Galilee: Saturday 4/4

Our first stop was at the Jordan River on the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee. The place we were at is where people claim that Jesus was baptized. We know that He would have been baptized in Jericho area because after being baptized He went into the wilderness to be tempted, and then went north.

It was a short day and our last stop was at Bet Shan which is the best preserved New Testament period city even though it is only mentioned in the Old Testament. During the Roman period this was one of the ten decoplis cities, but it was the only one on the west side of the Jordan River. The Old Testament period city is the tel that is within the Roman period city. This was the city was mentioned in I Samuel 31 when Saul and his son’s bodies were taken and impaled on the city wall. Only royalty would endure such punishment, and it was as if they were suffering for the whole nation.

Galilee: Wednseday 4/1

Our first stop was at Chorazim, which was one of the places where Jesus spent a lot of time teaching. Even though Jesus spent a lot of time here there is not one event recorded from here. In the synagogue there is a chair called the Seat of Moses which was where the teacher would have taught from. Since Jesus taught here Jesus could have taught from the seat here. In Matthew 11 Jesus condemns Chorazim along with Bethsaida and Capernaum. Today, that condemnation can be seen because there is no city there that stands today.

We then went to Hazor, which is the largest tel in Israel—two hundred acres. From here we could see the steep drop down into the Sea of Galilee from the Hazor Valley. We could also see Mount Hermon which can have snow from October to May. Hazor was conquered by Joshua, which can be found in Joshua 11:1-16.The attack was a sudden and he burnt the city, but Deborah and Barak are accredited with the final destruction of the Canaanite city. Archeologists have found temples, standing stone pillars, and houses. They also say that there could have been one hundred people per acre, which means that there could have be around twenty thousand people in the city.

We then went to tel Dan which had things mainly built by Jereboam I, Ahab and Jereboam II. There is a remnant of a high place here, which was sacked by the Arameans. I Kings 12 talks about Jereboam I setting up a high place to worship YHWH. Even though it wasn’t to worship Baal it was still a perverted form of worship. The Assyrians finally destroyed the city as they conquered the northern tribes. In the front of the city the gate area is well preserved that was built by Jereboam II. In the book of Amos, we have Amos prophesying against the northern kingdom and he could have likely been in the gate area preaching. The most important find here was a stele (called the Tel Dan Stele), which is one out of two that exist, that mentions the “house of David”. It was written by an Aramean king boasting about the death of the king of Israel and Judah. Even though the names of the kings’ names are not clear we know that it was Jehoram and Ahaziah, who were killed by Jehu, because he killed them both in one day.

From tel Dan we went to Caesarea Philippi which was built by Herod the Great, and it has remnants of temples to Caesar, the god Pan, and Zeus. It was in this area that Peter makes his confession to Christ that He is the Messiah, which is found in Matthew 16. Herod thought that Jesus was John the Baptist and others thought he was Jeremiah because Jesus and Jeremiah predicted the destruction of the temple and a lot of people did not like them.

From there we went to Mount Hermon which is a series of peaks, and on one of these peaks Jesus was transfigured, which is found in Matthew 17. Elijah and Moses appeared to them, which was a testimony to the disciples to who Jesus was.

Our last stop on the Golan Heights was looking over into Syria in the direction of Damascus which is the capital. This city was where Paul was going to, to persecute Christians, but on the way Jesus appeared to him and Paul’s life was forever changed.

Galilee: Tuesday 3/31

Our first stop today was at Capernaum, which was the place Jesus had moved into from Nazareth. Here, they had built all the buildings out of basalt, which is a black volcanic rock. They think they know where Peter’s house is, but if it was then Peter would have been a very wealthy fisherman, which was not likely at all. There was also a synagogue that was built during the Byzantine period, but the foundation of it is a basalt foundation, which is not the same as the synagogue standing there today, which means that the synagogue there today might be built on top of the one that was there during the time of Jesus. Jesus cast a demon out of a man in the synagogue here, and Jesus, in the gospels is said to have taught with authority here. We also read in Capernaum the account of Jesus walking on the water and feeding the five thousand. When Jesus fed the five thousand it was symbolic of His death because He was giving life to them all through the bread He gave them. When He walked on the water the disciples think He is a ghost, and the only other time they think He is a ghost is when He appears to them after the resurrection, which means that this incident is a foreshadowing of His resurrection. This was also the city where the centurion’s servant was and Jesus was amazed at the centurion’s faith.

We then went to the Hill of the Beatitudes where Jesus could have given the Sermon on the Mount. We see that in the first twelve verses of Matthew 5 that we might be looked down upon for associating with Jesus, which goes to show that being a follower of Him is not easy but it will be rewarded. The Sermon on the Mount proves that Jesus is the new Moses because He interprets the Torah. This is the new Mount Sinai, and the crowd recognized His authority.

