Thus, the Shephelah served as a buffer zone,
The word“ Shephelah” means“ Lowland,”
About 25 miles[ 40 km] inland is the Shephelah.
likely at the border of the Shephelah] and capture it,
Look at the accompanying cross- section map and note the relationship of the Shephelah to its surrounding territories.
Between them was a disputed buffer region, the lower hills called the Shephelah. How could the Philistines attack Israel?
Thus, the Shephelah served as a buffer zone,
a barrier that in Bible times separated God's people from their ancient enemies.
And the Shephelah, if you have been to Israel,
you will know it's just about the most beautiful part of Israel.
Any army invading from the west would have to get through the Shephelah before it could move against Jerusalem, the capital city of Israel.
The word“ Shephelah” means“ Lowland,”
but in reality this is a hilly area and can only be called low when compared with the mountains of Judah to the east.
God's people in the mountains
could look to the west down into the Valley of Elah and the Shephelah, as in the modern view below from an area near Hebron.
King Hazael of Syria, the Bible reports,“ proceeded to go up and fight against Gath[
likely at the border of the Shephelah] and capture it,
after which Hazael set his face to go up against Jerusalem.”.
And connecting the mountain range with the coastal plain is an area called the Shephelah, which is a series of valleys and ridges that run east
to west, and you can follow the Shephelah, go through the Shephelah to get from the coastal plain to the mountains.