Bible Cities: Damascus

Damascus is the capital city of Syria. Its name is often used in the Bible to refer to the whole of Syria. The real meaning of its name is unknown. One possibility is ‘caravan city’. It is situated 130 miles north east of Jerusalem in a plain 700m above sea level. It lies on the river Abana, the modern name being Barada, and is also quite near another river, the river Pharpar. Both these rivers are mentioned in the Bible and are clean and fast-moving. Damascus is about 60 miles from the coast and 70 miles from the city of Tyre. The area is famous for its orchards and gardens, as it has plenty of water from the two rivers.

Damascus is a natural communications and trading centre. It was linked to the Mediterranean via the trading port of Tyre and was also linked to Babylon and Assyria in the east, and Egypt in the south. Syria is mentioned in Ezekiel 27 as a nation which traded with and through Tyre, and the sort of goods that came from Syria are given as: “emeralds, purple, and broidered work, and fine linen, and coral, and agate the wine of Helbon, and white wool” (v.16,18).

Naaman

One of the most well-known incidents in the Bible connected with Dam­ascus is about Naaman. Naaman was a general, a top commander in the army of the King of Syria, in charge of thousands of people, but – he was a leper. The Syrians had taken captive lots of Israelites. Among them was a little maid that Naaman took to wait on his wife. The maid knew that Naaman had leprosy and suggested to her mistress that he went to see a prophet (meaning Elisha) in Samaria. Naaman went to Samaria, but to the King of Israel, who was upset bec­ause he thought the King of Syria was picking a fight with him by asking him to heal Naaman, which he thought impossible.

Elisha heard about it and sent for Naaman to come and see him. When Naaman got to Elisha’s house he waited, expecting Elisha to come out and do something fancy. Instead, Elisha sent his messenger to tell Naaman to wash in the river Jordan seven times. Naaman turned back in a huff. It hurt his pride, being told to bathe in the dirty and insignificant river of the Jordan, when he had the choice to bathe in one of the two majestic rivers back home. One of his wiser servants came up to him and asked him why he wouldn’t do a simple thing like washing in the local river, when he would have been quite prepared to do any hard task given him. Naaman saw sense, and washed in the Jordan seven times, and became clean.

Naaman was told to do something very simple, when he had thought he would be healed in a dramatic and powerful way. He had to learn that he needed faith that God would heal him of his leprosy; the result of showing his faith was becoming clean.

Paul

Another well-known incident concerning Damascus involves Paul (origin­ally Saul). He was a devout Pharisee who went to Damascus to persecute and imprison any disciples of Jesus there. On the way Jesus appeared to him in a vision, saying “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” He was blinded by a great light, and had to be led to Damascus. There a disciple named Ananias was told by God in a vision to go to the house where Saul was, and let him receive his sight again. Ananias went to the house, and gave him back his sight by placing his hands on him. He told him that he would be a “chosen vessel”, a disciple. Paul immediately went and started preaching in the synagogue. The Jews wanted to kill him, because he had joined their enemies, and Paul had to escape with the help of the disciples:

“Then the disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a bas­ket” (Acts 9:25).

Paul had to learn that he couldn’t fight against God. He must have known the gospel message before his conversion, because he was so quickly able to go and preach it to others. When he was confronted, however, he immediately realised he was wrong and did something about it. He served God faithfully for the rest of his life.

There’s a lesson for us here. Do we rebel against things we KNOW are right? Do we try to avoid going to Sunday School, meetings, etc. and go to par­ties instead? We ought not to rebel against God and Jesus.

Damascus God’s sword

God sometimes uses the enemies of His people to punish them. Syria/Damascus was sometimes used like this. Ahaz, a king of Judah, “did not that which was right in the sight of the Lord” and “walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim” (2 Chron.28:1,2). He also burnt his children and sacrificed in high places. He was a very wicked king. God used the King of Syria to punish him:

“The LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they smote him, and carried away a great multitude of them captives, and brought them to Damascus” (2 Chron.28:5).

In spite of this, he still didn’t learn his lesson about not turning against God, as Paul had;

“In the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the LORD: this is that king Ahaz. For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus” (v.22,23).

He had overlooked the fact that if he turned to God to seek His help, then He would help him; but idols couldn’t (and still can’t) do anything for anyone “but they (the gods and idols) were the ruin of him, and of all Israel” (v.23).

Idol-worship, which is anything that we seek after excluding God from our lives, will also ruin us today. We have to follow and worship God always.