Category: ISRAEL


Givat Ha-Tachmoshet – Ammunition Hill, Jerusalem, ISRAEL

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March 25, 2012

Ammunition Hill

For more photos see: Ammunition Hill, ISRAEL

What is the significance of Ammunition Hill?

Strategically located in the northern suburbs of Jerusalem is the elevated position known since the British occupation as Ammunition Hill or Givat Ha-Tachmoshet. Because of its strategic elevated location, the capture of Ammunition Hill was the key, the pivotal point that enabled the reunification of the city of Jerusalem in 1967.

Jerusalem has a special place in the purpose of God, being the city God has chosen to place His name and it is destined to be the future capital of the coming Kingdom of God. Jerusalem has an amazing history centred in the nation of Israel – Abraham offered up Isaac there pointing forward to the time when God would give His own Son that we might have everlasting life, the Kings of Judah reigned from here, the focal point of the nation. The fortunes of the nation changed, the centuries have seen many invaders, bloodshed, war, terrorism and hatred.

The prophet Daniel was told of Jerusalem’s down-treading for 2300 years in Daniel 8:13-14. From the rise of the horn of the goat, a symbol of Alexander the Great, to the re-unification of the city of Jerusalem into the hands of the Jews in 1967, when the sanctuary would be cleansed was to be this period of 2300 years (BC333–AD1967).

Jesus told his disciples, Lk 21:24,27,32 And they (Israel) shall fall by the end of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled… and then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory… This generation shall not pass away till all be fulfilled. We are living in exciting times that will see the return of the Lord Jesus Christ very soon.

But what of Ammunition Hill’s history leading up to Jerusalem’s reunification?

In the 1930’s the British built a police academy and on the adjacent hill, which is now known as Ammunition Hill, established an ammunition storage warehouse.

During the 1948 War of Independence, Mt Scopus (where the Hadassah hospital and university are located) was cut off from the rest of Jerusalem. The battle at Ammunition Hill was about breaking the blockage of the mined access road and sniper attacks, and also maintaining access to this vital medical service. You may have heard of the Hadassah Medical Convoy Massacre, a convoy of 79 Hadassah doctors and nurses, who were so tragically killed by the Arab forces here at this time.

The Jordanians captured this heavily fortified trenched strategic hill, which sat at a crossroads of defence, during this war of independence, and retained control of it, resulting in the city of Jerusalem being split into two.

The 1948 War of Independence had re-established a homeland, a state for the people of Israel, a dream of the ages come true, but had also created a divided Jerusalem. The bible foretold these events, the prophet Joel (3:1), speaks of a time when God would restore Judah (the 1948 War of Independence achieved this) and also Jerusalem (the 1967 Six Day War).

After the war, armistice lines were drawn up on a 1:20,000 map with wax pens, stretching from Armon HaNatziv to the south of Jerusalem, to Ammunition Hill to the north. The Israelis used red and the Jordanians green lines and as these lines dried the ink expanded to cover an equivalent distance on the map of 200 metres. Quite a delicate problem to work out exactly where the borders were meant to be! Mount Scopus where the university and the Hadassah hospital are located remained in Jewish hands even though they were without doubt within the Jordanian boundaries and technically under the protection of the United Nations.

By visiting Ammunition Hill you can personally appreciate the intensity of the battle the Israeli soldiers fought for the reunification of the city of Jerusalem, in the 1967 Six Day War. The battle started on the night of 6 June and lasted just 4 hours – in these few hours 36 Israeli and 71 Jordanian soldiers died.

The 1967 Six Day War had expanded the borders of Jerusalem by 71km2, which included dozens of Palestinian villages where Israel have built 12 Jewish neighbourhoods.

The prophet Zechariah (12:3) foretells that at the time of the end, Jerusalem would be a burdensome stone to all people as a prelude to all nations coming up to it to battle (chapter 14), a battle outlined also in Joel 3 and called Armageddon in Rev 16:16.

Peace talks continue to try and resolve the Israeli-Palestinian question. East Jerusalem and the ever-persistent Jewish building programs to expand existing boundaries of the larger settlements and establish smaller compounds in Palestinian neighbourhoods are a stumbling block to its progress.

How will all this end?

The bible clearly shows the nations would partition the land Daniel 11:39; Joel 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations and have parted (partitioned) my land.

