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SHECHEM
ISRAELITE HOUSE IN SHECHEM Based on the work of G. Ernest Wright and Edward F. Campbell, Jr., a typical Israelite dwelling of the 8th century B.C. was constructed as follows: Lacking any substantial timber supply, the Israelites constructed their house of stone and mud-plaster. The entrance led to an open courtyard, which served among other things, as an open-air kitchen. Flanking the courtyard, were two rooms with cobblestone floors for the family's domestic animals and two slightly smaller rooms for human inhabitants. Across the back of the house stretched a communal room, 6 by 21 feet. Half timber ceiling beams supported a second floor, reached by a ladder and probably used for sleeping. Another ladder gave access to the roof, where large jars stored commodities such as grain and oil. In the summer, family members could sleep on the roof to catch a welcome breeze. These houses for the relatively well-to-do, at SHECHEM and other Israelite cities of the period, were of uniform dimension and layout.
With the rich history of SHECHEM, it is no wonder Jesus said, "I must go through Samaria". His family on their twice a year trip to Jerusalem, did not follow the King's Highway through the middle of Israel, but took the caravan route to the east along the Jordan River.
No doubt when we sit down at the Great Banquet Supper in Heaven with Jesus, Abraham, Issaac, Jacob, Joseph, Joshua and Moses, Jesus will tell us how he made his first public convert in SHECHEM and held his first two day outdoor Evangelistic meeting in SHECHEM.
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