Page:Buried cities and Bible countries (1891).djvu/291

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

"Jerusalem, a Sketch." By Thomas Lewin. "Siege of Jerusalem." Thomas Lewin. "Antient Jerusalem." Joseph Francis Thrupp. "The Recovery of Jerusalem." Sir Charles Warren. Trans. Soc. Bib. Archæol., vol. vii. ("Site of the Temple." By Sir C. Warren). "The Holy City." Rev. George Williams. "The Holy Sepulchre and the Temple." James Fergusson, F.R.S. "Murray's Handbook of Syria and Palestine." (Dr. Porter). "Quarterly Statements of the P.E. Fund" (numerous papers).]

6. Incidents of the History better realised.

The Taking of Jerusalem by David:—The king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, who felt so secure in their stronghold that they mocked David by putting the lame and the blind upon the walls as defenders. Nevertheless, "David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the City of David . . . and David dwelt in the stronghold and called it the City of David" (2 Sam. v.). The stronghold here spoken of is not that which is now called the tower of David, near the Jaffa Gate, nor is the Zion here spoken of the south-western hill. The parallel statement in Josephus is that David "took the Lower City by force, but the Akra held out still." Joab, however, scaled the fortress, the Jebusites were cast out of the Akra, and then David rebuilt Jerusalem, renamed it the City of David, and dwelt there (Antiq. vii. 3. 1 & 2). It is not the High Town which is here spoken of but the Akra; and in the place where Josephus gives a general description of the city he tells us that Akra was the hill of the Lower City, while the Upper City was called by King David the Phrourion, that is, the hill-fort or watch-post.

It would seem that in those early days the south-western hill was not yet inhabited, or at any rate was not