ISRAEL
In the fall of 2022 I finally realized a lifelong dream of visiting the Holy Land of Israel, the greatest honor and privilege of any Jew. It was a life-changing experience in many ways. I went as part of an annual tour group hosted by the Messianic Christian Jewish Rabbi, Jonathan Cahn, who leads a large Messianic Jewish congregation called Beth Israel Worship Center in Wayne, New Jersey. You couldn’t possibly have a better guide than a Christian and a Jew to offer insight and perspective on so many locations with so much biblical and historical significance. Also I want to give a shout-out to my group’s amazing local tour guide Oren Cytto, who was also the most awesome bus guide you could ask for. He had the most incredible blend of deep knowledge of Israel, history, politics, popular culture, even music. And on top of that he had a wicked sense of humor. Here is Oren's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/oren.cytto.
Here are some of the more meaningful or memorable pictures I selected to share out of the almost 3,000 pictures I took during those special 10 days. Enjoy!
Here are some of the more meaningful or memorable pictures I selected to share out of the almost 3,000 pictures I took during those special 10 days. Enjoy!
Cana in Galilee where Jesus performed his first miracle: turning water into wine at a wedding. The disciple Nathanael was also from here. This is an old olive tree.
John 2:11 "This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him."
John 2:11 "This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him."
Capernaum. Matthew 9:35 "And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people." Do you know what this means? it means Jesus Himself stood on this very spot preaching & healing!
It's also where Peter was from; in fact this is his very house! They built a museum with a glass floor over its ruins. Luke 4:38-39 "Jesus left the synagogue and went to the home of Simon. Now Simon's mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Jesus to help her. So he bent over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up at once and began to wait on them." Jesus literally went from the picture on the left to the one on the right. He healed Peter's mother-in-law in one of these very rooms.
It's also where Peter was from; in fact this is his very house! They built a museum with a glass floor over its ruins. Luke 4:38-39 "Jesus left the synagogue and went to the home of Simon. Now Simon's mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Jesus to help her. So he bent over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up at once and began to wait on them." Jesus literally went from the picture on the left to the one on the right. He healed Peter's mother-in-law in one of these very rooms.
Caesarea, where the Apostle Paul was imprisoned for 2 years, and where he addressed the crowds on numerous occasions, quite possibly right on this spot in the amphitheater. According to Acts 9 & 10, Peter stayed here at the house of Simon the tanner, which is also where the angel sent Cornelius to meet Peter who had his angelic vision. Here is that actual house of Simon the tanner.
The Jezreel Valley. Many amazing things in the bible happened right here, such as Deborah and Barak defeated the Canaanites (Judges 4), Gideon defeated the Midianites (Judges 6-8), David and the Philistines fought several battles, and the Philistines defeated Saul. It's also the location of the future Battle of Armageddon where 200,000,000 will gather to fight. This place is HUGE!
In 1987 they were scraping a parking lot in Jerusalem and accidentally uncovered David's palace! It's the most extensive excavation ever in Israel and is still going on today with many new discoveries. Pictures 3 & 4 are particularly interesting because they are the exterior and interior views of the same site: the exact spot where David stood and first laid eyes on the bathing Bathsheba on the rooftop below. The rest is history.
The Dead Sea, the lowest spot on earth, a staggering 1400 feet below sea level! A sip from the Pacific Ocean would taste like a bottle of filtered spring water compared to this! One swallow from the Dead Sea could literally stop your heart, as we were very soberly briefed on the dangers of its salt concentration prior to entering! The entire bottom is several inches of pure hard rock salt, not sand. And those white things in the water in picture #2 are literally huge 'icebergs' made of solid salt. Many cosmetic companies harvest them and turn them into lots of amazing bath, beauty and skin care products.
Gideon's spring from Judges chapter 7, where God whittled an army of 32,000 warriors down to just 300 who went into battle and defeated the entire Midianite army of 135,000 men! The way God chose the 300 was selecting only those who knelt down to drink from the spring like a dog. Here is that very spring where this incident occurred, still flowing water today.
Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus in daytime and nighttime, rideshare drivers awaiting passengers in a Bedouin village, and the oldest manual olive press still in existence in Israel, in Katzrin, over 1500 years old! They make all sorts of olive oil products by hand. One cured a rash on my arm in one day!
The desert wilderness around Jerusalem where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob all wandered and are buried with their wives in the Cave of Machpelah, currently called the Tomb of the Patriarchs. This is also the same desert wilderness David and Jesus frequently wandered in (Not at the same time).
This is the legendary mountaintop fortress of Masada, built by King Herod during the time of Jesus, which included a temple and massive palace complex with storehouses, cisterns and bath houses with elaborate tile and mosaics which survive today. When the Romans conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the 2nd temple in 70 AD, Masada was the last stronghold occupied by Jewish zealots who opposed Roman rule. It was considered impregnable until Roman ingenuity and massive slave labor accomplished the impossible: for months they filled up the Jordan Valley with dirt, one shovelful at a time, until they built a siege ramp right to the high walls of Masada. When defeat was inevitable, rather than surrender to the Romans, all 1500 Jews committed mass suicide. You can see the man-made siege ramp on the left and the valley to the right. Also note the Roman encampments still completely visible 2,000 years later.
