民數記 34:4的交互參照與相關經文

When Moses sent spies to Palestine they reported that the cities of Palestine were well fortified (Numbers, 13:28). Moses informed the Jews that they would find “cities great and fenced up to heaven” (Deut. 9:1). It is therefore remarkable that after so many invasions and wars the people believed that many of the gates and fortresses dated back to the days of Joshua ben Nun. The Bible mentions that the Jews lived in “Ir” (city), “Chatzer” (court) and “Kefar” (village). The Talmud makes no mention of “Chatzer” but contains the additional concept of “Kerach” (large city) and in addition to the “Ir” (city) it makes mention of “Ayarah” (town). There are differing opinions concerning the exact meaning of “Chatzer”. Some declared it to be a suburb; others maintained that it referred to an enclosure or a group of houses where a large number of people lived. We also find references to cities named “Hatzar” (Numbers, 34:4; Joshua, 19:3), and these probably developed from small groups of houses. The name “Kefar” appears both in the Bible and in the Talmud. The size of a “Kefar” (village) was not definitely determined but Josephus declares that the smallest “Kefar” in Palestine contained fifteen thousand inhabitants. However, his statement may be discounted as exaggerated. There were also cities in Palestine which developed from villages as is indicated by their names: “Kefar Haamoni,” “Kefar Hananiah” and “Kefar Aziz.”