- 11 -   Through the Homeland of Jesus   Fr Joseph Kappil     The City of Hebron The Last Resting Place of the Patriarchs     In the last issue, we visited Bethlehem, the birth place of Jesus and the other places associated with it. We are now going to have a look at Hebron, the burial place of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebekah and Leah. This city is sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims. Its glory is due to the fact that it is the last resting place of the matriarchs and patriarchs of the Old Testament.
 
Seven kms south of Jerusalem is located the town of Bethlehem. If we journey 27 kms to the south of Bethlehem, we reach Hebron. It is situated 930 ms above sea level. Hebron is the chief city in the hilly country where vineyards, olive, apple and fig trees abound. Hebron is considered as one of the oldest cities in the Middle East.
 
Hebron enters the history of salvation through its association with the history of the patriarch Abraham. After Abraham and his brother Lot parted company, the latter with his family pitched his tent among the cities of the plain as far as Sodom on the shores of the Dead Sea (cf Gen 13:14-18).
 
In Abraham's time Hebron was called also by another name "Kiriatharba". In the book of Genesis, Sarah's death is discribed thus: "Sarah lived one hundred and twenty-seven years; this was the length of Sarah's life. And Sarah died at Kiriatharba (that is , Hebron) in the land of Canaan; and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her"(Gen 23:1-2). After Sarah's death, Abraham requested the Hittites to give him some property for a burying place for Sarah. Ephron the Hittite agreed to give Abraham the field and the cave of Machpelah, which he owned, for four hundred shekels of silver. Abraham buried Sarah in this cave (cf Gen 23:3-20). Thus the field and the cave that is in it passed to Abraham and his family as a possession and burying place. As Gen 25:7-11 says, Abraham lived up to the age of one hundred and seventy-five years. His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah with his wife Sarah.
 
Later on, Isaac, Abraham's son of promise, and his wife Rebekah were buried in this same cave. We read in the life history of Isaac's son, Jacob, that he went with his sons to Egypt and settled there because there was a severe famine in the land of Canaan.
 
According to God's plan, Joseph, the son of Jacob, had been sold by his brothers and reached Egypt. There God raised him up and he became the governor of Egypt. Jacob lived in Egypt seventeen years(Gen 47:28). When the time of his death drew near, he call his son Joseph and said to him, "When I lie down with my ancestors, carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place"(Gen 47:30). At the time of his death Jacob called his sons and blessed them. In Gen 49:29-33, we read his touching words during those emotion-filled moments. "He charged them, saying to them, 'I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my ancestors - in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave in the field at Machpelah, near Mamre, in the land of Canaan, in the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site. There Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried; there Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried; and there I buried Leah-the field and the cave that is in it were purchased from the Hittites.'" When Jacob ended his charge to his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed, breathed his last, and was gathered to his people. According to Jacob's wish, Joseph took the dead body of his father to Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field at Machpelah. After he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers.
 
The pilgrims who go to the Holy Land, stand in awe and respect before the tombs of these ancestors, recall their event-filled lives, and and are lost in prayer. They experience a spiritual revival and a deepening of their faith. While gazing at these tombs, the awareness that they are encountering the events and the historical figures of 4000 years ago, fills the heart of every pilgrim with emotion. He is confirmed in his conviction that these brave people had journeyed in faith along the paths by which God led them.
 
Hebron is once again referred to in connection with the sojourn of the Israelite people towards the promised land, after their deliverance from Egypt. Under the leadership of the liberator, Moses, they reached the desert of Negeb during their journey through the wilderness. Moses realised that the promised land was at hand and so sent a team to spy the land. He singled out a leader from each of the tribes to form this team. Their duty was to find out what kind of land it was and what sort of people lived there. This group of investigators crossed the desert of Negeb and reached Hebron.
 
