret, "Capharnaum," identified by some with Ain et Tin (the spring of the fig tree) near Khan Minyeh. The "round fountain" is three miles southward. Tell Hum is three or four miles more to the N. than Khan Minyeh, and so more convenient for the people to run round the N. end of the lake afoot to the E. side while Jesus crossed there by water (Mar_6:32-33). Hum is the last. syllable of Kefr na hum, and was used as an abbreviation.
Tell Hum is the site, according to Arab and Jewish tradition. It is on a point of the shore running into the lake, and backed by rising ground, three miles from where the Jordan enters the lake. Ruins of walls and foundations cover a space half a mile long by a quarter wide. Josephus says: "Gennesaret plain is watered by a most fertile fountain, which the people call Capharnaum. Some have thought this fountain a vein of the Nile, since it produces a fish like the coracinus in the lake near Alexandria." The round fountain at Tabiga, two miles S. of Tell Hum, meets the requirements of Josephus' description. Tristram (Land of Israel) fixes on the round fountain Ain Mudawarah as the fount meant by Josephus (and the site of Capernaum); for he found in it the siluroid catfish or coracine, identical with that of the ponds of Lower Egypt. But this site is too far S., and the catfish is found in the lake also, and was probably in Tabiga.
The recent discovery of the aqueduct which once led Tabiga's waters into the plain of Gennesaret, watering the plain as Josephus describes, decides the question. And the city's site needs not to be put close to the fountain bearing its name in the time of Josephus. The synagogue called "the White Synagogue," is 74 ft. 9 in. long, and 56 ft. 9 inches broad, built N. and S., with three entrances at the S end. Luk_7:5; the centurion (probably of the detachment quartered there, for it was large enough to be called a "city ") "hath built us a (Greek text has "the"), i.e. our, synagogue," the only one in the place. Jairus was its "ruler." Vine leaves, and the pot of manna, are still to be seen among the rich carvings of the ruins Of the lintel at Tell Hum. If Jesus' discourse at Capernaum (Joh_6:31-32) was delivered in the synagogue of what is now Tell Hum, how appropriate is the Jews' reference to the manna, and His reply, "My Father giveth you the true bread from heaven."
Capernaum was lower than Nazareth and Cana, from whence He "went down" to it (Joh_2:12; Luk_4:31); the "exalted" in Mat_11:23 is not in respect to physical but spiritual elevation. There was a receipt of customs there of the commerce both of the lake and of the caravans passing by land by "the way of the sea" southwards. Here Levi, or Matthew, was called (Mat_9:9; Mat_17:24). Simon Peter and Andrew belonged to Capernaum (Mar_1:21-29), and perhaps received Jesus' call at the adjoining sea beach (Mar_1:16-17). He healed the centurion's servant there, and Simon's wife's mother (Mat_8:5; Mat_8:14), the paralytic (Mat_9:1), the unclean demon-possessed man (Luk_4:33). The nobleman's son at Capernaum was healed by Jesus at Cana (Joh_4:46). Jesus' teaching humility by a child occurred here (Mar_9:33-36). The utter uncertainty of the site shows the exact fulfillment of its doom foretold by the Lord.
Fausset's Bible Dictionary
By Andrew Robert Fausset, co-Author of Jamieson, Fausset and Brown's 1888.


Caper'naum. (village of Nahum). Capernaum was on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. Mat_4:13. Compare Joh_6:24. It was in the "land of Gennesaret," [Mat_14:34. Compare Joh_6:17; Joh_6:21; Joh_6:24.] It was of sufficient size to be always called a "city," Mat_9:1; Mar_1:33, had its own synagogue, in which our Lord frequently taught, Mar_1:21; Luk_4:33; Luk_4:38; Joh_6:59, and there was also a customs station, where the dues were gathered both by stationary and by itinerant officers. Mat_9:9; Mat_17:24; Mar_2:14; Luk_5:27.
