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

Our day started with a short drive to the biblical gardens at Yad Hashmonah near Jerusalem. An early morning rain had cleared the skies and, though it was cool, the sun was working hard to warm things up for us. Patrick shared from Psalm 77 encouragement to “remember the deeds of the Lord.” It was, for many of us, the first occasion to do so in the very place where many of these deeds we had only read about occurred. Across the near valley we could see the Emmaus Road. Towards the west we could see the cities of the Philistines along the shore. And there, all around us in the garden there were examples of wine and oil presses, burial caves, and springs (of living water).

As we traveled through several sites in the region, we saw the likely place where Samson had lived. Our guide explained that the word for foothills, shephelah, was often used to describe a person who had lower morals. Standing in the mountains at Beth Shemesh, we could see where Samson compromised and ‘went down’ to the place where the Philistines lived in the shephelah, compromising his own morals as he did what was right in his own eyes.

Similarly, at the site of Azekah, we could see where the Philistine armies encamped, and the city of Bethlehem in the distance where David would have come from to deliver lunch to his brothers on the front lines (now that’s a long walk!).

We finished our day visiting several amazing examples of man-made caves from around the same time period. There was this overwhelming sense of awe at seeing such well-preserved places from such an important time.

Feeling refreshed and encouraged by a day of travel and learning, many soaked in the salt spas and the Dead Sea at our hotel, and enjoyed conversation over dinner.

Eric & Amanda Woods