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Israel Familiarization Trip
January 4-15, 2016
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Cut to the heart
God’s Word continued to come alive today. The day started below the southern wall of the Temple Mount, at the site of the City of David. The terrain revealed a city where David’s palace at the top of the hill looked down over many homes, and ultimately over the home of Uriah, one of his trusted and faithful mighty men, and his wife Bathsheba. It grieved me to understand the intentionality with which David went about his sin, and the extent to which he went to cover it up. Of course that forced me to think of how many times I’ve been just as intentional about getting into sin and relentless in covering it up, rather than avoiding it at all cost in the first place.
From there we descended what seemed like hundreds of steps to the Spring of Gihon and the entrance to Hezekiah’s Tunnel. He built this in short order, digging from both ends and meeting in the middle, to prepare the city for the imminent siege coming from the Assyrians. What I love about this tour is that we didn’t just look at the tunnel from either end, but got to experience walking through all 530 meters of it. A huge highlight of the day!
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.
A short trip of ascension took us back up toward the Temple Mount and found us at the Cardo and the Southern Steps leading up to the temple. I will probably never read the Songs of Ascent in Psalms (120-134) the same again, understanding that these were songs they sang as they made their way up to the temple of God. Another powerful moment was provided as we were taught from Acts 2 and Peter’s speech (potentially at this location), where 3,000 people were “cut to the heart” and responded with repentance and baptism.
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]
The day was closed out at the Holocaust Museum. One could hear a pin drop as we moved throughout the grounds and attempted to take in the breadth of the Holocaust, especially as revealed first-hand from survivors. God told His people all throughout the Old Testament, “Remember! Don’t Forget!” and that phrase echoed constantly through my mind. 6 million Jews dead. 1.5 million of them children. The lump in my throat told me I must always remember this. I must never forget this. And in the words of one of the displays in the museum, we must never let this happen again.
By Cliff Carey
Student Ministries Pastor
Sunrise Community Church
Fair Oaks, CA
https://twitter.com/randylalonso/status/687301271162884097
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAwtGnNf9octjxME_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAwtMRSqVNEH95Fl_ret.jpg|Ronan's toughest moment on this tour in my estimation - outside the hall of names of the children. The marker of the garden where Carob trees are planted in memory of the righteous among the nations. The Schindlers' trees are seen beyond the marker.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAvm6PBjM9IG1VdU_ret.jpg|Ronan preaches from the heart about why we must stand against anti-semitism in our world today by reminding us of yesterday.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAviPlw1Qf5SZJ1Z_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAvimrPsn41mfb5I_ret.jpg|Yad Vashem - the holocaust memorial. The trees planted for Oskar and Eileen Schindler in the garden honoring the righteous among the nations - those who helped save Jews. A memorial area where ashes from the concentration and death camps. Bergen-Belsen is remembered in the foreground - where Corrie Ten Boom and her family were taken for their efforts to have a hiding place.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAu8k2PR0XpyRftI_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAu8NqnBR7uEVo15_ret.jpg|Replica of the Liberty Bell in a park where we had lunch
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAu99KfIjWWhagqd_ret.jpg|Ginormous bagels with special dips were our lunch today.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAsBgGxE6M5SUfQg_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAsBEyYW9QOQNf4K_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAsB7bGT1mmmAE1r_ret.jpg|Ancient toilet facility! A palace from a later period. Then we see the remnants of the double gate with the steps of ascent to the temple mount. Today Al Aqsa mosque sits above this area. The southern windows of that mosque are visible.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAs2NReoyyzHkLU4_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAs24y5kJgZNu09v_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAs2m8RCrFGs54gw_ret.jpg|Cardo, the "Main Street" of ancient Jerusalem in Jesus' time. Jesus walked here! Stones piled like they would've looked post 70 AD after Gen. Titus destroyed the City.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAr9Cu2ZnGjeiK7U_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAr9IThyF7pXS4sI_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAr9Tuc2BludArl5_ret.jpg|The Pool of Siloam created by Hezekiah's diverting the Gihon.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAr8C7XG2xULun2z_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAr8N8JTH0p3CToT_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAr8ttuPOsjctp5a_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAr8ewT4jr6pXKu1_ret.jpg|Entering one of the tunnels from the spring out to the Kidron Valley. A glimpse up to the pinnacle seen a ove the Coke sign.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAqrnj9W2VegKejj_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAqroN3goEHRniWR_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAqruMG38gdD03HD_ret.jpg|Descending to the Gihon Spring. Note in the final picture where you see a slab at an angle - part of the bedrock that lies under the City of David and continues up beyond Moriah to outside the Northern wall of the Old City of Jerusalem.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAq7OOr1rS0BVQNX_ret.jpg|Note the bedrock of Mt Moriah running under the City of David.
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAq4purH6kK78pry_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAq4IYNIzThL27jV_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAq4gtNf25vjFg5c_ret.jpg
journi|Steve Williams|https://da8d58xb1ptvq.cloudfront.net/picture/DAq4ocHtImEIFxdp_ret.jpg|The City of David. Commanding views of Temple Mt, and the "pinnacle of the Temple" as well as the Kidron Ravine. Walls from the time of David 3000 years ago.
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