Triond, Tel Aviv and The Bible

Many writers may not know that Triond is located in Tel Aviv, Israel. At first one may have thought that what seems to be more of a English-speaking site is located in the United States or England. However, Triond comes from Hebrew-speaking Israel. Many only know about Tel Aviv in the news but one of the sites in Tel Aviv is well known to all Bible students. Jaffa is what was once known as Joppa in the Scriptures. Let us look at the three best known stories concerning Joppa.

(1)   One of the most popular stories in the Bible is the story of Jonah and the whale or “the great fish” as the Bible calls it. Jonah was given a message of doom from God to Israel’s enemy Nineveh. He knew that God was a merciful God and that if they changed their wicked ways God would spare them and he would look like a false prophet. He also did not want his country’s enemy spared. So Jonah went to Joppa to get a ship going to Tarshish to run from God’s call. Joppa was one of the main sea-ports.

Jonah 1:3 says “But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.”

It is remarkable that Joppa, now called Jaffa, has a main street named after Jonah.

(2)   The next mention of Joppa in the Bible is in the New Testament. A Christian seamstress or dressmaker named Dorcas or Tabitha had died. She was apparently greatly loved by people in Joppa for we are told in Acts 9:36:

“Now there was at Joppaa certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas: this woman was full of good works and almsdeeds which she did.”

Verse 7 goes on to tell us that she became sick and died. Fortunately, Peter was sent for and through the power of God he raised her back to life. Many in Joppa believed in God after hearing about that miracle. So great was the impact of Dorcas of Joppa that there are Dorcas Welfare Societies in various parts of the world.