Nebi Samuel National Park

Nebi Samuel is not in the Jerusalem Corridor, but north of Jerusalem, but it is conveniently discussed here. The views of Jerusalem from the roof of the mosque are exceptional. The Crusaders of the First Crusade were so overcome at their first sight of Jerusalem from here that they called the hill "Montjoie.” At this site, there are also interesting Second Temple period ruins, the alleged tomb of Samuel, and picnic areas by Hannah’s Spring. An easy 90-minute hike that encircles the fortress ruins is also recommended.

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Visiting the site:

Directions and parking: Enter "Nebi Samuel National Park" into Waze. There is free parking in a parking lot some distance from the entrance to the site and also on the side of the road up to the site entrance. Drop-offs can be done at the roundabout by the park entrance.

Admission details::The archaeological site is open 8.00 AM to 4.00 PM in the winter and until 5.00 PM during the summer. There is no entrance fee. The synagogue is open for prayer Sunday through Wednesday and on Shabbat except between the hours 2.00 p.m. to 4 p.m. There are restrooms close to the entrance of the park and cold water. A café serves hot and cold drinks and snacks and is open at popular times. Information about tours arranged by the park is available at mh-shomron@npa.org.il or by calling (03) 794-2481.

Security:Nebi Samuel is beyond the Green Line but within the security barrier, is considered safe, and is a popular place for visitors and worshipers.

Public transport: Enter "Nebi Samuel National Park" into Moovit. The nearest bus stop is at Tzomet Nebi Samuel, which is about an eight-minute walk from the park. Bus numbers 131 and 132 leave from Binyanei Ha'umah in Jerusalem.

The Ottoman mosque over the ruins of the Crusader fortress

From the entrance to the park, walk to the left of the mosque to view ruins from Second Temple Maccabean times. This area has been extensively excavated and it is possible to identify a mikvah, oven and winepress. There is a covered area containing a house from this period. The path will take you into the fortress and to the front of the mosque.

Enter the mosque, which originally was a Crusader church. The stairs to the roof are on your immediate left. The views from the roof of the mosque are spectacular and are well worth the climb up the stairs.

After returning to ground level, you can visit Samuel’s tomb by passing through the doorway on the far right and descending to the synagogue. The tomb was originally in a cave carved into a rock beneath the main building. There are separate entrances for men and women.

Exit Samuel’s tomb and go to the back of the building to view the ruins of the entrance to the fortress. Its format is nicely illustrated with a sign. The wall in front of the Ottoman mosque is the base of the wall of the former Crusader fortress.

Go towards the orchard. The second terrace on the right will take you to a garden for endangered species set up with the assistance of the Hebrew University. Signs identify some of the species. The garden is not kept up, but it is still quite pretty.

Descend to the orchard. It is planted on terraces, and contains mulberry, olive and fig trees. There are many picnic benches here. Hanna’s Spring is at the bottom of the orchard within a cave. The spring is named after Samuel's mother. There is no pool here and the water is quite shallow.

SAMUEL-TERRITORY

According to tradition, Nebi Samuel is where the prophet Samuel is buried. However, this is unlikely. In Byzantine times there was a monastery here in honor of the prophet Samuel. Already by the early Muslim period this was considered to be his burial place and this tradition was continued by the Crusaders.

However, the Book of Samuel records that Samuel was buried in his hometown of Ramah (Samuel I 25:1, 28:3). His family were Levites and Ramah was a Levite town within the territory of Benjamin. Ramah is mentioned a number of times in the Bible and is probably where the Arab village of Er-Ram (same as El-Ram) is today, about 8 km north of Jerusalem.

It has been suggested that Nebi Samuel is the site of the ancient town of Mitzpah. If this is correct, then Samuel would have visited here frequently. From his hometown Ramah, Samuel would make a yearly circuit within the tribal territories of Benjamin and Ephraim to adjudicate cases, and this would have included Mitzpah:

"And from year to year he would set forth and go around to Bethel, and Gilgal and Mitzpah, and he would judge Israel in all these places. And his return was to Ramah, for there was his house... (Samuel I 7:16-17).

