Holy Land pilgrimage 2023 part 2
Part 1/2, Part 2/2
February 24
Last night we slept at a hotel on the southern shore of the Dead Sea in the Judean wilderness. The water was much warmer than what we experienced when reaffirming our baptism in the Jordan River.
After breakfast, we drove down to the southern tip of Israel, to the Timna Valley, just 15 miles from the Gulf of Eilát (Aqaba) an extension of the Red Sea.
We stopped at Timna Park and took some time to get alone in the wilderness, giving the Lord the first word —and considering how He might direct our thoughts.
From there we drove to a full-scale replica of the tabernacle. This was the portable earthly representation of the Lord’s presence among His people. The main source describing the tabernacle is the Book of Exodus, chapters 25-31 and 35-40.
Sacrifices for sin could only be offered at the tabernacle (later the permanent temple built by Solomon, son of David, in 960 BC). Here the Israelites learned the gravity of sinfulness and how much they needed a Savior. The ultimate sacrifice, Jesus, paid the penalty for us when he came to earth to “Tabernacle” (dwell) with us.
From here we drove to the Jordanian border and crossed over into Jordan. We bid farewell to Ran Silberman, our illustrious guide, and Roman, our remarkable bus driver. We had to change buses, and were glad to welcome a new guide, Ash, for our three-day journey in Jordan.
February 23
Because of recent unrest in Jericho and Israeli Defense Forces operations throughout the West Bank, we were not able to travel to Jericho this morning. Our hope was to see the cliff-side Monastery of the Temptation, a Greek Orthodox Monastery built in the sixth century AD —commemorating the cave in which Jesus stayed during his 40 days in the wilderness.
We travelled from Jerusalem into the Judaean wilderness, descending to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth, some 1,400 feet below sea level.
We saw a herd of ibexes along the way to Qumran.
Qumran Community
“In the desert prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.” (Isa. 40:3)
John the Baptist was clearly influenced by these words —but so were the Essenes, a Jewish sectarian group around the time of John, who lived at a place called Qumran in the desert.
Some 200 Essenes lived here, eating communal meals, studying and copying sacred scriptures, writing commentaries, defining community rules, and following strict Jewish rituals.
Some of their larger scrolls are as long as 30 feet. The Qumran scroll is some 23 feet long, made up of 17 parchment sheets, sewn end to end.
Masada
called Masada.
According to Josephus, the first-century Jewish historian, rebels against the Roman occupation of Israel were besieged by the Romans from AD 73 to 74. The seige ended with the suicide of the 960 Sicari hiding there.
February 22
Well, I was almost finished with my Wednesday blog yesterday when I inadvertently deleted it —and it had not been saved (!)…. (pause for quiet lament)…
I’m pretty sure I could preach a sermon on that.
I will need to move more quickly through my blog than I’d like —but will briefly touch on each visit.
Today the Lord awoke us to another blue-sky morning, and our itinerary led us to the Israel Museum, the Shrine of the Book (Dead Sea Scrolls), and Yad Vashem (Holocaust Museum).
Outside the Israel Museum stands a remarkable 1:50 scale model of first century Jerusalem…This was our first stop. It’s enormously helpful in gaining perspective on events and places in the holy city.
The Model of first-century Jerusalem
The Shrine of the Book
In 1947, a young bedouin shepherd threw a rock into a cave, heard what sounded like breakage, and scrambled up the cliff to look around.
What he found would fundamentally alter biblical scholarship: ancient clay jars filled with scrolls and fragments of scrolls.
The biblical manuscripts among the Dead Sea scrolls, carbon-dated to around 100 BC, offer irrefutable evidence of how carefully ancient scribes sought to transcribe and preserve the exact text they were copying.
For example, prior to the discovery of these scrolls, our earliest extant manuscript of Isaiah dated back to AD 1000. When that text is compared to the Great Isaiah scroll found at Qumran, they are essentially the same.
Here’s a helpful article from The Gospel Coalition: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/dead-sea-scrolls-75-years/
The Israel Museum
It’s hard to exaggerate the importance of the Israel Museum. Every artefact it contains is of historical significance—and much of it directly relates to biblical history. Two examples:
The “Pilate stone” was discovered in 1961 at Caesarea by the Sea. Until then no archaeological evidence existed that confirmed the existence of Pontius Pilate, a pivotal figure in the New Testament.
Yad Vashem: Memorials of the Names: Holocaust Remembrance
It seemed fitting that we should visit the holocaust museum, Yad Vashem (“Monument to the Names”) on Ash Wednesday.
This is an experience that leaves you emotionally exhausted —to say the least. Horrifying and disturbing.
Ash Wednesday Service at Christ Church, Jerusalem
This service was a blessing to all who attended. We met some dear friends again, shared in the imposition of ashes, and heard a heart-touching homily by a Welsh priest.
