Lebanon

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white, incense
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary


LEBANON, now Jebel Lebnân, is mentioned more than 60 times in the OT. The name, from the root lâbân (‘white’), was probably given on account of the mountain’s covering of snow. The snow of Lebanon is mentioned in Jer_18:14. Many passages refer to its beauty, particularly in relation to its cedars and other trees (see Psa_72:16, Son_4:11, Hos_14:5; Hos_14:7). From Lebanon was obtained wood for building the first (2Ch_2:8) and the second (Ezr_3:7) Temple. Lebanon was famous for its fruitfulness (Psa_72:16) and its wine (Hos_14:7).
The term ‘Lebanon’ may be considered in most places as referring to the whole mountain mass, more correctly distinguished as Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon (Libanus and Antilibanus of Jdt_1:7). The two ranges traverse N. Syria, running roughly parallel, from S.W. to N.E., and are separated by a deep valley—the biq‘ah of Jos_11:17; Jos_12:7—known to-day as el-Buqa. The western range, Lebanon proper, is nearly 100 miles long, but the eastern, if Hermon is deducted as a separate entity, is only 65 miles long. The former range is divided from the mountains of Galilee by the deep chasm made by the Litâni river in its passage seawards. In the N. a somewhat similar gorge formed by the Nahr el-Kebîr, the ancient Eleutherus, divides it from the Jebel Nusairiyeh. The summits of the range rise in height from south to north. In the S. a few points attain to almost 7000 feet; in the centre, E. of Beyrout, Jebel Kuneiseh is 6960 feet, and Jebel Sannîn 8554 feet; further N., to the S.E. of Tripoli, is a great semicircular group of mountains, sometimes known as the ‘Cedar group,’ on account of the famous group of these trees in their midst, where the highest point, Jebel Mukhmal, reaches 10, 207 feet, and several other points are almost as lofty. Geologically the Lebanon is built of three main groups of strata. Lowest comes a thick layer of hard limestone, named—after its most characteristic fossil (Cidaris glandaria)—Glandaria limestone; above this are strata of Nubian sandstone, yellow and red in colour, and in places 1500 feet thick, overlaid and interlaced with strata of limestone containing fossil echinoderms and ammonites; and thirdly, above this group, and forming the bulk of the highest peaks, is another layer, many thousand feet thick in places, of a limestone containing countless fossils known as hippurites, radiolites, and such like. The sandstone strata are most important, for where they come to the surface is the richest soil and the most plentiful water, and here flourish most luxuriantly the pines which are such a characteristic feature of W. Lebanon scenery. A great contrast exists between the W. and E. slopes. The former are fertile and picturesque, while down their innumerable valleys course numberless mountain streams to feed the many rivers flowing seawards. The E. slopes are comparatively barren, and, except at one point, near Zahleh, there is no stream of importance. Of the Lebanon rivers besides the Nahr Litâni (Leontes) and the Nahr el-Kebîr (Eleutherus), the following may be enumerated from S. to N. as the more important: Nahr ez-Zaherani, Nahr el-‘Auwali (Bostrenus), Nahr Beirût (Magoras), Nahr el-Kelb (Lycus), Nahr Ibrahîm (Adonis), and the Nahr Qadîsha or ‘holy river,’ near Tripoli.
The Lebanon is still fairly well wooded in a few places, though very scantily compared with ancient times, when Hiram, king of Tyre, supplied Solomon with ‘cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees out of Lebanon’ (1Ki_5:6, 2Ch_2:8). In regard to cultivation there has been a very great improvement in recent years, and the terraced lower slopes of the mountain are now covered with mulberry, walnut, and olive trees as well as vines. Many of the views in the Lebanon are of most romantic beauty, and the climate of many parts is superb. Wild animals are certainly scarcer than in olden days. In the time of Tiglath-pileser 1. the elephant was hunted here, but it has long been extinct. Jackals, gazelles, hyænas, wolves, bears, and panthers (in order of commonness) are found and, inland from Sidon, the coney (Hyrax) abounds.
Politically the Lebanon rejoices in a freer and better government than any other part of Syria, as, since the massacres of 1860, a Christian governor, appointed with the approval of the European Powers, rules on behalf of the Sultan. The district, except in the N., is now extensively supplied with excellent carriage roads, and the range is crossed by the French railway from Beyrout to Damascus, the highest point traversed being 4880 feet above sea-level.
Between the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon is the great hollow known to the Greeks as Cœle-Syria, and to-day called Buqa‘ el-‘Azîz. Considered geologically, this wide valley is a product of the same great ‘fault’ as produced the deep Jordan valley. It is now a great, fertile, but little cultivated, plain, from 3 to 6 miles wide, and in its rise, not far from Baalbek, two famous rivers, the Litâni (Leontes), which flows S., and the Nahr el-Asi or Orontes, which flows N., and enters the sea near Antioch. This hollow plain, besides being crossed transversely by the Damascus railway and road, is traversed over more than half its length by the new line past Baalbek, Homs, and Hamath to Aleppo Some part of this plain, ‘the valley of the Lebanon, would appear to have been conquered by the Israelites (Jos_11:17).
The Anti-Lebanon is to-day known as Jebel esh-Sherki or ‘the east mountain,’ the equivalent of ‘Lebanon towards the sun-rising’ of Jos_13:5. In Son_7:4 it is referred to as ‘the tower of Lebanon that looketh towards Damascus.’ In Deu_1:7; Deu_3:25; Deu_11:24, Jos_1:4; Jos_9:1, the Heb. ‘Lebanon’ is in the LXX [Note: Septuagint.] tr. [Note: translate or translation.] ‘Anti-Lebanon.’ Anti-Lebanon is somewhat arbitrarily divided from Hermon, which is structurally its S. extremity, by a, pass (along which the French diligence road runs), and especially by the Wady Barada. In the N. it terminates in the plain around Homs. Its highest point is Tâla’ at Mûsa (8755 feet), but several other peaks are almost as lofty. A valley, like the Buqa‘ in miniature, traverses the S. part of the range from N. to S., and in this rises the Nahr Yafûfeh, which empties its waters down the Wady Yafûfeh to join the Litâni; and the Nahr Barada, which, after rising in a beautiful pool at the S.W. extremity of this plain, runs down the Wady Barada to Damascus. The N. part of this range is very bare and wild.
E. W. G. Masterman.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
Edited by James Hastings, D.D. Published in 1909

"exceeding white", namely, with snow, as Mont Blanc. In Hebrew Lebanon, related to "alp". The double mountain range N. of Palestine, running in parallel lines from S.W. to N.E., having between the fertile valley anciently called Coelosyria, now El Beka'a (where are the grand ruins of the temple of the sun), about six or seven miles wide, "the valley of Lebanon" (Jos_11:17). The range is about 80 miles long, 15 broad. It forms the northern head of the Jordan valley and the southern head of the Orontes valley. (See HAMATH.) The western range is the region of the Hivites and Giblites (Jos_13:5; Jdg_3:3). (See GIBLITES.) The eastern range was Antilibanus, or "Lebanon toward the sunrising." The wady et Teim separates the southern part of Antilibanus from Lebanon and also from the Galilee hills. The river Leontes (Litany) sweeps round its southern end, and drains Coelo-Syria, falling into the Mediterranean five miles N. of Tyre.
Lebanon runs parallel to the coast in the plain of Emesa opening from the Mediterranean, in Scripture "the entering in (i.e. entrance) of Hamath" (1Ki_8:75). The river Eleutherus (nahr el Kebir) here sweeps round its northern end. The average height is 7,000 ft. But one peak, Dhor el Khodib, N. of the cedars, is 10,051 ft.; and Hermon in Antilebanon is 10,125 ft.. Lebanon is of grey limestone, with belts of recent sandstone along the western slopes. Eastward in the glens of Antilibanus flow toward Damascus Abana (Barada) and Pharpar (nahr el Awaj). All that now represents Hiram's cedar forests is the cluster called "the cedars," 6,172 ft. above the sea, in the center of the vast recess or semicircle formed by the highest summits of Lebanon above the deep valley of the sacred river Kadisha. (See CEDARS.) Odorous flowers and aromatic shrubs and vines still yield" the smell of Lebanon" wafted by the mountain breeze (Son_4:11).
The line of cultivation runs at the height of 6,000 ft. Every available space is utilized for figtrees, vines, mulberry trees, and olives. Numerous villages nestle amidst the rocks. The trees striking their roots into the fissures of rocks illustrate Hos_14:5, "Israel shall strike forth his roots as Lebanon." Lebanon is a delightful retreat from the sultry heat of the plains and of Palestine, cooled as it is by the snows which crown its peaks. Jeremiah (Jer_18:14) asks, "will a man leave the snow of Lebanon which cometh from the rock of the field (a poetical name for Lebanon towering above the surrounding plain)? Or shall the cold flowing waters that come from another place (from the distant rocks) be forsaken?" None. Yet Israel forsakes Jehovah the living fountain, ever near, for broken cisterns. Hyaenas, panthers, jackals, wolves, and bears still haunt its glens and peaks (compare Son_4:8; 2Ki_14:9).
The river Adonis (nahr Ibrahim) springs from a cave beneath the high peak Sunnin. The plain of Phoenicia, two miles wide, runs at the base of Lebanon between it and the sea. The eastern slopes are less abrupt and fertile than the western. Maronite Christians people the northern part of the range; Druses abound more in the southern. Lebanon was assigned to Israel, but never conquered (Jos_13:2-6; Jdg_3:1-3). It was under the Phoenicians in Solomon's time and subsequently (1Ki_5:2-6; Ezr_3:7). Antilibanus is less peopled than Lebanon, and has more wild beasts: Son_4:8, "look from the top of Amana, from ... Shenir and Hermon ... the lions' den ... the mountains of the leopards," referring to the two higher peaks, Hermon, and that near the fountain of Abana, where panthers still are found. "The tower of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus" is Hermon (Son_7:4).
Fausset's Bible Dictionary
By Andrew Robert Fausset, co-Author of Jamieson, Fausset and Brown's 1888.

