Why was Megiddo important?

The key has to do with the lay of the land. Megiddo sits near the end of a level pass, rich in springs, which slices through the hills from the coast to the Jezreel Plain.  Ancient travelers preferred this plain: it gave them a flat stretch across most of the country (see map below). Yet other cities too (Taanach, Yokneam, Ibleam) occupied the Jezreel plain near the ends of passes from the coast.. What, then, made Megiddo more important than the others, so that we speak of Ar-mageddon (Hebrew for "the mound of Megiddo"), not Ar-Taanach, Ar-Yokneam or Ar-Ibleam? 

Most of the Jezreel Plain has the form of an isosceles triangle with Mt. Tabor at the apex. Megiddo sits near the middle of the base. Through it passes not only the the Great Trunk Road to Syria, but also branches to (1) Acco and Phoenicia, (2) the King's Highway and (3) Samaria. 

Winter posed a problem in the Jezreel Plain. Its corners tilt upward (for example, below the edge of Mt. Carmel in the photo on the right), resulting in poor drainage. Unless special measures are taken (e.g., the reservoirs and fish ponds one sees today) much of the plain becomes mud in the rainy season. But there happens to be a slight basalt ridge stretching across the plain toward Megiddo, starting from a volcanic area near the Hill of Moreh. (Moshav Ha-Yogev and Tell Adashim sit on the ridge today.) By keeping to this rise in the winter, the ancient traveler could stay above the mud. Anyone who has sampled the mud of the Holy Land knows what this means! The Canaanite general, Sisera, for example, sampled it with his 900 iron chariots: he learned how significant the mud of this plain can be. (Interpreting Judges 4 and 5.)

Megiddo: An Introduction

More about why Megiddo was important.

Campaign of Pharaoh Thutmosis III

The cultic area

The water shaft

Megiddo and the battles in the Jezreel Plain

Logistics for a visit to the site

© 2003 Near East Tourist Agency (NET)

Text © 2003 Stephen Langfur