(n.) A fall or descent of rain; the water, or amount of water, that falls in rain; as, the average annual rainfall of a region.RAINFALL IN JERUSALEM IN INCHES

Year Amount

1861 27.30"

1862 21.86"

1863 26.54"

1864 15.51"

1865 18.19"

1866 18.55"

1867 29.42"

1868 29.10"

1869 18.61"

1870 13.19"

1871 23.17"

1872 22.26"

1873 22.72"

1874 29.75"

1875 27.01"

1876 14.41"

1877 26.00"

1878 32.21"

1879 18.04"

1880 32.11"

1881 16.50"

1882 26.72"

1883 31.92" 1884 23.16"

1885 29.47"

1886 31.69"

1887 29.81"

1888 37.79"

1889 13.16"

1890 35.51"

1891 34.72"

1892 31.23"

1893 30.54"

1894 35.38"

1895 23.15"

1896 32.90"

1897 41.62"

1898 28.66"

1899 22.43"

1900 21.20"

1901 17.42"

1902 25.51"

1903 18.04"

1904 34.48"

1905 34.22"

1906 28.14"

1907 27.22"

1908 31.87"

1909 21.13"

1910 24.64"

The amount of rainfall in ancient times was probably about the same as in present times, though it may have been distributed somewhat differently through the year, as suggested by Huntington. Conder maintains that the present amount would have been sufficient to support the ancient cities (Tent-Work in Palestine). Trees are without doubt fewer now, but meteorologists agree that trees do not produce rain.

4. Dry and Rainy Seasons;

The rainfall is largely on the western slopes of the mountains facing the sea, while on the eastern slopes there is very little. The moisture-laden air comes up from the sea with the west and southwest wind. When these currents strike the hills they are thrown higher up into the cooler strata, and the moisture condenses to form clouds and rain which increases on the higher levels. Having passed the ridge of the hills, the currents descend on the other side to warmer levels, where the moisture is easily held in the form of vapor so that no rain falls and few clouds are seen, except in the cold mid-winter months.

The summer months are practically rainless, with very few clouds appearing in the sky. From May 1 to the middle of October one can be sure of no rain; "The winter is past; the rain is over" (Songs 2:11), so many sleep on the roofs of the houses or in tents of leaves and branches in the fields and vineyards throughout the summer. The continuous hot droughts make the people appreciate the springs and fountains of fresh running water and the cool shade of rock and tree.

The rainy season from October to May may be divided into three parts, the former, the winter, and the latter rains, and they are often referred to under these names in the Old Testament.

The "former rains" are the showers of October and the first part of November. They soften the parched ground so that the winter grain may be sown before the heavy continuous rains set in. The main bulk of the rain falls in the months of December, January and February. Although in these months the rains are frequent and heavy, a dark, foggy day is seldom seen. The "latter rains" of April are the most highly appreciated, because they ripen the fruit and stay the drought of summer. They were considered a special blessing: Yahweh "will come.... as the latter rain that watereth the earth" (Hosea 6:3); "They opened their mouth wide as for the latter rain" (Job 29:23); and as a reason for worshipping Yahweh who sent them, "Let us now fear Yahweh our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in its season" (Jeremiah 5:24).

The rain storms always come from the sea with a west or southwest wind. The east wind is a hot wind and the "north wind driveth away rain" (Proverbs 25:23, the King James Version). "Fair weather cometh out of the north" (Job 37:22, the King James Version).

5. Biblical Uses:

The Psalmist recognizes that the "showers that water the earth" (Psalm 72:6) are among the choicest blessings from the hand of Yahweh: "The early rain covereth it with blessings" (Psalm 84:6). The severest punishment of Yahweh was to withhold the rain, as in the time of Ahab and Elijah, when the usual rain did not fall for three years (1 Kings 17); "the anger of Yahweh be kindled against you, and he shut up the heavens, so that there shall be no rain, and the land shall not yield its fruit; and ye perish quickly" (Deuteronomy 11:17). Too much rain is also a punishment, as witness the flood (Genesis 7:4) and the plague of rain and hail (Ezra 10:9). Sending of rain was a reward for worship and obedience: "Yahweh will open unto thee his good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain of thy land in its season, and to bless all the work of thy hand" (Deuteronomy 28:12). Yahweh controls the elements and commands the rain: "He made a decree for the rain" (Job 28:26); "For he saith to the snow, Fall thou on the earth; likewise to the shower of rain" (Job 37:6). LITERATURE

Palestine Exploration Fund Quarterly; meteorological observations from the Dead Sea, Jerusalem, Jaffa and Tiberias; various observers; Zeitschrift des deutschen Paldstina-Vereins; H. Hilderscheid, Die Niederschlagsverhdltnisse Paldstinas in alter and neuer Zeit; C. R. Conder, Tent-Work in Palestine; Edward Hull, Mount Seir, Sinai and Western Palestine; Ellsworth Huntington, Palestine and Its Transformation; bulletin of the Syrian Protestant College Observatory, Meteorological Observations in Beirut and Syria.

