It was mostly inhabited by Greeks (Josephus, BJ, III, ix, 1). Magog settled in today's Turkey. Daniel 8:22. One view locates Tarshish to the East, accessible from Solomon's great seaport at Ezion Geber on the Red Sea. Where is biblical Tarsus located? Tarshish is the name of the Phoenician colony on the river Tartessus, called also Baetis, the modern Guadalquivir. When God commanded Jonah to go preach to Nineveh (500 miles NE of Israel), he headed to Tarshish, which was as far in the other direction as he could go (see Jonah 1:1-3). Tyre (in modern-day Lebanon) is one of the oldest cities in the world, dating back over 4,000 years, during which it has been inhabited almost continuously. The port of ancient Sidon is believed to have been . Where did the minerals from Tarshish come from? In regard to tin, the trade of Tarshish in this metal is peculiarly significant, and, taken in conjunction with similarity of name and other circumstances already mentioned, is reasonably conclusive as to its identity with Tartessus. For in the first place the name Eridanus is manifestly not a barbarian word at all, but a Greek name, invented by some poet or other; and secondly, though I have taken vast pains, I have never been able to get an assurance from an eye-witness that there is any sea on the further side of Europe. B.C. The masts and yards were made of fir, or of pine, and the sails of linen, but the fiber of papyrus was employed as well as flax in the manufacture of sail-cloth. Speaking of Yahweh's wonders to be performed toward His people after Babylon had been overthrown, the prophet declares: "Thus saith Yahweh, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and I will bring down all of them as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, in the ships of their rejoicing" (Isaiah 43:14). The prophecies concerning Tarshish best fit Britain. Meshech (whose name means "long, tall, or drawn out by force") is the sixth son of Japheth. Here, Tarshish is certainly a large island, and cannot be confused with Tarsus (Thompson and Skaggs 2013). to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great spoil? Howl, you ships of Tarshish! For "ship" The Wisdom of Solomon 5:10 has naus. Probably Tartessus, a city and emporium of the Phoenicians in the south of Spain, represented as one of the sons of Javan. . Tarshish and the United Monarchy of Israel. If Tarshish is England; I propose the 'young lions thereof' would be Canada, Australia, and the United States. There is no other known such concentration of silver hoards in contemporary Mediterranean, and its date-range overlaps with the reigns of King Solomon (990931BC) and Hiram of Tyre (980947BC). The word "launch," of putting a boat or a ship into the sea, has disappeared from the Revised Version (British and American), except in Luke 8:22, where it is more appropriate to an inland lake. "Copper, tin, silver, and iron: The search for metallic ores as an incentive for foreign expansion". 2. You were filled and very glorious in the midst of the seas. . Bochart, the 17thcentury French Protestant pastor, suggested in his Phaleg (1646) that Tarshish was the city of Tartessos in southern Spain. ), "seems not to have been used in ancient navigation; its purpose was served by the sail, as for example at the battle of Actium the ship of Antony was distinguished by its purple sail. In the 19th century there were 400 mines in Cornwall employing 18,000 people. The Bible definitely gives the indication that Tarshish was far away from Israel. Marayong NSW 2148 Spain is economically weak and is only a small part of the EU. There are only two species known: both inhabit the mainland and islands of India; so that the mention of the peacock seems to exclude the possibility of the voyage having been to Africa. Thus, with regard to the ships of Tarshish, which Jehoshaphat caused to be constructed at Ezion-geber on the Elanitic Gulf of the Red Sea, ( 1Kings 22:48 ) it is said in the Chronicles, ( 2Chronicles 20:36 ) that they were made to go to Tarshish; and in like manner the navy of ships, which Solomon had previously made in Ezion-geber, ( 1Kings 9:26 ) is said in the Chronicles, ( 2Chronicles 9:21 ) to have gone to Tarshish with the servants of Hiram. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The prophecy of Psalms 48 was fulfilled in 1948. The location of Tarshish has been lost to time and has given rise to much discussion. For even not when countries in Europe or on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea where tin is found are very few; and in reference to ancient times, it would be difficult to name any such countries except Iberia or Spain, Lusitania, which was somewhat less in extent than Portugal, and Cornwall in Great Britain. These are Russia ,Turkey. 2. There are three schools of thought where Tarshish is concerned. (2) Assyria and Babylonia.The Assyrians and Babylonians were mainly an inland people, but their rivers gave them considerable scope for navigation. Herodotus indicated that he had no evidence of the North Sea on the north of Europe. This seemingly rules out Spain as Tarshish and the Latin American countries as the young lions. Sealed silver in Iron Age Cisjordan and the 'invention' of coinage. Tarshish: Either the UK or Spain, 4. This agrees perfectly with the statement of Ibn Hankal, who no doubt reports the opinion of the Arabian geographers, that Phoenicia maintained a direct intercourse with Britain in later ", Phoenician presence in the western Mediterranean, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, "King Solomon's silver? Ezekiel also, foretelling the overthrow of Egypt, speaks of messengers traveling with the news on swift Nile boats to strike terror into the hearts of the "careless Ethiopians" (30:9). "The flag proper," says Davidson (ad loc. As with all these names, Tarshish denotes a country; in several instances, indeed, it is mentioned as a maritime country lying in the remotest region of the earth. Lipiski, E. (2002). "[4] One possible identification for many centuries preceding the French scholar Bochart (d.1667), and following the Roman historian Flavius Josephus (d.100AD), had been with inland town of Tarsus in Cilicia (south-central Turkey). [Eds. On shipping and navigation in classical antiquity Smith of Jordanhill, Voyage and Shipwreck of Paul, is still the standard authority.T. In this case, knowing the location of Tarshish unveils little known prophecies in Psalms and Isaiah that were not fulfilled until the twentieth century.If you look up Tarshish in different biblical commentaries, you will get different answers about its location. What country is Nineveh today? (Ezekiel 38:13). 2). ( Genesis 10:4 ; 1Kings 10:22 ; 1Chronicles 1:7 ; Psalms 48:7 ; Isaiah 2:16 ; Jeremiah 10:9 ; Ezekiel 27:12 Ezekiel 27:25 ; Jonah 1:3 ; 4:2 ) The identity of the two places is rendered highly probable by the following circumstances: 1st. In fact, in ancient times, the British Isles were known as the Cassiterides, which means Tin Islands.. Nineveh was located at the intersection of important north-south and east-west trade routes, and its proximity to a tributary of the Tigris, the Khawar River, added to the value of the fertile agricultural and pastoral . It was at Ezion-geber near to Eloth on the Red Sea, in the land of Edom which David had conquered, that Solomon built his fleet, "a navy of ships" (1 Kings 9:26-28). The same evidence from hacksilber is said to fit with what the ancient Greek and Roman authors recorded about the Phoenicians exploiting many sources of silver in the western Mediterranean to feed developing economies back in Israel and Phoenicia soon after the fall of Troy and other palace centers in the eastern Mediterranean around 1200BC. It may be a reminiscence of the sea when Paul in the very earliest of his Epistles (1 Thessalonians 4:16), speaking of the coming of the Lord, says "The Lord himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout" en keleusmati), where the picture is that of the keleustes, giving the time to the rowers on board a ship. In recent years the Spanish people have shown increased interest in their roots and a comic series made reference to Tertessus: Probably more appealing to readers is the recent and highly successful comic series Tartessos. With such uncertainty surroundingTartessus it would be dangerous toassert that Spain was the Tarshishof Scripture which was a maritimepower in the days of Solomon and which was the source of minerals for the great tradingcity of Tyre when Ezekielwrote in the 6th century BC. The island of Sardinia was always known as a hub of the metals trade in antiquity, and was also called by the ancient Greeks as Argyrphleps nsos "island of the silver veins". PO Box 4216 The sail had also to serve "for an ensign" (lenes, Ezekiel 27:7). Experts have positioned it as far away as India in the east and the far coast of Spain in