From there we walked down to Tabgha which could have been where Jesus called His disciples. In Matthew 4 when He calls them we have to keep in mind that Jesus had known them previous to this encounter. Then before Jesus ascends to heaven seven of the disciples are in this area fishing and Jesus fills their nets with fish, and as they get to shore Jesus asks Peter if he love Him. This question is to remind Peter of his denial of Jesus on the eve of His crucifixion. Peter is a lot more humble in his answer; he has changed a lot since then. Peter knows that he cannot love Jesus on his own that is why he says it is Jesus who knows what is in the heart.

We then drove to Nof Ginosar, or in biblical terms Gennesaret. This is where the ‘Jesus boat’ is. It is a first century boat that was discovered in the mud. They can determine the date of the ship by its design and also some pottery that was found next to it.

Our last sightseeing stop was at what people claim to be Bethsaida. The reason why it could not be is because they have only found Iron Age buildings here. During the Old Testament times this would have been in the land of Gesher. The Gesherites were not pushed out of the land when Israel came in from the wilderness. Later on David married a Gesherite princess who was the mother of Absalom, and after Absalom murdered Amnon. Anyway, the New Testament town of Bethsaida would be nearby because it is said to be along the Jordan River as this city is. This was made a city by the Roman government which would mean that archeologists would have found capitals from pillars or other things that Roman cities would have. This is also a reason why the city we went to could not be the New Testament Bethsaida. The only miracle performed here is a blind man being healed, which is found in Mark 8:22-26.

Galilee: Monday 3/30

The first stop we had today was at Sephorius. There was a theatre from the Roman period, which would have been around during the time of Jesus. Jesus mentions in the gospels people that are hypocrites. Hypocrite was the same word as an actor; a person with a mask on, being someone who they are not. There were also some large mosaics, one of which was a Roman dining room that depicted the Roman god of wine Dionysus. There was another large mosaic that was Byzantine depicting the Nile River and Alexandria

We then went to Cana, where Jesus performed His first miracle. As we saw that Dionysus was the Roman god of wine which was a big thing in the area because it is fertile ground and there would have been vineyards in the surrounding area. Jesus shows in His first miracle by turning the water into wine and in doing that He was condemning Dionysus by proving that the Lord is the One who gives true joy. We can see here that the Divine is working among the mundane as Jesus is in this small city of Cana.

From Cana we went to the Arbel Cliff where we were overlooking the Sea of Galilee. From here we read the Great Commission, and as we looked across the Galilee region we could see, even if unknowingly, where Jesus spoke these great words. Or we could have been standing on the same cliff He was when He spoke to the disciples.

Our last stop was in the Upper Jordan area. We were standing on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee on a hill where the pigs ran into the sea and drowned. The place where this happened could also be all the way down on the southern end of the sea. When Jesus casts out the demon from the man in this area it is the first time Jesus goes into Gentile territory, and those who greet him are the outcasts. Jesus releases the man from the power that Satan had over him, and this should remind us that Jesus has released from the power of Satan too.

Galilee: Saturday 3/29

We first stopped at a rolling stone tomb that was made one hundred years after Jesus. Only the rich are buried in tombs. Isaiah 53 talks about Jesus being crucified as a criminal but buried as a rich man.

From there we went to (Mount) Megiddo, which in Hebrew is Armageddon. This is the most excavated sight in Israel and they have found ruins from cities in the 3000’s BC, during the very early Canaanite period, which would have been some of the first settlers after the flood. They have found things extending into every other time period since then too. There is a water shaft that was carved during the reign of Ahab. People are confused about what happens here in the end times. Most people think that there will be a battle of Armageddon in the end times, but this is not where the battle, mentioned in Revelation 16, is suppose to happen. Armageddon is where the armies of the world will gather. The battle is going to be in Jerusalem. There are also stables there, which Shalmaneser III says that Ahab supplied his enemy with chariots. The ruins we see there today are from the time of Ahab. It was here that King Josiah, in 609 BC, died trying to stop Pharaoh Neco. It was tragic because he was the last good king of Judah, and twenty years after his death Babylon took Judah into captivity.

We then went to Jezreel, which means ‘God will sow’. In I Kings 21 we have the account of Jezebel and Ahab getting Naboth’s vineyard. Saul had his camp set up in Jezreel before his last battle against the Philistines who were across the valley at Shunam. Saul went around the Hill of Moreh to find the witch to speak with Samuel. Saul and his sons go to Mount Gilboah, which is about three o’clock when looking at Shunam, and die there.

We then went to the Harod spring which is where Gideon chose three hundred men to fight against the Midianites. The Israelites only had trumpets, torches, and pots and they defeated them, which goes to show that the victory was all God’s.

We then went to our last stop in Nazareth, which was the town Jesus grew up in. It is mostly a Muslim city today, and in the time of Jesus it was a humble country town which reflected the humility of the One who came from it.