Leb'anon. A mountain range in the north of Palestine. The name Lebanon signifies white, and was applied either , on account of snow which, during a great part of the year, cover its whole summit, or on account of the white color of its limestone cliffs and peaks. It is the "white mountain" ? the Mont Blane of Palestine. Lebanon is represented in Scripture as lying upon the northern border of the land of Israel. Deu_1:7; Deu_11:24; Jos_1:4.
Two distinct ranges bear this name. They run in parallel lines from southwest to northeast for about 90 geographical miles, enclosing between them a long, fertile valley from five to eight miles wide, anciently called Coele-Syria. The western range is the "Libanus" of the old geographers and the Lebanon of Scripture. The eastern range was called "Anti-Libanus" by geographers, and "Lebanon toward the sunrising" by the sacred writers. Jos_13:5.
Lebanon ? the western range ? commences on the south of the deep ravine of the Litany, the ancient river Leontes, which drains the valley of Cole-Syria, and falls into the Mediterranean five miles north of Tyre. It runs northeast in a straight line parallel to the coast, to the opening from the Mediterranean into the plain of Emesa, called in Scripture the "entrance of Hamath." Num_34:8. Here Nehr el-Kebir ? the ancient river Eleutherus ? sweeps round its northern end, as the Leontes does round its southern.
The average elevation of the range is from 6000 to 8000 feet; but two peaks rise considerably higher. On the summits of both these peaks, the snow remains in patches during the whole summer. The line of cultivation runs along at the height of about 6000 feet; and below this the features of the western slopes are entirely different. The rugged limestone banks are scantily clothed with the evergreen oak, and the sandstone with pines; while every available spot is carefully cultivated. The cultivation is wonderful, and shows what all Syria might be if under a good government. Fig trees cling to the naked rock; vines are trained along narrow ledges; long ranges of mulberries, on terraces like steps of stairs, cover the more gentle declivities; and dense groves of olives fill up the bottoms of the glens.
Hundreds of villages are seen ? here, built among labyrinths of rocks, there, clinging like among labyrinths of rocks, there, clinging like swallows' nests to the sides of cliffs; while convents, no less numerous, are perched on the top of every peak. The vine is still largely cultivated in every part of the mountain. Lebanon also abounds in olives, figs and mulberries; while some remnants exist of the forests of pine, oak and cedar which formerly covered it. 1Ki_5:6; Ezr_3:7; Psa_29:5; Isa_14:8.
Considerable numbers of wild beasts still inhabit its retired glens and higher peaks; the writer has seen jackals, hyaenas, wolves, bears and panthers. 2Ki_14:9; Son_4:8; Hab 2:17. Along the base of Lebanon runs the irregular plain of Phoenicia ? nowhere more than two miles wide, and often interrupted by bold rocky spurs that dip into the sea.
The main ridge of Lebanon is composed of Jura limestone, and abounds in fossils. Long belts of more recent sandstone run along the western slopes, which are in places largely impregnated with iron. Lebanon was originally inhabited by the Hivites and Giblites. Jos_13:5-6; Jdg_3:3. The whole mountain range was assigned to the Israelites, but was never conquered by them. Jos_13:2-6; Jdg_3:1-3. During the Jewish monarchy it appears to have been subject of the Phoenicians. 1Ki_5:2-6; Ezr_3:7. From the Greek conquest until modern times, Lebanon had no separate history.
2. Anti-Libanus. ? The main chain of Anti-Libanus commences in the plateau of Bashan, near the parallel of Caesarea Philippi, runs north to Hermon, and then northeast in a straight line, till it stinks down into the great plain of Emesa, not far from the site of Riblah.
Hermon is the loftiest peak; the next highest is a few miles north of the site of Abila, beside the village of Bludan, and has an elevation of about 7000 feet. The rest of the ridge averages about 5000 feet; it is, in general, bleak and barren, with shelving gray declivities, gray cliffs and gray rounded summits.
Here and there, we meet with thin forests of dwarf oak and juniper. The western slopes descend abruptly into the Buka'a; but the features of the eastern are entirely different. Three side ridges here radiate from Hermon, like the ribs of an open fan, and form the supporting walls of three great terraces. Anti-Libanus is only once distinctly mentioned in Scripture, where it is accurately described as "Lebanon toward the sunrising." Jos_13:5.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
By Dr. William Smith.Published in 1863

or LIBANUS, signifying white, from its snows,—the most elevated mountain or mountain chain in Syria, celebrated in all ages for its cedars; which, as is well known, furnished the wood for Solomon's temple. This mountain is the centre, or nucleus, of all the mountain ridges which, from the north, the south, and the east, converge toward this point; but it overtops them all. This configuration of the mountains, and the superiority of Lebanon, are particularly striking to the traveller approaching both from the Mediterranean on the west. and the desert on the east. On either side, he first discovers, at a great distance, a clouded ridge, stretching from north to south, as far as the eye can see; the central summits of which are capped with clouds, or tipped with snow. This is Lebanon, which is often referred to in Holy Writ for its streams, its timber, and its wines; and at the present day the seat of the only portion of freedom of which Syria can boast.
The altitude of Lebanon is so considerable, that it appears from the reports of travellers to have snow on its highest eminences all the year round. Volney says, that it thus remains toward the north-east, where it is sheltered from the sea winds and the rays of the sun. Maundrell found that part of the mountain which he crossed, and which in all probability was by no means the highest, covered with deep snow in the month of May. Dr. E. D. Clarke, in the month of July, saw some of the eastern summits of Lebanon, or Anti-Libanus, near Damascus, covered with snow, not lying in patches, as is common in the summer season with mountains which border on the line of perpetual congelation, but do not quite reach it, but with that perfect white, smooth, and velvet-like appearance, which snow only exhibits when it is very deep,—a striking spectacle in such a climate, where the beholder, seeking protection from a burning sun, almost considers the firmament to be on fire. At the time this observation was made, the thermometer, in an elevated situation near the sea of Tiberias, stood at 102½ in the shade. Sir Frederic Henniker passed over snow in July; and Ali Bey describes the same eastern ridge as covered with snow in September. Of the noble cedars which once adorned the upper parts of this mountain but few now remain, and those much decayed. Burckhardt, who crossed Mount Libanus in 1810, counted about thirty-six large ones, fifty of middle size, and about three hundred smaller and young ones: but more might exist in other parts of the mountain. The wine, especially that made about the convent of Canobin, still preserves its ancient celebrity; and is reported by travellers, more particularly by Rauwolff, Le Bruyn, and De la Roque, to be of the most exquisite kind for flavour and fragrance. The rains which fall in the lower regions of Lebanon, and the melting of the snow in the upper ones, furnish an abundance of perennial streams, which are alluded to by Solomon, Son_4:15. On the declivities of the mountain grew the vines which furnished the rich and fragrant wine which Hosea celebrated, Hos_14:7, and which may still be obtained by proper culture.
The cedar of Lebanon has, in all ages, been reckoned as an object of unrivalled grandeur and beauty in the vegetable kingdom. It is, accordingly, one of the natural images which frequently occur in the poetical style of the Hebrew prophets; and is appropriated to denote kings, princes, and potentates of the highest rank. Thus, the Prophet Isaiah, whose writings abound with metaphors and allegories of this kind, in denouncing the judgments of God upon the proud and arrogant, declares that “the day of the Lord of Hosts shall be upon all the cedars of Lebanon that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,” Isa_2:13. The king of Israel used the same figure in his reply to the challenge of the king of Judah: “The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife: and there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trod down the thistle,” 2Ki_14:9. The spiritual prosperity of the righteous man is compared by the Psalmist to the same noble plant: “The righteous shall flourish as the palm- tree; he shall grow as the cedar in Lebanon.” To break the cedars, and shake the enormous mass on which they grow, are the figures that David selects to express the awful majesty and power of Jehovah: “The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars: yea, the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon. He maketh them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn,” Psa_29:4-6. This description of the divine majesty and power possesses a character of awful sublimity.
The stupendous size, the extensive range, and great elevation of Libanus; its towering summits capped with perpetual snow, or crowned with fragrant cedars; its olive plantations; its vineyards, producing the most delicious wines; its clear fountains, and cold-flowing brooks; its fertile vales, and odoriferous shrubberies,—combine to form in Scripture language, “the glory of Lebanon.” But that glory, liable to change, has, by the unanimous consent of modern travellers, suffered a sensisible decline. The extensive forests of cedar, which adorned and perfumed the summits and declivities of those mountains, have almost disappeared. Only a small number of these “trees of God, planted by his almighty hand,” which, according to the usual import of the phrase, signally displayed the divine power, wisdom, and goodness, now remain. Their countless number in the days of Solomon, and their prodigious bulk, must be recollected, in order to feel the force of that sublime declaration of the prophet: “Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering,”
Isa_40:16. Though the trembling sinner were to make choice of Lebanon for the altar; were to cut down all its forests to form the pile; though the fragrance of this fuel, with all its odoriferous gums, were the incense; the wine of Lebanon pressed from all its vineyards, the libation; and all its beasts, the propitiatory sacrifice; all would prove insufficient to make atonement for the sins of men; would be regarded as nothing in the eyes of the supreme Judge for the expiation of even one transgression. The just and holy law of God requires a nobler altar, a costlier sacrifice, and a sweeter perfume,—the obedience and death of a divine Person to atone for our sins, and the incense of his continual intercession to secure our acceptance with the Father of mercies, and admission into the mansions of eternal rest. The conversion of the Gentile nations from the worship of idols and the bondage of corruption, to the service and enjoyment of the true God, is foretold in these beautiful and striking terms: “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them: and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing; the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon: they shall see the glory of the Lord. and the excellency of our God.” Isa_35:4.
Biblical and Theological Dictionary by Richard Watson
PRINTER 1849.

