Chosen People

Chosen People, the organisation we went to Israel with, has a permanent base in Jerusalem. We especially enjoyed the beautiful little garden.

In the evening, we went for a walk around the block of the Hotel, and found that it was mostly orthodox Jews who lived in that neighbourhood.

Shrine of the book

This unusual design is an imitation of the lid of a scroll jar. The museum holds the scrolls that were found in Qumran. They became known as the dead sea scrolls. Written in the first century by "the sons of light", copies were found from almost every Old Testament book (except Esther, which has not definitively been found, yet). Because of these early copies, we know that our current translations have been copied with care throughout the centuries. Scribes were very conscientious when copying the books of the Bible.

This black granite wall is a contrast with the white dome - a reference to the battle between the children of darkness and the children of light, described in the scroll known as the war scroll.

Jerusalem Model

The Jerusalem Model shows Jerusalem as it appeared in the year 70, before the Romans came and destroyed the city. The Temple is obviously the main structure

The Antonia Fortress, where the Romans were stationed

As seen from the other side

The Temple - notice the large Court of the Gentiles.

The idea was that gentiles would come and worship in the outer courts. This is where the buying and selling went on in the first century. It was here that Jesus made a whip and sent the money changers and cattle merchants out, quoting Isaiah 56:7, "My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations".

We need some imagination. At Passover, there were likely over 1.000.000 people in Jerusalem.

Every time we see a picture like this, the temple courts are empty, but it was the main industry.

The smaller courts. You always go "up to the temple" Up the steps to the Court of the Gentiles, up to the Court of the Women, and up from the Court of the Priests, to the Temple.

Solomon's colonnade.

The Temple Stairs

(Southern Stairs)

Robinson's Arch

Herod's Palace

The Pools of Bethesda

On the hill close to the wall on the left is the current Garden Tomb, to the right the Holy Sepulchre, also close to the wall. Both were quarries, and are the two possible crucifixion sites of Jesus.

Yad Vashem

Yad Vashem is the Holocaust Museum in Israel

Part of the holocaust museum, Yad Vashem, is not on solid ground (floating) because the Jewish people lost their "roots" during the holocaust. It is also half the star of David, representing half the Jewish population dying.

The garden of the righteous gentiles.

This tree was planted for the Schindler's. Oscar Schindler is buried outside the wall of Jerusalem.

Stones have been placed on the statues here. This is because many people who passed away have no grave.

6.000.000 - that is so many, you just can't get your head around it. Inside the museum were many recordings of people affected by the holocaust. One was from a man, I missed the first part but he had lost his hat, and everyone without a hat was executed in the camp he was in. In the middle of the night he went around his barrack and pulled someone's hat from his hands and used it the next morning. A man was asked where his hat was and was executed on the spot. The voice said that he hadn't looked to see who it was because he didn't want to know whose death he had caused. You could hear in his voice the anguish and guilt he still lived with.

Names of concentration camps, with a burning flame

These two pictures are symbols of the Children that died -unfinished pillars and building (representing their unfinished lives).

The Children's museum was very touching too. It was dark inside and you held a bar and walked

in the dark. There were hundreds of little candle flames in the darkness. Voices took turns to say the name, age, and country of children who had died during the holocaust. For example: "Chaya, 7 years old", was the last name I heard walking through. One girl in our group is named Chaya...

Ezekiel 37:14, written on the exit.

"I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD."

Day 7: Garden Tomb

We went to the Garden Tomb by bus. Later, we found out later that it was only a 7 minute walk from the hotel.
This rock resembles a scull.

This was a garden with a wine press.

There has been an earthquake in this area - notice the cracks in the rock.

The Garden Tomb itself is missing the stone in front of the opening, but the groove is still there.
It's easy to step into this tomb for the opening has been enlarged. Most tombs had small openings near the bottom, and you would had to crawl into them (more like the one below).

As noted in a previous post, this is a 1st century tomb as well - found when building a road

Inside the Garden Tomb. It's a small room cut out of the rock.

The whole point of being a Christ Follower is written on this door of the Garden Tomb. We have a living Saviour.

Faith Lesson:

We had communion and a lesson about Jesus in the Passover. Communion is seen in light of Passover, with the "cup of redemption" and the "afikomen" (matzah bread). Jesus died on Passover as our Passover lamb, he was "planted" in the earth during the feast of Unleavened Bread (when everyone prayed, "give us bread out of the ground"), and rose on "first fruits". This gives Communion, and Easter, a deeper meaning.