Yad Hashmona, Tel Gezar, and Tel Azekah

This morning we started out a little bit later than our normal 6 am. We got a whole 30 minutes more to sleep! It was good.

We left our Kibbutz at Neve Ilan after a quick one night stay. Our first stop was a brief bus ride down the road to Yad Hashmona. This site was created to highlight the workings of an early Jewish community.

Built onto a hillside, it was a terrific example of how they planted things everywhere to support the needs of the community. Grape vines, fig trees, olive trees, etc. Then we saw examples of a wine press, an olive oil press, a threshing floor, ritual baths, family grave plots, and a tabernacle.

We learned about 'joyful' wine, first and second press of olive oil, and how the wheat and chaff are separated. All illustrations that you might recall having been used in the Bible to describe us.

Inside the tabernacle we had devotions on the book of Leviticus. This book in the Bible deals with all the ceremonies and rituals of the tabernacle and the Priestly things. We also looked into I Samuel 3, the story of Samuel hearing the voice of God calling out to him. You might remember that, at first, he thought it was Eli. Finally, after the third time, Samuel answered "Here I am." Yad Hashmona was beautiful, but a lot of information packed into a short time.

On to our next stop which was Tel Gezar. A moderate hike of about 30 minutes brought us to the top where we could overlook the valley in all directions. This was a city built as a barrier fortress to Jerusalem Here we found some stones left by one of the hilltop's settlements. We talked about how stones were significant in helping us to "Zakar" or remember the things that God has done for His people.

A little further down the road we stopped at Bet Shemesh, or "House of Sun". The first thing we did was climb down into a cave that served as a cistern for the region. Of course it is dry now, but it was a very good example of the type of 'well' that Joseph's brothers threw him into when they wanted rid of him.

On the top side of the hill we opened our Bibles to the stories of Sampson. Here in the Sorek valley he lived his life, close to the camps of the Philistines. As the drama played out, it became apparent that he took the call that God had placed on his life very lightly. In the end he broke all the vows that God had ordained for him, and he was severely humbled and died a martyr's death.

Another short bus ride found us at Tel Azekah where we had a quick lunch and made the trek up to the top. Here beneath the shade of a large tree we opened our Bibles to the story of the ark being captured by the Philistines. They played 'hot potato' with the ark for years as each city where it rested found great misfortune. Finally, they decided that they would give it back to Israel and be done with it. The significance of the story was that there were 5 Philistine rulers, and 5 cities that held the ark. I will come back to that in a minute.

Now we shifted into the story of David and Goliath (the Philistine giant). Looking over the edge of the mountain we saw the valley that stretched between the Israelites and the Philistine camps. Here it was that Goliath came out and taunted the Israelites each day while they trembled in fear. David went to the riverbed below and gathered 5 smooth stones for his sling and went out to meet Goliath for battle.

As we all know, his first stone found its mark and brought the giant down. He still had the four stones in his pouch - but the scripture shows that eventually he destroyed all 5 rulers of the Philistines. It was a neat tie in with numbers, as we have seen over and over on this trip.

Our next move was to trace David's footsteps down the steep side of the mountain to the riverbed below. This was much easier for a nimble shepherd boy who knew the terrain. Also, David did not have to contend with a bustling highway stretch on his way to the stones. Down in the dry riverbed, we each chose five smooth stones to remember his bravery - and our own.

Since we were walking on the paths of David, we made a quick trip over to the park at Adullam. What is significant here is the web of caves under the mountain. It was here that he hid from Saul while on the run.

The opening of the cave was wide open and had a lovely staircase that took us out of the sun. However, this was not the actual cave we would be going in. No, that would be too easy! Called the "Crawling Cave", the opening was about the size of a tube at McDonald's Play Land". A few stepped back immediately at the sight of the opening to the cave while the rest of us dove in, not really knowing what to expect.

Turns out that the 'crawling' portions were no sweat. After several feet of crawling there was a room to rest, about the size of a walk-in closet, but shorter. The 'feet first' portions were the harrowing spots as these were likes slides with torso bending portions, and then drops at the end. Please remember that we are in the dark for the most part. There were three rooms to rest and wait for people to lead us into the next sections.

The possibility of getting stuck was real, though no one did thankfully. I should also mention that the air was not exactly fresh inside cave, probably from all the exertion and anxiety. Finally, the last leg and fresh air. Cheers arose for each person as they exited the cave, and they were well deserved. If you want an experience to compare it with: childbirth comes to mind.

After these days in the desert, by the Sea of Galilee, and roaming with the Romans we set our path to Jerusalem. Riding in our grand chariot (thank you to Meier, our driver) we arrived safely at the Grand Court Hotel. We are happy to have decent Wi-Fi and a permanent home for our last few days.

All roads led to Jerusalem after all.