Lebanon was the name of a mountain range north of Israel between Phoenicia and Syria. It ran parallel to the coast, leaving only a narrow coastal plain for the Phoenician cities, most important of which were Tyre and Sidon (see PHOENICIA). The range gave its name to much of the surrounding territory, and even today the nation that occupies this region is called Lebanon.

The Lebanon Range actually consisted of twin parallel ranges. The western half was referred to simply as Lebanon, and the other half as East Lebanon or Antilebanon (Jos_13:5). The range extended from Mt Hermon, in the border regions of Israel, north to a mountain pass known as ‘the entrance of Hamath’. This was the gap between the twin ranges where Lebanon opened on to the Syrian plain (see HAMATH; HERMON).
Lebanon was considered to be the northern boundary of the land promised to Israel (Deu_11:24), but Israel’s conquest under Joshua extended no further than Mt Hermon (Jos_11:16-17). The rest of the Lebanon Range remained unconquered (Jdg_3:1-3). Only for two brief periods, first during the reign of Solomon and later during the reign of Jeroboam II, did Israel’s territory reach as far as the entrance of Hamath. This was considered the ideal northern border of Israel (2Ch_8:3-4; 2Ki_14:25; Amo_6:14).
The lower slopes of Lebanon towards the Phoenician plain were very fertile (Psa_72:16; Hos_14:5-7). Further up the mountains were the forests of cedar trees for which Lebanon became famous (Psa_104:16; Song of Son_5:15). These mighty cedars were symbols of majesty and strength (2Ki_14:9; Psa_92:12-13; Isa_35:2; Isa_60:13), but they could also be symbols of pride and arrogance (Isa_2:12-13; Isa_10:33-34; Eze_31:3-14). Cedar from Lebanon was beautiful, enduring and expensive, and people considered that anything made from it was the finest and best (Song of Son_3:9; Eze_27:5). Solomon used it extravagantly in the building of his temple, palace and government buildings (1Ki_5:1-11; 1Ki_7:1-8).
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary by Don Fleming
PRINTER 1990.

leb?a-non (לבנון, lebānōn; Septuagint Λίβανος, Lı́banos; Vulgate (Jerome's Latin Bible, 390-405 A.D.) Libanus):

1. Name:
Derived from the root לבן, lābhēn, ?to be white,? probably from the snow which covers its summits the greater part of the year. ?White mountains? are found in almost every country. The light color of the upper limestone may, however, form a sufficient reason for the name. In prose the article is usually connected with the name. In poetry it is more often without the article. In the Septuagint, however, the article is generally present both in prose and poetry.

2. General Description:
The Lebanon range proper borders the east coast of the Mediterranean, for a distance of 100 miles, running North-Northeast and South-Southwest from the mouth of the Litâny river, the classic Leontes (which enters the sea a little North of Tyre), to the mouth of the Eleuthurus (Nahr el-Kebir), a few miles North of Tripolis. This river comes through a depression between Lebanon and the Nuseiriyeh mountains, known as ?the entrance to Hamath,? and connects with a caravan route to the Euphrates through Palmyra. For a considerable distance North of the Litâny, the mountain summits average from 4,000 to 6,000 ft. in height, and the range is more or less dissected by short streams which enter the Mediterranean. Most prominent of these is the Nahr ez-Zaherâny, which, after running 25 or 30 miles in a southerly direction through the center of the range, like the Litâny, turns abruptly West opposite Mt. Hermon, reaching the sea between Tyre and Sidon. In roughly parallel courses Nahr el-‛Awleh and Nahr Damur descend to the sea between Sidon and Beyrout, and Nahr Beyrout just North of the city. Throughout this district the mountain recesses are more or less wooded. Opposite Beyrout the range rises in Jebel Sannin to an elevation of 8,560 ft. Thirty miles farther Northeast the summit is reached in Jebel Mukhmal, at an elevation of 10,225 ft., with several others of nearly the same height. An amphitheater here opens to the West, in which is sheltered the most frequented cedar grove, and from which emerges the Nahr Ḳadı̂sha (?sacred stream?) which enters the Mediterranean at Tripolis. Snow is found upon these summits throughout the year (Jer_18:14), while formerly the level area between them furnished the snow fields from which a glacier descended several miles into the headwaters of the Ḳadı̂sha, reaching a level of about 5,000 ft. The glacier deposited in this amphitheater a terminal moraine covering several square miles, which at its front, near Bsherreh, is 1,000 ft. in thickness. It is on this that the grove of cedars referred to is growing.
The view from this summit reveals the geographical features of the region in a most satisfactory manner. Toward the East lies Coele-Syria (the modern Buka), 7,000 ft. below the summit, bordered on the eastern side by the mountain wall of Anti-Lebanon, corresponding to the cliffs of Moab East of the Jordan valley, opposite Judea. This depression in fact is but a continuation of the great geological fault so conspicuous in the Jordan valley (see ARABAH). As one looks down into this valley, Ba‛albek appears at the base of Anti-Lebanon, only 20 miles away. The valley is here about 10 miles wide, and forms the watershed between the Orontes and the Litâny. To the Northeast the valley of the Orontes is soon obscured by intervening peaks, but to the Southwest the valley of the Litâny closes up only where the glistering peak of Mt. Hermon pierces the sky, as the river turns abruptly toward the sea 40 miles distant. Toward the West, the blue waters of the Mediterranean, only 25 miles distant as the crow flies, show themselves at intervals through the gorges cut by the rapid streams which have furrowed the western flanks of the mountain (Son_4:15); 3,500 ft. beneath is the amphitheater many square miles in area, filled with the terminal moraine from which the Ḳadı̂sha river emerges, and on which the grove of cedars (compare 1Ki_4:33; Psa_92:12; Hos_14:5) appears as a green spot in the center. Onward to the West the river gorge winds its way amid numerous picturesque village sites and terraced fields, every foot of which is cultivated by a frugal and industrious people. To the traveler who has made the diagonal journey from Beirut to the cedars, memory fills in innumerable details which are concealed from vision at any one time. He has crossed Nahr el-Kelb (?Dog River?), near its mouth, where he has seen Egyptian and Assyrian inscriptions dating from the time of Sennacherib's invasion. Ascending this river, after passing numerous villages surrounded by mulberry and olive groves, vineyards, and fields of wheat, and pausing to study the ruins of a temple dating from Roman times, and having crossed a natural bridge at Jisr el-Hagar with a span of 120 ft., rising 75 ft. above the stream, he arrives, at the end of the second day, at the ruins of the famous temple of Venus destroyed by the order of Constantine on account of the impurity of the rites celebrated in it. Here, too, is a famous spring, typical of many others which gush forth on either side of the Lebanon range from beneath the thick deposits of limestone which everywhere crown its summit. The flow of water is enormous, and at certain seasons of the year is colored red with a mineral matter which the ancients regarded with mysterious reverence (see LB, III, 244). The lower part of the amphitheater is covered with verdure and a scanty growth of pine and walnut trees, but the upper part merges in the barren cliffs which lie above the snow line. Onward, alternately through upturned limestone strata, left by erosion in fantastic forms, and through barren areas of red sandstone, where the cedars of Lebanon would flourish if protected from the depredations of man and his domestic animals, he crosses by turns at higher and higher levels the headwaters of the Ibrahim, Fedar, Jozeh, Byblus and the Botrys rivers, and at length reaches, on the fourth day, the Ḳadı̂sha, 5 miles below the cedars of Lebanon. Viewed from the Mediterranean the Lebanon range presents a continuous undulating outline of light-colored limestone peaks, the whole rising so abruptly from the sea that through most of the distance there is barely room for a road along the shore, while in places even that is prevented by rocky promontories projecting boldly into the sea. The only harbors of importance are at Beyrout and Tripolis, and these are only partially protected, being open to the Northwest. The eastern face of the range falling down into Coele-Syria is very abrupt, with no foothills and but one or two important valleys.

3. Geology:
Geologically considered, the Lebanon consists of three conformable strata of rock thrown up in an anticline with its steepest face to the East. The lowest of these are several thousand ft. thick, consisting of hard limestone containing few fossils, the most characteristic of which is Cidaris glandaria, from which the formation has been named Glandarian limestone. In its foldings this has been elevated in places to a height of 5,000 ft. Through erosion it is exposed in numerous places, where it presents picturesque castellated columns, whose bluish-gray sides are beautifully fluted by atmospheric agencies. The second formation consists of several hundred feet of red-colored sandstone alternating with soft limestone and clay deposits, occasionally containing a poor quality of bituminous coal, with pyrites and efflorescent salts. It is this that occasionally colors the water of the spring at Adonis. The characteristic fossil is Trigonia syriaca. Altogether this formation attains a thickness of 1,000 ft., and it is on its exposed surfaces that the most of the Lebanon pines are found. It contains also many signs of volcanic action. The third formation consists of hippurite limestone, a cretaceous formation, in some places almost wholly composed of fragments of the fossils from which it derives its name. This formation appears on all the highest summits, where in most cases it is nearly horizontal, and in places attains a thickness of 5,000 ft. Between the summits of the range and the foothills this formation has been almost wholly carried away by erosion, thus exposing the underlying formations. Cretaceous strata of still later age are found at low levels near the sea, which in places are covered by small deposits of Tertiary limestone, and by a porous sandstone of the Pleistocene age.

