Gaza
One of three cities where, the Bible says, the Anakim survived, on the coastal road between Egypt and Canaan.
- Location
- Mediterranean coast on the route between Egypt and the Levant
- First recorded
- Records of Thutmose III, 15th century BCE
- Type
- Philistine royal city; later Greco-Roman trading port
- Biblical events
- Samson's death in the temple of Dagon (Judges 16)
- Siege
- Taken by Alexander the Great, 332 BCE
What is Gaza known for?
Gaza has been inhabited for more than three thousand years. It is first named in the records of the pharaoh Thutmose III in the 15th century BCE and appears in the Amarna letters. After about three centuries of Egyptian rule, it became one of the five main cities of the Philistines.
Its position on the coastal road between Egypt and the Levant made it a constant prize. Alexander the Great besieged and took it in 332 BCE, and under Greek and Roman rule it was a rich trading city with its own harbor.
In the Bible, Gaza is where Samson pulls down the temple of Dagon. Joshua 11:22 also says that when Joshua cut off the Anakim from the hills, some remained only in Gaza, Gath and Ashdod, which sets up the later giants of Philistia.
Joshua 11 names Gaza as one of three cities where the Anakim survived.
Mentioned on these pages
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'Gaza'Reference
- Joshua 11 (KJV), Bible GatewayPrimary text
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