This is Mount Precipice, the mountain just outside of Nazareth mentioned in Luke 4, where the crowd who was not too pleased with hearing the Gospel, decided they wanted to fulfil the prophecy that Jesus spoke about a prophet not being accepted in His own hometown, and attempted to throw him down the mountain. It would have been one tremendous view, but He declined.
This is Mount Carmel, mentioned in 1 Kings 18 where Elijah rebuilt the broken down altar, summoned the people of Israel and all the prophets of Baal to determine who had the true God, and where fire came down from Heaven with the answer. It is also the place where Elijah told his servant that the 3-year drought had finally come to an end. Here I am trying to replicate the miracle, but fortunately the people repented this time and I didn't have to do it.
This is what is left of Ahab and Jezebel's royal palace. This is a view out their back door and the exact spot that once belonged to Naboth, whose vineyard they unlawfully siezed after having him murdered under false pretenses. Elijah probably walked on that walkway when he came to pronounce judgment on Ahab for their wickedness described in 1 Kings 21.
The gorgeous seaside resort city of Netanya, where the tour began. It doesn't get any more beautiful than this! Floating in the perfect temperature Mediterranean Sea, beautiful sunsets and moonrises, awesome Jewish culture and tremendous street food. The thing I loved about this town and every town in Israel was how everyone sits together with everyone else so you have no choice but meet and chat with total strangers all the time. Notice the tables down the streets that are literally blocks long! Met lots of interesting people everywhere! What a superb start to a tour.
This was not a stop on the tour, but we drove right through Qumran National Park in the West Bank. That name may sound familiar, as it is where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered between 1946-1956 when a young shepherd boy threw a rock into one of the numerous caves at random, breaking a clay jar containing scrolls, coins and various artifacts. Scrolls from every book of the Hebrew bible except Esther, including a complete copy of Isaiah were found in the approximately dozen caves over the next decade. Here are some of those actual caves. Not bad pictures considering they were taken from a moving bus traveling 60mph!
This is an ancient 1st-century synagogue in Susya, a community in the West Bank in the Jordanian Hills. It concealed all kinds of secrets: secret passageways, underground tunnels and escape hatches, seen by the round stones and grates. Note the underground worship center. It was believed to be a rare Messianic Synagogue, built to hide from persecution by the Romans and other religious zealots after the 2nd temple was destroyed in 70 AD. This tile work and mosaic is all original and it is said that "Yeshua," the Hebrew word for Jesus, is written in the tile mosaic. There is a YouTube video about it.
The Temple Mount is one of, if not the, holiest site in all 3 major religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It is the site where Abraham was going to sacrifice Isaac, where Solomon built the 1st temple, where Ezra, Nehemiah and Zerubbabel build the 2nd temple, where the Ark of the Covenant once resided in the Holy of Holies, and where Jesus walked and taught. It is patrolled by uniformed and plain-clothed security guards who enforce a strict code of neutrality. Bibles, open prayers, open worship, singing, kneeling, raised hands, public speaking, public outbursts, applause, large gatherings, advertising, signs & banners, cell phones, and any type of commotion is strictly prohibited and met with immediate confrontation and possible expulsion from the site. It's a very serious place! But also extremely awe-inspiring for all faiths.
The Western Wall or the Wailing Wall, called The Kotel, is the holiest site in the world for Jews because it is the last and only remaining portion of the 2nd Temple. One of the special characteristics is that anyone can write out a praise or prayer to God and stick it in the cracks in the wall, as you can see in some of the pictures. They are then very carefully removed by rabbis twice a year, before Passover and Rosh Hashanah, then buried in the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives without being read, just by God. They are handled and treated as holy as old Torah scrolls. It was my great privilege to write some prayers and put them in the wall. They now rest in that cemetery awaiting fulfillment.
Another tremendous experience I had was to wear the tefillin, the leather box and straps orthodox Jews wear on their foreheads and arms. As I was standing there, one of the rabbis that mans the booth to answer questions and hand out literature invited me to wear the tefillin and recite the prayers that are written inside, which I did, as you see in the picture. As it turns out, that rabbi was from my old neighborhood where I grew up in St. Paul, MN! Imagine that, all the way over in Jerusalem! It was such an unforgettably meaningful experience for me I could barely make it through saying the prayers. Incredible. It’s truly a magical place.
Another tremendous experience I had was to wear the tefillin, the leather box and straps orthodox Jews wear on their foreheads and arms. As I was standing there, one of the rabbis that mans the booth to answer questions and hand out literature invited me to wear the tefillin and recite the prayers that are written inside, which I did, as you see in the picture. As it turns out, that rabbi was from my old neighborhood where I grew up in St. Paul, MN! Imagine that, all the way over in Jerusalem! It was such an unforgettably meaningful experience for me I could barely make it through saying the prayers. Incredible. It’s truly a magical place.
