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The Sea of Galilee (Hebrew: יָם כִּנֶּרֶת, Judeo-Aramaic: יַמּא דטבריא, גִּנֵּיסַר, Arabic: بحيرة طبريا), also called Lake Tiberias, Genezareth Lake or Kinneret, is a freshwater lake in Israel.

It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lake in the world (after the Dead Sea, a salt lake), with its elevation fluctuating between 215 and 209 metres (705 and 686 ft) below sea level (depending on rainfall).

The Sea of Galilee is situated in northeast Israel, between the Golan Heights and the Galilee region, in the Jordan Rift Valley, formed by the relative motion of the African and Arabian plates.

The modern Hebrew name Kineret comes from the Hebrew Bible, where it appears as the "sea of Kineret" in Numbers 34:11 and Joshua 13:27, and spelled כנרות "Kinerot" in Hebrew in Joshua 11:2. Some time after the city of Tiberias was founded on its western shore in honour of Roman emperor Tiberius in 16 CE, the Sea of Galilee started to be called the Sea of Tiberias. In the New Testament, the term "sea of Galilee" (Greek: θάλασσαν τῆς Γαλιλαίας, thalassan tēs Galilaias) is used in the Gospel of Matthew 4:18; 15:29, the Gospel of Mark 1:16; 7:31, and in the Gospel of John 6:1 as "the sea of Galilee, which is of Tiberias" (θαλάσσης τῆς Γαλιλαίας τῆς Τιβεριάδος, thalassēs tēs Galilaias tēs Tiberiados).

In the New Testament, much of the ministry of Jesus occurs on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.

Under the 1949 armistice agreement between Israel and Syria, Syria occupied the northeast shoreline of the Sea of Galilee. In October 2025, Israel began pumping desalinated water into the Sea of Galilee, in a world first. The water is sent from plants near the Mediterranean Sea via the Reverse Carrier to the Tzalmon Stream in Ein Ravid, where it replenishes local water supplies and makes its way to replenish the Sea of Gallilee.

The Sea of Galilee in its current form was preceded by Lake Lisan, which extended from the northern Sea of Galilee to Hatzeva in the south, more than 200 km (120 mi) from the present southernmost point of the lake.

Daily monitoring of the Sea of Galilee's water level began in 1969, and the lowest level recorded since then was November 2001, which today constitutes the "black line" of 214.87 meters below sea level (although it is believed that in the first half of the 20th century, the water level had fallen lower than the current black line at times of drought). After five years of drought up to 2018, the Sea of Galilee was expected to drop near the black line. In February 2018, the city of Tiberias requested a desalination plant to treat the water coming from the Sea of Galilee and demanded a new water source for the city. In September 2018 the Israeli energy and water office announced a project to pour desalinated water from the Mediterranean Sea into the Sea of Galilee using a tunnel. Due to the low water levels of the lake, in October 2025 Israel began pumping desalinated water into the Sea of Galilee, an unprecedented step globally, as it marks the first attempt to top up a freshwater lake with processed water.

In 1964, Syria attempted construction of a Headwater Diversion Plan that would have blocked the flow of water into the Sea of Galilee, sharply reducing the water flow into the lake. During the war, Israel captured the Golan Heights, which contain some of the sources of water for the Sea of Galilee.

The Sea of Galilee is an attraction for Christian pilgrims who visit Israel to see the places where Jesus performed miracles according to the New Testament.

Sea of Galilee water level – official government page (in Hebrew) Database: Water levels of Sea of Galilee since 1966 (in Hebrew)

Quick Facts

• The Sea of Galilee is situated in northeast Israel, between the Golan Heights and the Galilee region, in the Jordan Rift Valley, formed by the relative motion of the African and Arabian plates.
• It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lake in the world (after the Dead Sea, a salt lake), with its elevation fluctuating between 215 and 209 metres (705 and 686 ft) below sea level (depending on rainfall).
• The Sea of Galilee in its current form was preceded by Lake Lisan, which extended from the northern Sea of Galilee to Hatzeva in the south, more than 200 km (120 mi) from the present southernmost point of the lake.
• Some time after the city of Tiberias was founded on its western shore in honour of Roman emperor Tiberius in 16 CE, the Sea of Galilee started to be called the Sea of Tiberias.
• In September 2018 the Israeli energy and water office announced a project to pour desalinated water from the Mediterranean Sea into the Sea of Galilee using a tunnel.

Source material: Wikipedia - "Sea of Galilee". Adapted and summarized for DiscoverScroll. Original contributors are credited through the linked Wikipedia article. Read original on Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes were made from the original.