Subject:  JUICE Geography 6 - Beit El 
Date:     Tue, 21 Apr 1998 23:48:09 +0000 
To:       "Hebraic Heritage Newsgroup"<heb_roots_chr@geocities.com>  
  
From:          JUICE Administration <juice@virtual.co.il> 
To:            geography@virtual.co.il 
Subject:       JUICE Geography 6 
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                  World Zionist Organization 
                Jewish University In CyberspacE 
           birnbaum@jer1.co.il      juice@jer1.co.il 
               http://www.jer1.co.il/gate/juice 
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Course: Biblical Geography 
Lecture: 6/12 
Lecturer: Robin Treistman 
Web site for this lecture: 
http://www.wzo.org.il/juice/map/beitel/index.html 
  
                            Beit El 
  
GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION: 
Beit El is the name of a city mentioned no less than seventy 
times in the Bible. Today, a Jewish settlement that bears the 
same name is located one and one-half kilometers north of the 
(probable) site of the Biblical city. The Biblical city of Beit 
El is located in an Arab village called Beitin, which lies 18 km 
north of Jerusalem. Beit El was located near a vital intersection 
between the north-south passage connecting Jerusalem and Shechem, 
and the east-west passage that led from the area toward the 
Plains of Jericho. In the Bible, Beit El is sometimes associated 
with a nearby Canaanite city called Ha'ai, which lies 5 km 
directly to its east. 
When discussing Beit El, I am referring to the city in the exact 
location described above. There was a second Biblical city called 
Beit El located further north in the Mountains of Ephraim. It is 
associated with the prophet, Devorah, who "judged" the people 
near there (Judges 4;4-5). 
BIBLICAL HISTORY 
When Abraham journeyed into the Land of Canaan, his first stop 
was Shechem. Though he built an altar, there is no mention that 
he set up any lasting residence in Shechem. His next stop, which 
was east of Beit El and west of Ha'ai (Genesis 12;8), involved 
pitching a tent as well as building a second altar. According to 
some Biblical commentators (Radak and Sforno), Beit El and Ha'ai 
were large cities during Abraham's time, and his choice of 
location was ideal from his point of view: Abraham was intent on 
introducing the world to Monotheism. The traffic between the two 
cities would pass his residence, thereby giving Abraham ample 
chance to "enlighten" the people. 
The text is unclear about how long Abraham dwelled near Beit El, 
as the very next verse describes his journey southward. After a 
brief visit to Egypt, Abraham returned to Canaan and headed north 
again to "where his tent was originally between Beit El and 
Ha'ai" (Genesis 13;3) and stayed there until he parted from his 
nephew, Lot. 
The next Biblical incident that happens in Beit El relates how 
it received its name. Before continuing, an important issue must 
be addressed: How is it that we know today the exact location of 
places that are mentioned in the Bible? There are a number of 
ways in which the names were transmitted. First of all, there was 
a Jewish tradition passed down through the generations which 
specified locations. However, there are locations in which the 
tradition fizzled out after a certain period of time. Some of 
these sites can be identified by their Biblical names, preserved 
by the Arabs after their conquest in 636 CE. Some of those 
locations have supplemental archaeological evidence. Other places 
have been "lost" but have been rediscovered recently through 
archaeological excavations. Beit El is an interesting case: You 
will see in the discussion below that already in the tradition 
there are conflicting messages as to where Beit El is located. 
However, the location today has been verified, as the name Beitin 
relates to Beit El, and the archaeological excavations there 
confirm occupation of the city in Biblical times. 
Read the story about Jacob's ladder dream in Genesis 28;10-22. 
The actual wording in the verses is very pertinent to the 
analysis below. Jacob had left Beersheba and headed toward Haran 
(to his cousin, Lavan). The verse says that he stayed at a 
"place" where he slept, and had the dream. He woke up abruptly 
after the dream and declared, "Surely God is in this place and 
I didn't know it... how awe-inspiring this place is - it is none 
other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven" 
(Genesis 28;16-17). Later when it was morning, Jacob arose, set 
up a monument (pillar), poured oil over it, and called the name 
of the place Beit El, which literally means the House of God. The 
verses also point out that the original name of the place was Luz 
(verse 19). 
In terms of geographic location, these verses are enigmatic for 
Biblical commentators. The text indicates that Beit El is in a 
physical location at the city called Luz. However, the word in 
verse 11, "bamakom" (or "in the place") and Beit Elo-him ("House 
of God") in verse 17 imply the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Below 
is a sampling of Midrashic sources and Biblical commentary which 
attempt to resolve the issue. Remember that when studying 
Midrash, the content can sometimes seem far-fetched. There are 
cases in which Midrashic literature is to be taken literally, and 
other times that Midrashim are to be used as a guide to discover 
metaphorical insights in the Bible. 
