Friday-Saturday, Oct. 17-18, Read Matt. 18:10-14; Deut. 32:9-18

We will give you two days’ worth of review so we can post Psalm 100 on Sunday.

·        Friday, Oct. 17.

This is usually one of the more pleasant days.  After some long drives over the first days of our time together today’s travels took us no further than the upper half of the Sea of Galilee.  We drove from Tiberias around the northern end of the lake to Kursi (where the pigs ran into the sea) and then worked our way back with various stops.  Here is the ininerary.

·        Kursi (Lk. 8:26-30)

·        Bethsaida (Lk. 9:10-17).  We had not been here for years.  The dig has revealed some new things recently so we thought it a good idea to take it in.  We are always interested that Rocky Mountain College in Billings is one of the list of colleges and universities involved in this dig.  Bethsaida was on the east side of the entrance of the Jordan into Galilee while Capernaum was on the west.

·        Chorazin (Lk. 10:13-15).  Today we visited all three of the cities Jesus warned concerning their “privilege”.  They had seen Jesus Himself and saw His miraculous signs.  Thus their judgment would be worse than Sodom and Gomorrah or Tyre and Sidon.

·        Ginosar (Biblical Kinnereth, Josh. 19:35)

o   Jesus Boat

o   Cruise (Noon).  Our group enjoyed the cruise with Daniel Carmel and his crew.  They travelled with a group from Brasil.  That’s always exciting!

·        Tagba (Jn. 6:1-14,15-21)

·        Capernaum (Lk. 4:31-39; Jn. 6:16-59).  We read these passages in their entirety, sitting on the benches near the water.  What a relaxing, refreshing place to be: Capernaum, the home base, the location of so many powerful events and words.

·        Midgol/Magdala (Lk. 4:44).  My main interest here is that there is a synagogue found, from Jesus’ time. 

·        Mount of Beatitudes (Mt. 5:1ff)

·        Supper at a restaurant in Migdol brought us to the end of our day, a little earlier than the days so far.

·        Saturday, Oct. 18.  This is always a powerful day for me.  The passage in Deuteronomy sets the stage for the day.  It tells how God Himself is blessed by Israel: they are HIS portion!  He took them from nothingness and gave them abundance in a marvelous land.  What did they do?  In the comfort God provided they turn away from God.  Even though no other God was involved in the abundance His people still turned to other gods.  With that backdrop, here was the itinerary.

o   Tel Hazor (Josh. 11:10-11).  First time I have ever stopped here.  Besides a truly ancient city (Abrahams time and before) there are also great view of the Hula Valley.  It is another of the many places in Israel where the abundance of God is evident.  Our group has been amazed everywhere we have been, including in the desert, at what is being grown in Israel.

City Street at Tel Hazor.  

o   Hula Nature Reserve.  We did not stop here, even though it is the time for the major Fall bird migration that occupies the Hula Valley.  We did have some great sightings along our highway.

o   Metula (furthest north city of Israel).  We love to be here because of the great views of the Hula, of Lebanon, and of Mt. Hermon.  All of these sites are a part of God’s bountiful provision for Israel.

§  Mt. Hermon (Deut. 3:9)

§  Tanur Falls/Iyon Stream

o   Tel Dan (from “Dan to Beersheba”, Judges 20:1; you made it).  Now we come to one of the most outrageous illustrations of Israel’s idolatry.

§  Dan Spring (largest of 3/4 tributaries of the Jordan).  We first sat at the spring (wow what a wonderful sight and sound, raging water from this largest fresh-water spring in the Middle East) and set the stage by telling the story of the tribe of Dan.  “Dan” is in the north because the tribe was unwilling to trust God in taking the land given to them down around Tel Aviv/Joppa.  In the process idolatry entered Israel first through Dan.

At Dan Spring in Tel Dan.  Talking about how the tribe of Dan, 

given land around modern Tel Aviv, ended up in the far north of Israel.

§  Jeroboam’s Altar (1 Ki. 12:25-33).  But then idolatry became mandatory for the northern 10 Tribes after the nation was split.  Jeroboam built altars at Dan and Bethel.  The actual altar and the high place where the golden calf was situated have been found in this spot.

Cultic site at Tel Dan, where Jeroboam set up worship of the 

golden calf.

§  Israeli Outpost.

§  Ancient Canaanite Gate (Gen. 14:13-16).  This is the gate likely used by Abraham when he retrieved Lot in Gen. 14.  Abraham went as far north as Laish, which later became Dan.

§  Later Israelite Gate (Judges 18).

o   Banias/Hermon Stream/Caesarea Philippi (Matt. 13:16-20).  Again we have idolatry in view here, idolatry of the Roman kind.  The many gods of this area at Caesarea Philippi are the backdrop for Jesus’ words, I will build my Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

o   Golan Heights

§  Nimrod Fortress (Crusader).  We did not go here but had a great view of the fortress atop its mountain.

§  Masade (Druze Village).  We enjoyed lunch here.

§  Kibbutz El Rom (to watch a movie).  We were quite happy that folks were here and we were able to watch the movie which tells the story of the Valley of Tears.

§  Valley of Tears (Yom Kippur War, 1973)

§  Mt. Bental.  We climbed to the top for great views of Mt. Hermon and into Syria.

We are having a wonderful time and ask that you pray for us and that you consider some of the things we are thinking about as we visit the “Land of the Book.”