4. Scenery:
The scenery of the western slopes of Lebanon is most varied, magnificent, and beautiful, and well calculated, as indeed it did to impress the imagination of the Hebrew poets. Originally it was heavily covered with forests of pine, oak and cedar; but these have for the most part long since disappeared, except in the valley of Nahr Ibrahim, which is still thickly wooded with pine, oak and plane trees. Of the cedars there remain, besides the grove at the head of the Ḳadı̂sha, only two or three, and they are of less importance. Every available spot on the western flanks of the Lebanon is cultivated, being sown with wheat or planted with the vine, the olive, the mulberry and the walnut. Irrigation is extensively practiced. When we let the eye range from the snowy summits of the mountain over all that lies between them and the orange groves of Sidon on the seashore, we understand why the Arabs say that ?Lebanon bears winter on its head, spring on its shoulders, autumn in its lap, while summer lies at its feet.?
In the more desolate places jackals, hyenas, wolves, and panthers are still found (compare 2Ki_14:9).

5. History:
The original inhabitants of Lebanon were Hivites and Gebalites (Jdg_3:3; Jos_13:5, Jos_13:6). The whole mountain range was assigned to the Israelites, but was never conquered by them. It seemed generally to have been subject to the Phoenicians. At present it is occupied by various sects of Christians and Mohammedans, of whom the Maronites, Druzes and Orthodox Greeks are most active and prominent. Since 1860 the region has been under the protection of European powers with a Christian governor. No exact figures are available, but the population at present numbers probably about 275,000.
Ruins of ancient temples are numerous throughout Lebanon. Bacon estimates that within a radius of 20 miles of Ba‛albek there are 15 ruined sun-temples, the grandeur and beauty of which would have made them famous but for the surpassing splendor of Ba‛albek.

6. Anti-Lebanon:
Anti-Libanus (Judith 1:7; Jos_13:5; Son_7:4) is an extension northward of the great mountain system facing on the East the great geological fault most conspicuous in the valley of the Jordan (see JORDAN, VALLEY OF), extending from the Gulf of Akabah to Antioch on the Orontes River. The system begins at the Barada River just North of Mt. Hermon, and, running parallel to Mt. Lebanon for 65 miles, terminates at Ḥums, the ?entering in of Hamath.? The highest points of the range reach an elevation of over 8,000 ft. Eastward the range merges into the plateau of the great Syrian desert. South of Ba‛albek the Yahfufah, a stream of considerable importance, empties into the Litâny, while the Barada (the ?Abana? of Scripture), rising in the same plateau, flows eastward to Damascus, its volume being greatly increased by fountains coming in from the base of the dissected plateau.

Literature.
The geographical and geological descriptions are largely obtained by the writer from an extended excursion through the region in the company of Professor Day of the Protestant College at Beirut, whose knowledge of the region is most intimate and comprehensive. For more detailed information see Robinson, BRP2, II, 435 ff, 493; G. A. Smith, HGHL, 45 ff; Burton and Drake, Unexplored Syria; Benjamin W. Bacon, and G.F. Wright in Records of the Past, 1906, V, 67-83, 195-204; Baedeker-Socin, Palestine.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
PRINTER 1915.

Leb?anon, a long chain of mountains on the northern border of Palestine. The term Libanus is more convenient in use than the Hebrew form Lebanon, as enabling us to distinguish the parallel ranges of Libanus and Anti-Libanus, which have no such distinctive names in connection with the Hebrew designation. Lebanon seems to be applied in Scripture to either or both of these ranges; and we shall also use it in this general sense: but Libanus means distinctively the westernmost of those ranges, which faces the Mediterranean, and Anti-Libanus the eastern, facing the plain of Damascus; in which sense these names will be used in this article. The present inhabitants of the country have found the convenience of distinguishing these parallel ranges; and give to Libanus the name of 'Western Mountain' (Jebel esh-Sharki), and to Anti-Libanus that of 'Eastern Mountain' (Jebel el-Gharbi); although Jebel Libnan (the same name in fact as Lebanon) occurs among the Arabs with special reference to the eastern range.
These two great ranges, which together form the Lebanon of Scripture, commence about the parallel of Tripoli (lat. 34? 28′), run in a general direction from N.E. to S.W., through about one degree of latitude, and form, at their southern termination, the natural frontier of Palestine. These parallel ranges enclose between them a fertile and well-watered valley, averaging about fifteen miles in width, which is the C?le-Syria (Hollow Syria) of the ancients, but is called by the present inhabitants, by way of pre-eminence, el-Bekaa, or 'the Valley,' which is watered through the greater portion of its length by the river Litany, the ancient Leontes.
Nearly opposite Damascus the Anti-Libanus separates into two ridges, which diverge somewhat, and enclose the fertile Wady et-Teim. The easternmost of these two ridges, which has already been pointed out as the Hermon of Scripture [HERMON], Jebel esh-Sheikh, continues its S.W. course, and is the proper prolongation of Anti-Libanus. From the base of the higher part of this ridge, a low broad spur or mountainous tract runs off towards the south, forming the high land which shuts in the basin and Lake of el-Huleh on the east. This tract is called Jebel Heish, the higher portion of which terminates at Tel el-Faras, nearly three hours north of Fiek. The other ridge of Anti-Libanus takes a more westerly direction. It is long, low, and level; and continues to border the lower part of the great valley of Bekaa, until it seems to unite with the higher bluffs and spurs of Lebanon, and thus entirely to close that valley. In fact, only a narrow gorge is here left between precipices, in some places of great height, through which the Litany finds its way down to the sea, north of Tyre. The chain of Lebanon, or at least its higher ridges, may be said to terminate at the point where it is thus broken through by the Litany. But a broad and lower mountainous tract continues towards the south, bordering the basin of the Huleh on the west. It rises to its greatest elevation about Safed (Jebel Safed); and at length ends abruptly in the mountains of Nazareth, as the northern wall of the Plain of Esdraelon. This high tract may very properly be regarded as a prolongation of Lebanon.
The mountains of Lebanon are of limestone rock, generally of a whitish hue, and from the aspect which the range thus bears in the distance, in its cliffs and naked parts, the name of Lebanon (which signifies 'white') has been supposed to be derived; but others seek its origin in the snows which rest long upon its summits, and perpetually upon the highest of them.
Of the two ranges, that of Libanus is by far the highest. Its uppermost ridge is marked by a line, drawn at the distance of about two hours' journey from the summit, above which all is barren; but the slopes and valleys below this line afford pasturage, and are capable of cultivation, by reason of the numerous springs which are met with in all directions. Cultivation is, however, chiefly found on the seaward slopes, where numerous villages flourish, and every inch of ground is turned to account by the industrious natives, who, in the absence of natural levels, construct artificial terraces in order to prevent the earth from being swept away by the winter rains, and at the same time to retain the water requisite for the irrigation of the crops. When one looks upward from below, the vegetation on these terraces is not visible; so that the whole mountain appears as if composed only of immense rugged masses of naked whitish rock, traversed by deep wild ravines, running down precipitously to the plain. No one would suspect among these rocks the existence of a vast multitude of thrifty villages and a numerous population of mountaineers, hardy, industrious, and brave. Here, amid the crags of the rocks, are to be seen the remains of the renowned cedars; but a much larger proportion of firs, oaks, brambles, mulberry-trees, fig-trees, and vines.
Although the general elevation of Anti-Libanus is inferior to that of Libanus, the easternmost of the branches into which it divides towards its termination (Jebel esh-Sheikh) rises loftily, and overtops all the other summits of heaven. Our information respecting Anti-Libanus is less distinct than that concerning the opposite range. It appears, however, that it has fewer inhabitants, and is scarcely in any part cultivated.
None of the summits of Libanus or Anti-Libanus have been measured. By comparing the accounts of different travelers, however, as to the continuance of snow upon the higher summits, and adjusting them with reference to the point of perpetual congelation in that latitude, a rough estimate may be formed, that the average height of the Libanus mountains, from the top of which the snow entirely disappears in summer, must be considerably below 11,000 feet, probably about 10,000 feet above the level of the sea. But the higher points, particularly the Sannin, which is the highest of all, must be above that limit, as the snow rests on them all the year. By the same rule the average height of the Anti-Libanus range is reckoned as not exceeding 9000 feet; but its highest point, in the Jebel es-Sheik, or Mount Hermon, is considered to be somewhat more lofty than the Sannin, the highest point of Libanus.
In Scripture Lebanon is very generally mentioned in connection with the cedar-trees in which it abounded; but its wines are also noticed (Hos_14:7); and in Son_4:11; Hos_14:6, it is celebrated for various kinds of fragrant plants.




The Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature
by John Kitto.

Isa_40:16 (b) This wonderful picture tells a remarkable story of the inability of the best efforts of the sinner. Lebanon was a mountain about six miles wide, and about fifty miles long. It was covered with beautiful, magnificent, stately cedar trees. There were also the pine, the box, the fir and other trees. There were bushes, vines and grasses. In the midst of all this tangled forest, there were many wild animals of many varieties. It was a hunter's paradise. The Lord is telling us by this figure that though a sinner in his desire to obtain forgiveness should gather together in one pile all the burnable material on this huge mountain, and then kill all the animals that lived on that huge mountain, that sacrifice would not be sufficient to put away one sin. GOD is telling us by this wonderful figure that man's best and greatest efforts are not sufficient, and do not avail for the putting away of any evil or any sin in a human life. Only the Blood of JESUS is sufficient.
Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types
press 1957.

