The towering bluff of Mount Arbel dominates the lake’s western shore. When Herod the Great led his Roman troops to take control of the country, the men of the Galilee fighting against him hid in caves on Arbel’s cliffs. Herod ruthlessly sought them out and set fire to the caves.
At its summit is the village of Arbel, which boasts a beautiful synagogue and private residence dating from Byzantine times. At the foot of the mount sits a small village now called Migdal. Two thousand years ago a nearby hamlet called Magdala sat at the water edge and gave its name to the lady Mary Magdalene.
All around Lake Tiberias are pleasant beaches and quiet corners. Popular are Beit Gavriel, at the southern shore of the Lake, and Kibbutz Ein Gev on its eastern side. Both have fine restaurants. Ein Gev, Ginnosar and Ramot all boast comfortable holiday villages, making them attractive alternatives to the hotels of Tiberias as the base for a stay in the Galilee.
*And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And straightway they left their nets, and followed him. And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them. And they immediately left
the ship and their father, and followed him. Matthew 4:18-22
This page is part of the book The Holy Land of Jesus
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