Trachonitis The region of Trachonitis lay to the north-east of Palestine, between Lake Galilee and Damascus. It was on the northern edge of the territory known in Old Testament times as Bashan (Numbers 32:33; Deuteronomy 32:14; See Bashan). At the time Jesus began his public ministry, the governor of Trachonitis was Philip, a son of Herod the Great (Luke 3:1). (For map and other details See Herod.)