Map and itinerary for Tuesday, July 24:
Earlier visits to the Upper Galilee and some sites in the northern Golan:
I had Elaine with me for this entire field trip, which made it particularly enjoyable for me.
A Crusader-era castle built by the Arabs to protect the road to Damascus from the invading Europeans.
Between 1967-1973 this was an exposed Israeli post on the front lines between the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and Syria proper. Since then it has been Israel's quietest border.
 |
| From `En Gev we went first to Hatzor (B; KJV, "Hazor") and then on to Tel Dan (C), Banias (D; NT Caesarea Philippi), Nimrod's Castle (E), and Har Bental (not marked). |
I had Elaine with me for this entire field trip, which made it particularly enjoyable for me.
Hazor
 |
| Close-up of masebot, or "standing stones," which were a Canaanite practice of representing deities that Israel in its idolatrous phases tended to adopt |
 |
| Brother Jackson gave some good history and a good devotional on the top of this restored tower, but it was terribly hot in the exposed sun! |
Tel Dan
 |
| This is not what much of Israel looks like! |
 |
| It is so green because of countless springs that literally erupt out from under rocks |
 |
| The dozens of springs combined below Tel Dan to form one of the raging headwaters of the Jordan River |
 |
| Gathered by the springs for our devotional on Jesus as the Fountain of Living Waters (John 4, 7, and 19) |
 |
| Place of Jeroboam's altar at Dan |
 |
| Class pic on site |
 |
| Dan has always been the marker of the northern border of Israel. Before 1967, it was on the frontline with Syria, as these trenches demonstrate |
 |
| Bronze Age gate |
 |
| Iron Age wall |
Banias, ancient Caesarea Philippi
 |
| The ancient cave, once sacred to the god Pan, where Herod built a temple to Roma and Augustus. His son Herod Philip renamed the city here Caesarea Philippi, and this is where Peter made his famous declaration that "Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God" (Matt 16:16) |
 |
| In this cave were more springs, and hence another headwater of the Jordan |
 |
| Me inserted into the picture familiar from Photo 26 of the LDS edition of the KJV Bible |
Banias Falls
The springs of Banias form a fastmoving stream that, not far downstream, produces some fabulous waterfalls.
Nimrod's Fortress
A Crusader-era castle built by the Arabs to protect the road to Damascus from the invading Europeans.
 |
| Now Nimrod's Fortress is the home only of hyraxes (KJV, "rock badgers") |
 |
| Another hyrax! |
 |
| Don't fall into the "abyss" Elaine! |
Har Bental
Between 1967-1973 this was an exposed Israeli post on the front lines between the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and Syria proper. Since then it has been Israel's quietest border.
 |
| Today the DMZ and the Syrian lines lie just beyond those cultivated fields |
 |
| Mount Hermon, the probable site of the Transfiguration, appears dimly through the haze |
No comments:
Post a Comment