The only interest attached to Capernaum is, as the residence of our Lord and his apostles, the scene of so many miracles and "gracious words." It was when he returned, thither, that he is said to have been "in the house." Mar_2:1. The spots which lay claim to its site are,
1. Kahn Minyeh, a mound of ruins which takes its name from an old khan hard by. This mound is situated close upon the seashore at the northwestern extremity of the plain (now El Ghuweir).
2. Three miles north of Khan Minyeh is the other claimant, Tell Hum, ? ruins of walls and foundations covering a space of half a mile long by a quarter wide, on a point of the shore projecting into the lake and backed by a very gently-rising ground. It is impossible to locate it with certainty, but the probability is in favor of Tell Hum.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
By Dr. William Smith.Published in 1863


a city celebrated in the Gospels, being the place where Jesus usually resided during the time of his ministry. It stood on the sea coast, that is, on the coast of the sea of Galilee, in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtalim, Mat_4:15, and consequently toward the upper part of it. As it was a convenient port from Galilee to any place on the other side of the sea, this might be our Lord's inducement to make it the place of his most constant residence. Upon this account Capernaum was highly honoured; and though “exalted unto heaven,” as its inhabitants boasted, because it made no proper use of this signal favour it drew from him the severe denunciation, that it should “be brought down to hell,” Mat_11:23. This sentence of destruction has been fully realized; the ancient city is reduced to a state of utter desolation. Burckhardt supposes the ruins called Tal Houm, near the rivulet called El Eshe, to be those of Capernaum. Mr. Buckingham, who gives this place the name of Talhhewn, describes considerable and extensive ruins; the only remains of those edifices which exalted Capernaum above its fellows.
Biblical and Theological Dictionary by Richard Watson
PRINTER 1849.


The important town of Capernaum was on the north-west shore of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus seems to have made it the base for his ministry in Galilee, and it became known as his home town (Mat_4:13; Mat_9:1; Mar_2:1; Mar_9:33; Joh_6:24). Another lakeside town, Bethsaida, was close by (Mar_6:43-45; Joh_6:13; Joh_6:17; for map see BETHSAIDA).
Capernaum was large enough to have its own tax collectors. One of these was Matthew, who later became a disciple of Jesus (Mar_2:1; Mar_2:13-15; cf. Mat_17:24). Among the town’s more important citizens were government officials and at least one Roman centurion (Mat_8:5; Mat_17:24; Joh_4:46). There was a large Jewish population in Capernaum and the town had several synagogues. Jesus often taught in these synagogues, but the people’s stubborn refusal to believe in him as the Messiah would one day bring God’s judgment upon them (Mat_11:23; Luk_4:31; Joh_6:59).
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary by Don Fleming
PRINTER 1990.


ka-pẽr?na-um (Καπερναούμ, Kapernaoúm (Textus Receptus), Καφαρναούμ, Kapharnaoúm (Codex Vaticanus, Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Bezae; etc.)): The woe spoken by the Master against this great city has been fulfilled to the uttermost (Mat_11:23; Luk_10:15). So completely has it perished that the very site is a matter of dispute today. In Scripture Capernaum is not mentioned outside the Gospels. When Jesus finally departed from Nazareth, He dwelt in Capernaum (Mat_4:13) and made it the main center of His activity during a large part of His public ministry. Near by He called the fishermen to follow Him (Mar_1:16), and the publican from the receipt of custom (Mat_9:9, etc.). It was the scene of many ?mighty works? (Mat_11:23; Mar_1:34). Here Jesus healed the centurion's son (Mat_8:5, etc.), the nobleman's son (Joh_4:46), Simon Peter's mother-in-law (Mar_1:31, etc.), and the paralytic (Mat_9:1, etc.); cast out the unclean spirit (Mar_1:23, etc.); and here also, probably, He raised Jairus' daughter to life (Mar_5:22, etc.). In Capernaum the little child was used to teach the disciples humility, while in the synagogue Jesus delivered His ever-memorable discourse on the bread of life (Jn 6).
