APRIL 5
Capernaum
We started this day at the north end of the Sea of Galilee where Jesus spent most of his time (it was essentially his headquarters) What is interesting is this point was on the border of a Jewish area in the west side of the Sea and a Gentile area on the east side of the Sea (now called the Golan Heights). He would cross back and forth to these different regions as well as travel north to an area where pagan Gods were worshiped. Our guide talked about the symbolism of where he chose to be headquartered....at a place that was the intersection of all kinds of different people. And He wove back and forth between them as he began the process of tying all humanity together.
As we drove to Capernaum, our guide talked about the Galilee area:
1. Sea of Galilee is the lowest fresh water lake in the world. 700 below sea level. It is 8 miles wide and 35 miles long. Mountains around are 1300 above sea level. Very rare to have a fresh water lake in this area of the world.
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| Cross at Capernaum where Jesus called his fishermen disciples |
2. Joshua19 mentions galilee. Naphtali tribe conquered the area and got fishing rights
In Jesus time 7 cities around area. 6 of them on west side because there were water springs on the west side while on golan heights side it is volcanic with many flash floods. 25 percent of modern day Israeli water comes from Sea of Galilee using a huge series of water pumps. Israel has started using desalinization plants because they were depleting the Galilee
3. Our guide showed us caves in cliffs while we were driving on the bus. There were nearly 500 of them that were used for hiding. Judges 6:2 refers to these caves as does Hosea 10:14 (people being thrown from the caves at Beth Arbel.
4. 130 years ago there were no trees here and no one lived here.
5. Best fishing near Capernaum due to warm water springs in the area attracting fish. This is the most likely place where Jesus called his disciples.
6. Comparison of Elijah from Old Testament to John the Baptist: Matthew 11 compared to Deut 18:18-20. An interesting point on this comparision...John the Baptist is the only person whose looks / features are described in the New Testament. It is a connection to Elijah as his appearance was described as well in the Old Testament. 2kings 1:8 compared to Mark 1:6. In Hebrew these are described exactly the same way. Bible says Elijah would come again before the Christ. Jesus says John the Baptist was the coming of Elijah (Matthew 11:14) and the exact words used to describe Elijah and John the Baptist's looks is another confirmation.
7. Repent from the Greek is similar to the word metamorphosis. It is a change from one state to another. Capernum means consolation
We started the day with a devotional at the site that most likely was where Jesus called Peter and some of the other 'fisherman' disciples (see picture above).
1. So many miracles done in Capernaum. Jesus told messengers from John the Baptist
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| Rachel the helper at the morning lesson @ Capernaum |
2. Read Luke 4 spirit of lord is on me...isiah 61. Keep reading later in Luke 4 and he talks about going to Capernaum where people were amazed at His teaching as He taught with such authority.
Tradition has it that Peter's mother in law's house (she is mentioned in the Bible) was in Capernaum. Christians have been claiming this house as her house since the early 3rd century and excavations found ancient communion items here.
The house is near the water and is a small structure. In the picture the house is inside the first 'cylinder' wall. The rings around it were various houses of worship built over the house over the later centuries starting with the 3rd century then 5th and then one more (see upper right wall in this picture being the largest and latest / third 'ring')
During Jesus' time, Capernaum had about 1500 people and extended to where the red church is in the background. Each house used the wall of the next door house as one of its walls. So, things were very compact. I wonder how the people in the middle of the city got to their houses!
Synagogue built after Jesus' time
The kids taking it all in, knowing they are in a place where Jesus lived and spent a lot of time.
Statue of Peter near the entrance to Capernaum....
Dan (northern most part of Israel)
Dan is not only a tribe of Israel but a city that was discovered in one of the wars between Israel and their Arab neighbors.
Our guide told us that the lines on the map creating Israel in the 20th century were drawn with a wide pencil. The width of that pencil represented 130 meters on the map which put one of the major springs which creates the Sea of Galilee in question.
Syria tried to claim that spring as its own and this big pencil mistake actually led to a war in the 1960s in this area. The road was the border at the time.
Quick note: the town in the distance is in Lebanon. The mountain in the distance has no trees on it. If I had turned the camera around here, you would see a forest on the Israeli side. That is because 130 years ago, the Zionist pioneers planted trees all over Israel.
As things started heating up over this water, the Israeli Army dug trenches. And as they were digging these trenches, they found the ancient remains of the City of Dan. Maybe that 'fat pencil' was done so that this city could be found as it was really an amazing archaeological find.
S, H, and Rachel going through the trenches that were dug on the border and led to the discovery of Dan:
This area around the ancient city of Dan is a major source of spring water that feeds down into the Sea of Galilee. It was like a rain forest walking through this area....
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| The girls with our guide, Eran |
This area near Dan is the inspiration behind Psalm 42 written by King David. The nature described and places nearby. This area is the beginning of the Jordan river and the heights / mountains mentioned in the Psalm are around this area
Psalm 42: 6-7
My soul is downcast within me;
therefore I will remember you
from the land of the Jordan,
the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.
Speaking of King David....for many years, archaeologists who didn't believe in the Bible would say that King David was a fictional character. Why? Because no archaeological find had ever referenced King David. That all changed with the excavation of Dan as there were clear signs that said "Kingdom of David" and with that discovery people stopped saying David was a fictional character.
