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Israel Study Tour
October 20 - November 1, 2019
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Story upon story upon story...
Our first day in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) was filled with so much goodness! We spent an extensive amount of time walking through and learning about the Temple Mount, beginning with Abraham offering Isaac on Mt. Moriah to the current Dome of the Rock. Story upon story upon story...
We then walked through the rabbinical tunnels along the western wall seeing and touching the enormous ancient stones!
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.
Today was a day for bar mitzvas in Yerushalayim! So as we walked through the ancient streets, we got to be part of a couple of those celebrations. So fun!!
A short drive out of Yerushalayim, is Bethlehem (Beit-Lechem)! In Beit-Lechem, we enjoyed the shepherds’ field and walked through the Church of Nativity which is the oldest active church in Israel. Beit-Lechem’s biblical significance extends way prior to New Testament including the Book of Ruth, Judges, and others... It was surreal looking out the shepherds field where in visual range the angel appeared to announce the birth of the Messiah just as foretold by prophets before. I will never see Christmas same way again!!
Bethlehem
Biblical scholars believe Bethlehem, located in the "hill country" of Judah, may be the same as the Biblical Ephrath which means "fertile", as there is a reference to it in the Book of Micah as Bethlehem Ephratah.[17] The Bible also calls it Beth-Lehem Judah,and the New Testament describes it as the "City of David". It is first mentioned in the Bible as the place where the matriarch Rachel died and was buried "by the wayside" (Gen. 48:7). Rachel's Tomb, the traditional grave site, stands at the entrance to Bethlehem. According to the Book of Ruth, the valley to the east is where Ruth of Moab gleaned the fields and returned to town with Naomi. It was the home of Jesse, father of King David of Israel, and the site of David's anointment by the prophet Samuel. It was from the well of Bethlehem that three of his warriors brought him water when he was hiding in the cave of Adullam.
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