From the notices in the Gospels we gather that Capernaum was a city of considerable importance. Some think that the words ?shalt thou be exalted,? etc. (Mat_11:23; Luk_10:15), mean that it stood on an elevated site. Perhaps more naturally they refer to the excessive pride of the inhabitants in their city. It was a customs station, and the residence of a high officer of the king (Mat_9:9; Joh_4:46, etc.). It was occupied by a detachment of Roman soldiers, whose commander thought the good will of the people worth securing at the expense of building for them a synagogue (Mat_8:5; Luk_7:5). It stood by the sea (Mat_4:13) and from Joh_6:17 (compare Mat_14:34; Mar_6:53), we see that it was either in or near the plain of Gennesaret.
Josephus twice mentions Capernaum. It played no great part in the history of his time, and seems to have declined in importance, as he refers to it as a ?village.? In battle in el-Baṭeiḥah his horse fell into a quagmire, and he suffered injury which disabled him for further fighting. His soldiers carried him to the village of Capernaum (this reference is however doubtful; the name as it stands is Kepharnomon which Niese corrects to Kepharnokon), whence he was removed to Tarichea (Vita, 72). Again he eulogizes the plain of Gennesaret for its wonderful fruits, and says it is watered by a most fertile fountain which the people of the country call Capharnaum. In the water of this fountain the Coracinus is found (BJ, III, x, 8). Josephus therefore corroborates the Biblical data, and adds the information as to the fountain and the Coracinus fish. The fish however is found in other fountains near the lake, and is therefore no help toward identification.
The two chief rivals for the honor of representing Capernaum are Tell Ḥūm, a ruined site on the lake shore, nearly 2 1/2 miles West of the mouth of the Jordan; and Khān Minyeh fully 2 1/2 miles farther west, at the Northeast corner of the plain of Gennesaret. Dr. Tristram suggested ‛Ain El-Madowwerah, a large spring enclosed by a circular wall, on the western edge of the plain. But it stands about a mile from the sea; there are no ruins to indicate that any considerable village ever stood here; and the water is available for only a small part of the plain.
In favor of Tell Ḥūm is Eusebius, Onomasticon, Which places Chorazin 2 miles from Capernaum. If Kerāzeh is Chorazin, this suits Tell Ḥūm better than Khān Minyeh. To this may be added the testimony of Theodosius (circa 530), Antoninus Martyr (600), and John of W?rtzburg (1100). Jewish tradition speaks of Tankhum, in which are the graves of Nahum and Rabbi Tankhum. Identifying Kefr Nahum with Tankhum, and then deriving Tell Ḥūm from Tankhum, some have sought to vindicate the claims of this site. But every link in that chain of argument is extremely precarious. A highway ran through Tell Ḥūm along which passed the caravans to and from the East; but the place was not in touch with the great north-and-south traffic.
There is also no fountain near Tell Ḥūm answering the description of Josephus. Of recent advocates of Tell Ḥūm, it is sufficient to name Sch?rer (HJP, IV, 71) and Buhl (GAP, 224 f). In this connection it may be interesting to note that the present writer, when visiting the place recently (1911), drew his boatman's attention to a bit of ruined wall rising above the greenery West of the lagoon, and asked what it was called. Kanı̄set el Kufry, was the reply, which may be freely rendered, ?church of the infidels.? This is just the Arabic equivalent of the Jewish ?church of the mı̄nı̄m.?
