Page 97 - Bible Geography and Near East Studies - Textbook w videos short

Study Section 13: Seasons and Months in Israel

13.1 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…..

13.2 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.

13.3 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.

All along the Mediterranean coastline the lands have a climate which is almost tropical. The winters are
the days of rain; the summers are hot and dry. Because of the extreme altitude variations, it will snow
in the mountains providing water for the region and at the same time, tropical fruits will ripen in the
coastal regions.

Rainfall in Israel depends on how high above sea level you are. It rains a lot in the mountains, a little in
the plains, and hardly at all in the southern regions of desert. North of the Sea Galilee receives the most

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