Seeing the places from the Bible

Wow, I haven't posted here is some time.  Israel is still a big part of me though.  I talk about it constantly.  I had to stop by and post today though.  I'm doing a Beth Moore study of James which is absolutely incredible.

Looking at Jerusalem from the Mount of Olive

Today I was reading Luke 19:41-44 about Jesus weeping over Jerusalem as he viewed it from the Mount of Olives.  He told of it's future of being destroyed once again.  The Word becomes even more real when you read about a place like the Mount of Olives and Jesus looking at Jerusalem when you've stood in the same place.

In the picture above, you can see a valley before Jerusalem.  That is the Kidron valley.

I hope that those of you who are reading this may some day get to visit Israel for yourself because it is an amazing place.  Walking in the land that God promised to the children of Israel is an experience that will be with you for the remainder of your life.

Golden Menorah

Hi all,

Sorry it's been a while since I did a post.  Had a bit of a busy week.  I realized today that I need to get busy and post.  Today let's hear a little about the Temple Institute and the work being done to prepare for the building of the third temple.

While in Israel, we were able to see the golden menorah which is part of the utensils that are being crafted for the new temple.  You can read more information about the utensils being prepared at the website of The Temple Institute.   The golden menorah of course is one of the utensils used in the Holy Place in the temple.  Here is a bird's eye view of where the temple will be built. As you can see, there is a little problem with the location.  Something is already there.  That little snafu will have to be cleared up before the temple can be rebuilt.

But first, how about some more shots of the menorah.  The detail is so fascinating, I must share.

This is the menorah.  It's kept in a glass case in the Jewish quarter.  Here are some close up details.

Enjoy these pictures and go to The Temple Institute website and see other items that are being prepared for the new temple.

Eliahu ben Shaoul Cohen

I just saw this post on facebook by Jews News about Eliahu ben Shaoul Cohen. The Wikipedia article
I feel it's well written and wanted to share it with you so you would learn more about this man who did so much for Israel during his life.  Since this is a blog about Israel it is a valuable post.  This blog is becoming so much more than just info on a tour.  I hope you readers are enjoying it.

I don't know if you remember some of the information posted about the Syrian post we visited but here's a little bit of a review with some new pictures.

The Syrian outpost we visited is on the Golan Heights.  This particular one was captured during the Six Day War in 1967 so it was not one of the ones where Mr. Cohen was instrumental in having captured.  I did want to show you this picture though so you could see all of the eucalyptus trees around the outpost.  The story below explains why the trees are there.

One of the most memorable and daring attempts to infiltrate Syria, which at the time controlled the Golan Heights and frequently shelled the Israeli settlers down below is that of Eliahu ben Shaoul Cohen an Egyptian born Jew.
THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER LIKE ELI...

Eliahu ben Shaoul Cohen, worked as a Mossad agent in Damascus, Syria under the alias of Kamal Amin Ta'abet from 1962 until his exposure and execution on May 18, 1965. Cohen was able to supply considerable details on Syrian political and military matters because of his strong interpersonal skills and abilities to build close ties with business, military, and Ba'ath Party leaders, and Syrian President Amin el Hafiz. He was hanged in Martyr's Square with the television cameras rolling for the entire world to see.

Eli was privy to secrets of the Syrian elite including those of national security. Eli was considered to be named the Syrian Deputy Minister of Defense. He was the only civilian to receive private tours of military installations, even being photographed in the then Syrian controlled Golan Heights with high ranking Syrian officials looking over into Israel.

As a result Eli sent highly informative reports back to Israel detailing the Syrian water deviation project and each and every one of the outposts on the Golan, including tank traps designed to impede any Israeli attack.
Eli’s influence on Syrian officials helped Israel beyond measure. Eli suggested that the Syrians plant trees on the Golan near each of their fortifications. Based on the eucalyptus trees, Israel knew exactly where the Syrian fortifications were.

Two years after his death, in June 1967, the intelligence Eli Cohen provided enabled Israel to capture the Golan Heights in two days as part of Israel's victory in the Six Days War.

Eli Cohen was the greatest Mossad agent Israel has ever known. He was greatly admired by all, including the Syrians. His deeds fed and are still feeding the imagination and fantasy of many. He is a hero who sacrificed his life for the sake of Israel, his fellow Jews, his children and his family.