the west. Tarshish in Scripture has young lions or offshoot nations such as colonies. Tartessus may well have been the Arabic form of the name Tarshish and the Spanish appear to identify Tartessians as the early Britons. (After the capture of Jerusalem the emperor Titus returned to Italy in such a vessel, touching at Rhegium and landing at Puteoil.) Genesis 10:4 1 Chronicles 1:7. American scholars William F. Albright (18911971) and Frank Moore Cross (19212012) suggested Tarshish was Sardinia because of the discovery of the Nora Stone, whose Phoenician inscription mentions Tarshish. She is manned with oarsmen of Sidon and Arvad, pilots of the wise men of Tyre, calkers from Gebal to stop up the cracks and seams in her timbers, mariners and men of war from other lands who enhanced her beauty by hanging up the shield and helmet within her. I suspect based on the Apostle Paul wanting to make it to the utter most part to spread the Gospel, it's Spain. It is not to be supposed that the author of these passages in the Chronicles contemplated a voyage to Tarshish in the south of Spain by going round what has since been called the Cape of Good Hope. Which country is Tarshish today? The reason for this was not simply the tempestuous character of the weather, but the obscuration of the heavens which prevented observations being taken for the steering of the ship (Acts 27:20).3. Ezekiel 27:12. The city was an ancient Phoenician port and industrial center which, in myth, is known as . document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Prove You\'re Human: * Throughout the Bible Tarshish, the word itself used in different contexts, appears many times in the Bible.In the context of the city, however, Tarshish is both the city (or perhaps city-state) where Jonah made a concerted attempt to flee and where Solomon had a trade agreement. "(4) skaphe, "boat" (Acts 27:16, 30, 32, where it means the small boat of the ship in which Paul was being conveyed as a prisoner to Rome).Cognate expressions are: "shipmen," 'anshe 'oniyoth (1 Kings 9:27); nautai (Acts 27:27, 30 the King James Version, "sailors" the Revised Version (British and American)); "mariners," mallachim (Jonah 1:15 Ezekiel 27:9, 27, 29), shaTim (Ezekiel 27:8 the King James Version, "rowers" the Revised Version (British and American); Ezekiel 27:26, the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American)); "pilot," chobhel (Jonah 1:6 Ezekiel 27:8, 27, 28, 29); "sailing," "voyage," plous (Acts 21:7; Acts 27:9, 10, the Revised Version (British and American) "voyage" in all verses).I. The coast line of the land of Israel from Carmel southward had no bays and no estuaries or river-mouths to offer shelter from storm or to be havens of ships. In the Oracle against Tyre, the prophet Ezekiel (27:12) mentions that silver, iron, lead, and tin came to Tyre from Tarshish (Trsys). We have already noted the historical record which assumes that Tartessus was in Spain and that Tarshish was Tartessus however, it also acknowledged that tin was sourced from Cornwall as follows: Tin came primarily from Cornwall in the British Isles, and was brought back by the Phoenicians; it was combined with copper, abundant in south west Spain, to produce bronze. For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought lowAnd upon all the ships of Tarshish(Isaiah 2:12-16). Among the Hebrews(1) In Early Times(2) During the Monarchy(3) In Later Times2. A son of Javan, great-grandson of Noah (Gen 10:4ff. Some have pointed out thatthere is a mining town in Spaincalled Tharsis but this is a recentdevelopment and obviously animported name by a British miningcompany. .hide-if-no-js { Thus, Jonah flees to Tarshish from the presence of Yhwh (Jonah i. The Greeks excelled with colonies in the Black Sea, Asia Minor and around the Mediterranean. Ezekiel 38:13 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions of it, shall tell you, Have you come to take the spoil? Hacksilber objects in these Phoenician hoards have lead isotope ratios that match ores in the silver-producing regions of Sardinia and Spain, only one of which is a large island rich in silver. However, seemingly insignificant things in the Bible are sometimes the key to unlocking its greatest treasures. Instead, the lack of evidence for wealth in Israel and Phoenicia during the reigns of Solomon and Hiram, respectively, prompted a few scholars to opine that the archaeological period in Mediterranean prehistory between 1200 and 800BC was a 'Dark Age'.