Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897)
Heb. Yarden, “the descender;” Arab. Nahr-esh-Sheriah, “the watering-place” the chief river of Palestine. It flows from north to south down a deep valley in the centre of the country. The name descender is significant of the fact that there is along its whole course a descent to its banks; or it may simply denote the rapidity with which it “descends” to the Dead Sea. It originates in the snows of Hermon, which feed its perennial fountains. Two sources are generally spoken of.
) From the western base of a hill on which once stood the city of Dan, the northern border-city of Palestine, there gushes forth a considerable fountain called the Leddan, which is the largest fountain in Syria and the principal source of the Jordan. ) Beside the ruins of Banias, the ancient Caesarea Philippi and the yet more ancient Panium, is a lofty cliff of limestone, at the base of which is a fountain. This is the other source of the Jordan, and has always been regarded by the Jews as its true source.
It rushes down to the plain in a foaming torrent, and joins the Leddan about 5 miles south of Dan (Tell-el-Kady). ) But besides these two historical fountains there is a third, called the Hasbany, which rises in the bottom of a valley at the western base of Hermon, 12 miles north of Tell-el-Kady. It joins the main stream about a mile below the junction of the Leddan and the Banias. The river thus formed is at this point about 45 feet wide, and flows in a channel from 12 to 20 feet below the plain. ). During this part of its course the Jordan has descended about 1,100 feet.
At Banias it is 1,080 feet above sea-level. ). “In the whole valley of the Jordan from the Lake Huleh to the Sea of Galilee there is not a single settled inhabitant. Along the whole eastern bank of the river and the lakes, from the base of Hermon to the ravine of Hieromax, a region of great fertility, 30 miles long by 7 or 8 wide, there are only some three inhabited villages. The western bank is almost as desolate. Ruins are numerous enough. Every mile or two is an old site of town or village, now well nigh hid beneath a dense jungle of thorns and thistles.
And your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste. ”, Dr. Porter’s Handbook. ” This section is properly the Jordan of Scripture. Down through the midst of the “plain of Jordan” there winds a ravine varying in breadth from 200 yards to half a mile, and in depth from 40 to 150 feet. Through it the Jordan flows in a rapid, rugged, tortuous course down to the Dead Sea. The whole distance from the southern extremity of the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea is in a straight line about 65 miles, but following the windings of the river about 200 miles, during which it falls 618 feet.
The total length of the Jordan from Banias is about 104 miles in a straight line, during which it falls 2,380 feet. There are two considerable affluents which enter the river between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea, both from the east. ) The Wady Mandhur, called the Yarmuk by the Rabbins and the Hieromax by the Greeks. It formed the boundary between Bashan and Gilead. It drains the plateau of the Hauran. ) The Jabbok or Wady Zerka, formerly the northern boundary of Ammon. It enters the Jordan about 20 miles north of Jericho.
The first historical notice of the Jordan is in the account of the separation of Abraham and Lot (Gen. 13:10). ” Jacob crossed and recrossed “this Jordan” (32:10). The Israelites passed over it as “on dry ground” (Josh. 3:17; Ps. 114:3). Twice afterwards its waters were miraculously divided at the same spot by Elijah and Elisha (2 Kings 2:8, 14). The Jordan is mentioned in the Old Testament about one hundred and eighty times, and in the New Testament fifteen times.
The chief events in gospel history connected with it are (1) John the Baptist’s ministry, when “there went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and were baptized of him in Jordan” (Matt. 3:6).
Smith's Bible Dictionary (1863)
(the descender), the one river of Palestine, has a course of little more than 200 miles, from the roots of Anti-Lebanon to the head of the Dead Sea. ) It is the river of the “great plain” of Palestine—the “descender,” if not “the river of God” in the book of Psalms, at least that of his chosen people throughout their history. There were fords over against Jericho, to which point the men of Jericho pursued the spies. (Joshua 2:7) comp.
Judg 3:28 Higher up where the fords or passages of Bethbarah, where Gideon lay in wait for the Midianites, (Judges 7:24) and where the men of Gilead slew the Ephraimites. ch. (Judges 12:6) These fords undoubtedly witnessed the first recorded passage of the Jordan in the Old Testament. (Genesis 32:10) Jordan was next crossed, over against Jericho, by Joshua. (Joshua 4:12,13) From their vicinity to Jerusalem the lower fords were much used. David, it is probable, passed over them in one instance to fight the Syrians.
(2 Samuel 10:17; 17:22) Thus there were two customary places at which the Jordan was fordable; and it must have been at one of these, if not at both, that baptism was afterward administered by St. John and by the disciples of our Lord. Where our Lord was baptized is not stated expressly, but it was probably at the upper ford. These fords were rendered so much more precious in those days from two circumstances. ” (Joshua 3:15) The channel or bed of the river became brimful, so that the level of the water and of the banks was then the same.
) The last feature which remains to be noticed in the scriptural account of the Jordan is its frequent mention as a boundary: “over Jordan,” “this” and “the other side,” or “beyond Jordan,” were expressions as familiar to the Israelites as “across the water,” “this” and “the other side of the Channel” are to English ears. In one sense indeed, that is, in so far as it was the eastern boundary of the land of Canaan, it was the eastern boundary of the promised land.
