Day 01 - Shephelah: Yad Hashmonah, Beth Shemesh, Azekah, Beth Guvrin (Maresha)

We started the day at Kiriath-Jearim, the place where the Philistines returned the Ark of the Lord to Israel (1 Samuel 6:21-7:1-2). We spent the morning in prayer with one another as we arrived at the first stop of the tour.

Our second stop was Beth Shemesh, located on a large trade route and gate city to Jerusalem. It is located in the Soreq Valley, which is where Samson was born.

The most beautiful view of the day was at Azekah. You can see so far away! It overlooked the Valley of Elah, which is where David fought Goliath. Watch the video for a short devotional from Pastor Jesse (apologies for the poor sound quality, it was very windy!)

Our last stop of the day was Bet Guvrin/Maresha. We saw beautifully made Columbaria caves, which was where people raised pigeons. This location acted as a pitstop from Galilee to Jerusalem in case travelers needed to buy animals on their way.