Israel are God’s people, Israel is God’s land – God has a purpose with them:

Jeremiah 30:11 For I am with thee (the people of Israel) saith the LORD, to save thee: for though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.

Ezek 37:21-28 And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

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Israel a Living Witness, ISRAEL

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March 21, 2012

Old City of Jerusalem - Home to God's people once more

For more photos see: Israel a Living Witness to God’s Purpose

Israel – A Living Witness to the Outworking of God’s Purpose in the Earth

Has God cast away Israel? Definitely not! Rom 11:1. They are His people, their continuance is assured, Jer 31:35-37.

Israel is a witness to the purpose of God in the earth, a witness to His righteousness Isa 43-44, in both the outworking of the blessings and the cursings of the law, Deut 27-28.

History shows the sad truth of these prophetic words of cursing, which have been fulfilled so accurately: They would have agricultural, domestic and public calamities while residing in the Land of their inheritance Deut 28:5-24, the ten tribes would be scattered into all the kingdoms of the earth Deut 28:25-35, the two tribes would be taken into Babylon with their king Deut 28:36, they would be restored from the Babylonian captivity, they would be subject to the Gentiles Deut 28:37-47, and then be subjected to the Roman conquest Deut 28:48-52, they would see the siege and destruction of their holy city and temple by the Romans Deut 28:53-57, and as an outcome be the wandering Jew in dispersion, Deut 28:64-68.

Israel is like the burning bush that Moses saw which burned but was not destroyed. God assures them When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee, Isa 43:2.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you (Israel) saith Yahweh, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future full of hope, Jer 30:11.

God has made promises to them that He will never break:  To Abraham their father God promised, that in him all families of the earth shall be blessed, Gen 12:3 – Paul calls this the gospel message, Gal 3:8.

God favours the nation of Israel because of His delight and promises He made with their fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Deut 10:15. Israel are beloved for the fathers’ sake that the purpose of God according to election might stand, Rom 9.

So God has a wonderful future predicted for His people, although cast off for a time Isa 54:7, to give the Gentiles an opportunity to learn of the hope of the promises made to the fathers Rom 11:11-24, Israel would be returned to favour, Rom 11:25-32.

Today we are seeing the resurrection of the dry bones, Ezek 37, a symbol of the restoration of the whole house of Israel Ezek 37:11 as an amazing witness to God that they would again be placed in their own land Ezek 37:13-14 and ultimately established with an everlasting king, the Lord Jesus Christ (David, Heb. the beloved) v24-28, when God will make an everlasting covenant with them and they will really become God’s people again, Jer 31:31-34.

Israel again in their own land (as the fig tree Luke 21:29-31) is a sign firstly that the times of the Gentiles domination of the Holy Land is at an end Luke 21:24, and that the Jesus the Messiah is about to return to set up God’s Kingdom on this earth Luke 21:27-28. Israel then is a dynamic and certain sign both that God is active, and there is a future both satisfying and honourable about to dramatically change our daily routines. The very presence of Israel as a location and a nation is important not only to the Jew, but also to you and me.

 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:

 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more Jeremiah 31:31-34.

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Yad Vashem, ISRAEL

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March 21, 2012

Hall of Remembrance – Eternal Flame

For more photos visit: Israel – A Living Witness to God’s Purpose

It is not that six million Jews were murdered, but that there were six million murders and every one was the murder of a Jew…

Yad Vashem is an everlasting memorial to the Holocaust, to the six million Jews who suffered and died at the hands of the Nazi regime during the Second World War.

It is a incredibly sobering experience to walk through its halls and see testimonies to the terrible atrocities that were committed in attempting to annihilate an entire race. To walk outside past the replica of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (1943) monument, depicting at the front a group of insurgents with their leader Mordechai Anielewicz (see article Yad Mordechai) and behind a group of Jews marching to their death, then to enter into the darkened Hall of Remembrance, a place of deep contemplation where you stand silenced, the eternal flame burning, its light reflecting across the floor to the names of the concentration camps, names of horror and brutality, Auschwitz-Oswiecim, Therensienstadt-Terezin, Bergen Belsen, Treblinka, Dachau, the names go on…

To wander down the Avenue of the Righteous, an avenue of carob trees that, along with a plaque, each represent a righteous Gentile who risked their lives to help Jews – Oskar and Emilie Schindler, Corrie, Casper and Elisabeth Ten Boom, the dock strikers of Amsterdam and many more less know to most… to see the 21m high Pillar of Heroism resembling the chimneys of the crematories dedicated
To the martyrs
To the ghetto fighters
To the partisans
To those who rebelled in the camps
To the fighters of the underground
To the soldiers in the armies
To those who saved their brethren
To the courageous people who took part in the clandestine immigration
The heroes of valor and revolt
For everlasting life

Then you enter one of the most poignant – the dark underground cavern, a memorial to the one and a half million children who perished, their faces are seen, their names, age and country solemnly read whilst memorial candles reflect like stars across the darkened space that seems to fade into eternity.