Happy Birthday Israel!

I want to take this time to wish a

Happy Birthday to Israel

This is a lamp from the time of Jesus.  This was taken while we were at Nazareth Village.  I think it makes a perfect birthday candle.

Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948. Israel marks the day according to the lunar Hebrew calendar. This year the Hebrew date comes out April 15-16 on the calendar used in the West.

The Israel National Anthem.

Reflections on Israel

Reflections on Israel (in note form)

• Demanding land in terms of its natural terrain (generally rocky and dusty) and in terms of politics (have daily reminder of enemies via checkpoints, different guides depending on location, perimeter fences especially in and around Jerusalem).

• It isn't a naturally pretty land with lush colours.  The main colours are cream (of the rocks) and olive (dull) green of the trees and grass.

• In the country, donkeys are still ridden by shepherds (Bedouins) and camels are located at tourist sites.

• Israel is a country on the world atlas, yet in the detailed map there are regions within it that are Arab occupied territories (eg. Gaza, Jericho, Bethlehem, Ramallah - the latter three in the West Bank region).

• Non-Jews and non-Arabs are welcome amidst the Jew/Arab dynamic.  Made to feel very welcome by everyone in the tourist industry that I met (except security at the airports which is understandable). 

• Israel is in a demanding context - both in the time of Jesus and since then and probably before. It was not an accident that Jesus had his ministry in an external place that isn't beautiful and comfortable.  It is the same for us.  Our external context should be demanding and hard at times and we should expect this.  The peace is within you, through the Holy Spirit of Jesus.

• Through the Holy Spirit, the Gospel has spread to some of the ends of the Earth.  New Zealand, Canada and the USA for example in the last 150-200 years.  We are in the end times.  While in Israel, we saw 3,000+ years of history in the same place.

• None of us needed to go to Israel before we were born again at the ends of the earth.  Returning to Israel felt like the Holy Spirit is cyclical and deeply historical - sent out to the ends of the earth through missionaries and their descendants, and then returned in Christian tourists/pilgrims, only to be sent out again in these pilgrims.  It was and is powerfully enriching.  We are part of a grand meta-narrative.

• The survival of the Christian church, and of love and peace in Christians, throughout two centuries, against considerable odds, is outstanding. 

• Israel is surrounded by enemies, and there is emnity within.  Jesus said "Love your enemies".  There's a challenge!

• The sites of major events in the life of Jesus (eg. Church of the Holy Nativity in Bethlehem where he was born, Church of the Holy Sepulchre at Golgotha in Jerusalem where he died) are now dark, sombre churches.  The light of life was now within the local and visiting Christians and sometimes symbolised in much lighter adjacent churches.

• Evidence of 3,000+ years of human settlement is very evident through archeological sites (eg. Caesarea, Caesarea Philippi, Capernaum, Beit Shean, Masada).

• The significance of Jerusalem in world history.  The story isn't over yet.

• Going up to Jerusalem is true!  It's about one kilometre vertically up from the Dead Sea and the region of Jericho over a relatively short horizontal distance of about 10-15 kilometres.

• It's easy to visualise the wilderness after you have seen Israel (and Jordan)!

• Now it's easy to visualise travellers being robbed on the road to Jerusalem - the story of the good Samaritan.

• The faithfulness of God through preserving the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Qumran Caves - kept intact for 2,000 years for those who live now to read and to appreciate the integrity of the scriptures, particularly Isaiah.  Thanks be to the Essenes sect who valued the written word and faithfully copied ancient texts onto scrolls.

• The significance of water in a generally dry place.  Materially: Cisterns everywhere at old sites; rain tanks on the flat roofs; the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee.  Of obvious spiritual significance too. Jesus is the living water, in Israel and around the Earth. Cool!

Masada... the finale!

Hi again,

Rested up yet?  Well, let's take a look at the synagogue at Masada.

It was a cool experience to be sitting in a synagogue that people sat in over 2000 years ago.  Wow!  I marvel at how much history we were surrounded with while in Israel.  Our country (the US) is such a young country comparatively.



Oh look, Marc is taking a picture (or several), let's see what he took photos of.

