Pool of Siloam

 Most of our trips to Israel have included the Pool of Siloam.

The steps here have been where we sit.

This year was different as there

 is a huge excavation tent and active dig.

Our guide Yossi has told us that there would never be

 permission given to have the land to excavate. 

But things change in Israel.

The recent 2025-2026 excavations have now

 uncovered a massive 2,800 year old,

 40 foot dam from the First Temple period- (800 BC.)  

It reveals an advanced water management system 

during the reigns of Kings Joash or Amatya. 

This structure is older than the Herodian pool 

of the early excavation. 

They believe it is a massive reservoir 

that was built to manage 

the extreme climate changes in Israel.

This dig is located in Jerusalem's

City of David National Park.

The Second Temple site is where Jesus is believed

 to have healed a blind man.  

In 2004, the site was accidentally rediscovered

 while street crews were working on sewer and water lines.

The large stone-stepped pool was part

 of a ritual bath area for pilgrims. 

The earliest part dates back to King Hezekiah.

The pool was fed by the Gihon Spring through

 the 1,750 foot long Hezekiah Tunnel.

This was the main water source

 for the city during the Assyrian siege.

Lord willing, we head back in Jan. 2027

 to take our next group there 

and we will see what has been added to the discovery.

Mount Precipice- Nazareth

 Mount Precipice in Nazareth is the Biblical site 

where the angered leaders attempted to throw Jesus off a cliff.

He had declared himself the Messiah in the synagogue.

 Luke 4:28-30

Mount Precipice is located on the southern 

outskirts of Nazareth. It overlooks the Jezreel Valley.

We were here on a beautiful sunny day in January 2026. 

We often have to delete Mount Precipice from our tour 

because it is often late in the day when we arrive.

Rush hour traffic in Nazareth often keeps us from this spot.

Nazareth was a very small village at the time of Jesus.

Today it is the largest Arab city in Israel 

and serves as a major cultural and economic center.

Today there are 81,000 residents 

with 69% Muslim and 31% Christian.

Most of the population of the nearby city 

of Nof HaGalil is Jewish.

They renamed it in 2019 to distinguish

 it from the Biblical city.

Cyclamen flowers bloom here in the wild along the rocks.

This sign was at the top of Mount Precipice.

We don't have the information that 

Jesus jumped from the mountain.

Luke states in

v.30 "but he passed right through

 the crowd and went on his way."

Jesus had read from the book of Isaiah 

and then told them that He 

was the fulfillment of the Scripture.

This was the beginning of the story that "no prophet 

is accepted in his own hometown."

This story shares the rejection of Jesus by his townspeople. 

He knows the challenge when we face the same sort 

of rejections by friends and family.

Bethel

 

The place for Biblical Bethel is generally connected 

to the modern Palestinian village of Beitin.

It is in the West Bank 

and about 10-12 miles north of Jerusalem.

It is in the hill country of Samaria. 

It is near the ancient Canaanite city of Ai

 and sits on a ridge.

It was a rainy day in Israel 

for our stop at Bethel this year- 

our first in 9 trips to the Holy Land.

There are connections

 to a number of Biblical stories here. 

Jacob's dream- Genesis 28:10-22.

When he was running from Esau,

he was at Bethel and had a dream of 

a stairway or ladder resting on earth 

and reaching to heaven.

In the dream, God promised Jacob the land,

many descendants and protection.

In order to set the place apart, Jacob

 named the place Bethel- "house of God."

A flat stone area is in the highest place.

We listened to our guide, Yossi, talk 

about the significance of the place.

We couldn't see very far out 

with the dense fog and reduced visibility.

Not much to see as we tried to

 imagine a stairway to heaven.

We were cold, wet and a bit miserable. 

Yossi asked John to say a prayer in this spot.

Shortly into the prayer, I opened my eyes.

And stared....

The fog had lifted. The sky opened up.

The clouds parted and there was the sun.

The hair on my arms stood up.

I had no words and couldn't move.

                                                                                                                          Photo by Corey Brooks

Pastor Corey Brooks managed 

to take a photo of the moment.

The rest of us just stood 

and stared and shook our heads.

This site is also connected to the story 

of Jeroboam and the idolatry of golden calves.

We had visited the Dan high place earlier on this trip.

Jeroboam I was the first king of the northern kingdom

-(c931-911 BC) established a rival cult center 

in Bethel ( and Dan) to prevent his subjects

 from worshipping in Jerusalem. 

He wanted to retain control over them

 and feared a return to the line of David.

Good things did not happen here

 at this site in the eyes of the Lord.

This map helps to give some perspective

 for the locations for these places.

Sometimes it is hard to picture the events

 at these sites and

 think through the Biblical stories for a

piece of ground on earth.

Thousands of years ago.

But, after the experience I had at Bethel,

I will remember the silence, 

the beauty and the feeling of sacred

when the light broke through from heaven.

A divine personal encounter.

 

Emmaus- Nicopolis

Church of the Breaking of the Bread.

A 1500 year old Byzantine cathedral is the remnant of

the ancient building in Nicopolis.

Emmaus, also known as Hazmat or Nicopolis, 

was a large city from the 

Hellenistic period through the Byzantine period.

This site is on the main road from the plains road 

to Jerusalem and is near Latrun.

We have visited a number of possible locations

 for the Biblical site of the Luke 24 story 

after the Resurrection.

This one is located 19 miles from Jerusalem,

 so it differs from the seven miles out of Jerusalem text.

This Emmaus- Nicopolis site is also found on the floor

 of the 6th century Madaba map in Jordan. 

The map states- Nikopolis, 

which is the Greek name for the city.

 Nothing changes in the story of the Risen Lord 

and the conversation with Cleopas, 

if we don't know the exact location of the town of

Emmaus.

Biblical text is Luke 24:13-35

Poppies blooming in the fields.

A first century AD family tomb in the area.

Some art from collections around the world are at the site

 depicting the time with Jesus after the Resurrection.

These photos help to visualize the meeting 

that took place after the Resurrection of Jesus.

A new Emmaus trail is from Abu Ghosh to Nicopolis.

 This trail allows people to walk the 12.5 miles

 as pilgrims "walking in the footsteps of Jesus."

We have been to the Abu Ghosh "site"

  of Emmaus and there is very little

 archeological evidence there.

So we continue to seek out the possible sites of Emmaus.

Yet, we know this is a real story,

 no matter where the precise location is situated.