The memorials go on, the sadness and despair is felt, but what is the message we can take from all this? One plaque we read there read Never say this is the final road for you, though leadened skies may cover over days of blue, that the hour we longed for is so near, our steps beat out the message – we are here!
WE ARE HERE – Israel is a living witness that God has a purpose with this earth and they will never ever be destroyed even though they have passed through the furnace – When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee, Isa 43:2.

The outcome of the Holocaust was that the Jews were caused to return back to their land.

Therefore, behold, the days come, saith Yahweh, that it shall no more be said, Yahweh liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, Yahweh liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the land whither He had driven them:  and I will bring them again into the land of their Fathers.  Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith Yahweh, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks Jeremiah 16:14-16.

Yad means hand, Va means memorial, and Shem name. So here is a memorial to the six million names of the Jews that Hitler tried to blot out. In the title Yad Vashem you have a hand and a name. It is taken from Isaiah 56:5, Even unto them (the Gentiles) will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters:  I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.  It is literally a name for a hidden period. Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer:…for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people, Isa 56:7.  (Christ quotes this in Matt 21:13, Mark 11:17, Luke 19:46.)

Visiting Yad Vashem is an amazing experience that remains eternally with you – you will be moved by the heartbreaking story of the suffering it portrays, but always remember God is with His people and has a purpose with them. See article Israel – A Living Witness.

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Yad Mordechai, ISRAEL

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March 21, 2012

Yad Mordechai Battlefield

For more photos see:  Yad Mordechai

Kibbutz Yad Mordechai was established in 1943 and named after Mordechai Anielewicz, the leader of the Warsaw ghetto uprising. The first settlers of the kibbutz were from Poland who settled there before the Second World War. At the southern end of the kibbutz is the site of the battle that took place between the members of the kibbutz and the Egyptian army in 1948. With the declaration of the state of Israel on 15 May 1948, the Egyptian army started to march northward toward Israel, planning to reach Tel Aviv within a few days. From the border all the area along the coastal road to the outskirts of Tel Aviv was populated by Arab towns and villages, with only four young kibbutzim among them. Of these kibbutzim only Yad Mordechai lay directly on the road.

On the morning of 18 May the Egyptian forces approached Yad Mordechai. The kibbutz had been busy during the winter fortifying themselves against an enemy attack. At that time they only had ten tankers. On the eve of the battle they managed to evacuate the children, leaving a manpower consisting of 130 members, men and women and 20 members of the Palmach. They had approximately 55 lead weapons and a middle sized bombing machine gun – that was all their heavy equipment. They also barricaded the road by cutting down eucalyptus trees across it. The attacking Egyptian force was an infantry brigade of approximately 2,500 soldiers, with cannons, tanks and armed trucks with mounted cannons and two airplanes.

In the early morning of 19 May the kibbutz came under an aerial attack and in a few hours the kibbutz was in flames. It was decided not fire at the armoured cars, but to save their ammunition for the infantry which were ascending to the final battleground on the hill at the south end of the kibbutz. Until evening the Egyptians tried in vain to capture the hill – most of the Egyptian soldiers were killed or wounded near the boundary fence. At night the kibbutzniks climbed the hill and pillaged the Egyptian weapons which was a great boost to their modest arms supply. During the next four days, the attacks continued, but again in vain. By this time the kibbutz dead numbered fifteen, with twenty wounded.

On 23 May the fifth day of the battle, the Egyptians employed new tactics. They pushed forward in tanks and armed cars followed by infantry. Finally they succeeded in entering the kibbutz, capturing guard post number one after killing all its members. The counter-attack suffered heavy damage and could advance no further. After much bitter fighting, the post was re-taken and the Egyptians forced out of the kibbutz. But the kibbutz manpower and arms had seriously diminished, with casualties of 23 dead, 35 wounded and left with neither ammunition or grenades. They called for aid, but none was available, so the wounded were evacuated and they decided to retreat.