The following story that fits the verses is based on the account 
in Talmud Hulin 91: Jacob left Beersheba and went to Haran. Upon 
reaching Haran, he realized that he had bypassed Mt. Moriah (the 
Temple Mount) without praying there as was done by his father and 
grandfather. After Jacob decided to return to Mt. Moriah, God 
performed a miracle and had the earth "fold" itself in such a way 
that Jacob was able to reach Mt. Moriah on that same day. In 
other words, Jacob reached Luz, and Mt. Moriah itself 
miraculously travelled to meet him there. Though Jacob ended up 
having the dream at Mt. Moriah, the actual physical location was 
Luz, named Beit El because of that temporary visit of the future 
location of the Temple Mount. Hizkuni even suggests that the 
stone that Jacob sets up as a pillar was "left behind" when Mt. 
Moriah went back to its place. 
There is one talmudic source in Pesachim 88 which can be 
interpreted (as Rashi does) saying that Jacob was actually in 
Jerusalem (the Temple Mount) and he named it Beit El. But this 
is a minority opinion. Other Midrashic sources (in Bereishit 
Rabba 69;7) discuss the location of the foot, top, and midpoint 
of the ladder in Jacob's dream in an attempt to find the 
connection between Jerusalem and Beit El. Rabbi Elazar in the 
name of Rabbi Yossi ben Zimra explains that the foot of the 
ladder was in Beersheba while its midpoint reached over Jerusalem 
(implying its top was over Beit El as explained by Rashi on 
Genesis 28;17). Rabbi Yehuda Ben Rabbi Simon suggests that the 
foot of the ladder stood at the Temple Mount and the midpoint was 
above Beit El. 
Before clarifying the confusion generated by the midrashic and 
talmudic sources, I will cite two more Biblical commentaries that 
are relevant to this discussion: Rashbam, a commentator who tries 
to adhere to the literal meaning of the verses, suggests that 
Jacob was on his way to Haran and made a stopover right outside 
of the city called Luz. After his prophetic dream, the city took 
on the name Beit El, even though the incident didn't happen 
inside it. 
Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch explains the whole episode in a very 
different manner. When Jacob awoke abruptly from his dream, he 
came to a realization: Not that he is in the House of God but 
that every human being IS a "house of God" and a "gate of 
Heaven." As the only creature on earth that can unite the 
physical and the spiritual, human beings have the awesome 
responsibility of doing just that. In other words, S.R. Hirsch 
stays away from the ideas of the location of the future Temple 
and land "folding" etc... He insists that Luz was a physical 
place where this revelation and realization happened, and it was 
named Beit El in tribute. 
When combining all of the ideas in the sources above, you can see 
that Beit El is a place where the metaphorical and the 
geographical meet to teach a philosophical lesson through the 
Biblical story. Some of the midrashic explanations may seem a bit 
outlandish. However, if you read them in a figurative light, they 
can be understood more easily: It appears most likely that Jacob 
did stay in or by a place called Luz, but his dream superimposed 
another location onto his perceived reality (hence the "folded" 
land). When Jacob awoke, realized the awesomeness of his dream, 
and exclaimed, "God's presence is here," it could have been due 
to a personal feeling of closeness to God. He therefore called 
the place "Beit El" in respect to his own experience with the 
vision. 
One thing is made clear by the Biblical text: There is indeed a 
place that was called Luz that was later called Beit El. After 
the incident in Shechem where Simon and Levi destroyed the city, 
God said to Jacob, "Get up and go to Beit El and settle there and 
build and altar there..." (Genesis 35;1) Five verses later, when 
Jacob approaches the place, it is called "Luz in the Land of 
Canaan, which is Beit El." Furthermore, the Bible clarifies that 
it is the same place where God revealed Himself to Jacob when he 
had escaped the wrath of his brother (Genesis 35;7). Again, this 
other reference in Genesis clarifies that Luz and Beit El were 
one and the same place, and they were NOT Jerusalem. 
As an interesting side-note, in Westminster Abbey in London sits 
a special throne called the Coronation Chair. The throne is built 
around a stone which is called the Stone of Scone, or the Stone 
of Destiny, or Jacob's Pillow. There is a Celtic legend which 
suggests that this is the stone on which Jacob rested his head 
when he dreamed about the ladder (see Genesis 28;12,18). When the 
Israelites were exiled in ancient times, the stone made its way 
over to Scotland where it was used for coronation ceremonies in 
the city of Scone. In 1269, King Edward I of England brought the 
stone to England, and in 1300 the Coronation Chair was built 
around it. 
