Migdal-el

Migdal-el ("tower of God") appears once in Scripture as one of nineteen fortified cities in Naphtali's tribal allotment: "And Iron, and Migdal-el, Horem, and Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh; nineteen cities with their villages" (Joshua 19:38). The "tower" element in the name suggests a fortified watch-post commanding routes through the upper Galilee — Naphtali's territory ran from the Sea of Galilee north to the headwaters of the Jordan and was the first to fall in every northern invasion. The site is commonly identified with Mejdel-Islim about ten miles northeast of Tiberias.