Day 10 – Monday, May 16: City of David, Hezekiah’s Tunnel, Southern Wall Excavations, Western Wall, a Few Free Hours
Today was our last full day here in Israel. It was another sunny day, with perfect temps around 80. We read from Psalm 48 as we left the hotel at 7:35.
Covid Test
We began our day by driving to a Covid Test facility in West Jerusalem. Those going back home tomorrow are required to get this test. We hope this ridiculous requirement ends soon. 🙂
City of David
We drove back to the area of the Old City and to the City of David excavations just south of the Old City. We saw the excavations where Dr. John dug for over four weeks in 1982 (and Jill Simmons in 1984). We saw remnants of city walls and houses in “Area G.” We then walked through Warren’s Shaft all the way down to the Gihon Spring. Here, some walked through the “wet” Hezekiah’s Tunnel (1,710 feet long) while others took the “dry” Canaanite tunnel. Both groups converged at the Pool of Siloam where we read John 9 in dramatic fashion. 🙂
Southern Wall Excavations/Western Wall
From here some in the group climbed up through the Drainage Channel to the SW corner of the Temple Mount (Robinson’s Arch) while others bussed to this spot. Here we saw Herodian pavement and massive stones. Jesus walked on this pavement! On the southern end of the Temple, we sat on the very steps used by Jesus and others. We considered that we now are the temple empowered by God’s Spirit (2 Corinthians 3).
Leaving this area we walked to the Western Wall. This is the most holy place for Jews today. The wall served as a retaining wall that supported the expanded Temple platform on top.
“Today was our last day in Jerusalem, and it was a good one! We had so many unique experiences throughout the day. My favorite was walking through Hezekiah’s Tunnel. A close second was walking up the steps of the Temple.”
Free Time
We walked to the Jewish Quarter for lunch on our own. We then enjoyed meeting and listening to Moshe, an Orthodox Jew who owns (with his brother Dov) a biblical shop called Shorashim. We then had two hours on our own to explore the Old City.
Most in the group bussed back to the hotel while others walked back. We enjoyed a final Farwell Dinner at the hotel. Today was a great ending to a wonderful trip with a wonderful group!
Day 11 – Tuesday, May 17: Extension to Greece or Flight Back Home
