Beth-Ho´ron: two places of this name are distinguished in Scripture as the Upper and Nether Beth-horon (Joshua 16:3; Joshua 16:5; Joshua 18:13; 1 Chronicles 7:24). The Nether Beth-horon lay in the N.W. corner of Benjamin; and between the two places was a pass called both the ascent and descent of Beth-horon, leading from the region of Gibeon (el-Jib) down to the western plain (Joshua 18:13-14; Joshua 10:10-11). Down this pass the five kings of the Amorites were driven by Joshua (Joshua 10:11). The upper and lower towns were both fortified by Solomon (1 Kings 9:17; 2 Chronicles 8:5). Cestius Gallus, the Roman proconsul of Syria, in his march from Caesarea to Jerusalem, after having burned Lydda, ascended the mountain by Beth-horon and encamped near Gibeon. From these intimations it would appear that in ancient times, as at the present day, the great road of communication and of heavy transport between Jerusalem and the sea-coast was by the pass of Beth-horon.
The two Beth-horons still exist under the name of Beit-Ur. The Lower Beit-Ur is upon the top of a low ridge, which is separated by a wady, or narrow valley, from the foot of the mountain upon which the Upper Beit-Ur stands. Both are now inhabited villages. The lower is very small, but foundations of large stones indicate an ancient site—doubtless that of the Nether Beth-horon.
The Upper Beit-Ur is likewise small, but also exhibits traces of ancient walls and foundations. In the steep ascent to it the rock is in some parts cut away, and the path formed into steps, indicating an ancient road. On the first offset or step of the ascent are foundations of huge stones, the remains perhaps of a castle that once guarded the pass.
It is remarkable that the places are still distinguished as Beit-Ur el-Foka (the Upper), and Beit-Ur el-Tahta (the Lower).
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John Kitto was an English biblical scholar of Cornish descent.Born in Plymouth, John Kitto was a sickly child, son of a Cornish stonemason. The drunkenness of his father and the poverty of his family meant that much of his childhood was spent in the workhouse. He had no more than three years of erratic and interrupted education. At the age of twelve John Kitto fell on his head from a rooftop, and became totally and permanently deaf. As a young man he suffered further tragedies, disappointments and much loneliness. His height was 4 ft 8 in, and his accident left him with an impaired sense of balance. He found consolation in browsing at bookstalls and reading any books that came his way.
From these hardships he was rescued by friends who became aware of his mental abilities and encouraged him to write topical articles for local newspapers, arranging eventually for him to work as an assistant in a local library. Here he continued to educate himself.
One of his benefactors was the Exeter dentist Anthony Norris Groves, who in 1824 offered him employment as a dental assistant. Living with the Groves family, Kitto was profoundly influenced by the practical Christian faith of his employer. In 1829 he accompanied Groves on his pioneering mission to Baghdad and served as tutor to Groves's two sons. In 1833 Kitto returned to England via Constantinople, accompanied by another member of the Groves mission, Francis William Newman. Shortly afterwards he married, and in due course had several children.
A London publisher asked Kitto to write up his travel journals for a series of articles in the Penny Magazine, a publication read at that time by a million people in Britain, reprinted in America and translated into French, German and Dutch. Other writing projects followed as readers enquired about his experiences in the East amidst people living in circumstances closely resembling those of Bible times.
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