[2]. This boat is said in Luke's narrative to have been Simon's, and it seems from references to it as "the boat" on other occasions to have been generally at the disposal of Jesus.2. In this case, however, the ships are not war ships, but more probably merchant ships, or ships for pleasure, sailing in the Euphrates. King Solomon's silver? Elat, M. (1982). One of them is that the merchants (of Tarshish) are concerned about the motives of the invaders. 3, iv. 2 Chroniques 9Louis Segond. One of these minerals was tin. According to historians, Nineveh is an ancient city in present day Iraq. In Revelation there is a representation of the fall of Babylon in language reminiscent of the fall of Tyre (Ezekiel 27), in which lamentations arise from the merchants of the earth who can no more buy her varied merchandise (ton gomon, "cargo" the Revised Version margin), and shipmasters and passengers and seafaring people look in terror and grief upon the smoke of her burning (Revelation 18:12-18).LITERATURE.The usual books on Greek and Roman antiquities furnish descriptions and illustrations. (Spain -Thenandnow). When Isaiah pictures Yahweh as a better defense of Judah than the rivers and streams of Assyria and Egypt are to their people he says, "There Yahweh will be with us in majesty, a place of broad rivers and streams, wherein shall go no galley with oars ('oni shayiT), neither shall gallant ship (tsi 'addir) pass thereby.. Thy tacklings (ropes, cables) are loosed; they could not strengthen the foot of their mast, they could not spread the sail" (Isaiah 33:21, 23). Again, cedar trees were brought from Lebanon by sea to Joppa, and thence conveyed to Jerusalem (Ezra 3:7).From Joppa Jonah fled to avoid compliance with God's command to go to Nineveh and preach repentance there (Jonah 1:1). Tarshish (Phoenician: .mw-parser-output .script-phoenician{font-family:"ALPHABETUM Unicode","MPH 2B Damase",Aegean,Code2001,"Noto Sans Phoenician",FreeSans,"Segoe UI Historic",sans-serif} TR, Hebrew: Tar, Greek: , Tharseis) occurs in the Hebrew Bible with several uncertain meanings, most frequently as a place (probably a large city or region) far across the sea from Phoenicia (modern Lebanon) and the Land of Israel. [1], The existence of Tarshish in the western Mediterranean, along with any Phoenician presence in the western Mediterranean before c. 800BC, has been questioned by some scholars in modern times, because there is no direct evidence. In the olden days, it was one of the largest and most affluent cities. Its importance stems in part from the fact that Hebrew biblical passages tend to understand Tarshish as a source of King Solomon's great wealth in metals especially silver, but also gold, tin, and iron (Ezekiel27). Sheba: see Ezekiel 27:22: this Sheba was southward, and contains all of that coast which assisted Gog. It was also a victory of sorts over Britain, for it was her sailing ships that left the coast when the United Nations pronounced the independence of Israel. It is notknown whether Tartessus was a city,a river or a nation. Ships in the Old Testament and Apocrypha.1. Thy borders are in the midst of the seas, thy builders have perfected thy beauty. This seemingly rules out Spain as Tarshish and the Latin American countries as the young lions. Elle avait une suite fort nombreuse, et des chameaux portant des aromates, de l'or en grande quantit et des pierres prcieuses. Solomon's ships were so styled ( 1Kings 10:22 ; 22:49 ). Ezekiel 38:13 imparts several important clues to the reader. Thompson, C.M. No other nation in history has created an empire of colonies like the British Empire. Ezekiel 38:8, 16 notifies that this is a prophecy that finds fulfillment in the last days. The main problem is that Tarshish has been used in a variety of ways in the Old Testament. The largest hoard was found at Eshtemo'a, present-day as-Samu, and contained 26kg of silver. The queen is first mentioned in I Kings 10:1-13 and in II Chronicles 9:1-12 in the Bible, then in the later Aramaic Targum Sheni, then the Quran, and finally the Ethiopian work known as the Kebra Negast; later . And there is other evidence as well. Luke has made no note of the name of this or of the previous vessels in which Paul had voyaged. The Spanish Empire was a dominant world influence in between the late 15th century until the early 19th century. Where is Tarshish today? 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