Retreating was no less dangerous than fighting as they had to pass close to the Egyptian lines, under very heavy fire. By dawn most had reached Li-On, loosing only a man and a woman who were carrying a wounded Palmach member. Thus the six days of Yad Mordechai drew to an end with this complete withdrawal, but six days that prevented the Egyptians advancing to Tel Aviv. The Egyptians lost some 300 soldiers here and their spirit was greatly weakened. These six days were enough for the young state to prepare barricades and defence lines, to collect arms and to restrain the strength of the invader in the north.

The Egyptians stayed in Yad Mordechai for approximately five and a half months and destroyed everything. On 5 November 1948 Yad Mordechai was liberated, and on the same day the kibbutzniks returned and started to re-build our kibbutz. Until the Six Day War of 1967 Yad Mordechai was an important defence post on the border of the Gaza strip. After the great victory of the Israel army in that war, Yad Mordechai ceased to be a border settlement.

Today visitors to the kibbutz may view a reconstruction of the actual battlefield complete with authentic trenches and weapons, (see photo album – Yad Mordechai) along with an excellent museum on the history of the kibbutz, this infamous battle & the history of the weapons deployed by the Israelis in those early years.

Against great odds as these, the nation of Israel was established, it is a remarkable miracle of our times. In Joel 3:1-2 we read For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah (1948 War of Independence) and Jerusalem (1967 Six Day War), I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

The time of the end when all nations will come down to Jerusalem for the battle of Armageddon (a heap of sheaves in a valley for judgment), described in Joel 3 as the valley of Jehoshaphat (judgement), as the valley of decision where the harvest is ripe, will first see the restoration of Judah and then the city of Jerusalem back in the hands of the Jews. An awful time of warfare will take place but the end result is the Kingdom of God re-established upon this earth:

The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more…But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation Joel 3:16-17, 20.

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Incense Altar, Samaria, West Bank, ISRAEL

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October 11, 2011

Incense altar, found at Samaria. 

Incense was a compound that was proscribed solely for worship within the tabernacle and temple. “Strange” incense was offered by Nadab and Abihu at the consecration of the tabernacle and was the cause for the disaster in the death of these sons of Aaron, Lev 10.  The prescribed incense is described as being “sweet” Ex 40:7; Lev 4:7 etc. The results of both types of incense are so in marked contrast. One ended disaster, the other in sweet smell or pleasing “fragrance” NASB. Incense was incorporated as a representation of the very nation itself in Num 7 and 16 and was a component seen alongside the nation’s sacrifices and access to the deity they worshipped, Deut 33:10.

The apostacy marked in the actions of Nadab and Abihu became a national apostacy under the times of the kings, with incense offered in high places eg 1Kings 22:43; 2Kings 22:17; 23:5,8.

Incense became a token of prayer Ps 141:2; Rev 8:3,4 and the building of the incense altar was a model for the parapets of the roof of the houses of the Israelites, and it was at this very place that should have been dedicated to Yahweh that David later would fall to temptation, 2Sam 11:2. Access to the roof was often via outer staircases so no distraction by daily concerns would interrupt the value of being connected with Deity.

There was also a proscribed “time” of incense Luke 1:10 where the national prayers were offered by the priests, and the nation awaited anxiously outside for the answer of acceptance and the provision of forgiveness and the announcement of liberty.

Incense was an habitual and continuing activity of the spiritual Israelite and offered on his behalf by the priests. Regular prayer by Daniel was undertaken at times when incense would have been offered, and indicates that the lesson of incense is the continuing interaction with deity during every day. The regular prayer seen by the unrolling of rugs and ritual of facing Mecca is a small token of the greater significance once seen in regular offering of incense with its national call to love their God with their heart, soul and mind.