The next time that Beit El is mentioned in the Bible is during 
the conquest of Israel by Joshua. As Joshua 8;1-29 describes, the 
second city to be conquered is Ha'ai (next to Beit El). During 
the battle over Ha'ai, the people of Beit El joined in the battle 
- to the extent that the city was entirely evacuated (verse 17). 
However, it appears that the inhabitants of Beit El returned to 
the protection of their city and only Ha'ai was destroyed. 
Though the names Luz and Beit El were used interchangeably, it 
is apparent (Joshua 16;2 and 18;13) that the two are actually 
adjoining cities with Luz as the "old" or ancient section, and 
Beit El as the "new" (remember - everything's relative!) part of 
the city which originated on the site where Jacob had his dream. 
In fact, it is probable that the border between the portions 
allotted to the tribes of Benjamin and Ephraim ran between Luz 
and Beit El. (Ephraim was in the north and included Luz.) See 
Judges 1 (verses 22-26) for the account of the conquest of Beit 
El through a joint effort of the tribes of Ephraim, Menashe, and 
probably Benjamin. 
When reading the history that is recounted in the Bible, it is 
worthwhile to assess the motivations behind the actions. By doing 
so, one can gain a deeper understanding of the political, social, 
and even economic factors that shaped the situations, not unlike 
those seen in later and contemporary history. Taking Beit El as 
a case in point, I suggest that you read Kings I 12;25-33. As 
mentioned in the lecture on Shechem, when the united Israelite 
kingdom split after the death of King Solomon, (928 BCE) the new 
king of Israel (as opposed to Judah), Jeroboam, was in a 
precarious position: He was the "breakoff" king, not from the 
royal line of King David. Worried that sanctioned jurisdiction 
over his subjects would not come automatically, he took measures 
to ensure solid allegiance. 
Until then, the spiritual center of the nation was in Jerusalem 
at Solomon's Temple. The Bible commands that everyone visit the 
Temple thrice yearly on the holidays of Passover, Shavuot, and 
Succot. Because Jerusalem was located in the portions of tribes 
who declared allegiance to Rehoboam (Judah and Benjamin), 
Jeroboam was worried that the pilgrimages would undermine the 
loyalty of his subjects. He therefore prohibited members of the 
ten tribes to journey to Jerusalem (verses 26-27). In order to 
fulfill the spiritual need for communal religious ceremony, he 
built two religious centers in which golden calves were the 
focus: One in Dan and one in Beit El (verses 28-29). 
Jeroboam was smart on three counts here. First of all, 
convenience was a priority: Remember that one of the reasons that 
the ten tribes were ready to break from Judah is that King 
Rehoboam made it clear that life will not be easy for his 
subjects (Kings I 12;14). Not only did Jeroboam not "tax" the 
people, but he even "freed" them from the obligation to travel 
all the way to Jerusalem. He made the pilgrimages more convenient 
by making two centers available. By having two, the cities 
wouldn't be so crowded and they were easier for people to reach. 
Secondly, choosing Beit El as a location for one of the houses 
of worship was a spiritually clever and not coincidental move. 
The name of the city, Beit El implies that the "house of God" 
belongs there. Also, Jeroboam was well aware of the spiritual 
history of Beit El and the intrinsic connection with Jacob, 
Jerusalem, and the house of God. People were willing to forego 
Jerusalem for an equivalent house of worship as long as it had 
a spiritual connection. The other center was placed in Dan (in 
Northern Israel - presently in the Golan) most likely because it 
was the administrative center of the kingdom. That one, however, 
was treated more like a branch of the main center in Beit El. The 
next verses (32-33) describe the first holiday celebration in 
Beit El under the direction of Jeroboam. 
Lastly, choosing Beit El was a strategic-geographic move. 
Remember that it was located on the border between the tribes of 
Benjamin and Ephraim. Benjamin sided with the Kingdom of Judah 
while Ephraim was part of the Kingdom of Israel. Placing a 
religious center on the border was a contemptuous gesture as if 
to say that Jeroboam did not fear competition with Jerusalem and 
Judah. It also gave Jeroboam the chance to win the support of the 
tribe of Benjamin which was not officially part of the Judean 
kingdom. 
Needless to say, the establishment of houses of worship outside 
of Jerusalem was a major religious revolution not without 
consequences. The following chapter (Kings I 13) relates a story 
about a prophet who appears in the middle of the festivities and 
warns Jeroboam about the consequences of his actions. Read the 
chapter for the details, and then read Kings II 23;1-20. That is 
the point where the Josiah, King of Judah, eradicated all traces 
of idol worship throughout the entire land (c. 621 BCE) including 
the former Kingdom of Israel (by then it had already been exiled 
by Assyria). What Josiah does in Beit El - destroying the altar 
after using it to burn the bones of the priests from a nearby 
graveyard - is essentially the fulfillment of the prophecy 
written in Kings I 13. 
