Day 9 on the Trail

Shalom to everyone! Another day has come and gone. Before I forget, I am supposed to say hi to Verna & Rosetta from Suzie. She has been thinking of you both. She hopes to see you in the spring. Monica

Saturday, October 09, 2010

Our last day in Galilee….we had a wonderful, wonderful day. Temperatures were probably in the low to mid 80’s with lots of beautiful, fluffy clouds. You learn to appreciate clouds in a whole new way in this country, clouds obviously mean shade, and shade means that at least for the moment you aren’t drenched in sweat. (And yes, I am aware of how disgusting that sounds…it simply can’t be helped.)

We started our day by visiting a field full of dreadful, prickly thorns. You’re probably thinking, “Really, aren’t thorns always prickly?” These have unique, long, sharp needlelike prickles that are quick to bruise any unsuspecting legs. Our lesson there was on the parable of the sower…after this we walked through an olive grove, viewed a threshing floor, stone quarry and wine press. These were all located in the area around Nazareth where Jesus spent most of his life. Ray said we could well have been looking at the very fields where Joseph and Mary’s family raised crops. I was rather disappointed to learn that being a carpenter in Jesus’ day does not necessarily mean that you work with wood, Ray thinks it far more likely that Jesus was actually a stone cutter. Which is fine, but sometimes it’s a little sad to know your whole life you may have had the wrong mental picture.

After lunch we toured the area where Antipas had his palace. He was one of Herod the Great’s sons and his reign started in horrific blood shed. Ray shared some very interesting history regarding Antipas. He divorced his wife who was a princess from Parthia. When she came back to her home, her father was not amused and went out to war against Antipas. Antipas’ advisors pleaded with him to make peace with the king of Parthia, take back his wife, do whatever was needed to keep the peace because they were grossly outnumbered. Antipas, who wanted to marry his brother’s wife, refused to listen and would have lost the battle had the king of Syria not come to his rescue. In Luke 14:31, Jesus talks about a king foolish enough to go into battle without first considering whether he is able to win…it is possible that Jesus was speaking about Herod, and if so, the people were undoubtedly much amused at the story. Later in Luke 19:11, Jesus may have been referring to Antipas again, when he spoke of a man going to a distant country to have himself appointed as king. After Herod the Great died, his will stated that his three sons would rule different parts of the country. The sons being quite greedy, all traveled to Rome in an attempt to grab the entire kingdom, but Rome decided Herod’s will was valid and so they had to share the kingdom. It’s so exciting to hear stories regarding the culture in Israel, and to see how that Jesus used the culture to reach the people.

Our day ended with a hike to the mountain where the Crusaders made their last stand against the Turks. It is sickening to hear the history of the Crusaders and to know that in the name of Christianity they murdered so many Jews. Our evening ended with a magnificent view of the Sea of Galilee and the surrounding area, and a somber reflection of what a beautiful message the Messiah of Galilee brought to a people so desperate for freedom.

Lord willing, we head for Jerusalem sometime tomorrow afternoon. Nadav, (I’m sure I’m butchering the spelling of his name), who is Ray’s assistant, says it may actually be chilly in Jerusalem, like the 50’s and 60’s! We will then stay in the Jerusalem area until Tuesday when most of us return to our homes.

If you think of Scott & Kristen, please pray for them. Kristen received news today that her grandfather passed away.  Karen

                                                Parable of the Sower - preparing the field

Olives

The threshing floor

A wine press

Faith like a mustard seed

This is a mustard plant

Another olive tree

The Herodian city of Zippori

A stunning view of the Galilee area