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Migdal Eder, Bethlehem, ISRAEL

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September 28, 2011

Migdal Edar/Eder or the tower of the flock, is a location on the outskirts of Bethlehem. There are at least three locations that are suggested for the location, and all have an interested party claiming authenticity. The LXX has the location between Bethel and Rachel’s tomb. Eusebius locates it 1.9km east of Bethlehem (3) and others with Siyan al Ghannam SW of Jerusalem (4)  That this place is special is beyond words, for it was at this location that the news of the arrival of the Messiah  into the earth was announced. The congregated shepherds were no ordinary shepherds for these were men attending to the flock specifically designated for the continual burnt offering at the temple. They were the primary assessors of the blemish, tears and spots within the sheep, and attendant to their special care as befitting such an objective.  (1,2)

To share in this experience was a rich one indeed, for it was the lot of few men to feel the very sentiments of deity in the expected arrival and activities of his son. Experiences such as Abraham feeling the passion of his crucifixion, Gabrielle sharing with Daniel the expectation of his birth, and rushing to see its development, and numerous women such as Sarah and Hannah who were barren, waiting patiently for the arrival of their own children as a foretaste of the events at Bethlehem. But the reference to Migdal eder is a reference to the events surrounding the birth of Benjamin. Leading up to his delivery the severe labour pains were taxing the stamina of Rachel, who named her son before it’s arrival as Benomi; the son of sorrows, but renamed Benjamin by Jacob, the son of the right hand.  This event is portrayed as a national parable, with the diaspora being a symbol of the death of Rachel’s natural son Benomi,  Jer 31:15 and again later seen in the slaughter of natural sons of Israel by Herod Matt 2:18. But the symbolic survival of Benjamin spoke of a force at work greater than natural energy, and so Christ then becomes the champion of his Father to overcome travail, anguish and the tragic end of sin and evil. This dominion over sin is seen in Micah 4:8 in both overcoming moral challenges but also military challenges, being the man to stand against the Assyrian in the time of Micah and the amassed Gogian hordes in the time of Armageddon Micah 5:5.

The tent of Israel (note not Jacob the natural man, but the prince of power with El) was spread beyond Migdal eder Gen 35:21 and points to a time when the family of God created through the typical son of the right hand will overcome all challenges to become the inheritors of the promise.

That the migdal or tower is a component of the process of the burnt offering is confirmed in Neh 8 where the pulpit AV heb Migdol is the presiding of Ezra in the enactment of the burnt offering. All the steps of the preparation and offering are outlined in the actions and positions of the men involved within the chapter. The migdal was a fortress or a high tower where observation and a position of strength were demonstrated. This was the commencement of a process leading to the “lifting up” and declaration of the strength of Christ’s father, to be confirmed later in His resurrection.

The responsibility of bible scholars is to look out. Numerous passages berate the folly of sleeping or slothful watchmen, and the disastrous effects of unwarned military actions on the communities in Israel they were caring for.  We are to look for and haste unto the coming of the Lord, and so we wait for an event shortly to happen that will again change history and introduce our Lord into the world again 2 Peter 3:12; Rev 16:15.

http://maps.google.com.au/maps hl=en&ll=31.716541,35.211235&spn=0.005713,0.017123&sll=31.719307,35.202005&sspn=0.029823,0.006295&vpsrc=6&t=h&z=17

  1. Alfred Edersheim: The life and times of Jesus the Messiah chapter vi
  2. Mishnah: Baba K  vii.7
  3. Eusebius Onamasticon 43.12
  4. Avraham Negev: Archeological encyclopaedia of the holy land pg 339
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Qumran 2

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September 28, 2011

An update from a previous post on the Dead sea scrolls: http://wp.me/p1zBoi-lc

The long-awaited publication of the Dead sea scrolls is finally in the public arena. The first can be viewed on the Israel museum site here: http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/

You can now view in considerable detail scrolls of Isaiah that confirm the very content of your bible is accurate thousands of years later!

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Soreg, Middle wall of Partition, Herod’s Temple, Jerusalem, ISRAEL

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September 27, 2011

Istanbul Archeological museum:  Greek:  “No intruder is allowed in the courtyard and within the wall surrounding the temple. Whoever enters will invite death for himself!”

This was a warning stone placed in the partition wall of the Herodian temple at Jerusalem. The wall was designed to partition access to the area for worship preserved for the Israelites, and separated access from the gentile. This was a literal interpretation of the intent of Num 1:51: “and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death“. The wall or “soreg” was described as being 3 cubits high by Josephus (1) Along the top of this wall at regular intervals were placed stones, an example seen in the photograph above. Interspaced was lattice-work or “a reticulated fence of sticks” ten hand-breadths high (7) which was perforated by 12 gates.  The photographed stone was discovered by Clermont and Ganneau in 1871 at the northwestern corner of the graveyard abutting the temple mount wall.  The court styled ”hieron” or sacred is referred to in John 2:15 and Acts 21:28,29 and was the issue of the dispute with Paul that he had brought gentiles into the very sacred area of the temple itself. The reason for the dispute being his presence in the city previously with Trophemus. There was a progression in height of the court floors, with an elevation of 8 feet to the court of the women, then again another further 10 feet to the court of Israel, then another 3 feet to the court of the priests and then another 8 feet to the floor level of the holy place. (2) The wording on the stones was engraved some in greek, and others in latin (3) The intention of the partition was captured in a speech recorded by Josephus by Titus, that by “our” (roman) permission the wall was allowed to be constructed before the sanctuary. Have we not given you leave to kill such as go beyond it, though he were a roman? (3b).

