Article July 1, 1939 Issue

Bible Notes

"Decapolis" (Matt. 4:25)—Decapolis (literally, "ten cities") was, as its name implies, a league composed of ten Greek cities, formed partly for commercial reasons, and partly for mutual protection against marauding Arabs. It was, moreover, an anti-Semitic league. One of the cities (Scythopolis) lay to the west of the Jordan, but the other nine (Pella, Dion, Gerasa, Philadelphia, Gadara, Raphana, Hippos, and Damascus) lay to the east of the river, in the territory usually known as Bashan or Gilead (cf. Hastings' Bible Dictionary, Vol. I, p. 583).

"He went up into a mountain" (Matt. 5:1)—More literally, "... into the mountain." An early tradition asserts that Christ Jesus delivered his Sermon on the Mount from what has been described as "a square shaped hill with two tops," and it has been observed that the "platform on the top is eminently suitable for the collection of a multitude and corresponds directly to the 'level place' " referred to in Luke's version of the Beatitudes. (See Luke 6:17 in the Revised Version; compare Stanley: Sinai and Palestine, pp. 268f.; and Williams: Matthew, Vol. I, pp. 145f.) The hill just referred to is known as "the Horns of Hattin," and is to be seen to the left of the road which goes from Cana of Galilee (now Kefr Kennah) to Tiberias. We have, however, no certain means of identifying the "mountain" mentioned in Matthew 5:1. It may well have been, as some hold, and as one local tradition asserts, that it was simply the rising ground by the shore of the Galilean lake (see Plummer: St. Matthew, p. 54; and Williams: loc. cit.), while still others take the reference as being primarily, if not entirely, figurative.

"Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake" (Matt. 5:10)—More literally, "... have been persecuted." So Moffatt has: "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of goodness;" and Goodspeed: "Blessed are those who have endured persecution for their uprightness;" and Weymouth (fifth edition): "Blessed are those who have borne persecution in the cause of righteousness."

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