Judah Archives - Page 32 of 39

Wednesday Roundup

Excavations are underway now at ancient Carchemish. We’ve commented on the plans previously here.

I really like how Wayne Stiles takes our photos and creates beautiful articles that explain the biblical history so well. This week he writes about the tabernacle at Shiloh.

James Davila points to a new article on the metal codices from Jordan and explains why he thinks they’re still fake.

Caspari Center Media Review: Jerusalem’s local conservation committee rejected plans to build a four-story hotel next door to Mary’s Well in the pastoral village of Ein Karem. Those who opposed the plan said that the construction posed a great risk to the well, which, according to Christian tradition, is where Mary the mother of Jesus bathed. “The water from the well is considered holy for Christians and pilgrims from all over the world come to this place to fill up bottles with water from the well. … Damaging the well would be very harmful to the country.”

HT: Jack Sasson

Shiloh, home of the tabernacle
(photo from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands)

Tagged Forgery, Judah, Samaria, Turkey

Covert Visit inside the Tomb of the Patriarchs

From the Jerusalem Post:

On October 9, 1968 a thirteen-year-old girl made history, as she squeezed through a narrow hole into the underground chambers of the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, which the Jews had been forbidden to enter for 700 years under Mamluk, Ottoman, British and Jordanian rule. Jews were only allowed access to the staircase at the southeast of the site, initially only up to the fifth step and later increased to the seventh.
[…]
“On October 9, 1968, my mother asked me if I would agree to climb into a narrow hole that would lead me to a cave,” Arbel wrote in her personal account of the event published on the Hebron website. “After I agreed, my mother told me that it was the Cave of the Patriarchs.”
Arbel recalls how her father later woke her and bundled her into the car “wrapped like a parcel with a blanket over her head” and they made their way to Hebron from their Jerusalem home. When they arrived they stopped at the police for a while and then continued to the cave. “I got out of the car, wrapped in the blanket, and entered the Muslim mosque. I saw the opening that I would need to fit into.” The hole measured 28 centimeters in diameter. Arbel was harnessed with ropes and equipped with a flashlight and matches in order to check the air inside the cave. “They lowered me down onto a pile of paper and money. I found myself in a square room.” She describes seeing three tombstones opposite her, “the middle one adorned and taller than the other two.” Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, and Leah are all believed to be buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs.

The story continues here. For more photos and information about Hebron and the Machpelah constructed by King Herod, see here.

HT: Joseph Lauer

Hebron Machpelah. The shaft to the subterranean cave is protected by the green railings. (photo source)

Tagged Judah

Animal Attractions in Israel

The Jerusalem Post suggests six tourist attractions you might have missed:

1. Camel Riders—Mamshit

2. Alpaca Farm—Negev Highlands

3. Deer Farm—Gush Etzion

4. Robotic Cowshed—Kfar Yehezkel

5. Hai Park—Kiryat Motzkin

6. Ma’ayan Zvi Fishing Park—Sharon Plain

The full article is here.

Gazelle in Nahal Paran.
Photo from Cultural Images of the Holy Land.

Tagged Israel's Coast, Jezreel Valley, Judah, Negev, Tourism

Barcodes on the Road of the Patriarchs

The Jerusalem Post describes a new program that will allow tourists with smartphones to watch videos instead of enjoying the ancient sites.

Visitors to Judea and Samaria should bring their smartphones along with bottles of water, if they want to learn about the biblical sites that dot Route 60.
Thanks to a program of the Council of Jewish Communities of Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, new signs have been placed at selected spots along the highway, known as the Path of the Patriarchs.
Signs have also been posted at archeological sites in the settlements of Elon Moreh, Susisya and Shiloh as well as in Hebron and by the Lone Tree in Gush Etzion.
Each sign has a bar code that can activate smartphones, whose users have downloaded the free app Scanlife. Once activated, smartphone owners can view videos describing the sites.

The full story is here. Perhaps the plan is not as awful as it sounds.

HT: Charles Savelle

The Lebonah Valley along the Road of the Patriarchs

Tagged Judah, Samaria, Tourism

Weekend Roundup

Nadav Shragai has written an extensive and interesting report of the newly discovered reservoir near the Temple Mount. If you’re interested in Jerusalem in the Old Testament period, this is a must-read.

A 2.5-minute video takes you inside the reservoir (Hebrew).

The Western Wall has passed its annual health check-up.

Excavation reports on the Mount of Olives reveal settlement in the OT and NT periods.

“I am the gate for the sheep,” said Jesus. A new 2-minute video short from SourceFlix illustrates what that means with footage from the Middle East.

Whether you love the water-soaked landscape of Caesarea Philippi or the parched terrain of the Judean wilderness, you can enjoy some great weekend reading, illustrated with slideshows and videos.

BibleX points to a couple of publications now online for the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.

The IDF has begun clearing 700 mines from the Jordan Valley.

Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus, by Ann Spangler and Lois Tverberg, is marked down to $2.99 for Amazon Kindle for a few days.

Christianbook.com has some good deals on reference works beginning today:

Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds NT Commentary, 4 Volumes ($70), also available on CD-ROM ($83)
The IVP Old Testament Dictionary Set – all 4 volumes ($142), or get all 8 volumes with the New Testament ($285)
The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 4 Vols. ($120)

HT: Joseph Lauer

Judean wilderness at sunset, tb021107716

The Judean wilderness at sunset

Tagged Discoveries, Galilee, Jerusalem, Judah, Resources, Weekend Roundup

Wednesday Roundup

Two Neolithic figurines were discovered at Moza (biblical Emmaus?) along the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway. High-res photos from the IAA are available. Two men were arrested for trying to steal bones from excavations in Beth Shemesh. The Israeli government has appealed the verdict in the case of the Jehoash Inscription, but the rationale for doing so is unclear. Shmuel Browns suggests a 10-day itinerary that will take you to many places you won’t see on a typical Christian tour. Stephen Gabriel Rosenberg provides a review of the archaeological stories in July. Aaron’s tomb near Petra is a “quiet, austere holy site.” There is a lot to see in the Kidron Valley of Jerusalem. Accordance 10 has some nice new features for photographs and maps. Now shipping: Alexander to Constantine: Archaeology of the Land of the Bible, by Eric M. Meyers and Mark A. Chancey. HT: Charles Savelle Neolithic figurine from Moza. Photo by Yael Yolovitch, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Tagged Excavations, Jerusalem, Jordan, Judah, Shephelah, Tourism, Weekend Roundup