between
Damascus and the coast cities of Sidon and Beirut.

157 Or, perhaps, "hard-pressed."

158 "Mikhiza," perhaps the same as Maguzi, written by another scribe--the
modern Mekseh, as given above. "Maguzi" might be otherwise
transliterated as "Mukhzi."

159 "Tubakhi" is the Tabukhai of the "Travels of an Egyptian" in the
reign of Rameses II (Chabas, p. 313), mentioned with Kadesh on
Orontes, and is the Tibhath of the Bible (1 Chron. xviii. 8),
otherwise Berothai. It may perhaps be the present Kefr Dubbeh, west
of Baalbek, and south of Kadesh, while Berothai is thought to be the
present Brithen (see 2 Sam. viii. 8), a few miles south of Baalbek.
The letter shows Aziru in league with the Hittites. David conquered
these cities from the King of Damascus.

160 Dr. Sayce calls this "the fields of Bashan"; probably, when taken
with the next letters, we may place the site at Zora, in Bashan, now
Ezra. De Rouge and Mariette showed that Thothmes III conquered
Bashan.

161 "Gubbu" is perhaps Jubbata, on the south side of Hermon, near the
places mentioned in the next letter.

162 Yankhamu, an Egyptian commander, appears in these letters in all
parts of the country, from the extreme south to the north, and in
Phoenicia as well as in Bashan. His name does not seem to be Semitic.

163 This letter does not say who the enemies were or in which direction
they advanced. Perhaps "Bikhisi" may be regarded as the present
"'Abbaseh" (by inversion of the guttural), which is fifteen miles
southwest of Damascus, near the main road to the town of Jabesh,
whence the letter comes.

164 The word "rabizi," which is here made equivalent to "zukini," gives
great difficulty. In Hebrew the root means "to rest," and the word
is still applied in Palestine to resting of flocks. "Zukini"
appears, as Dr. Bezold points out, to be the same as the Phoenician
word "Soken" (which has exactly the required letters); but the
meaning of this also is doubtful. Renan translates it either
"inhabitant" or "senator." The word occurs in the Bible (1 Kings i.
2, 4; Ezek. xxviii. 14), with the meaning also doubtful, but the
root means "to cherish." Perhaps "friends" suits best the various
recurrences.

165 This word seems to mean "glory of the sun," the Egyptian
"Khu-e