Israel In Depth - Rocky Peak

April 26 - May 7, 2015

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The Holy City

Today was our last, and longest, full day in Israel, and boy was it packed full of things to see. We spent the entire day exploring Jerusalem. What an amazing city it is. There is just so much happening here. The culture and history of this place is overwhelming. For the sake of my brain not melting and time I will hit the highlights of our day.

We started off just outside the wall in the city of David. It was the original center of Jerusalem. The city where David lived and ruled. The city where he brought the arc of the covenant. The city is on a hill south west of the Mount of Olives, with houses and buildings moving down the hillside. While we were there we explored Hezekiah’s tunnel. This was a huge underground tunnel built during King Hezekiah’s reign to protect the cities water source from the Assyrians.

Hezekiah's Tunnel

A 1750-foot (530m) tunnel carved during the reign of Hezekiah to bring water from one side of the city to the other, Hezekiah’s Tunnel together with the 6th c. tunnel of Euphalios in Greece are considered the greatest works of water engineering technology in the pre-Classical period. Had it followed a straight line, the length would have been 1070 ft (335m) or 40% shorter.

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"When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he intended to wage war against Jerusalem, he consulted with his officials and military staff about blocking off the water from the springs outside the city, and they helped him. They gathered a large group of people who blocked all the springs and the stream that flowed through the land. 'Why should the kings of Assyria come and find plenty of water?' they said." 2 Chronicles 32:2–4

The tunnel started out narrow and low. As we continued through all 533 meters (five and a half football fields) the ceiling of the tunnel got higher and higher. I still can’t wrap my head around how they pulled that off with chisels. Ronen said that it took them probably around 3 months (for those not tracking, that’s insanely fast). The tunnel eventually lead us out to the Pool of Siloam. This is where Jesus heals the man born blind.

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing. John 9:1-6

What is funny about this story is that the Pool of Siloam is a long way down from the temple. Imagine Jesus sending a blind guy down a ton of steps to go wash in the pool. Being someone who is a visual learner, it was awesome to see and imagine taking place at the site.

Pool of Siloam

he Pool of Siloam (Hebrew: בריכת השילוח‎‎, Breikhat Hashiloah) is a rock-cut pool on the southern slope of the City of David, the original site of Jerusalem, located outside the walls of the Old City to the southeast. The pool was fed by the waters of the Gihon Spring, carried there by two aqueducts.

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After the Pool, we made our way into the walls of Jerusalem. This place is like an onion. There are so many layers to this place. Empire after empire tearing down and building up new things. This place has so much history that even today archeologists are still excavating and finding more and more. We stopped just below the western wall and stood in a site that had the original stone from Jesus’ time. Now we were standing on the stones that the people of his time were standing and walking on. It was unreal to think about. We then made our way to my favorite place of the day, the Southern steps.

The Southern steps are a huge set of stairs that lead from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple court. Some of the steps were still originals from Jesus’ time. These were the very steps Jesus took when he made his way to the Temple. Not only that, it was also the place most likely where, in Acts 2, Peter addresses the crowd and 3,000 were baptized. Below the steps are a ton of Mikvehs (Ritual Baths) which would be the only place n the entire city that could facilitate such a thing. To think that the early church most likely began here is just amazing to me. Again as a visual person I was absolutely blown away to stand where it all took place.

Southern Steps

An enormous flight of steps leads to the Southern Wall from the south. They were excavated after 1967 by archaeologist Benjamin Mazar and are the northernmost extension of the Jerusalem pilgrim road leading from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount via the Double Gate and the Triple Gate, collectively called the Huldah Gates. These are the steps that Jesus of Nazareth[2][3] and other Jews of his era walked up to approach the Temple, especially on the great pilgrimage festivals of Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot. [2] The stairs that lead to the double gate are intact and "well-preserved."[4] The steps that lead to the triple gate were mostly destroyed.[4] / The risers are low, a mere 7 to 10 inches high, and each step is 12 to 35 inches deep, forcing the ascending pilgrims to walk with a stately, deliberate tread.[2] The pilgrims entered the temple precincts through the double and triple gates still visible in the Southern Wall.[5][2] Together, the double and triple gates are known as the Hulda Gates, after the prophetess Huldah.[2]

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From there we mad our way to the western wall. Another experience that was powerful. The Jews believe that this is the place that is closest to the Holiest of Holies (a place where God Dwelt). The tradition to pray at this wall began, as when the Romans destroyed the temple, the Jews no longer had a place to pray so they started to pray at the spot closest to the Holiest of Holies. Then when the Ottoman Empire came it was then controlled, and still is to this day, the Muslims. Today the Jews believe that this is the closest place they can get to God. At first it seemed somewhat ritualistic to me. But when you think about it, they don’t hold the same belief as we do that God is now dwelling within us. This is the closest they get. With that type of perspective it makes sense as to why this place is so esteemed. I was extremely moved to see the fervor and passion in how they prayed. It was inspiring. We took some time to pray there and write down prayers and stick them in the wall. It was cool to se how much history this place had. So many civilizations building on top of the last put us underground to take a tour of the wall and got to see some more original stonework. Some of these stone were so massive (one was 600 tons) it was mind boggling to think about how they moved them.

Western Wall

The Western Wall is the most holy place accessible to the Jewish people because of Muslim control of the Temple Mount. Known in recent centuries as the “Wailing Wall,” this was built by Herod the Great as the retaining wall of the Temple Mount complex. The plaza was created as an area for prayer when Israel captured the Old City in 1967. At times tens of thousands of people gather here for prayer.

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After the wall we made our way through each quarter and eventually walked through the Via Dolorosa (the route Jesus carried the cross). As I walked through the streets I imagined the scenes as people shouted, wept, and scoffed as he made his way to Golgotha. Eventually we made it to the site where The Church of the Holy Sepulchre now stands.

This place was wild! This was the site where it is believed that Jesus was Crucified and buried. A place where millions travel to have a chance to touch the rock that the cross stood, and stand in the tomb where he was buried. Gold decorations, incense, organ music, and paintings this place was decked out. It was definitely a site to see. Moving through it I tried to peel it all away the stone, decorations, and crowds. I wanted to imagine what it could have looked like to see Jesus upon that cross. To think of the suffering he took upon himself in my place. I imagined hearing the weeping, mocking, shouting as he was nailed and hung. I thought about him calling out to his father and being turned away, bearing the weight of the world only to finally say it is finished. When you look past all of the chaos of the crowd, the decorations on the walls, the music and the smells. There is a sweet moment to be had here.

After a few more stops we ended our exploration at an Armenian restaurant. This was our last and final dinner together here in Israel. It was a bittersweet moment sharing stories and takeaways from this trip, but also knowing that we are done with this trip. After dinner I had a moment with Ronen where I personally thanked him for everything he taught me. I had a love for Israel before this trip but it is so much deeper now because of him. This is a man who truly loves his people and is passionate about the history and legacy of Israel. I am so inspired by him and his heart.

I have thoroughly enjoyed taking in the sites, hearing the stories, and experiencing the culture. Even still, for me, this wasn’t just a trip to learn history and culture, but a trip to experience the story of a loving God and his people. I have gained a deeper understanding of what following looks like and just how faithful our God really is. With that I will finish because I have to pack still …

With Love,
Brandon Di Puma

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