Kishon: Winding, a winter torrent of Central Palestine, which rises about the
roots of Tabor and Gilboa, and passing in a northerly direction
through the plains of Esdraelon and Acre, falls into the
Mediterranean at the north-eastern corner of the bay of Acre, at the
foot of Carmel. It is the drain by which the waters of the plain of
Esdraelon and of the mountains that surround it find their way to the
sea. It bears the modern name of Nahr el-Mokattah, i.e., "the river
of slaughter" (comp.)
(1 Kings 18:40) In the triumphal song of Deborah
(Judges 5:21) it is spoken of as "that ancient river," either
1. because it had flowed on for ages, or
2. according to the Targum, because it was "the torrent in which
were shown signs and wonders to Israel of old;" or
3. probably the reference is to the exploits in that region among
the ancient Canaanites, for the adjoining plain of Esdraelon was
the great battle-field of Palestine. This was the scene of the
defeat of Sisera
(Judges 4:7,13) and of the destruction of the
prophets of Baal by Elijah
(1 Kings 18:40) "When the Kishon was at
its height, it would be, partly on account of its quicksands, as
impassable as the ocean itself to a retreating army."