Though Beit El is associated with the Kingdom of Israel, it is 
important to remember that it was a border-city with a variety 
of inhabitants. Therefore, even after the Kingdom of Israel is 
exiled, (724 BCE) there are remnants of the tribe of Benjamin in 
Beit El (as can be seen in the story of the destruction of the 
altar in Kings II 23). When the exiled Kingdom of Judah returns 
after 70 years in Babylon (516 BCE), the Benjaminite inhabitants 
of Beit El and Ha'ai are counted among them, forming once again 
an Israelite presence in the city (Ezra 2;28, Nehemia 7;32 and 
11;31). 
The placement of the golden calf in Beit El by Jeroboam and its 
continued use by the following kings of Israel marred the name 
of the city in other prophetic and religious writings: Beit El 
became a poetic metaphor describing the hopelessness of sin as 
can be seen in Hosea 10;15, Amos 4;4 and 5;5-6, Jeremiah 48;13. 
POST BIBLICAL HISTORY 
Little is known about Beit El and its occupants after the 
destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans (70 CE). 
Archaeological findings in the area have also left some questions 
unanswered. For example, ruins of houses were found with Mezuzzas 
on the doorposts and with markings of the Star of David. Some 
experts suggest that these ruins are from the Second Temple 
period, but others maintain that the Star of David is not an 
exclusively Jewish symbol until later periods. That being the 
case, it is not clear when the Jewish settlement in Beit El 
ceased to exist. 
Beit El was captured by the Romans in 69 CE. Later, during the 
Roman conquest of the city of Betar, Beit El was used by the 
Roman army as a stronghold to guard against escapees from the 
besieged city. Following the fall of Betar (135 CE), the greater 
area surrounding Jerusalem became a Roman province called Aelia 
Capitolina with Beit El as one of the villages. It is possible 
that at this time the occupants of the city had been exiled to 
Rome or moved to the northern part of Israel. The relatively 
sparse ruins of the Roman, Byzantine, and later periods indicate 
that it was not restored to its former glory following its 
capture. 
Whoever did inhabit Beit El managed to preserve its name. After 
the Arab conquest in 636 CE, the area most likely had a tiny Arab 
presence. During the Crusader period, it most likely had also a 
small Christian presence. Based on the ruins, at some point 
afterwards the area was abandoned until the present Arab village 
of Beitin (note that an "n" and "l" in Arabic can be 
interchangeable) was built on the ancient ruins in the 19th 
century. Nearby is the modern day Jewish settlement of Beit El 
which began in 1978 as a yeshiva (institute for intense Judaic 
study). 
Questions for further study and discussion: 
1) Read the story about the Concubine in Givah in Judges chapters 
19-21. (You will find that sometimes the violence and suspense 
in the Bible makes that of today seem bland.) What role does Beit 
El play in the drama and how is its role influenced by its 
geographic location? 
2) In Amos 7;10-17, the prophet is speaking to and about Yeravom 
II, King of Israel (ruled from 784 BCE - 748 BCE). How is the 
usage of Beit El in the retort to Amos significant in a 
figurative sense? 
3) How did the paradoxical characteristic of Beit El (Jewish holy 
vs "abominable" site) affect settlement patterns in the city? 
Description of the Sources: 
SFORNO -- Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno (c.1470 - c.1550) -- Born 
in Cesna, Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno was known as a physician and 
a Biblical commentator. His commentary is characterized by 
adherence to the literal meaning of the text usually in 
conjunction with contemporary scientific outlooks, avoiding 
mystical and philological interpretations. 
RaDaK - Rabbi David Kimhi (c.1160 - c.1235) -- from Narbonne, 
Provence, the RaDaK wrote Biblical commentary on the book of 
Genesis, all of the Prophets, and the Book of Psalms. His 
commentary is characterized by philosophical insights and polemic 
material in answer to Christian interpretation of Biblical texts. 
References: 
Bible and Biblical Commentaries 
Elitzur, Y. and Kiel, Y. (1993) _Atlas Daat Mikra_ (Hebrew), 
     Mossad Harav Kook: Jerusalem. 
Flavius, Josephus, _Wars_ in Whiston, William (trans.) _The 
     Works of Flavius Josephus_ (1820), David McKay: 
     Philadelphia. 
Rappel, Joel (ed.) (1984) _History of Eretz-Israel: From 
     Prehistory up to 1882_, (Hebrew) Tel Aviv: Ministry of 
     Defense. 
Vilnay, Z. (1975) _Legends of Judea and Samaria_, Philadelphia: 
     The Jewish Publication Society of America. 
Yitzchaki, A. (ed.) (1980) _Israel Guide: Judea_ (Hebrew), Keter 
     and the Defense Ministry: Jerusalem. 
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