Wow, nice photos of the synagogue with Masada in the background.  Poor Irit is standing out in the sun while the rest of us are relaxing in the shade.  What a hardy woman she is!   You can see from the pictures where the line of restoration is.  This building is in pretty good condition.  You can also see the "marble" facade on the stone in these pictures.   Also, what a great looking group we have huh?  Let's see, from left to right (not counting Irit) we have Jake, Dorothy, Victoria, Peter, Marc(in the top image), Pastor Sam, Tina, Mindy, Tracey, Judy, Goris, Fran, Jim, Anita, Ray, Mike, Nanette, Sue, yours truly, Tim and Ginny.  You can see me writing furiously in the last image trying to get down all the details.. and failing miserably.

Irit was giving us a small history lesson while we shaded in the synagogue.   We learned that the idea of a Jewish state was started by Benjamin Ze'ev Herzl.  Believe it or not, the League of Nations originally offered him a part of Uganda as a place for the Israeli state.  Thankfully, God's promises are bigger than the offer that was made by the League of Nations.  They found the area in Uganda unsatisfactory for colonization thanks to several factors.  Instead the current area was decided on.  Thanks to a lot of financial help from Baron Rothschild, land was purchased for the future state of Israel. 

Okay folks, time to get up and move on..   Next let's take a look at a columbarium tower.  Another word for  a columbarum tower is dovecot.

"Great," you say, "what is a dovecot?"  Well, I'm gonna tell you.   It's a place where doves were raised.  Now, why in the world would one want to raise doves?  They were food.  I know I know.. I can't imagine eating them either but you have to admit, it's pretty resourceful.  It is thought that their droppings may have been used as fertilizer as well.   All the little holes were where the doves could roost.  Nifty.

This is one of the fortress walls.   Quick, what's the black line mean?  Note the walls are not solid.  There are rooms in the walls.  This is where the soldiers stayed with their families.  Talk about a short commute.  When I saw these walls with the rooms, it made me think of Rahab.  Her home was in the wall of Jericho if you recall.  This gave me a whole new perspective on how her home might have been.

Now that you've seen a good amount of Masada, it's time to take you back to the first post.  Remember the saying "Masada Shall Never Fall Again"?   Now you will hear about what happened here after the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in ad 70.   First, some 1,000 refugees from Jerusalem headed for Masada knowing that it is easy to defend.   They were left alone for some time but eventually the Romans decided it was time to deal with them because they were causing problems for the Romans.  The question is how to get to Masada.

Take a look at this picture.  See the walls?  Those are the walls of one of the Roman encampments when they were laying siege to Masada.  This wasn't a weekend conflict.  This siege lasted... are you ready for this?  THREE years!  These guys were there for a while.  Remember now, the Romans also had to head off to Ein Gedi to get their water.  Meanwhile, the folks up on Masada are nice and cozy and have plenty of water.  Now, remember this wall.  Want to know how high Masada is?
Look at this picture.  See the walls on the right side almost half way down?  Those are the same walls in the previous picture from the top of Masada.  You can also see the snake path coming up the side of the cliff.  Now, the Romans might have been able to come up the snake path but alas, look at how narrow it is.  One could pick them off as fast as they came up.  Oh, look at the square to the left as well.  That is another Roman camp but the walls haven't been rebuilt.  You may wonder why they built walls around their camps.  After all, they were the aggressors and likely weren't too concerned about the Jews coming down from Masada to attack.  Nope, BUT.. how about lions?  Hmmm... they built those walls to protect themselves from something.

Oh.. but I digress.  Back to the conundrum of breaking into Masada.  Remember, this side was 1,300 feet up?  Oh wait, the other side was a measly 400 feet.  Ah, the Romans decided that was where to attack.  Still, how does one get up 400 feet?  Build a ramp.  But wait, where does one get all the wood out there.  No, not a wooden ramp (after all that could be set on fire anyway).  Dirt, lots and lots of dirt.

Here's a shot of the ramp that the Romans built to be able to get into Masada.  Yup, it took a while but they were a determined bunch.

They eventually were able to break through the walls at Masada.  To the right are some cannon balls they used to break through.  No, actually these were thrown using catapults but the final breakthrough was using a battering ram.  Victorious, they marched in to take those pesky Jews prisoners but when they got there they found a bunch of dead people.  What happened?  Well, when the people in Masada realized they were going to be conquered they decided that, rather than be slaves, they would all die.  Only two women and five children were found alive.

