Sa·mar·ia /səˈmɛriə, ˈmær-/
 撒馬利亞[地名]


 Samaria
    a watch-mountain or a watch-tower. In the heart of the mountains
    of Israel, a few miles north-west of Shechem, stands the "hill
    of Shomeron," a solitary mountain, a great "mamelon." It is an
    oblong hill, with steep but not inaccessible sides, and a long
    flat top. Omri, the king of Israel, purchased this hill from
    Shemer its owner for two talents of silver, and built on its
    broad summit the city to which he gave the name of "Shomeron",
    i.e., Samaria, as the new capital of his kingdom instead of
    Tirzah (1 Kings 16:24). As such it possessed many advantages.
    Here Omri resided during the last six years of his reign. As the
    result of an unsuccessful war with Syria, he appears to have
    been obliged to grant to the Syrians the right to "make streets
    in Samaria", i.e., probably permission to the Syrian merchants
    to carry on their trade in the Israelite capital. This would
    imply the existence of a considerable Syrian population. "It was
    the only great city of Palestine created by the sovereign. All
    the others had been already consecrated by patriarchal tradition
    or previous possession. But Samaria was the choice of Omri
    alone. He, indeed, gave to the city which he had built the name
    of its former owner, but its especial connection with himself as
    its founder is proved by the designation which it seems Samaria
    bears in Assyrian inscriptions, Beth-khumri ('the house or
    palace of Omri').", Stanley.

      Samaria was frequently besieged. In the days of Ahab, Benhadad
    II. came up against it with thirty-two vassal kings, but was
    defeated with a great slaughter (1 Kings 20:1-21). A second
    time, next year, he assailed it; but was again utterly routed,
    and was compelled to surrender to Ahab (20:28-34), whose army,
    as compared with that of Benhadad, was no more than "two little
    flocks of kids."

      In the days of Jehoram this Benhadad again laid siege to
    Samaria, during which the city was reduced to the direst
    extremities. But just when success seemed to be within their
    reach, they suddenly broke up the seige, alarmed by a mysterious
    noise of chariots and horses and a great army, and fled, leaving
    their camp with all its contents behind them. The famishing
    inhabitants of the city were soon relieved with the abundance of
    the spoil of the Syrian camp; and it came to pass, according to
    the word of Elisha, that "a measure of fine flour was sold for a
    shekel, and two measures of barely for a shekel, in the gates of
    Samaria" (2 Kings 7:1-20).

      Shalmaneser invaded Israel in the days of Hoshea, and reduced
    it to vassalage. He laid siege to Samaria (B.C. 723), which held
    out for three years, and was at length captured by Sargon, who
    completed the conquest Shalmaneser had begun (2 Kings 18:9-12;
    17:3), and removed vast numbers of the tribes into captivity.
    (See SARGON.)

      This city, after passing through various vicissitudes, was
    given by the emperor Augustus to Herod the Great, who rebuilt
    it, and called it Sebaste (Gr. form of Augustus) in honour of
    the emperor. In the New Testament the only mention of it is in
    Acts 8:5-14, where it is recorded that Philip went down to the
    city of Samaria and preached there.

      It is now represented by the hamlet of Sebustieh, containing
    about three hundred inhabitants. The ruins of the ancient town
    are all scattered over the hill, down the sides of which they
    have rolled. The shafts of about one hundred of what must have
    been grand Corinthian columns are still standing, and attract
    much attention, although nothing definite is known regarding
    them. (Comp. Micah 1:6.)

      In the time of Christ, Western Palestine was divided into
    three provinces, Judea, Samaria, and Galilee. Samaria occupied
    the centre of Palestine (John 4:4). It is called in the Talmud
    the "land of the Cuthim," and is not regarded as a part of the
    Holy Land at all.

      It may be noticed that the distance between Samaria and
    Jerusalem, the respective capitals of the two kingdoms, is only
    35 miles in a direct line.



 Samaria, watch-mountain