When Jerusalem was 11 football fields

IT WAS A SMALL VILLAGE David captured:

Jebus, which soon became the City of David and later Jerusalem.

No more than 2,500 people lived on this 11-acre piece of ground—about the size of 11 football fields: roughly 200 yards (180 m) wide and 600 yards (550 m) long.

Though it was small, David wanted it for his capital. Jebus was an excellent choice for uniting the nation.

First, it rested near the center of the country.

And second, there would be no hint of tribal favoritism since it lay on the border of two tribes that hadn’t been able to capture it from the Canaanites.

There’s another reason it was a good choice.

It was well protected, nestled on the crest of a ridge that rose steeply above the Kidron valley.

Though its water supply—the Gihon Spring—lay in a hidden cave just outside the city walls, the people had access to it through an underground shaft inside the city.

This shaft was their downfall. David found out about it. His men scaled it and took the city by surprise.

Excerpt from Who’s Who & Where’s Where in the Bible 2.0, released October 2012.