Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-06-17
TRE SEA OF CALLER This Tax,

TIE SEA OF GALILEE.-This Lake
is also known in the gospels as the Sea
OF Tibcrias, and Gennesareth and il
the Old Testament as the Sea Of Chin.
ncrcth. 1t is about thirteen miles in
length, and six in breadth /; and is
formed by the river Jordan which ira
verses it from N orth to South, and then
flows on to the Dead Sea, sixty miles
South.
No other sheet of water in the world
is more endcared to the Christian byso
many pleasing associations. Some ten
miles to the West lay Nazareth, the
home Of Christ during his childhood
and youth. On its Western shore Law
Capcrnaum, Chorazin, and Bethsaida
Of Galilee, where most Of his "nighty
works.. were done; while the other
Bethsaida was but a few miles North
Of its northeastern shore. Around this
lake a large part Of the Saviour's life
was spent. More than one blind man
there experienced his miraculous pow
er, and opened his eyes to behold first
of all his benefactor's face, and then
the blue waters Of this charming lake
Here the majority of his disciples lived ;
and by its side, while "sitting at the
receipt of custom,' or "mendins their
nets" they were called to become
"fshers of men," 1t was on these
waters, sitting in Simon Peters boat,
that Christ preached to the multitude
on the shore. Upon one of the neigh.
boring hills he taught many thousands
at once, healed their diseases, and fed
them all with five loavcs and two fishes.
Here, too, on two occasions-at the
commencement of his ministry and af-
ter his resurrection-his command fill
ed the nets of his apostles with unpre-
cedented draughts Of fishes. Some
where on the southeast side of the same
sea is "steep place. down which the
frightened Gadarenes saw their whole
herd of swine plunge, and perish in the
waters. The Saviour often crossed
this lake in the labors of his love and
twice he had occasion to allay the fears
of his disciples by calming the storm
tossed waves; once waking from his
quiet sleep in the hinder part of the
boat, to chide them for their lack of
faith and once coming out to them
walking on the sea, in the fourth watch
Of the night, as they were "toiling in
rowing" .. &,
Thus the whole region is rendered
sacred by incidents in the life of our
Lord. The traveller irresistibly feels
that His footsteps and smiles have for
ever hallowed these hills, that His voice
yet echoes from these shores, and His,
"Peace, be STILL" yet rests on those
pure and peaceful waters. In many
however, a great change has
taken place since the time Of Christ.
Then the shores were filled by tenn
ing population towns and villages
crowded the banks, and boats swarmed
on the waters. Now the only remain
ing town is Tibcrias, a city in ruins,
containing about 1000 inhabitants,
and wretched and filthy to the last de-
gree. 1t is common saying that the
"king of the feas holds his court in
Tiberias." Instead Of a large fleet of
fshing-boats, only one can now be
found on it's waters. The round hills
that come boldly down to the sea are
now bare of trees; and though covered
with delightful verlure after the winter
rains, become parched and desolate
under the summer sun.
Yet this sea and these hills arc the
same that our Saviour himself beheld :;
the main features Of the scene are I'M
changed. The lake lies embosomed in
a deep basin, more than three hundred
feet below the level of the Meditcrran-
can, and enclosed on all sides, except
near the inlet and outlet Of the Jordan,
by hills that rise steeply hundreds of
feet in hight while in the background
on the east side are mountains over a
thousand feet high. The range of
heights stretching around the sea itself
is broken by occasional ravines and
water &C urses and here and there is
from the sea by level and
exceedingly fertile plain. In one Of
these plains Capernaum used to stand,
but now it has wholly disappeared.
Far away in the north, Mt. Hermon
lifts its snow-capped crown to the sky,
with the majesty of a summit that has
looked down on the coming and going
Of a hundred generations.
The region of this sea bears the
marks of volcanic action, and hot
springs still exist on the shore south of
Tiberias. The waters still swarm with
fishes as in the days of the apostolic
fishermen. The whole scene is marked
by grand but serene beauty, and the
Christian visitor reluctantly tears him
self away from it. A recent Ameri-
can traveller, while out upon the sea,
encountered a tempest like those de-
scribed in the gospel sudden, swift,
and violent, it swept down on the sea
from the upper hills, and threw it into
commotion as in a moment. He was
unable to make head against it, and was
driven over to 1.-THE coast of the Gada-
renes:" The same traveller bathed
several times in its sweet and clear wa
tiers, and was reminded Of the words of
an old Scotch friend Of his boyhood,
who said to him: "When ye graw up
to be mon, mayhay yell 60 wander
in up and down the hills of the world.
But doan ye forget that gin ye're
thirsty, there's the sea o. galilee f; and
gin ye're hungry, there's the loaves
that fed feeve thoosand there by the