(Numbers 34:12) The Jordan rises from several sources near Panium (Banias), and passes through the lakes of Merom (Huleh) and Gennesaret. The two principal features in its course are its descent and its windings. From its fountain heads to the Dead Sea it rushes down one continuous inclined plane, only broken by a series of rapids or precipitous falls. Between the Lake of Gennesaret and the Dead Sea there are 27 rapids. The depression of the Lake of Gennesaret below the level of the Mediterranean is 653 feet, and that of the Dead Sea 1316 feet.
(The whole descent from its source to the Dead Sea is 3000 feet. Its width varies form 45 to 180 feet, and it is from 3 to 12 feet deep. ) Its sinuosity is not so remarkable in the upper part of its course. The only tributaries to the Jordan below Gennesaret are the Yarmuk (Hieromax) and the Zerka (Jabbok). Not a single city ever crowned the banks of the Jordan. Still Bethshan and Jericho to the west, Gerasa, Pella and Gadara to the east of it were important cities, and caused a good deal of traffic between the two opposite banks.
The physical features of the Ghor, through which the Jordan flows, are treated of under Palestina And Palestine.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible (1898) & Schaff's Bible Dictionary
JOR'DAN (the descender), the great river of Palestine, as the Nile is of Egypt. Name. , with two exceptions, Ps 42:6; Job 40:23. d. 400, says that the Jordan derived its name from two rivers, the Jor, rising at Banias, and the Dan, rising at Tell el-Kadi. But this tradition seems to be erroneous; for according to Gen 13:10, the river was known to Abraham as the Jordan long before the children of Dan gave their name to Leshem, Josh 19:47, or Laish. Jud 18:29. Sources. — The Jordan rises among the mountains of Anti-Lebanon, and has four sources: (1).
The Hambany, which issues from the large fountain 'Ain Furar, near Hasbeya, at an altitude of 1700 feet above the sea. This pool, which the natives say is 1000 feet deep, Macgregor found to have a depth of 11 feet. (2) The Banias, which rises near the ruins of Banias (Caesarea-Philippi), at the base of Mount Hermon, 1140 feet above the sea-level. (3) The Seddan, rising in a large fountain on the west side of the Tell el-Kadi ("hill of the judge," the site of the city of Dan).
In the midst of a thicket of oleander bushes is a large pool, 50 or 60 yards wide, with the water bubbling out of the ground in a full-grown stream. This, which Josephus calls the Little Jordan, is the most copious source. (4) The Esh-Shar, a minor tributary, only one or two yards broad. Besides the [image -4, 32, 285, 460, 19382] above four sources, there are numerous small streams from the springs of Lebanon, which find their way into the swamp above Lake Huleh, and contribute to swell the Jordan. Course of the Stream.
— At a point about 4 miles below Tell el-Kadi the Hanbany unites with the other two principal sources. At this point the Jordan is 45 feet wide, and flows in a channel from 12 to 30 feet below the level of the plain. After emerging from a broad morass the waters expand into Lake el-Huleh, 4 1/4 miles long, 2 3/4 miles wide, having descended 1434 feet. See Merom, The Waters of. Issuing from the lake in a sluggish current, the descent soon makes it a rapid torrent, which in a course of 9 miles descends 897 feet to the Sea of Galilee, 682 1/2 feet below the Mediterranean. See Galilee, Sea of.
" From the Sea of Tiberias to the Dead Sea there is one deep depression, the hills from the east and west nearly meeting in many places. This depression is filled up to a certain level with an alluvial deposit, forming a vast plain called the Jordan Valley, or Ghor (the hollow). " It varies in width from 1 to 12 miles. The river has cut out for itself a plain lower than the preceding by some 50 to 100 feet, and from a quarter of a mile to a mile wide. This is the "lower plain," through which the river, some 60 yards wide, winds its way. During the spring floods this lower plain is inundated.
Although the distance in a straight line between Tiberias and the Dead Sea is only 66 miles, the actual distance the stream flows, on account of its many windings, is 200 miles, and the fall 667 feet. Twenty-seven threatening rapids were counted by Lieut. Lynch, besides many others of minor importance. The whole distance from the sources of the river to its mouth is not more than 136 miles in a straight line.
The whole descent is 2999 feet to the Dead Sea, which, according to the latest determination of the British Survey, is 1292 feet below the sea-level, although Lynch had reported it at 1317 feet. See Salt Sea. The width of the stream varies from 45 to 180 feet, and its depth from 3 to 12 feet. Tributaries. — Between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea two considerable rivers enter the Jordan from the east. (1) Wady Mandhur (the Jarmuk or Yarmuk of the Rabbins, and the Hieromax of Pliny). This stream formerly divided Bashan and Gilead.