Lebanon
the loftiest and most celebrated mountain range in Syria, forming the northern boundary of Palestine, and running thence along the coast of the Mediterranean to the great pass which opens into the plain of Hamath. The range of Anti-Lebanon, usually included by geographers under the same general name, lies parallel to the other, commencing on the south at the fountains of the Jordan, and terminating in the plain of Hamath. The two are in fact but a northern partitions of the great central ridge or back-bone of the entire country. SEE PALESTINE.
I. The Name. — In the O. Test. these mountain ranges are always called
לְבָנוֹן, Lebanon', to which, in prose, the art. is constantly prefixed,
הִלֻּבָנוֹן; in poetry the art. is sometimes prefixed and sometimes not, as in Isa_14:8, and Psa_29:5. The origin of the name has been variously accounted for. It is derived from the root לָבָן, “to be white.” הִר הִלְּבָנוֹןis thus emphatically “The White Mountain” of Syria. It is a singular fact that almost uniformly the names of the highest mountains in all countries have a like meaning-Mont Blanc, Himalaya (in Sanscrit signifying “snowy”), Ben Naeris, Snowdon, perhaps also Alps (from alb, “white,” like the Latin albus, and not, as commonly thought, from alp, “high”). Some suppose the name originated in the white snow by which the ridge is covered a great part of the year (Bochart, Opera, 1:678; Gesenius, Thlesaurus, p. 741: Stanley, S. and P. p. 395). Others derive the name from the whitish color of the limestone rock of which the great body of the range is composed (Schulz, Leitungen des Hochsten, 5:471; Robhison, Biblic. Res. 2:493). The former seems the more natural explanation, and is confirmed by several circumstances. Jeremiah mentions the “snow of Lebanon” (18:14); in the Chald. paraphrase טוּר תַּלְגָא“snow mountain,” is the name given to it, and this is equivalent to a not uncommon modern Arabic appellation, Jebel eth-Thelj (Gesenius, Thesaurus, l. c.; Abulfeda, Tab. Syr. p. 18). Others derive the name Lebanon from λιβανωτός, “frankincense,” the gum of a tree called λίβανος (Reland, Palest. p. 312; Herod. 1:183), which is mentioned among the gifts presented by the magi to the infant Savior (Mat_2:11). This, however, is in Hebrew לְבוֹנָה, Lebonah (Exo_30:34; Isa_60:6). The Greek name of Lebanon, both in the Septuagint and classic authors, is uniformly Λίβανος (Strabo, 16:755; Ptol. 5:15). The Septuagint has sometimes Α᾿ντιλίβανος instead of Λίβανος (Deu_1:7; Deu_3:25 : Jos_1:4; Jos_9:1). The Latin name is Libanus (Pliny, 5:17), which is the reading of the Vulgate. It would appear that the Greek and Roman geographers regarded the name as derived from the snow. Tacitus speaks of it as a remarkable phenomenon that snow should lie where there is such intense heat (Hist. 5:6). Jerome writes, “Libanus λευκασμός— id est, clandor interpretatur” (Adersus Jovianum, in Opera, 2:286, ed. Migne); he also notes the identity of the name of this mountain and frankincense (in Osee, in Opera, 6:160). Arab geographers call the range Jebel Libnon (Abulfeda, Tab. Sgr. p. 163; Edrisi, p. 336, edit. Jaubert). This name, however, is now seldom heard among the people of Syria, and when used it is confined to the western range. Different parts of this range have distinct names — the northern section is called Jebel Akkur, the central Sunnin, and the southern J. ed- Druze. Other local names are also used.
The eastern range, as well as the western, is frequently included under the general name Lebanon in the Bible (Jos_1:4; Jdg_3:3); but in Jos_13:5 it is correctly distinguished as "Lebanon toward the sunrising" (הִלְּבָנוֹן מַזְרִח הִשֶּׁמֶשׁ; Sept. Λίβανον ἀπὸἀνατολῶν ἡλίου, and translated in the Vulg. Libani quoque regio contra orientean). The southern section of this range was well known to the sacred writers as HERMON, and had in ancient times several descriptive titles given to it — Sirion, Shenir, Sion; just as it has in modern days — Jebel esh-Sheik, J. eth-Thelj, J. A ntâr. Greek writers called the whole range Α᾿ντιλίβανος (Strabo, 16, p. 754; Ptolemy, 5:15), a word which is sometimes found in the Sept. as the rendering of the Hebrew Lebanon (ut supra). Latin authors also uniformly distinguish the eastern range by the name Antilibanus (Pliny, 5:20). The name is appropriate, describing its position, lying “opposite” or “over against” Lebanon (Strabo, 1. c.). Yet this distinction does not seem to have been known to Josephus, who uniformly calls the eastern as well as the western range Aivano; thus he speaks of the fountains of the Jordan as being near to Libanus (Atn. 5:3, 1), and of Abila as situated in Libanus (19:5, 1). The range of Anti-Lebanon is now called by all native geographers Jebel esh-Shurky, “East mountain,” to distinguish it from Lebanon proper, which is sometimes termed Jebel el-Ghurby, “West mountain” (Robinson, Biblical Res. 2:437; Burckhardt, Travels in Syria, p. 4).
To insure greater definiteness, and to prevent repetition, the name Lebanon will be applied in this article to the western range, and Anti-Lebanon to the eastern.
II. Physical Geography. —
1. Lebanon. —
(1.) Limits. The mountain-chain of Lebanon commences at the great valley which connects the Mediterranean with the plain of Hamath (anciently called “the entrance of Hamath,” Num_34:8), in lat. 34° 40', and runs in a southwestern direction along the coast, till it sinks into the plain of Acre and the low hills of Galilee, in lat. 33°. Its extreme length is 110 geographical miles, and the average breadth of its base is about 20 miles. The highest peak, called Dahar el-Kudib, is about 25 miles from the northern extremity, and just over the little cedar grove; its elevation is 10,051 feet (Van de Velde, Memoir, p. 170). From this point the range decreases il height towards the south. The massive rounded summit of Sunnin, 23 miles from the former, is 8500 feet high. Jebel Keniseh, the next peak, is 6824 feet; and Tomat Niha, “the Twin-peaks,” the highest tops of southern Lebanon, are about 6500 feet. From these the fall is rapid to the ravine of the river Litany, the ancient Leontes.
The chain of Lebanon, or at least its higher ridges, may be said to terminate at the point where it is thus broken through by the Litany. But a broad and lower mountainous tract continues towards the south, bordering the basin of the Huleh on the west. It rises to its greatest elevation about Safed (Jebel Safed), and at length ends abruptly in the mountains of Nazareth, as the northern wall of the plain of Esdraelon. This high tract may very properly be regarded as a prolongation of Lebanon.
Some writers regard the Litany as marking the southern limit of Lebanon; and it would seem that the ancient classical geographers were of this opinion (Smith, Dict. of G. and R. Geog. s.v. Libanus; Kitto, Physical Hist. of Pal. p. 32). Diodorus Siculus describes Lebanon as extending along the coast of Tripolis, Byblus, and Sidon (Hist. 19:58); and the Litany falls into the sea a few miles south of Sidon. The notices of Ptolemy are somewhat indefinite, and represent the two chains of Lebanon and Anti- Lebanon as commencing at the Mediterranean — the former on the north, the latter on the south (Geog. 5:15). Strabo is more definite and less accurate: “There are two mountains which inclose Coele-Syria lying parallel to each other. The commencement of both these mountains, Libanus and Anti-Libanus, is a little way above the sea. Libanus rises from the sea near Tripolis and Theoprosopon, and Anti-Libanus from the sea near Sidon. They terminate somewhere near the Arabian mountains, which are above the district of Damascus and the Trachones. . . . A hollow plain lies between them, whose breadth towards the sea is 200 stadia, and its length from the sea to the interior about twice as much. Rivers flow through it, the largest of which is the Jordan” (16:754).
According to Pliny the chains begin at the sea, but they run from south to north (I. N. 5:17; compare Ammian. Marcel. 14:26). Cellarius merely repeats these ancient authors (Geog. 2:439). Reland shows their errors and contradictions, but he cannot solve them, though he derived some important information from Maundrell (Palaest. p. 317 sq.; comp. Early Trav. in Pal. Bohn, p. 483). Rosenmiiller (Bib. Geog. 2:207, Clark), Wells (Geog. 1:239), and others, only repeat the old mistakes. The source of these errors may be seen by an examination of the physical geography of the district east of Tyre and Sidon. There can be no doubt that the range of Lebanon, viewed in its physical formation, extends from the entrance of Hamath to the plain of Acre; but between the parallels of Tyre and Sidon it is cut through by the chasm of the Litany, which drains the valley of Coele-Syria. That river enters the range obliquely on the eastern side, turns gradually westward, and at length divides the main ridge at right angles. Here, therefore, it may be said, in one sense, that the chain terminates; and though on the south bank of the Litany another chain rises, and runs in the line of the former, it is not so lofty, its greatest height scarcely exceeding 3000 feet. Ancient geographers thought Lebanon terminated on the north bank of the Lithny; and as that river drains the valley of Coele-Syria, which lies between Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon, they naturally supposed that the chain on the south bank of the Litany was the commencement of the latter range. Here lies the error, which Dr. Porter was among the first to detect, by an examination of the general conformation of the mountain ranges from the summit of Hermon (see Bibliotheca Sacra, 11:52; Porter, Damascus, 1:296).