For Khān Minyeh it may be noted that Gennesaret corresponds to el-Ghuweir, the plain lying on the Northwest shore, and that Khān Minyeh stands at the Northeast extremity of the plain; Thus answering, as Tell Ḥūm cannot do, the description of the Gospels. The copious fountains at eṭ-Ṭābigha, half a mile to the East, supplied water which was conducted round the face of the rock toward Khān Minyeh at a height which made it possible to water a large portion of the plain. If it be said that Josephus must have been carried to Tell Ḥūm as being nearer the scene of his accident - see however, the comment above - it does not at all follow that he was taken to the nearest place. Arculf (1670) described Capernaum as on a ?narrow piece of ground between the mountain and the lake.? This does not apply to Tell Ḥūm; but it accurately fits Khān Minyeh. Isaac Chelo (1334) says that Capernaum, then in ruins, had been inhabited by Mı̄nı̄m, that is, Jewish converts to Christianity. The name Minyeh may have been derived from them. Quaresimus (1620-26) notes a Khān called Menieh which stood by the site of Capernaum. Between the ruined Khān and the sea there are traces of ancient buildings. Here the road from the East united with that which came down from the North by way of Khān Jubb Yusif, so that this must have been an important center, alike from the military point of view, and for customs. This is the site favored by, among others, G. A. Smith (HGHL, 456 f; EB, under the word) and Conder. Sanday argued in favor of Khān Minyeh in his book, The Sacred Sites of the Gospel, but later, owing to what the present writer thinks a mistaken view of the relation between Tell Ḥūm and the fountain at eṭ-Ṭābigha, changed his mind (Expository Times, XV, 100ff). There is no instance of a fountain 2 miles distant being called by the name of a town. Tell Ḥūm, standing on the sea shore, was independent of this fountain, whose strength also was spent in a westward direction, away from Tell Ḥūm.
The balance of evidence was therefore heavily in favor of Khān Minyeh until Professor R. A. S. Macalister published the results of his researches. He seems to be wrong in rejecting the name Tell Ḥūm in favor of Talḥum; and he falls into a curious error regarding the use of the word tell. No one who speaks Arabic, he says, ?would ever think of applying the word Tell, 'mound,' to this flat widespread ruin.? In Egyptian Arabic, however, tell means ?ruin?; and Asad Mansur, a man of education whose native language is Arabic, writes: ?I do not understand what the objectors mean by the word 'tell.' In Arabic 'tell' is used for any heap of ruins, or mound. So that the ruins of Tell Ḥūm themselves are today a 'tell'? (Expos, April, 1907, 370). Professor Macalister is on surer ground in discussing the pottery found on the rival sites. At Khān Minyeh he found nothing older than the Arabian period, while at Tell Ḥūm pottery of the Roman period abounds - ?exactly the period of the glory of Capernaum? (PEFS, April and July, 1907). If this be confirmed by further examination, it disposes of the claim of Khān Minyeh. Important Roman remains have now been found between the ruined Khān and the sea. It is no longer open to doubt that this was the site of a great Roman city. The Roman period however covers a long space. The buildings at Tell Ḥūm are by many assigned to the days of the Antonines. Is it possible from the remains of pottery to make certain that the city flourished in the time of the Herods? If the city at Tell Ḥūm had not yet arisen in the days of Christ, those who dispute its claim to be Capernaum are under no obligation to show which city the ruins represent. They are not the only extensive ruins in the country of whose history we are in ignorance.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
PRINTER 1915.


Caper?naum, a city on the north western side of the Lake of Gennesareth, and on the border of the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali. The infidelity and impenitence of the inhabitants of this place, after the evidence given to them by our Savior himself of the truth of his mission, brought upon them this heavy denunciation?'And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works which have been done in thee had been done in Sodom, it would have remained unto this day,' etc. (Mat_11:23). This seems to have been more than any other place the residence of Christ after He commenced His great mission; and hence the force of the denunciation, which has been so completely accomplished, that even the site of Capernaum is quite uncertain. Dr. Robinson is inclined to look for the site in a place marked only by a mound of ruins, called by the Arabs, Khan Minyeh. This is situated in the fertile plain on the western border of the Lake of Gennesareth, to which the name of 'the land of Gennesareth' is given by Josephus. This plain is a sort of triangular hollow, formed by the retreat of the mountains about the middle of the western shore. In this plain there are now two fountains, one called 'Ain el Madauwarah, the 'Round Fountain'?another called 'Ain et-Tin, near the northern extremity of the plain, and not far from the lake. This is the fountain which Dr. Robinson inclines to regard as that which Josephus mentions under the name of Capharnaum; and which we may conclude was not far from the town, and took its name from it. Near this fountain is a low mound of ruins, occupying a considerable circumference, which certainly offer the best probability that has yet been produced of being the remains of the doomed city: and if these be all its remains, it has, according to that doom, been brought low indeed.
The Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature
by John Kitto.


Capernaum
(Καπερναούμ; Lachm.: [with Codex B Καφαρναούμ, as if כְּפִר נִחוּם, village of Nahum” [from some unknown person of that name]; Syriac, Curetonian Kaaphar Nachum, Peshito Kaphar Nachum; Vulg. Capharnaum),, the name of a Galilasan city familiar as that of the scene of many acts and incidents in the life of Christ (see Stuart, Capernaum as the Scene of Christ's Miracles, 2d ed. London, 1864). There is no mention of Capernaum in the O.T. or Apocrypha, but the passage Isa_9:1 [Isaiah 8:23] is applied to it by Matthew. The word Caphar in the name perhaps indicates that the place was of late foundation. SEE CAPHAR-. There is named, however, by the rabbins (Midrash, Koheleth, fol. 89, Colossians 4) a place called Kephar-Nachuln (כפר נחום), which Reland (PaleSst. p. 689) presumes to be the Capernaum of the Gospels (see Otho, Lex. Rabb.' p. 118). Josephus also mentions a remarkable fountain, called by the natives Canpharnaum (Καφαρναούμ), watering the fertile “plain of Gennesareth” (War, 3:10, 8); as also a village by the name of Cepharnome (Κεφαρνώμη) in the same region (Life, 72). Ptolemy also (5:16, 4) calls it Caparnaum (Καπαρναούμ). Another Capernaum is mentioned by William of Tyre (De Bello Sacr. 10:26) on the Kishon, six leagues from Caesarea.
After the expulsion of Jesus from Nazareth (Luk_4:16-31; Mat_4:13-16), where he was “brought up,” Capernaum became emphatically his “own city;” it was when he returned thither that he is said to have been “at home” (Mar_2:1; such is the force of οἰκῷ — A.V. “in the house”). ‘Here he chose: the evangelist Matthew or Levi (Mat_9:9). The brothers Simon-Peter and Andrew belonged to Capernaum (Mar_1:29), and it is perhaps allowable to ‘imagine that it was on the sea-beach near the town (for, doubtless, like true Orientals, these two fishermen kept close to home), while Jesus was “walking” there, before “great multitudes” had learned to “gather together unto him,” that they heard the quiet call which was to make them forsake all and follow him (Mar_1:16-17; comp. Mar_1:28). It was here that Christ worked the miracle on the centurion's servant (Mat_7:5; Luk_7:1), on Simon's wife's mother (Mat_8:14; Mar_1:30; Luk_4:38), the paralytic (Mat_9:1; Mar_2:1; Luk_5:18), and the man afflicted with an unclean spirit (Mar_1:33; Luk_4:33). The son of the nobleman (Joh_4:46) was, though resident at Capernaum, healed by words which appear to have been spoken in; Cana of Galilee. At Capernaum occurred the emblematical incident of the child (Mar_9:33; Mat_18:1; comp. Mat_17:24); and in the synagogue there was spoken the remarkable discourse of John 6 (Joh_6:59). The infidelity and impenitence of the inhabitants of this place, after the evidence given to them by our Savior himself of the truth of his mission, brought upon them this heavy denunciation: "And thou, Capernaum, which art, exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell; for if the mighty works 'which have been done in thee had been done in Sodom, it would have remained unto this day," etc. (Mat_11:23). SEE GALILEE , SEA OF.