(2) Wady Zerka, the Jabbok, which enters the Jordan 20 miles north of Jericho and was formerly the northern boundary of Amnion. " Between the Jabbok and the Wady Nimrin there are no streams and the region is barren, but below the Wady Nimrin several living streams were noted. Hot springs of considerable size have been found in as many as ten different localities in the Jordan Valley. The temperature of those at El-Hama, near the Yarmuk, is from 100 to 115 degrees. Bridges and Fords. — There are the remains of several bridges crossing the river, which date back to Roman times.
One of these, a few hundred yards above Damieh (the "Adam" of Josh 3:16), marks the crossing-place of the great road from central Palestine to the East. Dr. Merrill says there is reason to believe that this bridge existed in Christ's time, and it is on the road by which the Saviour went from Galilee to Jerusalem. Below Lake Hileh is a bridge called "Bridge of Jacob's Daughter," probably built in the fifteenth century.
There are four principal fords over the river: the lower one, opposite Jericho, near the famous bathing-place of the pilgrims; another, eastward of Sakut; and two others, nearer the Sea of Galilee. At low water there are many other points at which the river might be easily forded, and the British Survey discovered evidences of various fords. During the floods the Arabs are frequently obliged to swim their horses across the river. Climate and Vegetation. — The great depression of the Jordan Valley gives to it a semi-tropical character.
" Under the intense heat vegetation advances with wonderful rapidity, Source of the Jordan. ) The figures denote the heights in feet above the sea-level. but is as quickly scorched wherever the water-supply is not abundant. In the marshes of Huleh are acres of papyrus, the reeds sometimes reaching 16 feet in height. This reed is now wholly extinct in Egypt, according to Tristram (Natural History, p. 11), and to find it again one must travel either to India or to Abyssinia.
Farther south along the river's course are the jujube (a tropical tree), date-palm, oleander, tamarisk, "zukkum," or false balm of Gilead, osher, henna, etc. Even in the depth of winter the thermometer ranges from 60 to 80 degrees. Scripture History. — The first mention Course of the Jordan from Sea of Galilee to Dead Sea. ) of the Jordan is in " Gen 13:10, where Lot beheld the plain of the Jordan as the garden of the Lord; "Jacob crossed and recrossed it, Gen 32:10; the Israelites passed over it in entering the Promised Land, Josh 3, Josh 4; Ps 114:3.
The phenomenon of the river overflowing its banks at the time of harvest is still witnessed. The snows from Lebanon melt in the spring-time and swell the current of the Jordan at the time of the harvest, which, in the hot climate of the Jordan Valley, comes in April. Prof. Porter of Belfast, at a visit in the middle of April, found it impossible to cross the river at the usual ford near Jericho, and was compelled to go a day's journey up the banks to Damieh.
Among those who crossed over the Jordan were Gideon, "faint yet pursuing" after Zebah and Zalmunna, Jud 8:4-5; the Ammonites, invading Judah, Jud 10:9; Abner, in flight, 2 Sam 2:29; David, in flight, 2 Sam 17:22, and returning to his capital, 2 Sam 19:15-18 (mention is here made of a ferryboat, probably only a raft, the only time in Scripture); David, to war with the Syrians; Absalom, in pursuit of his father, 2 Sam 17:24; Elijah and Elisha, parting the waters with the mantle. 2 Kgs 2:6-14.
As two and a half tribes of Israel dwelt east of the river, the amount of crossing and recrossing must have been considerable, and the best fords were well known. Comp. Josh 2:7; Jud 3:28; Num 7:24; Jud 12:5-6. " Jer 12:6; Jer 49:19; Jer 60:44. Noteworthy miracles, in addition to those already mentioned, were the curing of Naaman, 2 Kgs 6:14, and the making the iron to swim. 2 Kgs 6:6. T. T. it is mentioned 16 times. T. are John's baptism of the multitudes. Matt 3:6, and especially his baptism of Jesus. Mark 1:9.
In commemoration of this latter event it is the custom for Christian pilgrims in great numbers to bathe in the Jordan not far from Jericho at Easter. The cities mentioned in Scripture in connection with the Jordan are few. The chief ones near it were Jericho and Gilgal, Succoth and Bethshan. Traces of several towns have been noted on the east side, in the valley between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. The Jordan has been several times navigated in a boat in modern times — by Costigan, 1835; by Molyneaux, 1847; by Lieut. Lynch, 1848; by J. Macgregor (Rob Roy), 1869.
"The sight of the Jordan," says Schaff, " is rather disappointing. It bears no comparison in majesty and beauty to the great rivers of Europe and America. Naaman thought the clear rivers of his native Damascus far superior, yet the Abana and Pharpar could not wash away his leprosy. Its chief importance is historic. In this respect the Jordan surpasses the Hudson and the Mississippi, the Rhine and the Danube, and even the Nile.
It marks the termination of the wanderings of the children of Israel from the banks of the Nile, and the beginning of their history as an independent nation in their own home. " — Through Bible Lands, p. 299. " — Rob Roy on the Jordan, p. 406. It is a sacred stream alike to Jew, Ishmaelite, Christian, and Mohammedan, and in this surpasses in interest any other river in the world.
Hitchcock's Bible Names (1869)
the river of judgment