Anti-Lebanon is completely separated from this western range by a broad and deep valley. The great valley of the Jordan extends northward to the western base of Hermon, in the parallel of the chasm of the Litany. From this point a narrower valley, called wady el-Teim, runs northward, till it meets an eastern branch of Coele-Syria. These three valleys, forming a continuous line, constitute the western boundary of Anti-Lebanon. No part of that chain crosses them (Robinson, 2:438). The southern end of the plain of Coele-Syria is divided by a low ridge into two branches. Down the eastern branch runs wady el-Teim, conveying a tributary to the Jordan (Bib. Sac. 1. c.; Robinson, 3:428430); down the western runs the Litany. The latter branch soon contracts into a wild chasm, whose banks are in some places above a thousand feet high, of naked rock, and almost perpendicular. At one spot the ravine is only 60 feet wide, and is spanned by a natural bridge, at the height of about 100 feet above the stream. Over it rise jagged walls of naked limestone, pierced with numerous caves. The scenery is here magnificent; as one stands on this arch of nature's own building, he can scarcely repress feelings of alarm. The cliffs almost meet overhead; rugged masses of rock shoot out from dizzy heights, and appear as if about to plunge into the chasm; the mad river far below dashes along from rapid to rapid in sheets of foam. In wild grandeur this chasm has no equal in Syria, and few in the world. Yet, from a short distance on either side, it is not visible. The mountain chain appears to run on in its course, declining gradually, but without any interruption. The ridge, in fact, has been cleft asunder by some terrible convulsion, and through the cleft the waters of Coele-Syria have forced their way to the Mediterranean instead of the Jordan, which is the natural outlet. It will thus be seen that the ridge on the south bank of the Litany is the prolongation of that on the north, and is a part of Lebanon (Robinson, 2:438); and that the chasm of the Litcny, though the drain of Coele-Syria, is no part of that valley. Neither Coele-Syria, therefore, nor Anti-Lebanon, at any point, approaches within many miles of the Mediterranean (Handbook for S. and P. p. 571; Robinson, 3:420 sq.; Van de Velde, Travels, 1:145 sq.).
(2.) Western Aspect. — The view of Lebanon from the Mediterranean is exceedingly grand. On approaching, it appears to rise from the bosom of the deep like a vast wall, the wavy top densely covered with snow during winter and spring, and the two highest peaks capped with crowns of ice on the sultriest days of summer. The western slopes are long and gradual, furrowed from top to bottom with deep rugged ravines, and broken everywhere by lofty cliffs of white rock, and ragged banks, and tens of thousands of terrace walls, rising like steps of stairs from the sea to the snow-wreaths. “The whole mass of the mountain consists of whitish limestone, or at least the rocky surface, as it reflects the light, exhibits everywhere a whitish aspect. The mountain teems with villages, and is cultivated more or less almost to the top; yet so steep and rocky is the surface, that the tillage is carried on chiefly by means of terraces, built up with great labor, and covered above with soil. When one looks upward from below, the vegetation on these terraces is not seen, so that the whole mountain side appears as if composed of immense rugged masses of naked whitish rock, severed by deep wild ravines, running down precipitously to the plain. No one would suspect among these rocks the existence of a vast multitude of thrifty villages, and a numerous population of mountaineers, hardy, industrious, and brave” (Robinson, 2, d493; comp. Volney, Travels, 1:272 sq.).
On looking down the western slopes from the brow of one of the projecting bluffs, or through the vista of one of the glens, the scenery is totally different; it is now rich and picturesque. The tops of the little stairlike terraces are seen, all green with corn, or straggling vines, or the dark foliage of the mulberry. The steeper banks and ridge-tops have their forests of pine and oak, while far away down in the bottom of the glens, and round the villages and castellated convents, are large groves of gray olives. The aspect of the various sections of the mountains is, however, very different, the rocks and strata often assuming strange, fantastic shapes. At the head of the valley of the Dog river are some of the most remarkable rock formations in Lebanon. Here numbers of little ravines fall into the main glen, and their sides, with the intervening ridges, are thickly covered with high peaks of naked limestone, sometimes rising in solitary grandeur like obelisks, but generally grouped together, and connected by narrow ledges like arched viaducts. In one place the horizontal strata in the side of a lofty cliff are worn away at the edges, giving the whole the appearance of a large pile of cushions. In other places there are tall stalks, with broad tops like tables. In many places the cliffs are ribbed, resembling the pipes of an organ, or columnar basalt. A single perch of clear soil can scarcely be found in one spot throughout the whole region, but every minute patch is cultivated, even in grottoes and under natural arches (Porter's Damascus, 2:289). The highest peaks of the range are naked, white, and barren. A line drawn at the altitude of about 6000 feet would mark the limits of cultivation. Above that line the shelving sides and rounded tops are covered with loose limestone debris, and are almost entirely destitute of vegetable life.
The western base of Lebanon does not correspond with the shore-line. In some cases bold spurs shoot out from the mountains, and dip perpendicularly into the sea, forming bluff promontories, such as the “Ladder of Tyre,” Promontorium Album, or “White Cape,” the well- known pass of the Dog River, and the Theoprosopon, now called Ras esh- Shuk'ah. In other places the mountains retire, or the shore-line advances (as at Beyrut and Tripolis), leaving little sections of fertile plain, varying from half a mile to three miles in width. This was the territory of the old Phoenicians, and on it still lie the scattered remains of their once great cities. SEE PHOENICIA.
From the promontory of Theoprosopon a low ridge strikes northward along the shore past Tripolis, separated from the main chain by a narrow valley. When it terminates, the coast-plain becomes much wider, and gradually expands, till it opens at the northern base of Lebanon into the valley leading to the “entrance of Hamath” (Robinson, 3:385).
(3.) Eastern Declivities. — From the east Lebanon presents a totally different aspect. It does not seem much more than half as high as when seen from the west. This is chiefly owing to the great elevation of the plain extending along its base, which is on an average about 3000 feet above the level of the sea (Van de Velde, Memoir, p. 175). The ridge resembles a colossal wall, its sides precipitous, and thinly covered, in most places, with oak forests. There are very few-only some two or three-glens furrowing them. The summit of the ridge, or backbone, is much nearer the eastern than the western side; and extending in gentle undulations, white with snow, far as the eye can see to the right and left, it forms a grand object from the ruins of Ba'albek, and still more so from the heights of Anti- Lebanon. A nearer approach to the chain. reveals a new feature. A side ridge runs along the base of the central chain from the town of Zahleh to its northern extremity, and is thinly covered throughout with forests of oak intermixed with wild plum, hawthorn, juniper, and other trees. A little south of the parallel of Sunnîn this ridge is low and narrow, and the Bukti'a is there widest. Advancing northwards the ridge increases in height, and encroaches on the plain, until, at the fountain of the Orontes (‘Ain el'Asy), it attains its greatest elevation, and there the plain is narrowest. From this point southwards to where the road crosses from Ba'albek to the Cedars, the central chain is steep, naked, and destitute of vegetation, except here and there a solitary oak or blasted pine clinging to the rocks (Porter's Damascus, 2:303 sq. Robinson, 3:530 sq.).
The side ridge above described sinks down in graceful wooded slopes into wady Khâled, which drains a part of the plain of Hums, and falls into Nahr el-Kebir. The main chain also terminates abruptly a little farther west, and its base is swept by the waters of the Kebir, the ancient river Eleutherus (Robinson, 3:558-60).
(4.) Rivers. — Lebanon is rich in rivers and fountains, fed by the eternal snows that crown its summit, and the vapors which they condense. The “streams from Lebanon” were proverbial for their abundance and beauty in the days of the Hebrew prophets (Son_4:15), and its “cold-flowing waters” were types of richness and luxury (Jer_18:14). Some of them, too. have obtained a classic celebrity (see Reland, Palaest. p. 269, 437). They are all small mountain torrents rather than rivers. The following are the more important:
1. The Eleutherus (now Nahr el-Kebir), rising in the plain of Emesa, west of the Orontes, sweeps round the northern base of Lebanon, and falls into the Mediterranean midway between Tripolis and Aradus. Strabo states that it formed the northern border of Phoenicia and Coele-Syria (16:753; Robinson, 3:576).
2. The Kadisha, or sacred river,” now generally called Nahr Abu-Aly, has its highest sources around the little cedar grove, and descends through a sublime ravine to the coast near Tripolis. At one spot its glen has perpendicular walls of rock on each side nearly 1000 feet high. Here, on opposite banks, are two villages, the people of which can converse across the chasm, but to reach each other requires a toilsome walk of two hours. In a wild cleft of the ravine is the convent of Kanobin, the chief residence of the Maronite patriarch (Handbook for Syr. and Pal. p. 586).
3. The Adonis (Nahr Ibrahim), famous in ancient fable as the scene of the romantic story of Venus and Adonis. Killed by a boar on its banks, Adonis dyed with his blood the waters, which ever since, on the anniversary of his death, are said to run red to the sea (Lucian, De Syria ulea, 6; Strabo, 15:170). Adonis is supposed to be identical with Tammuz, for whom Ezekiel represents the Jewish women as weeping (8:14). ‘The source is a noble fountain beside the ruins of a temple of Venus, and near the site of Apheca, now marked by the little village of Afka (Eusebius, Vit. Const. 3:55; Porter, Damascus, 2:297; Ritter, Pal. und Syr. 4:558). The Adonis falls into the sea a few miles south of the Biblical Gebal.
4. The Lycus flumen, now Nahr el-Kelb, or “Dog River,” rises high up on the flank of Sunnin, and breaks down through a picturesque glen. At its mouth is that famous pass on whose sculptured rocks Assyrian, Egyptian, Roman, and French (!) generals have left records of their expeditions and victories (Robinson, 3:618; Handbook, p. 407 sq.; Strabo, 16:755). 5. The Magoras of Pliny (v. 17) is probably the modern Nahr Beyrut.