Our guide had a bunch of examples like that where the Bible says one thing, people say it is made up, and then archaeologists find things that confirm what the Bible said thousands of years ago.
Outside the main gates at Dan:
A reference from the Old Testament where God's instructions were carried out to tear down the alters of worship to other Gods.
This is the alter that was torn down when the Israelites took over this area. The 3 large stones (vertical standing ones in middle) WERE worshipped thousands of years ago as there was all kinds of DNA evidence of blood from many different animals found on these rocks when they were unearthed.
Nearly all Biblical cities had the same kind of structure. The kings would rule on issues of the day from their thrown just inside the city gates. Here is a graphical representation of that and then a couple of pictures of where the thrown was found inside the city gates of Dan.
The beginning of the end for Jeroboam...
From archaeological finds in the area, archaeologists are very confident that this site is the alter that was used in the verses above from 1 Kings. Our guide was very excited about this place.
As we walked through this green, lush area our guide picked this little green thing and said to Rachel 'inside this you will find mustard seeds' Our guide constantly talks about how Jesus used everyday examples from all over this area to make his points to the people He talked to. He spoke about a city that was on the hill overlooking the Sea of Galilee and how that city was known by all and could be seen by all when lighted up (thus the 'shining city on a hill' reference from Jesus). There were many other examples like that but it is impossible to write everything down.
What the guide has been doing for us is bringing this area of the world and the Bible to life for us. So, I'm quite pleased we chose to tour like this versus attempting to do things on our own.
Near the end of the Dan ruins there was this amazing find from the time of ABRAHAM!!! It is amazing because how much of the structure was preserved given that most mud brick type structures from the past basically wash away over time due to the elements. This structure was remarkably intact indicating there must have been something that happened which relatively quickly buried the structure.
What is shocking if you look closely are the arches that were the original door. It looks like a rectangle below but that is only because they have put supports in. You can see the 'bricks' arching to form the door. History has credited the arch to the Romans but apparently people from the time of Abraham should get credit.
I wish I had turned around and taken a picture of the mountain directly opposite this ancient structure. It is the mountain on which Abraham was shown the Promised Land. Abraham came from the fertile crescent, from the north. As I walked through this lush green environment with running water, it completely made sense to me what drove Abraham to be so faithful as it really is an incredible piece of land.
I always think of Israel and this area of the world as arid and desert like. Not here!....and that was further proved at Caesarea Philippi.
Caesarea Philippi
This area once had a large river running through the open hole you see below and spilling out into the land below. Something happened that caused the river to change course and no longer flow out of this mouth, but what happened as a result is that this area became a major pagan god worship area.
It was while in this area that Jesus asked his disciples "Who do the people say I am?" and then "Who do you think I am?" and Peter responded with 'You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God' (Matthew 16:13-16 and Mark 8:27-30) Jesus confirmed it to the disciples then but told them to hold off telling others until the time was right. That event happened in this area...probably not at this place with the pagan gods but nearby as noted in the Bible.
Pagan worship site. The girls just laughed and laughed when the guide said that some cultures worshipped dancing goats.
One of the girls said this was one of their favorite parts of the day because the carved areas aren't recreated in any way. This is how these things were found many years ago.
The 'Dancing Goats' stage is on the far end of the excavated area. The guide made some kind of joke about "The Father, The Son, and the Holy Goats" which got a laugh from everyone.
I was trying to take a picture of S here but the Photobomber returned.....I love S's 'Mom, what are you doing?' look....
And the resulting picture...
The Fam after laughing about the Holy Goats....
Picture below inserted to remember what this is all about years from now when I have no idea what I'm looking at! I will probably do this a lot over the next few months...
Bus ride to Mount of Beatitudes. Everyone basically crashed (including me after taking these pictures). Rachel is in the front of the bus as she has motion sickness. Thankfully she has not gotten sick!
Mount of Beatitudes
Pictures pretty much tell the story. This area is the hill overlooking Capernaum where Jesus was essentially headquartered. While the Bible doesn't say specifically where he spoke the Beatitudes, this hill is the most likely place. A Catholic church sits at the summit.
Matthew 5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.
The Beatitudes
He said:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
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7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Summary...beautiful area overlooking the Sea of Galilee and a nice time for reflection.
The Ancient Boat
In 1985 a severe draught uncovered many areas of the Sea of Galilee that were not usually exposed. In early 1986 a pair of brothers who were amateur archaelogists found some ancient iron nails and figured out the outline of an ancient boat. It was a worldwide sensational find with the boat matching descriptions from the Bible as well as mosaics from Roman times.
I remember when Rachel and I were in Israel in 1993 this boat was still being restored and it was really wonderful to see it now on display. Carbon dating puts the age of the boat as 1st century AD. Fun to think about this maybe being one of the boats the Disciples used. It certainly was the style they used....very cool
Boat Ride on Sea of Galilee
We ended the day with a boat ride from the ancient boat museum back to Tiberius where our hotel was. We sang songs (including the Star Spangled Banner as the captain raised the American flag as well as the Israeli flag. Pictures self explanatory...
Wonderful day. This last photo was taken as the girls, Rachel and me were doing a Bible study and needed the little guy occupied. He was very into his 'Bob the Builder' DVD.
Til next time, God Bless....
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