Naphtali (tribe)

Territory

Galilee

When the land was divided originally, towns in the territory of Naphtali were said to be in “Galilee”, i.e. Josh. 20:7. “Galilee” was at that time only the name of an undefined region in northern Israel, at least part of which lied in the land of Naphtali.

Many of Benjamin and Levi settled in Galilee after the return from Babylon, which is evident from the Scriptures. But Galilee did not originally belong to Benjamin.

Sea of Galilee

In Old Testament scriptures, the “sea of Galilee” is always called the “sea of Chinnereth” (or Chinneroth, Strong’s #3672), mentioned at Num. 34:11; Deut. 3:17; Josh. 11:2; 12:3; 13:27 and 19:35. Additionally, it is quite clear from Scripture that half of the coastline of the Sea of Galilee was adjoined by land belonging to the Tribe of Naphtali, with the balance adjoined by the lands of the Geshurites and Maachathites (Deut. 3:14; Joshua 13:7-13). Geshur was considered a part of the land of Aram, or Syria. The Aramaeans were Semites and related to the Israelites. The Maachathites were apparently also related to the Israelites through Abraham's brother Nahor (Gen. 22:24) though they remained a distinct kingdom (1 Chron. 19:6-7).