Rabbinic traditions have Alexander the great coming to Jerusalem, and not crossing this wall of partition: “This far are we allowed to enter, but interior to this point we have no permission to penetrate” (4) Later in Hasmonean times, there was greek desecration of the fence in 13 places. These breeches were restored, but marked as to allow remembrance of the victory that deity had provided over the greek power. (8)

This middle wall of partition became a feature used by the apostle Paul in Eph 2:14 where he describes access through Christ to be not determined on national merit, but access through the merit of faith see also Rom 5:2. A willing gentile could not access temple worship even if wished to, and the character of his access to God relied not on ritual worship but through a system of acceptance outside the mosaic traditions.

This provision was written into the prophets when the Elohim of Israel would say that He would create peace for him that was near, and tho him that was far off Isa 57:19 and that the nations will bring an offering come into his courts Ps 96:7,8 and all flesh shall worship Isa 66:23 The testimony of Isaiah became the words of Christ in his cleaning of the temple: His house will be a house of prayer for all nations Isa 56:3-7; Luke 19:46 but the Jews had robbed Yahweh of service.

The spiritual obligation of permission of entrance was an important one, carefully guarded by the sons of Korah who learnt the lesson of thoughtless approach, and speaks loudly to us the importance of thinking before engaging in worship. The Soreg inscription is also a rich example of the confidence we can have in the reality of the structures spoken of in our scriptures.

  1. Josephus antiq: 15.11.3ff
  2. Eastons Illustrated dictionary pg660
  3. Josephus wars 5.5.2 (3b) 6.2.4
  4. Gen Rab 61:7
  5. GASmith: Jerusalem the topography, economics, the history from earliest times to AD70 1. pg 511
  6. Sharon E. J. Gerstel: Thresholds of the sacred pg 15
  7. Mishnah Middot 74;   Kelim i. 8
  8. Tractate Middot 2.3
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Harrat ash Sham, Trachonitis, Argob, Southern SYRIA

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September 23, 2011

Some very interesting work done by a Professor David Kennedy from the university of Western Australia was brought to my attention today.  He spends considerable time assessing google-earth images as a method of aerial archeology of the middle east. His maps of the lava flows of southeastern Syria are particularly interesting (1) as this demonstrates how deity funnelled armies, particularly along the Assyrian-Egyptian axis past Damascus and then subsequently through the holy land. This was undoubtably the purpose of deity, and examples of this intention are seen in Daniel 11. These lava flows made the access points such as Edrei so important that Glubb would call Da’ara the Thermoplyae of Syria.

In his observations are the prevalence of rock constructions called wheels and kites.  It has been postulated by many that the idea of kites were either a method of herding game into traps, or the collection of water into cisterns or for other agricultural projects (4).  The use of water in marginal country such as the Negev, eastern Jordan, and eastern Syria can provide critical support for occupation of smaller villages. These traps were critical before the discovery of lime. The burning of limestone provided the means to waterproof cisterns, and these valuable containers of water meant the occupation of areas where previously smaller rainfalls meant there was no expectation to continue living during the summer months, and periods of low rainfall. An astonishing example of water collection was the cisterns dug into the summit of Masada, estimated by some to be sufficient water for in excess of ten years!

Deity called through the prophet Jeremiah to trust in Him as the source of life, and not on fractured cisterns Jer 2:13; 14:3.

The burning of lime is mentioned in Isa 33:12.

