 Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Elah Valley - David & Goliath
Tuesday morning after breakfast we are picked up by the bus and driven to the Elah Valley which is south west of Jerusalem. The best view of the valley is from the commanding hilltop of Azekah. This strategic city was wisely fortified by Rehoboam, and it was one of the last cities to fall to the Babylonians in the invasion of Judah in 586 B.C. The valley below is the location of the battle of David and Goliath. Valley Of Elah: David's contest with Goliath (Samuel I 17). Nearby are the excavations of the Roman-Byzantine city of Bet Guvrin, and Sorek, home of Delilah (Judges 16:4). Unchanged for three thousand years, the brook where David selected the stone to slay Goliath still gurgles. Here our guide demonstrated how David picked up the stones and put them into his sling.
Beth Shemesh and the time of Samson
Next we get back on the bus and head north to the town of Beth Shemesh. We don't actually stop in the town but rather at a hilltop outside of town where we got out of the bus and went to the top to view the area. There we had a Bible Study on Judges 13 - 17. This area of Israel was alloted to the tribe of Dan in 1200 BC upon the conquest of the Philistines. Beautiful rolling hills with shephards tending their flock it was easy to imagine David here in an area not far from the spot where he faced Golliath. This area is safely inside the land alloted to Israel in 1947 by the United Nations.
Yad V'Shem (Hand and Name) Holocaust Memorial
After the Bible study we got back on teh bus and headed north to highway 1 and then east back into Jerusalem to the western side of town where teh government buildings are located. We began with lunch here. Two different sides of the isle. One was for sandwiches and food where milk could be found and the other for meat . After lunch we toured the Memorial.
Israel Museum - Model of Jerusalem
After the Memorial we got back on the bus for a short trip in town to the Israel Museum where we saw the Dead Sea scrolls and then toured a scale model of the old city of Jerusalem as the sun was setting. The building above houses the scrolls and is meant to look like the top of the scroll.
Western Wall Tunnel (6:20 PM)
This tunner is along the Western Wall and is only available by appointed time. It was dark by the time we got here. The tunnel is a long narrow passage along the wall. In side we came upon the Women of the Wall who come here to say their prayers. The Western Wall is the only part of the original wall that supported the Temple that remains today. Directly overhead would have been the Temple if it were still standing. This area and the enrire wall is now the holiest spot in all of Judiasm.
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