Caphtor, identified as the island of Crete, was the original homeland of the Philistines and a place visited by the apostle Paul.
Also known as Crete · Cretan · Cretans · Cretes,Cretians · Cretians
Caphtor, mentioned in the Old Testament, is generally identified as the island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea. According to Amo.9.7, the Philistines originated from Caphtor, and Jeremiah 47:4 refers to "the remnant of the country of Caphtor," linking the Philistines to this island.
In Deu.2.23, the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, are described as destroying the Avvim, who lived in villages as far as Gaza, and settling in their place. This suggests that the Philistines, who are known to have settled in the coastal region of Canaan, trace their ancestry back to Caphtor.
In the New Testament, Crete is mentioned several times in connection with the apostle Paul's travels. During his journey to Rome, Paul's ship sailed along the southern coast of Crete (Act.27.7-13), and they sought to winter in the Cretan harbor of Phoenix (Act.27.12). After the ship encountered a storm and was wrecked on the island of Malta, Paul continued his journey and eventually passed by Crete again (Act.27.21).
Paul also left his companion Titus on Crete to organize the church and appoint elders in every town (Titus 1:5). In his letter to Titus, Paul quotes a Cretan prophet who described Cretans as "always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons" (Titus 1:12), indicating the challenges Titus faced in ministering to the people of Crete.
On the day of Pentecost, Cretans were among the people present in Jerusalem who heard the apostles speaking in their own languages (Act.2.11).
Approximate location: 35.171, 25.007 · view on a map · on the Bible atlas
A chaplet, the original seat of the Philistines (Deut. 2:23; Jer. 47:4; Amos 9:7). The name is found written in hieroglyphics in the temple of Kom Ombos in Upper Egypt. But the exact situation of Caphtor is unknown, though it is supposed to be Crete, since the Philistines seem to be meant by the “Cherethites” in 1 Sam. 30:14 (see also 2 Sam. 8:18). It may, however, have been a part of Egypt, the Caphtur in the north Delta, since the Caphtorim were of the same race as the Mizraite people (Gen. 10:14; 1 Chr. 1:12).
a sphere, buckle, or hand
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
11 verses in 5 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H3731
And the Avvim, who lived in villages as far as Gaza, were destroyed by the Caphtorites, who came out of Caphtor and settled in their place.)
For the day has come to destroy all the Philistines, to cut off from Tyre and Sidon every remaining ally. Indeed, the LORD is about to destroy the Philistines, the remnant from the coasts of Caphtor.
“Are you not like the Cushites to Me, O children of Israel?” declares the LORD. “Did I not bring Israel up from the land of Egypt, the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Arameans from Kir?
both Jews and converts to Judaism; Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
After sailing slowly for many days, we arrived off Cnidus. When the wind impeded us, we sailed to the lee of Crete, opposite Salmone.
Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided to sail on, hoping that somehow they could reach Phoenix to winter there. Phoenix was a harbor in Crete facing both southwest and northwest.
When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they had their opportunity. So they weighed anchor and sailed along, hugging the coast of Crete.
After the men had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have followed my advice not to sail from Crete. Then you would have averted this disaster and loss.
The reason I left you in Crete was that you would set in order what was unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.
As one of their own prophets has said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”
All who are with me send you greetings. Greet those who love us in the faith. Grace be with all of you.
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.