6. The Tamyras or Damuras (Strabo, 16:756; Polybius, v. 68) rises near Deir el-Kamr, the capital of Lebanon. It is now called Nahr ed- Dammfir.
7. The Bostrenus of ancient authors appears to be identical with Nahr el-Awaley, though some doubt this.
8. The Leontes has already been mentioned. The lower section of it is now generally termed Kasimlyeh, and the upper section Litsiny. Its chief sources are at Chalcis and Ba'albek; but a large tributary flows down from the ravine of Zahleh, and is the only stream which descends the eastern slopes of Lebanon. SEE LEONTES.
2. Anti-Lebanon. —
(1.) Peaks. — The center and culminating point of Anti-Lebanon is HERMON. From it a number of ranges radiate, like the ribs of a half-open fan. The first and loftiest runs north-east, parallel to Lebanon, and separated from it by the valley of Coele-Syria, whose average breadth is about six miles. This ridge is the backbone of Anti-Lebanon. Where it joins Hermon it is broad, irregular, intersected by numerous valleys and little fertile plains, and covered with thin forests of dwarf oak Its elevation is not more than 4500 feet. Advancing northwards, its features become wilder and grander, oak-trees give place to juniper, and the elevation increases until, above the beautiful plain of Zebedany-which lies embosomed in its very center it attains a height of about 7000 feet (Van de Velde, Memoir, p. 175). From this point to the parallel of Ba'albek there is little change in the elevation or scenery. Beyond the latter it begins to fall, and declines gradually until at length it sinks down into the great plain of Hamath, eight miles east of Riblah, and sixteen south of Emesa. With the exception of the little upland plains, and a few of the deeper valleys, this ridge is incapable of cultivation. The sides are steep and rugged, in many places sheer precipices of naked, jagged rock, nearly 1000 feet high. They are not so bare or bleak, however, as the higher summits of Lebanon.
Vegetation is abundant among the rocks; and though the inhabitants are few and far between, immense flocks of sheep and goats are pastured upon the mountains, and wild beasts — bears, boars, wolves, jackals, hysenas, foxes are far more abundant than in any other part of Syria or Palestine (Porter, Damascus, 2:315). The lowest and last of the ridges that radiate from Hermon runs nearly due east along the magnificent plain of Damascus, and continues onward to Palmyra. Its average elevation is not more than 3000 feet, and it does not rise more than about 700 feet above the plain, though some of its peaks are much higher. Its rock is chalky, almost pure white, and entirely naked-not a tree, or shrub, or patch of verdure is anywhere seen upon it. It thus forms a remarkable contrast to the rich green of the plain of Damascus. From the central range to this ridge there is a descent, by a series of broad. bare terraces or plateaus, supported by long, continuous walls of bare, whitish limestone, varying from 100 to 1000 feet in height. Nothing could be more dreary and desolate than the scenery on these steppes. The gravelly soil, in many places thickly strewn with flints, is as bare as the cliffs that bound them. Yet they are intersected by several rich and beautiful glens, so deep, however, that their verdure and foliage can not be seen from a distance. Towards the east these steppes gradually expand into broad upland plains, and portions of them are irrigated and tilled. On them stand the small but ancient towns of Yabrud, Nebk, Jerud, etc., around which madder is successfully cultivated.
(2.) Rivers. — Anti-Lebanon is the source of the four great rivers of Syria: 1. The Orontes (q.v.), springing from the western base of the main ridge, beside the ruins of Lybo, flows away northward through a broad, rich vale, laving in its course the walls of Emesa, Hamath, Apamea, and Antioch. 2. The Jordan (q.v.), Palestine's sacred river, bursting from the side of Hermon, rolls down its deep, mysterious valley into the Sea of Death. 3. The Abana, the “golden-flowing” stream of Damascus (Chrysorrhoas, Pliny, v. 16; also called Bardines, Steph. Byz.; see ABANA), rises on the western side of the main ridge, cuts through it and the others, and falls into the lake east of the city. 3. The Leontes (q.v.), Phoenicia's nameless stream, has its two principal fountains at the western base of Anti- Lebanon, beside Chalcis and Ba'albek (Porter, Damascus 1:11: Robinson, 3:498, 506). The only other streams of Anti-Lebanon are (4) the Piharpar, now called el-Awaj, rising on the eastern flank of Hermon (SEE PHARPAR), and (5) the torrent which flows down the fertile glen of Helbon (q.v.) into the plain of Damascus.
3. These parallel ranges enclose between them a fertile and well-watered valley, averaging about fifteen miles in width, which is the Coele-Syria (Hollow Syria) of the ancients, but is called by the present inhabitants, by way of pre-eminence, el-Bekaa, or “the Valley.” This is traversed through the greater portion of its length by the river Litâny, the ancient Leontes. It is the “valley of Lebanon” (‘בַּקְעִת הִלְּבָנוֹן) mentioned in Jos_11:17; Jos_12:7, and later “the plain of Aveii” (בַּקְעִתאּאָוֶן) alluded to by Amos (Amo_1:5), where also Solomon constructed one of his palaces (1Ki_7:2; 1Ki_9:9; 1Ki_10:17; Son_7:4). SEE COELE- SYRIA.
III. Natural Science. —
1. The geology of Lebanon has never been thoroughly investigated. Dr. Anderson, who accompanied the United States expedition under lieutenant Lynch, is the only man who has attempted anything like a scientific examination of the mountains. We are much indebted to his Reconnaissance, embodied in Lynch's Official Report. The German traveler Russegger also supplies some facts in his Reisen (vol. 3). Tristram, in his Land of Israel (s. f.) has considerably enlarged our knowledge of the geology as well as natural history of Lebanon.
The main ridges of Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon are composed of Jura limestone, hard, partially crystallized, and containing few fossils. The strata have been greatly disturbed. In some places they are almost perpendicular; in others tilted over, laying bare veins and detached masses of trap. In the southern part of Lebanon, near Kedesh and Safed, are many traces of recent disturbance. From the earliest ages earthquakes have been frequent and most destructive in that region. The earthquake of 1837 buried thousands of the inhabitants of Safed beneath the ruins of their houses (Robinson, 2:422 sq.; Handb. p. 438). In the upper basin of the Jordan, and along the eastern flank of Hermon, trap rock abounds; the latter is the commencement of the great trap-fields of Hauran (Porter, Damascus, 2:240 sq.).
Over the Jura limestone there is in many places a more recent cretaceous deposit; its color is gray, and sometimes pure white. It is soft, and abounds in flints and fossils, ammonites, echinites, ostrxea, chenopus, nerinea, etc., often occurring in large beds, as at Bhamdun above Beyrut. Fossil fish are also found imbedded in the rock near the ancient Gebal (Reland, Palaest. p. 321). These cretaceous deposits occur along the whole western flank of Lebanon, and the lower eastern ranges of Anti-Lebanon are wholly composed of them (D'Arvieux, Memoires, 2:393; Elliot, Travels, 2:257; Volney, 2:280). Extensive beds of soft, friable sandstone are met with both in Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon. According to Anderson, the sandstone is of a more recent period than the cretaceous strata. This change in the geological structure gives great variety to the scenery of Lebanon. The regular and graceful outlines of the sandstone ridges contrast well with the bolder and more abrupt limestone cliffs and peaks, while the ruddy hue and somber pine forests of the former relieve the intense whiteness of the latter.
Coal has been found in the district of Metn, east of Beyrit, but it is impure, and the veins are too thin to repay mining. Iron is found in the central and southern portions of Lebanon, and there is an extensive salt marsh on one of the eastern steppes of Anti-Lebanon (Porter, Damascus, 1:161; Handbook, p. 363; Volney, 1:281; Burckhardt, p. 27).
2. The Botany of Lebanon, like the geology, is to a great extent unknown. It appears to be very rich in the abundance, the variety, and the beauty of the trees, shrubs, and flowers of these noble mountains. The great variety of climate, from the tropical heat of the Jordan valley at the base of Hermon, to the eternal snows on its summit, affords space and fitting home for the vegetable products of nearly every part of the globe. The forests of Lebanon were celebrated throughout the ancient world. Its cedars were used in the temples and palaces of Jerusalem (1 Kings 6; 2Sa_5:11; Ezr_3:7; Isa_14:8; Josephus, War, v. 5, 2), Rome (Pliny, H. N. 13:11), and Assyria (Layard, Nin. and Bob. p. 356, 644); and the pine and oak were extensively employed in ship-building (Eze_27:4-6). SEE CEDAR.
On these mountains we have still the cedar, pine, oak of several varieties, terebinth, juniper, walnut, plane, poplar, willow, arbutus, olive, mulberry, carob, fig, pistachio, sycamore, hawthorn, apricot, plum, pear, apple, quince, pomegranate, orange, lemon, palm, and banana. The vine abounds everywhere. Oleanders line the streams, and rhododendrons crown the peaks higher up, with the rock-rose, ivy, berberry, and honeysuckle. The loftiest summits are almost bare, owing to the cold and extreme dryness. There are even here, however, some varieties of low prickly shrubs, which lie on the ground like cushions, and look almost as sapless as the gravel from which they spring. Many of the flowers are bright and beautiful — the anemone, tulip, pink, ranunculus, geranium, crocus, lily, star of Bethlehem, convolvulus, etc. Thistles abound in immense variety. The cereals and vegetables include wheat, barley, maize, lentils, beans, peas, carrots, turnips, potatoes, melons, pumpkins, cucumbers, tobacco, cotton, and numerous others. Irrigation is extensively practiced, and wherever water is abundant the crops are luxuriant. Probably in no part of the world are there more striking examples of the triumph of industry over rugged and intractable nature than along the western slopes of Lebanon. The steepest banks are terraced; every little shelf and cranny in the cliffs is occupied by the thrifty husbandman, and planted with vine or mulberry (Robinson, 3:14,21, 615; Porter, Damascus, 2:283; Handbook, p. 410,413).