Mitzpah means "a lookout" in Hebrew, and Nebi Samuel has the highest elevation in the area. It also has a spring, and this would have permitted habitation here. However, while excavations have found evidence of settlement from First and Second Temple times, no ruins have been found from the time of the Judges. It is also mentioned in Jeremiah that Mitzpah served as the administrative center of Judah after the fall of Jerusalem. This is considered to be Tell en-Nasbeh (the biblical Mizpah of Benjamin), which is 12 km (8 miles) north of Jerusalem near today’s al-Bireh.

A church was built on the top of the hill of Nebi Samuel during the Byzantine period, and this was destroyed during the early Muslim period. The Crusaders set up a network of way-stations for Christian pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem during the time of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem (1099 to 1187 CE), and they built a church, monastery and fortress on this hill. This fortress was raised by the Mamlukes when they brought the Crusader kingdom to an end and a mosque was built on its ruins. The present mosque dates from the 18th century from the Ottoman period.

Nevi Samuel overlooks what was once a main road to Jerusalem, and is nowadays Route 433. An alternative road to Jerusalem, today Route 1, was once a very tiring road with lots of elevations. It was paved only in 1869, and subsequently evened out with bridges.

Because of its elevation, Nebi Samuel has been a staging point for attacks on Jerusalem. There were battles here with the Turks when the British conquered Palestine during the First World War. The Jordanians bombarded Jerusalem from Nebi Samuel during Israel's War of Independence. The Palmach attempted to capture its height, but were unsuccessful and they suffered many casualties in the attempt. It remained in Jordanian hands until the Six-Day War.

The entrance to the fortress

Hannah's Spring in the orchard

Circular hike around the fortress

This is a recommended circular hike around the fortress that passes by forested terraces and offers views of Arab villages with significant biblical associations.

Starting point and parking: Park at the lower parking lot, as the hike starts just a few meters from here and ends at this parking lot. Go down the hill towards the main road and the trailhead is a gravel road on the right a few meters from the parking lot . Go through the open green gate with a red-marking.

Distance: Almost 4 km

Time: About 90 minutes

Type of hike: Circular

Difficulty: : This is an easy hike on a road that is either gravel, packed earth or paved. Most of the road is smooth and only occasionally is it a bit rough.

Map of the hike

At the first intersection you come to by a picnic area with benches, turn to the right. After this, just follow the red markings.

[It is possible turn off onto a black-marked trail at this point and this rejoins the red-marked circular trail later on. However, the trail is poorly marked and can be confusing because of other trails that join it, and is not particularly recommended.]

You will eventually have good views of the security barrier and below this the village of Al Jib in Palestinian territory.

Al-Jib is identified with some confidence with ancient Gibeon. Excavations uncovered jar handles inscribed “GB‘N” (Gibeon) in ancient Hebrew. Its location also matches biblical geographic descriptions. It was the home of the Gibeonites who tricked Joshua into making a peace treaty and they then became a protected but subordinate population. There was also a nearby battle where Joshua told the “Sun, stand still over Gibeon…” Gibeon became an important city in the tribal territory of Benjamin and had priestly and administrative significance in later periods.

Excavations have revealed a large circular, rock-cut pool, about 11 m deep, associated with a steep vertical shaft and tunnel leading to a spring. This is comparable in concept (though smaller) to other systems in Israel and allowed water access during siege conditions.

You will pass on your right the encampment of Bedouins.

Just before reaching the parking lot where your car is parked there is a gravel path on your left that leads via steps on either side to a covered spring, Samuel Spring. It is not immediately obvious as it is on a hill and therefore below the level of the road. However, you will see a hole in the ground covered with a metal grid.

The spring of Nebi Samuel

View of Ramot from the mosque roof