WEDNESDAY

S O U T H E R N   I S R A E L  |  N E G E V

    During our actually field study today, I didn’t have my typical introspective/”boom-roasted” moment. It was a pretty lighthearted day for the group as a whole, full of laughter, frequent coffee stops, and a general sense of positivity. It’s crazy what a difference warm weather makes in the morale of the group; I enjoyed it profusely.

A R A D

    Stop one began at Tel Arad, the location of the only known and excavated temple, and dates from the time of Solomon. I was pretty dang excited about this, especially for it being eight in the morning. I mean, we were sitting in the room just outside the Holy of Holies! WHAAAAAAAT. But then Vernon burst that bubble when he asked us to observe the four standing stones and two incense altars, and dig into what they actually meant.

            Here’s our deductive reasoning:

• This high place was along the Bozrah-Gezer spice route

• Subsequently, all kinds of people with all kinds of religious beliefs would travel past Arad

• The Yahwistic temple was only to be built in Jerusalem (central worship)
  

• The Yahwistic temple was only to have one altar (one god, one altar; seems logical)

• Why does the temple have TWO altars then?
  

• Standing stones can represent deities (this temple had four); this is pagan, because they have multiple Gods

• Arad is in the desert → God that provides fruitfulness = Asherah, goddess of fertility

• Temple for both YHWH and Asherah
  

            Whoa. No lie, I was judging the Israelites pretty hard at this point in the lecture. Hello, you are God’s chosen people, you already have an incredible history that is full to overflowing with stories of His faithfulness to His people. What on earth is the problem?

            But what about that isn’t at least somewhat comparable to our little “rituals” and “good luck” items today? They lived in a naturally very dry area, and instead of trusting God to fully provide for their needs, the Israelites threw in a bit of “extra help” for YHWH. Is it fair to say that this mentality still exists in us today? I’d say most definitely yes, just maybe not quite to that extreme. And this temple begs the question that the people of Israel were grappling with, and one I think that we still struggle with today:

How do the people of God live IN the world while not being OF it?

It was a struggle then, and it’s a struggle now.

Exploring the "temple"

Canaanite town not far from the "temple"

B E E R S H E B A

            Ah, Beer-Sheba, the winter home of Abraham; he’d relocate to this desert area from Hebron during the colder months. This was most likely to take care of his main source of income (sheep and goats). In this region he had tiffs with Abimelek, king of Gerar, regarding both his wife and his wells.

            I’m going to just focus on the latter, since that is what directly involves Beersheba. In Genesis 21 there is a brief passage that is full to overflowing with information once you understand some of what was going on culturally during this time. Here’s the abridged version of what happened:

            Abimelek saw that God was with Abraham, so with a, “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” mentality he created a treaty with Abraham. Abimelek’s servants however had seized one of Abraham’s wells. This was no small thing; digging a well took plenty of time, effort and resources. It was an investment. Think about how long it would take to dig and plaster 300 feet straight down. Do you see us sharing our 401K with our next door neighbors today? Of course not, that’s absurd. Water was just as vital at this time, if not more, because without water, Abraham’s flocks of sheep would shrivel up into nothing. Which is exactly what his income would be if that were to happen.

            So Abraham calls Abimelek to the carpet on what has been happening. After Abimelek claims ignorance of this, Abraham gives him seven ewe lambs, and they create a covenant. And the place where they created this treaty was called, surprise surprise, Beersheba! The Hebrew word beer means well, and the Hebrew word sheva means, “To take an oath”.  

            And then Abraham does something unusual- he plants a tree there. He plants a tree, the most selfish of plants when it comes to water, in the middle of the desert. Genesis 21:33 tells us that, “Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God.”

            During this part of the lecture Vern pointed out two tamarisk trees behind us. Then he handed out needles from the tree and instructed us to munch on them. They’re salty, and didn’t taste like much of anything to me. But that’s beside the point. What Abraham did here was significant, because the planting of this tree wasn’t random.

 It symbolized water and life.

It symbolized divinity, because something that requires so much water could live in a place with so little.

It announced Abraham’s intentions to stay long term in this land, rather than continuing as a moving city like he had been.

Ultimately this salty-tasting tree says,

God is here because there is life in a lifeless place.


I love that. It act as an applicable metaphor for me now- are my thoughts, attitudes, and actions stating that God is here, dwelling in me? Has my lifeless self, doomed to death because of sin, been resurrected by the One who gives life giving water.”

…but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

{ john 4:14 }

So. Many. Parallels.

The more I learn, the less I know. Ignorance has never felt so fulfilling.

Ancient Beersheba

A V D A T

            In the late afternoon we went to Avdat, which reminded me quite a bit of the Alamo in some areas. Usually by this time of day I’ve been awake for around eight or nine hours, and my head is full to overflowing of imagery and information. So I apologize in advance for the briefness of the next two sections of the day.

            Avdat was similar to a lot of ruins we’ve seen- up on a mountain, affording a great view of the desert, made of limestone, etc... After a while they all start to blend together, so you have to do some mega-association if you want to keep them straight. So I just kept thinking “Alamo” as the group made its way by several stone walls, under a few arches, and past some roman columns to the spot Vern deemed worthy for our lecture on the Nabateans.

In summary, this is what I learned about these people:

1.      They were originally from Saudi Arabia

2.      They migrated into Edom around 586 B.C. as a result of the Edomites moving into Judah’s territory (when Nebuchadnezzar took out Judah).

3.      Nabateans later moved into southern and central Israel (Shephelah, Negev, etc).

4.      Because they are resourceful, they damned up tons of wadis, creating a LOT of farmland.

5.      This farmland was pretty far south- far enough that the Romans weren’t able to exert control- or taxes.

6.      Subsequently they made bank on tax-free trade up until the Romans decided they’d had enough in 106 B.C., and the Nabateans were annexed to Rome.

            After the lecture we were given some time to explore the area. Libby and I made pretty good use of our time while we were there (see below).

Adventures at Avdat

M A K H T E S H   R A M O N

           

It was essentially a really big hole in the ground. And holy cow it was gorgeous.

It was comparable to the Grand Canyon. POSSIBLY prettier.

The ibex there were quite possibly the cutest and most terrifying things I’ve ever beheld.

The desert and the parched land will be glad;
    the wilderness will rejoice and blossom . . .

. . . they will see the glory of the Lord,
    the splendor of our God.

{ Isaiah 35: 1a & 2b }

Them Ibex don't mess around!