The Sea of Galilee

‎This sea is called the Sea of Galilee because it is embraced in the province by that name. It is called the Sea of Tiberias because this is the largest city on its shores. It is called the Sea of Gennesaret because of the fertile plain which skirts its western shore. Lamartine, says when he first looked down upon this lake: “I had come to look on the very shores, on the very waves which had borne Him, on the hills on which He had sat, on the stones on which He had rested His head. He had a hundred times walked on that beach which I now trod. With reverential humility, His feet had trod the dust which was now under my feet. He sailed in the banks of the fishermen on the Sea of Galilee. He walked on its waves, stretching His hands to the apostles.” Here lies before us the scene of so many of our Savior’s miracles and teachings. In the times when Christ was here, the cities were very numerous. According to Josephus, the smallest of them contained more than fifteen thousand inhabitants. The waters of this lake were plowed by four thousand vessels of every description, from the war vessel of the Romans to the rough fishing smack of Bethsaida and the gilded pinnace from Herod’s palace. The Savior often crossed and recrossed this lake. Here He taught the listening multitudes. Many nights He spent in a tender vigil on the mountainsides overlooking these Galilean waters, and it is here that He called and ordained His twelve apostles. The view before us is very impressive; a strong wind has been blowing and the restless waters dash against the rocky shore, washing the ruins of the old docks. Beyond are the hills resting in soft light and above the overarching heavens, bluer than the sea and full of beauty and benediction.