Shilo is 40 Km from Jerusalem and well worth visiting. The time of the Judges is not discussed much when touring Israel. There is good reason for this. Following Joshua's conquest of major parts of the land of Canaan, the Israelites were organized as tribes. And without a central government, no monumental buildings were erected that could be dug up later by archeologists. However, there is one place where an important early Israelite building once stood and this is in Shilo. The Tabernacle was situated here for 369 years until it was destroyed, probably by the Philistines, in the middle of the 11th century BCE.
BACKGROUND
THE TABERNACLE AT SHILO
Tel Shilo is the site of a long-standing Canaanite city that was taken over by the Israelites at the time of Joshua when it became the capital of the nation and the site of the sanctuary. “The whole congregation of Israel assembled together at Shiloh and set up the tent (or Tabernacle) of the congregation there”.(Joshua 18:1). It was also here that Joshua made the final distribution of the land (Joshua 18:1-10).
While in the desert the Tabernacle had been a temporary tent-like structure, but when moved to Shil it was provided with more features of permanence. It was enclosed by stone walls although its roof was still made of curtains. Within its inner sanctuary was placed the Ark of the Covenant. Shilo remained the central Israelite shrine for 369 years during the pre-monarchic period and was visited three times a year by the people during the pilgrimage festivals. During the time of Eli,the High Priest, the priesthood at the Tabernacle became corrupt as a consequence of the corruption of his two sons and Jewish tradition maintains that it lost some of its popularity.
The Philistines fought with the Israelites at Eben-Ezer, and Eli's two sons took out the Ark of the Covenant to the site of the battle (1 Samuel 4:3-5). Nevertheless, the Ark did not provide any protection and the Israelites were defeated, Eli's sons were killed, and the Ark was captured by the Philistines. Eli died on hearing of the news of the defeat. The Philistines likely destroyed Shilo at that time or it could have been destroyed at a later period (Jeremiah 7:12-15 and 26:5-9). The Philistines now began suffering multiple calamities as a result of having the Ark in their possession and after seven months they abandoned it. After Shilo’s destruction, the Tabernacle was reestablished at Nov, and then at Gibeon until the Temple was built in Jerusalem by Solomon.
Jews returned to Shilo during First Temple times, and there were also Jews living here during the Second Temple until the end of the Bar Kochba Revolt.
The real hero of Shilo is a person who did not live here that long – Samuel – who spent his youth in Shilo after being donated to the Temple by his mother Hanna. With the destruction of Shilo, Samuel took it upon himself to maintain the unity of the tribes. He was a prophet and judge and established a circuit for visiting the townships. After 20 years of Philistine occupation, Samuel coordinated a battle in which King Saul whom he had appointed was successful and this ushered in a long period of peace.
There is good evidence that the ancient tel near the present day Shilo is the site of the ancient city of Shilo. This tel is called "Khirbet Seilun" by the local population. Shilo is mentioned in the book of Judges as being “ north of Bet-El, east of the path going up from Beth-El to Shechem and south of Levonah” (Judges 21:19), which is exactly its current location. The identification of this site as Shilo was finally confirmed in 2006 when archeologists found a salute to the residents of "Siloun" on the mosaic floor of a church here dating to the 4th century CE.
But where did the Sanctuary stand? Possibilities include close to the gates of the city in the south, in the middle of the city, or to the north of the tel. There is general agreement, however, that it was in the north, just outside the city, and a very plausible site has been identified.
Stone walls have been found in this location that are 25 meter apart, which is the exact dimensions of the courtyard of the Tabernacle described in the Torah. This courtyard faces east-west, as did the Tabernacle in the desert. Eli likely heard of the death of his sons after a messenger had entered the city through its southern gate. No animal bones have been found around this area, although shards of Israelite pottery have been found in the hills adjacent, where families who visited the Sanctuary would have camped out. And finally raisins were found in ash in Israelite-like storerooms just outside the city wall. These were sent for radiocarbon dating by the Israeli archeologist Finkelstein and were dated to about 1050 BCE, thereby dating the destruction of Shilo to the time of Samuel.
Directions to Shilo: Put in Waze: Shilo ( שילה).
Public transport: There is a regular bus service to Shilo from Jerusalem. Put in Moovit Shilo ( שילה) 461). Buses 461 and 463 leave from גשר מתרים/שד׳הרצל, a 7-minute walk from Binyanei Hauma, throughout the day every 90 minutes.
Security: After leaving Jerusalem will be driving in Samaria through area C. There is plenty of Israeli and Arab traffic on the main roads, but make sure you know where you are going before you set out. There have been incidents at road intersections where there is interaction between Arabs and Jews but as long as you keep to your directions the journey should be perfectly safe.
Visiting the tel:
The site is open 8-5.00 PM. Tours are available in English at 10.30 AM and in Hebrew at 11.00 AM. Admission is 39 NIS for adults and 35 NIS for children and seniors.
Enter into the tel. The provided brochure identifies the sites and there are also good descriptions by the sites themselves. There are a mixture of historic periods here. The tel was the site of a Canaanite city. The city was settled in the Israelite and First and Second Temple times. There was also Byzantine settlement and a church established here.(#4 on the map).
The highlight of the tour is a visit to the HaRoeh Tower Visitor Center after passing through the tel where you can view a multimedia display about the Tabernacle. The Visitor Center overlooks the presumed ruins of the site of the Tabernacle. Most impressive about the movie is the screen through which you can intermittently see the ruins of the site of the Tabernacle below you within the actual movie.
After viewing the movie, descend to the site of the Tabernacle to read Hanna's prayer and view the presumed remains of the walls of the Tabernacle. After this, return to the main Visitors Center by going around the walls of the tel. Here you will see the Canaanite walls of thre city and likely Israelite storage rooms built on the glacis of the walls. Some pottery has been left in the rooms to make the site appear authentic.
Nearby places of interest:
There are many nearby places of interest, including the following. However, Samaria is not a good place to get lost in and you need to have someone with you who knows where they are going.
From Elon Moreh one can drive to the top of Mount Kabir for a view over part of Nablus and Har (Mount) Eval where the curses were pronounced over evil doers and a sacrificial altar built.
It is possible to drive to the top of Mount Gerizim where the blessings were pronounced. On the top is a Samarian village. Just further along is a look out point for a view over Nablus (the ancient Shechem). It is even possible to identify Joseph's tomb in Nablus.
The synagogue in Shiloh is worth visiting. It is decorated with many of the features of the Tabernacle.
Beth-El. A possible site where jacob had his dream of a ladder up to heaven has been identified.