Alfred H. Joy

Sorrowful yet Always Rejoicing.
... The grace of God thrown into a cup of sorrow will turn it to joy. Sorrows are
needful. It is only a barren waste where there is no rainfall. ...
/.../orr/how to live a holy life/sorrowful yet always rejoicing.htm

God's Care Over Me
... There had been a heavy rainfall, and in front of the blacksmith shop at the edge
of town was a large mud-puddle in which a hog was wallowing as we came up. ...
/.../cole/trials and triumphs of faith/chapter xvi gods care over.htm

"He Hardened his Heart"
... No matter that the advanced science of his time explained rainfall, unusual heat
or cold, over-fruitful or unproductive years, pestilence and sudden death ...
//christianbookshelf.org/miller/the yoke/chapter xxx he hardened his.htm

Kumaon.
... Attempts have been made on a small scale to cultivate the grape, gooseberry, and
currant, but the excessive rainfall of the rainy season has been found ...
/.../kennedy/life and work in benares and kumaon 1839-1877/chapter xx kumaon.htm

Appendix viii. Rabbinic Traditions About Elijah, the Forerunner of ...
... Not only was he the only ambassador to whom God had delegated His three special
keys:' of birth, of the rainfall, and of waking the dead (Yalkut, vol. ...
/.../appendix viii rabbinic traditions about.htm

The God of the Rain
... Be that as it may, Moses goes down to the very root and ground and true cause of
the riches of the land, and of the rainfall, and of the prosperity of the Jews ...
/.../kingsley/the gospel of the pentateuch/sermon xvii the god of.htm

The Cedars of Lebanon.
... Thou art the Lord of the lightning and of the clouds, the Lord of the highlands
and of the lowlands, and the Lord of the rainfall and of the drought, the Lord ...
/.../kingsley/westminster sermons/sermon xvi the cedars of.htm

Choked Channels.
... sleepy-hollow village. You remember the rainfall is very slight out there,
and they depend much upon irrigation. But some enterprising ...
//christianbookshelf.org/gordon/quiet talks on power/choked channels.htm

Andromeda
... bore them Curved up their crests in their pride to the delicate arms of the maidens,
Pawing the spray into gems, till a fiery rainfall, unharming, Sparkled and ...
//christianbookshelf.org/kingsley/andromeda and other poems/andromeda.htm

One Saying with Two Meanings
... desires Jesus Christ shall not have Him, as it is that lungs dilated shall not fill
with air, or as it is that an empty vessel put out in a rainfall shall not ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture i/one saying with two meanings.htm

Rainfall
... (n.) A fall or descent of rain; the water, or amount of water, that falls in rain;
as, the average annual rainfall of a region. ...RAINFALL IN JERUSALEM IN INCHES. ...
/r/rainfall.htm - 12k

Inches (1 Occurrence)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia RAINFALL IN JERUSALEM IN INCHES. Year Amount
1861 27.30" 1862 21.86" 1863 26.54" 1864 15.51" 1865 ...
/i/inches.htm - 12k

Rain (118 Occurrences)
... yoreh, "former rain," malqosh, "latter rain"; brecho, huetos): 1. Water-Supply in
Egypt and Palestine: In Egypt there is little or no rainfall, the water for ...
/r/rain.htm - 43k

Graecia
... 4. Rivers and Lakes: The rainfall in Greece is not abundant and is confined
largely to late autumn and winter. Whether the present ...
/g/graecia.htm - 21k

Botany
... Secondly, the rainfall, which was once largely absorbed by this soil, now rapidly
rushes off the denuded rocks and flows away to the valleys. ...
/b/botany.htm - 38k

Wanderings (7 Occurrences)
... The annual rainfall-except in years of drought-is from 10 to 20 inches, and snow
falls in winter on the Tih, and whitens Sinai and the Edomite mountains for ...
/w/wanderings.htm - 40k

Arabia (9 Occurrences)
... 2. Climate: It will be obvious that the climate of Arabia must vary greatly in its
different parts, the temperature and rainfall depending not so much upon ...
/a/arabia.htm - 43k

Sea (4178 Occurrences)
... The descent being so rapid, permits the water after each rainfall to run
off without delay, and so intensifies its eroding power. ...
/s/sea.htm - 87k

Palestine (1 Occurrence)
... 108:9): I. PHYSICAL CONDITIONS 1. General Geographical Features 2. Water-Supply
3. Geological Conditions 4. Fauna and Flora 5. Climate 6. Rainfall 7. Drought ...
/p/palestine.htm - 89k

Jerusalem (782 Occurrences)
... 5. Other Names II. GEOLOGY, CLIMATE AND SPRINGS 1. Geology 2. Climate
and Rainfall 3. The Natural Springs III. THE NATURAL SITE ...
/j/jerusalem.htm - 89k

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