According to the notices of its situation in the N.T. Capernaum was on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee (τὴν παραθαλασσίαν, Mat_4:13; comp. Joh_6:24), and, if recent discoveries are to be trusted (Cureton's Nitrian Rec. Joh_6:17), was of sufficient importance to give to that sea, in whole or in part, the name of the "Lake of Capernaum." (This was the case also with Tiberias, at the other extremity of the lake. Comp. Joh_6:1, " the Sea of Galilee — of Tiberias.") It was in or near the "land of Gennesaret" (Mat_14:34, compared with Joh_6:17; Joh_6:21; Joh_6:24), that is, the rich, busy plain on the west shore of the lake, which we know from the descriptions of Josephus and from other sources to have been at that time one of the most prosperous and crowded districts in all Palestine. SEE GENNESARETH. Yet it was not far from the entrance of the Upper Jordan into the lake (Lightfoot, Hor. Hebr. p. 139). Being on the shore, Capernaum was lower than Nazareth and Cana of Galilee, from which the road to it was one of descent (Joh_2:12; Luk_4:31), a mode of speech which would apply to the general level of the spot, even if our Lord's expression, "exalted unto heaven" (ὑψωθεῖσα, Mat_11:23), had any reference to height of position in the town itself. It was of sufficient size to be always called a "city" (πόλις, Mat_9:1; Mar_1:33); had its own synagogue, in which our Lord frequently taught (Joh_6:59; Mar_1:21; Luk_4:33; Luk_4:38) — a synagogue built by the centurion of the detachment of Roman soldiers which appears to have been quartered in the place (Luk_7:1; comp. 8; Mat_8:8). But besides the garrison there was also a customs station, where the dues were gathered both by stationary (Mat_9:9; Mar_2:14; Luk_5:27) and by itinerant (Mat_17:24) officers (though the latter passage probably refers rather to the ecclesiastical or temple tax than to the Roman or secular one). If the "way of the sea" was the great road from Damascus to the south (Ritter, Erdk. 15:339), the duties may have been levied not only on the fish and other commerce of the lake, but on the caravans of merchandise passing to Galilee and Judaea. It was also near the border between the tribes of Zebulon and Naphtali (Mat_4:13). The doom which our Lord pronounced against Capernaum and the other unbelieving cities of the plain of Gennesareth has been remarkably fulfilled. In the present day no ecclesiastical tradition even ventures to fix its site; and the contest between the rival claims of the two most probable spots is one of the warmest, and at the same time the most difficult to decide, in sacred topography.
1. Dr. Robinson (Bibl. Researches, 3:288-294) exposes the errors of all previous travelers in their various attempts to identify the site of Capernaum; and from a hint in Quaresmius, he is rather inclined to look for it in a place marked only by a mound of ruins, called by the Arabs Khan Minyeh. This is situated at the north-eastern extremity of the fertile plain (now called El Ghuweir) on the western border of the Lake of Gennesareth, to which the name of "the land of Gennesareth" is given by Josephus (War, 3:10, 8). This plain is a sort of triangular hollow, formed by the retreat of the mountains about the middle of the western shore.' The base of this angle is along the shore, and is about one hour's journey in length, whereas it takes an hour and a half to trace the inner sides of the, plain. In this plain Josephus places a fountain called Capharnaum: he says nothing of the town; but if it can be collected from the scriptural intimations that the town of Capernaum was in this same plain (from a comparison of Mar_6:47, with Joh_6:19, it appears that it was at least six miles from the N.E. shore), it may be safely concluded that the fountain was not far from the town, and took its name therefrom. In this plain there are now two fountains, one called 'Ain et-Tin, the "Spring of the Fig," near the northern extremity of the plain, and not far from .the lake. It is surrounded by vegetation and overhung by a fig-tree, from which it derives its name. Near this are several other springs, the water of which is said to be brackish; but Burckhardt, who rested for some time under the great fig-tree, describes the water of the main source as sweet.