Can you imagine the men in the community having to put their families to death then each other all to keep from being slaves.  Talk about fortitude.  I can't imagine.  It took the Romans three years to finally get conquer Masada then when they did, all they conquered were two women and five children.  The remainder refused to be taken as slaves.

You can read much more on Masada in this book.

Before we leave Masada, let's have a view of the Dead Sea across to Jordon from the top of Masada.  Beautiful view isn't it?

Now that we are finished with Masada, it's time to head back down for the day.  We will be moving on to another location next post.

Masada.... continued

Did you enjoy what you learned in the last post about Masada?  Well, refill your water bottle, there's more coming.

First, let's take a look at the inside of a bathhouse.  It seems like we were looking at a LOT of bathhouses while in Israel.  What's different about this one?  Ooh.. look at the artwork that was found.  Imagine being there with the artist while he was painting the walls.  It's so cool that some of it survived.  These are three different corners in different rooms of the bathhouse

While looking at the picture, do you notice the black line, especially in the middle image?  That line indicates the line of restoration.  Below the line, the walls were in tact when excavation was done.  This is true of all of the archaeological sites, in Israel at least.  Above the line, the walls were reconstructed from the fallen stones.

Here's a model of the bathhouse on the left.
I don't know if I told you how the bathhouses worked back then.   There were three main rooms, a steam room, a lukewarm room and a cold room.  Well, there were changing rooms as well.  The bather would go to the steam room first where they would sweat thoroughly.  They were rubbed with olive oil then used a sort of scraper called a strigil to scrape off the dirt.  With the pores nice and open from the steam, the dirt was easy to scrape off.  Once the bather was nice and clean, he would move to the lukewarm room for a dip.  This prepped him for the final room, the cold room, for a chilling dip closing the pores.  After that he would dry off and get dressed.

Here's a picture of one room of the bathhouse.  The portion below the floor was where they would build fires around the edges to heat water.  The steam would rise through the pipes.  See the pipes in the picture to the right?  That's how they got the steam into the bathhouse.

Another interesting thing about Masada.  In the writings of Josephus Flavius, he talks about marble being used for construction in Masada.  Marble?  Up there?  First of all, below is the quarry where they got the stones for building the structures on Masada.
That doesn't look like marble to me.  Does it look like marble to you?  Well, why would Josephus, who is known for being a good historian, say marble if it wasn't marble?
Take a look at this picture on the right.  Although it's faded, you can see it looks like marble.  But the stone isn't marble.  What?  They used marble dust mixed with stucco to make a facade on the stone.  Now, isn't that just so flipping clever?   There are so many areas of Masada that reveal the ingenuity of the builders and architects.

Moving on, let's take a look at the storage rooms that they had on Masada.  Here we have.. oh wait... that's my bud Sue and I near the water gate.  The water gate was a gate to a path down to some of the cisterns where the water was collected.






Oh, where was I?  Ah.. storage rooms.  Here is a panoramic showing rows of the storage rooms.

Well, you have to use your imagination a bit since the walls have pretty much tumbled down.
Wait, here's a shot courtesy of Marc.  Thanks Marc.

These walls were not knocked down by marauders but by an earthquake.  To the left is a shot of one of the storage rooms that is still fairly intact.   Check out the holes.  Guess what they are for?  Not sure?  Here's a clue.  See the jug to the right?  Although you can't see it, the bottom of that jug is not flat.  So, how does one keep a jug upright that doesn't have a flat bottom?  With a hole in the floor!  Personally, I would think making the jug with a flat bottom would have been easier but this worked for them.  This particular room was for liquids.  They mush have had some jars with flat bottoms since there's only two holes in the floor.  One thing about it, they had a LOT of storage area on Masada.

Oh look, here is one of those flat bottom jugs.  Isn't it amazing that, what with all those fallen down walls and such that something like this jug survived?
Below is the path to one of the lower cisterns from the water gate.  Can you imagine trucking down this path with a donkey?  See the drop off?  Mind you, I am pretty sure that the railing wasn't there then although the path was paved with stones to protect the surface from the animal hooves.

Okay, time to take a break and sit in the shade for a bit.  Next post. We will look at the synagogue of Masada as well as the structure of the fortress walls.