Day 9 – Sunday, October 18: Yad Vashem, Shephelah (Gezer, Beth Shemesh, Azekah), Har Gilo
Today we spent the morning in Jerusalem, while in the afternoon we drove to the Shephelah (lowlands) of Judah to visit three Old Testament sites. The weather was once again perfect, with sun and temps in the low 70s. We read from Psalm 137 ( a somber plasma about remembering Jerusalem!) as we left the hotel at 7:30 once again.
Yad Vashem
We departed the hotel and drove to West Jerusalem, specifically to Israel’s Holocaust Museum & Memorial. It is called Yad Vashem, named after a verse in Isaiah 56 that mentions the “memorial and a name.” Before the museum opened, we gathered among the “Avenue of the Righteous.” This “avenue is actually includes 1000s of trees dedicated to righteous gentiles who saved Jews during WW II. This incudes trees dedicated to people like Oscar Schindler and Corrie ten Boom. Shlomo introduced to us some of the history of the Holocaust. He also shared his personal story about his family during this tragic event. He lost 12 family members in Vilna, Poland.
It was also a somber experience walking through the Children’s Memorial before walking through the main museum on our own, We were reminded of the horrors and atrocities of the Holocaust and the loss of six million Jews. We left the museum around 11 a.m.
Tel Gezer
Since the Israel Museum was closed today, we directly drove west into the Shephelah (lowlands) of Judah. Our first stop was Tel Gezer. This off-the-beaten-path site located along the Aijalon Valley was both a Canaanite and Israelite city, full of walls, towers, and gates. We saw the replica of the “Gezer Calendar.” We also recalled Solomon’s reference to the “seasons of life” from Ecclesiastes 3. From the observation mound we saw the Aijalon Valley mentioned in Joshua 10. Among the Middle Bronze ruins most of us used the steel stairway to see the water system (175 steps down). This water system was originally used by Canaanites (dating to around 1600 BC). We then left these Canaanite ruins and continued to the Israelite (Iron Age) area to see ancient house structures and a chambered gate dating to Solomon (1 Kings 9). Walking back to the bus we saw the Canaanite high place and standing stones.
Beth Shemesh
From here we continued south to visit the site of Beth Shemesh. Located along the Sorek Valley, Beth Shemesh was a prominent Israelite town known for their many water cisterns. Across the valley is Zorah, the hometown of Samson. Further west down the valley was the Philistine city of Timnah where Samson’s first wife was from (only 4 miles away). We also read the narrative of 1 Samuel 6 about the Ark of the Covenant being returned to Israel by the Philistines living in Ekron. We could see the story unfold right before our very eyes! We also referred to the story of 2 Kings 14 about Amaziah and Jehoash battling here.
“It was another great day. We started with a somber visit to Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust Museum. This was followed with hiking up and down three ancient Old Testament sites in the afternoon. We ended the day at Shlomo’s community!”
Tel Azekah
Continuing south, we climbed the site of Azekah. On the drive to the top, we could see biblical Gath (the hometown of Goliath) to the west only about 5-6 miles away. This ancient city that has been excavated in recent years is located along the Elah Valley. Azekah is mentioned in the story of 1 Samuel 17 (the Philistines camped on the ride between Azekah and Socoh further east. It was in the narrow part of the valley (“gai”) where David battled Goliath. David faced the battle with this giant in the confidence of the Lord!
Har Gilo
As we began our drive back towards Jerusalem, we past Socoh and the part of the narrow valley where the battle actually took place. We also made a special stop to Har Gilo, Shlomo’s community. It was fun to see where he and his wife live. The view of greater Jerusalem was amazing from there too!
From here we returned to our hotel in Jerusalem where we enjoyed another great dinner and a free evening. We have one more full day of the Israel portion of the tour here in Jerusalem!
Day 10 – Monday, October 19: Holy Sepulcher Church, Garden Tomb, City of David, Hezekiah’s Tunnel, Southern Wall Excavations, Western Wall, Israel Museum