This is the fountain which Dr. Robinson inclines to regard as that which Josephus mentions under the name of Capharnaum. M. De Saulcy, however, contends, in his usual confident manner, against the conclusion of Dr. Robinson (Narrative, 2:357-365). In the new edition of his Researches (3:348), Dr. Robinson reviews the arguments and reaffirms his position. Three miles south, toward the other extremity of the plain, is the other large spring, called 'Ain el Mudauwarah, the " Round Fountain" — a large and beautiful fountain rising immediately at the foot of the western line of hills. This Pococke took to be the Fountain of Capernaum, and Dr. Robinson was at one time disposed to adopt this conclusion. The "Round Fountain" is a mile and a half from the lake, to which it sends a considerable stream with fish. Whichever of these fountains be that of Capharnaum, we should look for some traces of an ancient town in the vicinity, and, finding them, should be justified in supposing that they formed the remains of Capernaum. The only ancient remains of any kind near the Round Fountain are some large volcanic blocks strewed over the plain, or piled together with little architectural order. But near the 'Ain et- Tin is the low mound of ruins, occupying a considerable circumference, which, if Capernaum were situated in this plain, offer the best probability of being the re. mains of the doomed city; and if these be all its remains, it has, according to that doom, been brought low indeed. Near the fountain is also a khan, which gives the name of Khan linyeh to the spot. This khan is now in ruins, but was once a large and well built structure. Close on the north of this khan, and of the fountain, rocky hills of considerable elevation come down quite to the lake, and form the northern termination of the plain. It is important to add that Quaresmius expressly states that in his day the place called by the Arabs Menich (i.e. Minyeh) was regarded as marking the site of Capernaum (Elucid. Terr. Sanct. 2:864). The mention by Josephus (Life, 72) of a village called Kepharnome, situated between the mouth of the Jordan and Tarichaea, will agree with either location of Capernaum. Willibald, however (Vita, 16, 17), passed successively, on his way from Tiberias to the Upper Jordan, through Magdala, Capernaum, Bethsaida, and Chorazin, which would locate Capernaum at the southern end of the plain, if (as appears true) this also contained Chorazin. The latter may have been immediately on the shore, and Capernaum at a little distance from it (Luk_9:57; comp. Mat_8:18-19), as is the case at the southern spring, but not the northern.
The arguments in favor of Khan Minyeh may be found in Robinson's Researches (new ed. 2:403 sq.; 3:344-358). They are chiefly founded on Josephus's account of the fountain and of his visit to Cepharnome, which Dr. R. would identify with the mounds near the khan, and on the testimonies of successive travelers from Arculfus to Quares, mius, whose notices Dr. R. interprets — often, it must be confessed, not without difficulty — in reference to Khan Minyeh. The fountain Capharnaum, which Josephus mentions (War, 3:10, 8) in a very emphatic manner as a chief source of the water of the plain of Gennesareth and as abounding with fish, would, however, certainly answer better to the "Round Fountain" than to a spring so close to the shore and so near one end of the district as is 'Ain et-Tin. The claim of Khan ;Minyeh is also strongly opposed by a later traveler (Bonar, p. 437-41), as also by Van de Velde (Memoir, p. 301, 302) and Thomson (Land and Book, 1:542 sq.). Another objection to the site of Khan Minyeh is that the ancient town of Cinnereth appears to have lain north of Capernaum, and in this same plain of Gennesareth, SEE CINNERETH; from which it is most natural to infer that Capernaum lay at the southern end of the plain (at 'Ain el Mudauwarah), and Cinnereth at the northern ('Ain et-Tin). In that case, the approach of Christ and his disciples to Capernaum through the plain of Gennesareth (Mat_14:34) was from the north, the direction most likely in coming from their last point on the north-eastern shore of the lake; for then the disciples would have fallen short of their destination, owing to the head wind, and, after landing, first traversed the plain. The site of Abu Shusheh, however, is in some respects more likely to have given name to the plain, if that of the ancient Cinnereth, which will thus be distinguished from the localities of Capernaum and Chorazin. SEE BETHSAIDA.