3. Zoology. — Considerable numbers of wild beasts still inhabit the retired glens and higher peaks of Lebanon, including jackals, hyenas, wolves, bears, and panthers (2Ki_14:9; Son_4:8; Hab_2:17). SEE PALESTINE.
Anti-Libanus is more thinly peopled than its sister range, and it is more abundantly stocked with wild beasts. Eagles, vultures, and other birds of prey may be seen day after day sweeping in circles round the beetling cliffs. Wild swine are numerous, and vast herds of gazelles roam over the bleak eastern steppes. SEE ZOOLOGY.
IV. Climate. — There are great varieties of climate and temperature in Lebanon. In the plain of Dan, at the fountain of the Jordan, the heat and vegetation are almost tropical, and the exhalations from the marshy plain render the whole region unhealthy. The seminomads who inhabit it are as dark in complexion as Egyptians. The thermometer often stands at 98° Fahr. in the shade on the site of Dan, while it does not rise above 32° on the top of Hermon. The coast along the western base of Lebanon, though very sultry during the summer months, is not unhealthy. The fresh sea- breeze which sets in in the evening keeps the night comparatively cool, and the air is dry and free from miasma. Snow never falls on the coast, and it is very rarely seen at a lower elevation than 2000 feet. Frost is unknown. In the plains of Coele-Syria (3000 feet) and Damascus (about 2300 feet), snow falls more or less every winter, sometimes eight inches deep on the streets and terraced roofs of Damascus, while the roads are too rough and hard with frost for traveling. The main ridges of Lebanon and Anti- Lebanon are generally covered with snow from December to March, sometimes so deeply that the roads are for weeks together impassable. During the whole summer the higher parts of the mountains are cool and pleasant, the air is extremely dry, and malaria is unknown. From the beginning of June till about the 20th of September rain never falls, and clouds are rarely seen. At the latter date the autumn rains begin, generally accompanied with storms of thunder and vivid lightning. January and February are the coldest months. The barley harvest begins, on the plain of Phoenicia, about the end of April, but in the upper altitudes it is not gathered in till the beginning of August. During the summer, in the village of Shumlan, on the western declivity of Lebanon, at an elevation of 2000 feet, in the hottest part of the day the thermometer does not rise above 830 Fahr., and in the night it usually goes down to 760. From June 20th to August 20th the barometer often does not vary a quarter of an inch; there are few cloudy days, and scarcely even a slight shower. At Bludan, in Anti- Lebanon, with an elevation of 4800 feet, the air is extremely dry, and the thermometer never rises in summer above 82° Fahr. in the shade. The nights are cool and pleasant. The sirocco wind is severely felt along the coast and on the western slopes of Lebanon, but not so much in Anti- Lebanon. It blows occasionally during March and April. Dew is almost unknown along the mountain ridges, but in the low plains, and especially at the base of Hermon, it is very abundant (Psa_133:3).
V. Historical Notices. — Lebanon is first mentioned as a boundary of the country given by the Lord in covenant promise to Israel (Deu_1:7; Deu_11:24). To the dwellers in the parched and thirsty south, or on the sultry banks of the Nile, the snows, and streams, and verdant forests of Lebanon must have seemed an earthly paradise. By such a contrast we can understand Moses's touching petition, “I pray thee let me go over and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon” (Deu_3:25). The mountains were originally inhabited by a number of warlike, independent tribes, some of whom Joshua conquered on the banks of Lake Merom (Deu_11:2-18). They are said to have been of Phoenician stock (Pliny, 5:17; Eusebius, Onom. s.v.; compare 1 Kings 5). Further north were the Hivites (Jdg_3:3), and the Giblites, and Arlites, whose names still cling to the ruins of their ancient strongholds. SEE GIBLITE, ARKITE.
The Israelites never completely subdued them, but the enterprising Phoenicians appear to have had them under their power, or in their pay, for they got timber for their fleets from the mountains, and they were able to supply Solomon from the same forests when building the Temple (1Ki_5:9-11; Eze_27:9 sq.). At a later period we find the king of Assyria felling its timber for his military engines (Isa_14:8; Isa_37:24, Eze_31:16), and it is mentioned on the cuneiform inscriptions (q.v.). Diodorus Siculus relates that in like manner Antigonus, having collected from all quarters hewers of wood, and sawyers, and ship-builders, brought down an immense quantity of timber from Libanus to the sea to build himself a navy (19:58). The same fact that this mountain was the famous resort for timber, whether for architectural, naval, or military purposes, appears from the Egyptian monuments, where the name is found in the corrupted form of Lemanon (Wilkinson, Egyptians, 1:403). It is there represented as a mountainous country, inaccessible to chariots, and abounding in lofty trees, which the affrighted mountaineers, having fled thither for refuge, are engaged in felling, in order to impede the advance of the invading Egyptian army.
During the conquests of David and the commercial prosperity of the nation under Solomon, the Jews became fully acquainted with the richness, the grandeur, and the luxuriant foliage of Lebanon, and ever after that mountain was regarded as the emblem of wealth and majesty. Thus the Psalmist says of the Messiah's kingdom, “The fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon” (Psa_72:16); and Solomon, praising the beauty of the Bridegroom, writes, “His countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars” (Son_5:15). Isaiah also predicts of the Church, “The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it” (Isa_35:2; compare Isa_60:13; Hos_14:5-6). Indeed, in Scripture, Lebanon is very generally mentioned in connection with the cedar-trees with which it abounded; but its wines are also noticed (Hos_14:8); and in Son_4:11; Hos_14:7, it is celebrated for various kinds of fragrant plants. Lebanon is greatly celebrated both in sacred and classical writers, and much of the sublime imagery of the prophets of the Old Test. is borrowed from this mountain (e.g. Psa_29:5-6; Psa_104:16-18; Son_4:8; Son_4:15; Isa_2:13; Zec_11:1-2).
Anti-Lebanon seems to have been early brought under the sway of Damascus, though amid its southern strongholds were some fierce tribes who preserved their independence down to a late period (1Ch_5:19-23; Josephus, Ant. 13:11, 3; Strabo, 16, p. 755, 756).
During the reign of the Seleucidae several large cities were founded or rebuilt in these mountains as Laodicea at the northern end of Anti- Lebanon, Chalcis at its eastern base, Abila in the wild glen of the Abana (Luk_3:1). SEE ABILA. At the commencement of our era, Lebanon, with the rest of Syria, passed into the hands of Rome, and under its fostering rule great cities were built and beautiful temples erected. The heights on which Baal-fires had burned in primeval times, and the groves where the rude mountain tribes worshipped their idols, became the sites of noble buildings, whose ruins to this day excite the admiration of every traveler. Greece itself cannot surpass in grandeur the temples of Ba'albek and Chalcis. There are more than thirty temples in Lebanon and Anti- Lebanon (Porter, Handbook, p. 454, 457, 557, 411; comp. Robinson, 3:438, 625).
During the wars of the Seleucidae, the Romans, and the Saracens, the inhabitants of Lebanon probably remained in comparative security. When, under the Muslem rule, Christianity was almost extirpated from the rest of Syria, it retained its hold there; and the Maronites (q.v.), who still occupy the greater part of the range, are doubtless the lineal descendants of the old Syrians. The sect originated in the 7th century, when the monk Maron taught them the Monothelitic heresy. In the 12th century they submitted to the pope, and have ever since remained devoted Papists. They number about 200,000. The Druses (q.v.), their hereditary foes, dwell in the southern section of the range, and number about 80,000. The jealousies and feuds of the rival sects, fanned by a cruel and corrupt government, often desolate “that goodly mountain” with fire and sword. Anti-Lebanon has a considerable Christian population, but they are mixed with Mohammedans, and have no political status. The whole range is under the authority of the pasha of Damascus.
The American missionaries have established several schools among the people of Lebanon, and for some years past pleasing success has attended their efforts in the mountain, which, however, were almost wholly interrupted by the violent outbreak among the Druscs in 1860, ending in a wholesale massacre of the Christians. On the suppression of this, a Maronite governor was appointed over the district by the Turkish government, under the protectorate of the five great European powers.
V. Literature. — Robinson, Biblical Researches, 3:344, 345, 439; Kitto, Pictorial History of Palestine, Introd. p. 32-35, 55; Reland, Palaestina, 1:311; Rosenmüller, Biblisch. Alterthum. 2:236; Raumer, Palastina, p. 29- 35; D'Arvieux, Memoires, 2:250; Volney, Voyage en Syrie, 1:243; Seetzen, in Zach's Monatl. Correspond. June, 1806; Burckhardt, Travels in Syr. p. 1 sq.; Richter, Wallfahrten, p. 102, etc.; Irby and Mangles, Travels, p. 206-220; Buckingham, Arab Tribes, p. 468 sq.; Fisk, in Missionary Herald, 1824; Elliot. Travels, 2:276; Hogg, Visit to Alexandria, Jerusalem, etc., 1:219 sq., 2:81 sq.; Addison, Palmyra and Damascus, 2:43-82; Ritter's Erdkunde, 17, div. 1; Robinson's Researches, new edit., 3:584-625; Bibliotheca Sacra, 1843, p. 205-253; 1848, p. 1-23, 243-262, 447-480, 663-700; Schwarz, Palest. p. 55; Kelly's Syria and Holy Land, p. 76-165; Porter, Damascus (Lond. 1855); Thomson, Land and Book, vol. 1; Van de Velde, Travels, etc., vol. 1; Churchill, Lebanon (London, 1853,1862); also Druses and Maronites (Lond. 1862); Tristram, Land of Israel (London. 1865); Palmer, in the Quarterly Statement of the “Palestine Exploration Fund,” April, 1871, p. 107 sq. SEE PALESTINE.

CYCLOPEDIA OF BIBLICAL, THEOLOGICAL AND ECCLESIASTICAL
press 1895.

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