They cut down a vine- branch with a single cluster of grapes, and carried it on a pole between two of them. They also brought some pomegranates and figs. The description of the land of Hebron, its fertility, and the fruit abounding there, given by this group of spies, on their return, is recorded in Num 13:27. They called it "a land flowing with milk and honey." All the same, they realised that they did not have the strength to conquer the inhabitants, and so the Israelites gave up the attempt to enter Canaan by that route and continued their journey through the desert. It is by the hill country on the eastern frontier of Canaan that they subsequently entered the promised land.
 
In the attempt of the Israelites to enter and capture the promised land, Joshua defeated the king of Hebron and captured the kingdom. Under his leadership, the Israelites put to the sword the king and all the people. Thus they took possession of Hebron (cf Josh 10:36).
 
When the conquered land of Canaan was divided among the 12 tribes of Israel, Hebron was given to the tribe of Judah. Moreover, Hebron was declared to be the city of refuge for Israel. Some such cities were declared as cities of refuge, so that, if someone happened to murder another man by accident, he could take refuge in this city till the trial took place before the community, and be safeguarded from the attacks of those who wished to take revenge for the shedding of blood. Thus Hebron came to be included in the list of such cities.(cf Josh 20:1-9). It was also listed among the cities given to the tribe of Levi, the tribe chosen as the priestly class. Thus Hebron came to be a city of refuge and a city allocated to the descendants of the priest, Aaron(cf Josh 21:14-15).
 
The chief reason for the importance of the city of Hebron, was its association with the life of King David. After the death of Saul, the first king of Israel, (BC 1020-1000), David was declared king of the tribe of Juda (cf 2 Sam2:11); later, when David was anointed king over the entire people of Israel, he shifted the capital of his kingdom from Hebron to Jerusalem. David was but thirty years old when he ascended the throne. With Jerusalem as his capital, King David reigned over the Israelite people for 33 years (cf 2 Sam 5:1-5).
 
There is no mention of Hebron in the New Testament. It is said that the Jews are called Hebrews, because they are the descendants of the patriarch Abraham who lived and died in Hebron.
 
Today, as we enter the city of Hebron, the towering Muslim mosque located in the center of the city, catches our attention. It is this mosque that encloses all the tombs of the patriarchs and matriarchs. It is one of the most renowned mosques of the Muslim world. We shall say farewell to the city of Hebron after getting a glimpse of the ancient history of this mosque.
 
The tombs of the ancient patriarchs in the cave of Machpelah in Hebron, have been considered sacred right from the earliest times. It was King Herod who built a magnificent memorial tower and boundary walls enclosing these tombs (BC 37-4). (The Temple of Jerualem that existed during the time of Jesus, was also constructed by Herod).The foundation stones of the tower cut out from a single stone of immense length and volume, and built by Herod, can still be seen. In the early days, this great monument was a Jewish memorial. Later in the fourth century AD, during the Byzantine period, it was transformed into a Christian church.
 
It is said that one part of it was given to the charge of Jews and the other to the Christians. In 638 AD, during the first Muslim attack, this church became a Muslim mosque. Hebron became one of the four sacred cities of Islam. Later in 1100, the Crusaders captured it and reinstated it as a Christian church. After the Crusades, King Saladin recaptured it and declared it again a mosque. It is this Muslim mosque that visitors and pilgrims see today. Though it is today a mosque, the main portions are the parts of the church that existed during the Crusades. There are six tombs within the mosque-those of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Leah. These tombs are covered in a most magnificent manner with red and gold velvet.
 
Hebron is today a Muslim city. Still, there are a few Jews residing there. The Department of Tourism of Israel has accepted a cluster of grapes as its official emblem. This is in memory of the cluster of grapes that the team of spies appointed by Moses, brought from Hebron.
 
As we retrace our steps from Hebron, we shall look forward to entering the precincts of the sacred city of Jerusalem, the center of the entire Holy Land. We shall observe in detail this great city in the following issues. It was in this holy city that the redemptive act of Jesus reached its fulfillment through his passion, death and resurrection. We need to journey through the whole history of the city of Jerusalem right from the beginning. We need to associate the end of our journey with the Paschal Mystery of Jesus- only then will our journey through Jerusalem be complete.    [ Contents ]