What is the significance of Joppa in the Bible?

Answer

Joppa, one of the oldest cities in the world, is mentioned several times in both the Old and New Testaments. Today, Joppa is known as Jaffa and was likely part of the land given to the tribe of Dan, although it appears the Danites never took possession of it (Joshua 19:40-48). Situated 30 to 40 miles northwest of Jerusalem, Joppa sits on a high cliff overlooking the Mediterranean Sea and served as Jerusalem’s primary port city. A low ledge of rocks extends over the sea, forming a small harbor.

It was through Joppa that the timber for Solomon’s temple arrived from the forests of Lebanon (2 Chronicles 2:8-9, 16). Joppa was also the port through which timber arrived for the rebuilding of God’s temple, authorized by King Cyrus of Persia and overseen by Ezra and Zerubbabel (see Ezra 3:7). Cedar trees were harvested in Lebanon, and the trunks were lashed together in large rafts that were then floated south to the port of Joppa.

Joppa is the city to which Jonah fled after the Lord instructed him to go to Nineveh (Jonah 1:1-3). He went to Joppa, a harbor city, where he sought a ship sailing in the opposite direction. In Joppa, Jonah boarded a ship to Tarshish, but the Lord had different plans for him, eventually leading him to Nineveh where he was meant to be.

In the New Testament, Joppa is known as the home of Simon the tanner. Simon the tanner hosted Peter while Peter ministered to believers in Joppa (Acts 9:32-43). It is likely that Simon the tanner chose to work in the seaport of Joppa to easily receive incoming pelts and ship out the finished products.His house was “by the sea” «he lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the seaside: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do. », (Acts 10:6), probably situated at some distance from the rest of the community to allow the offensive smells associated with his work to disperse. It was on Simon’s rooftop that Peter had his vision of unclean animals being lowered from the sky in something like a sheet. Joppa was also the home of Tabitha, also known as Dorcas, whom Peter raised from the dead (Acts 9:36-43). When the Roman centurion Cornelius sent a delegation to find Peter, they discovered him in Joppa.