2. Three miles north of Khan Minyeh: is the other claimant, Tell Hûm, containing ruins (very extensive, according to Bonar, p. 415 sq.) of walls and foundations covering a space of half a mile long by a quarter wide, on a point of the shore projecting into the lake, and backed by very gently rising ground. The shapeless remains are piled up in confusion all along the shore, and are much more striking than those of any other city on this part of the lake. With two exceptions, the houses were all built of basalt, quite black and very compact, but rudely cut. The stones of the temple, synagogue, or church, whatever it may have been, are of beautiful marble, cut from the mountains to the north-west (Thomson, 1:540). The ruins are described by Robinson (Researches, in, 297 sq.). Rather more than three miles farther north is the point at which the Jordan enters the north of the lake. The arguments in favor of Tell Hûm date from about 1675. The principal one is the name, which is maintained to be a relic of the Hebrew original — "Caphar" having given place to "Tell." Dr. Wilson also ranges Josephus on this side (Lands of the Bible, 2:139-149). See also Ritter (Erdk. 15:335-343), who supports the same locality, as do also Van de Velde, Bonar, and Thomson. Against Tell Hum, on the other hand, the following arguments seem almost conclusive:
(1) It is not near the boundary-line between Zebulon and Naphtali, as appears to be required by Mat_4:13.
(2) It is not likely to have been on the highway to Damascus (see above), for the mountains are so near the shore as to preclude this, while a thoroughfare still exists through the plain at the south.
(3) It is rather too near the head of the lake for the scriptural notices, and apparently in the wrong direction from the plain of Gennesareth.
(4) It does not by any means so well suit the indications in Josephus of the position of the spring of Capharnaum and village of Cepharnome: for
[1] the latter was near a swampy ground (evidently, from the numerous springs, in the loamy plain), and at no great distance from Tiberias (or, at farthest, Tarichaea);
[2] the fountain was a prominent feature in the plain of Gennesareth, which extended along the lake for three miles, apparently midway. To these arguments it may again be replied:
(a) The language of the Evangelist respecting the proximity of the boundary-line is not to be taken so strictly, since none of the places in question were really situated on the border.
(b) There is room enough for a road along the shore by Tell Hûm, for the shortest route to the head of the lake actually lies through it.
(c) The Scripture notices most in question relate to the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand, the scene of which may have been on the shore south-east of Bethsaida, beyond Jordan, and in that case Christ's return to Capernaum may have been from the south through the plain of Gennesareth.
(d) The misadventure of Josephus may have happened at the mouth of the Upper Jordan, and the place into, which he was borne was a "village" merely, not a large city like Capernaum, although the name of the latter may naturally have included adjacent localities, as we know it was extended to the entire plain.
On the whole, however, later archaeologists incline to the site of Khan Minyeh, where extensive ruins have recently been discovered, Bethsaida (q.v.) being, perhaps, to be located at Tell Hum; and this conclusion is greatly confirmed by the almost certain position of Chorazin at Bir- Kerazeh, a little to the N.W. (See Journal Sac. Lit. Oct. 1854, p. 162 sq.; July, 1855, p. 354 sq.; Bibl. Sacra, April, 1855, p. 263 sq.; Lond. Athenaeum, Feb. 24, March 31, 1866; Stud. u. Krit. 1867, 4). SEE CHORAZIN

CYCLOPEDIA OF BIBLICAL, THEOLOGICAL AND ECCLESIASTICAL
press 1895.





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