The Cardo is a 1st century Thorofare built by the Romans after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD. It connects the Jewish Quarter with other areas of Jerusalem by means of indoor and outdoor streets lined with shops, cafes, and open air markets selling everything imaginable. Check out these ancient paintings on the walls, pretty impressive, aren’t they? What makes them even more impressive is that they are not paintings at all but elaborate mosaics made with hand-painted tiles no larger than 1 square inch! It’s mind-blowing what they could do back then! Stunning artistry that puts us to shame in this age of technology when buildings don’t even last 75 years.
The famous and largest Jewish cemetery in the world, The Mount of Olives Cemetery. Jews believe that when the Messiah comes to earth, He will appear here on the Mount of Olives and those dead buried here will be the first resurrected. In the words of Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Make it So!
The Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus healed a man who had been lame for 38 years. (Actually it was not the man himself who was lame, he was a decent guy; it was his condition that was lame). However, Jesus did this on the Sabbath when the pool was supposed to be closed, and the Pharisees revoked His membership.
The next several places figure prominently during Jesus' last week on earth prior to being crucified and resurrected. Jesus wanted to share His last Passover meal with His disciples (which the famous Last Supper painting depicts). The bible says Jesus chose the residence of a follower and they gathered in an upper room. This church shown here was constructed in Byzantine or Crusader architecture around the 14th century. However, note the window and door on the rear wall. This building was originally erected over the site of that last Passover. That window and door is believed to be the actual upper room where Jesus had the Last Supper. No one is allowed into that room.
Immediately following the Last Supper Passover, the bible says they went outside and sang hymns. Then they went to the Garden of Gethsemane, at the foot of the Mount of Olives, where Jesus prayed, and where Judas led the soldiers, and Peter cut off the ear of one of them, which Jesus healed. Here are pictures of Gethsemane, overlooking Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley, where all those events occurred.
After Jesus was arrested, he was brought to a few different places. While there, Peter famously denied Jesus 3 times. The Church of St Peter in Gallicantu was built on the site where it is believed Peter denied Jesus, as well as where the High Priest Caiaphas sat in judgment over Jesus. This is that church. The rooster is because that is the religious symbol for Peter, as the rooster signaled Jesus' prediction that he would deny him 3 times that night.
After Jesus was 'tried' and convicted, He was then taken outside the city to be crucified at Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, because the rock face resembled a skull. Here is a picture of it about 150 years ago, and today. The skull is less recognizable now because of erosion, plant growth, and a different angle where it can be viewed now.
After Jesus was crucified, he was taken by Joseph of Arimathea and others, prepared for burial and placed in his own tomb. There are 2 possible sites for Jesus' tomb: The traditional "Garden Tomb," a cave carved out of a rock cliff, or a different site nearby, over which The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was built. There is historical and archeological evidence and scholarly opinions which support both possibilities. However, no one knows for certain. We toured both places. Here they are.
In John 21 after Jesus was resurrected, he appeared to His disciples on the shore of The Sea of Galilee just as He did when He first called them, and He even performed the same miracle of a great catch of fish, and restored Peter. But He also instituted a time-honored sacrament still practiced today everywhere: the inaugural 6:00 AM Men’s Prayer Breakfast, having cooked them breakfast of fish and bread. And what do we do with every holy place and every holy object? Build a shrine around it of course. And this one is no different. They built this church around the very rock that Jesus cooked breakfast on. And the rock is part of the altar. Here it is.
Here is the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias, Gennesaret and Kinneret. Many things happened here, either on the shores, just off the shores, in the cities around its shores, on the lake, and once even IN the lake, as when Peter sank after he flunked his first walking-on-water class. (He was the only recorded student). On Friday November 4, 2022, the entire tour group boarded 3 large boats that held 100 people each, lashed them together, then embarked on a 3-hour tour of Galilee. Unlike another infamous 3-hour tour, this one made it safely back in less than 5 years. The boats were owned and operated by a Messianic Jewish family who were also musicians. They led the group in a worship service while we chugged around the Sea of Galilee as the sun set behind the mountains, ushering in the Sabbath. 300 voices bounced off the same water that Jesus walked on in absolutely perfect weather. While we headed back to shore as night was falling they played the 7-minute recording of Matthew Philip Crocker's song "I Surrender." It was the most amazing and most spiritually meaningful worship experience of my life. Fortunately I recorded a video of it and posted it on the "Links" page.
This is my favorite picture of all my Israel pictures, and I didn't even take it. And no, it's not because it's of me. It's because it fulfilled biblical prophecy! My friend George took this as I sat in the square of the Jewish Quarter in the old city. I had a walking stick because I was recovering from back surgery. That very same evening Rabbi Cahn taught on the future restoration of Israel spoken by the prophets, who encouraged the people that even though it was a dark period of judgment, they would once again return to their home of Israel. Then he quoted Zech 8:4-5: "Once again men and women of ripe old age will sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each with cane in hand because of his age. The city streets will be filled with boys and girls playing there." At that point I lost it, realizing that this Jew of ripe old age with cane in hand, literally was an ongoing fulfillment of that scripture verse! God is awesome!
Here are many more pictures I took of this amazing and special land
Here are many more pictures I took of this amazing and special land
