Abilene
Summary
A small district in the region of Anti-Lebanon, governed by Lysanias as tetrarch at the time John the Baptist began his ministry.
☩Location and Geography
Abilene was a territory on the eastern slopes of Anti-Lebanon, deriving its name from its chief town Abila, located about eighteen Roman miles north of Damascus on the road to Heliopolis (Baalbek). The district included fertile valleys between the mountain base and the eastern plains, well-watered by springs and offering fine pastures. The site is identified with the modern village of Suk Wady Barada, near which inscriptions mentioning "the Abilenians" have been found.
☩Political History
Luke mentions Abilene as the tetrarchy of Lysanias in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar. This territory had a complex political history under Roman administration. In AD 37, the tetrarchy was given to Herod Agrippa I by Emperor Caligula, a grant later confirmed by Claudius. After Agrippa I's death in AD 44, it passed to Roman procurators until AD 53, when Claudius granted it to Agrippa II, who held it until his death around AD 100, after which it was incorporated into the province of Syria.
Related Verses1 mention
Luke· 1 verse
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Abilene," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. I (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Abilene," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. I (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.James Hastings (ed.), "Abilene," in Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, vol. I (T. & T. Clark, 1906–1908).