Page 128 - Advanced Bible Geography ebook

Chapter 13: Seasons and Months in Israel

Connect…

Who knows, maybe someday the Lord would provide a way for you to travel to Israel and see all the
areas you have studied with your own eyes. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Today we want to study
about the weather. When would be the best time of year to visit Israel? We want to avoid visiting
during religious holidays because many places are closed during holidays including restaurants and
hotels. So, we need to know what these holidays are called, when they are recognized, and why they
are honored in Israel. Let’s get started…

Objectives…

1. The student should be able to describe the climate and rainfall conditions for each month in the year.

2. The student should be able to list the major religious holidays in the Israeli calendar.

3. The student should be able to plan when you will visit Israel in the future, should the Lord provide a
way.

The Lesson ...

Seasons and Months in Israel

In many countries, especially those further north or south of the equator, there are basically four
seasons in every year: spring, summer, fall, and winter. But in Israel, those seasons are not so clearly
identified as in other countries. The word, “spring” is never mentioned in the Bible. Genesis 8:22
mentions summer and winter, heat and cold. No transition between summer and winter is described.
The word Aviv (Hebrew for spring) is the time when barley ripens which is the month of Nissan. The
Talmud describes the seasons in Israel as the “days of sun” and the “days of rain” or two seasons:
summer and winter.

The two seasons may be a result of the climate in Israel. For the most part, Israel is a land of sunshine
and good weather. Though the land of Israel covers a very small geographical area, there are
considerable differences in temperature throughout the country. For example, in the north rises the
great Mount Hermon, with its white snow caps all year-round. It towers 9000 feet above sea level. But
100 miles to the south in Israel lays the Dead Sea 1292 feet below sea level. The land of Israel enjoys
sunny blue skies from beginning of May to the end of September, with little or no interruption. God was
thinking about the large number of people who would travel to Jerusalem for the various feasts so they
would enjoy good weather.

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