  1. http://www.apaame.org/ see article Aug 9,2011
  2. A collection of wheel photographs from Harrat ash-Sham can be seen at http://www.flickr.com/photos/apaame/sets/72157627680231106/
  3. Work on the kites of Negev can be read here: http://www.antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/bar-oz319/

  4. Ofer Bar-Yosef : Pastoralism in the Levant: archaeological materials in anthropological perspectives

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Ono, Hadid; Shephelah, ISRAEL

Filed under: SHEPHELAH — Leave a comment
September 22, 2011

Ono

Ono, K’far Ana; modern Kiryat Ono; modern

The town’s name is from a hebrew word meaning to be vigorous or to exert (successfully) The town is repeatedly mentioned alongside Lod.  It was a city of Benjamin and built with Lod and other smaller villages in the area by Ebar, Misham and Shamed sons of Elpaal 1Chron 8:12 It is placed alongside a person or place called Hadid  Ezra 2:33; Neh 7:37;  It was rebuilt by Shamed (heb preserved) with its villages 11:35 Ono must have been an early established site as it is mentioned in the lists of Thutmoses III at Karnak (8)

It is described as a plain; Bikah Ono Neh 6:2; A bikah is an area enclosed by mountains (5)  in or near the “valley of the craftsmen” Neh 11:35 or valley of Charashim, most likely wadi Masirah/Musrara (3,6) a side valley leading to the plain of beit Nuba, or the biblical valley of Aijalon, near Lod (4,5).  The area was founded by a son of Othniel from the tribe of Judah 1 Chron 4:14. The word is translated as expert “craftsmen” Isa 3:3 and a character required in the maintenance of the city under siege conditions, Isa 3:8.

Considered Kefr `Ana 10km northwest of Lod(1,5) and mentioned in the Mishna as being fortified by Joshua (2) but there is no reference in the book of Joshua to this idea. K’far Ana is a neighbourhood in Kiryat Ono, where several excavations by the Tel-Aviv university have uncovered pottery sherds (10b)

Hadid

Chadid,  Harim Ezra 2:32, Adida; Greek/Roman Lod-hadid, Adatha; Eusebius(11) Tel-Hadid/el-Hditheh modern

The city  is also mentioned alongside Lod, perhaps el-Hditheh around 6km NE of Lod, and known as Adida  in Greco-roman times, and fortified by Simon Maccabeus (7) Later writers also refer to the town as Lod-Hadid, again reiterating the connection with Lod. (9) It was a town that guarded the road leading to Jerusalem from Lod and Gophnah (10)

The word Hadid comes from a root meaning to sharpen, and is used of sharpening iron tools Prov 27:17; Ezek 21:9,10,11

Incidentally there is a gate called the Bab el Hadid gate near the little western wall in Jerusalem. It would appear that this gate was named after the gate built in Allepo by Mohammed’s grandson? It’s name means the iron gate.

The lesson learnt from the location of Ono and Hadid, is the invitation to both leave Jerusalem and the work that Nehemiah attended there, and also the strategic benefit of being in the hill country. The rolling country is demonstrated in the photograph above.  The challenge was placed before Nehemiah of whether to engage with the enemies of the building work at Jerusalem. Compromise of the energy (Ono) and resolve (Hadid) of Nehemiah was the challenge. There was no room for compromise was his response: I am committed to a great work, do not distract me! Neh 6:2 The opportunity for challenge was seen in Neh 6:1 where Nehemiah had not yet set up the doors. There were still decisions (the idea of the door) to be made, and the antagonists were looking for every avenue to take away the importance and value (note the use of the word fear) of the task at hand. These doors were set up (heb = appointed) in the prophets Neh 6:7 who guided the people in the objective of fearing the king of Judah (Christ) This care of the gates was a continuing work of Nehemiah: 7:3; 13:19 and is a continuing challenge for us to care for what enters our minds and hearts.

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=205853747490024802331.0004ad684593e12c34a9c&msa=0&ll=32.0561,34.855757&spn=0.040155,0.109606

  1. Easton’s bible dictionary
  2. Arakhin ix.6
  3. James Strong: Cyclopaedia of biblical, theological and ecclesiastical literature pg 213
  4. Smiths bible dictionary; Char’ashim pg 412; Ono 2:236
  5. Robinson: Physical geography of the Holy land pg 103f
  6. Homann: Concise bible dictionary pg 464
  7. 1Macc 12:38;13:13 Antiq 13.203,392; war 4.486
  8. Eerdmans Bible Dictionary pg 989
  9. Avi-Yonah: The holy land pg 158
  10. Avraham Negev: Encyclopaedia of the holy land pg 213 (10b) pg278,279
  11. Eusebius; Onamasticon 24.24 east of Lod
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