The tetrarchy of Philip (4 BCE - 34 CE), then kingdom of Herod Agrippa I (37 - 44 CE) and Herod Agrippa II (53 - 100 CE): Iturea, Trachonitis, Gaulanitis, Batanea, and Auranitis.

Batanaea or Batanea was an area often mentioned between the 1st century BC until the 4 Century AD. It is often mixed with the biblical Bashan as its Hellenized/Latinised form (of Bashan) and as a part of the Biblical Holy Land, north-east of the Jordan River. But according to old explorations, maps and research the Batanea was much more a part between the two Trachones mentioned by Strabon. Many Maps reveal that the Ard of Batanea was at the east of the Leja.^[1] ( the common Herodian Trachonitis.)

Bashan was in biblical Content, the whole region East of the Jordan, above Gadara and Abila until the Jebel el Druz, the old Hauran (Bashan) Mountains.

History

Bataneaea was one of the four post-Exile divisions of the area of Bashan.

Today and also in greco-roman times, Batanaea is more commonly the Area east of the Leja

The Region south of the Leja and west of the Hauran (Auranitis) called Nuqrah,^[2] until the south-western Edge of the Leja and is sometimes falsely called Batanaea too. This is because of the permanent mix with the Name of the Basan/ Bashan region. Therefore it must be short described that the biblical Bashan/Basan was the whole Area from Adra (Deraa) at its ancient Capital an mystic Home of King OG until the Hauran Mountain. Its highest peak may be the "Hill of Basan" referred to in Psalm 68:15.

In the 1st century BCE the land was acquired by Herod the Great. He established a Jewish community there of Jews from Babylon who were brought to Batanaea for the purpose of maintaining order against the banditry of the Trachonites.^[3] This underlines the much more eastern Location at the borderline to the Nabatean supported Desert Robbers.^[4] Upon Herod's death in 4 BCE, Batanaea passed to his son Philip as part of his inheritance. In some sources Philip is referred to as "Tetrarch of Batanea" with the capital at Caesarea Philippi, though his lands were more extensive than this.

On his death in 34 CE Batanea became briefly part of the Roman province of Syria, but in 37 CE was established as a kingdom and passed to king Herod Agrippa I, and in 53 CE to his son, king Herod Agrippa II. Following his death, however, it was once again annexed to the Roman province of Syria.

New Testament

D. A. Carson, in his commentary on the Gospel of John, says that the "Bethany across the Jordan" of John 1:28, is actually "Batanaea", transliterated across Aramaic to Greek. Thus it is distinct from the other, more prominent Bethany in the gospels. This contradicts the general consensus, which is that Bethany across the Jordan is situated on the Jordan River near Jericho, on either the east or west bank of the river.

Maps

It doesn't matter whether the maps are old or modern, but there is a difference between theological-political maps and real geographic-topographical maps. The latter are based on real research results, travels from the 19th and 20th centuries and thus recorded old locations or landscape names very precisely. The first group of maps, on the other hand, is often rather large-scaled and mixes different epochs dependend of their creation, even if they give a good first overview, they often do not represent the real positions of regions and sometimes localities.

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  theological map with some intermixed but also explicitly false set locations ( f.I. Gerasa( on the Lake), Gamala etc.) and regional names set according the bible.
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  the regions east of Damascus, by Kiepert after Consul Wetzstein 1860
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  Map of Palestine, 1868, by K.v.Raumer
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  Map with the regions of the Decapolis between the 1 cent. BC and the late 1 cent. AD
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  English topographic Map of 1938 (Detail)
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  English OS topographic Map with Batanea ( Beteniye) and Nukra marked
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  Map Detail of a German Map of 1908

References

Further reading

• Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal