Today we went to Masada, Qumran, and the Dead Sea. We left Jerusalem, crossed through the West Bank briefly, and then headed south toward the Dead Sea. On the way, we saw the city of Jericho, the first city of the Conquest as God led Joshua and the Israelites into the promised land. Our guide has noted several times that this promised land was flowing with milk, honey, AND, the Bible left this one out, rocks. Rocks, rocks, rocks. Everywhere rocks. Our host said when the customs agents at the airport see the rocks tourists bring back, they are thankful to have them gone from the land. Especially where we were today.
Masada is not a site from the Bible. It is simply an incredible story. Masada is a plateau overlooking the Dead Sea in the Judaean Wilderness (see photo on left). It goes from Dead Sea to a large plot of land to a 1,300 foot plateau. It is most famous for a group of zealots who withstood a siege by Roman soldiers for years. The same soldiers who destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem in the late first century next went after these zealots in Masada. We toured the place, saw their strategies for survival and defense, and listened as the guide told the story of the final night. Rome had breached the wall late in the day and retired for the night. Victory was certain. The next day, the people inside would all be either dead by the Roman sword or slaves of Rome. That night, the people of Masada made the decision that they would not give the Romans the satisfaction of either killing them or enslaving them. They burned all but the food (so they could prove it was not starvation that caused their defeat), picked 10 men who would go through the group and kill all but each other. One person was chosen to be the last one and that person would kill himself. When the Romans showed up the next morning, they found the people they had tried to capture for nearly four years all dead.
From Masada we went to Qumran. This is the main site of the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls from 1947-1956. The scrolls were written by the Essene sect of Judaism, an apocalyptic group of extremists. They studied the Scriptures fervently and made many copies of them. We have many exact copies of the entire Old Testament written in the first and second century fully in tact. It is thought that certain writings of the Essenes refer to the one we know as John the Baptist. He was there for a while before beginning his ministry of "preparing the way" for the Messiah.
The scrolls were discovered by a bedouin throwing a rock down into a cave (shown above). When he heard the sound of pottery smashing he lowered himself into the cave and hit archeological pay dirt.
We spent the last bit of the day swimming in the Dead Sea. Oceans have about five percent salt in the water. The Dead Sea has about 33 percent salt. You really do float. The weather was warm enough to get in and so I did. I got in up to my knees, turned around, and sat down. I never went under water. You actually had to work to get under water.
Not only did I swim, but I also scooped up the mud from the sea floor and, along with all the other bathers, got what in an American spa was probably a $300 spa treatment. For free. The mud is filled with minerals good for the skin. Dermatologists send people with skin issues to the Dead Sea for treatment. I'm not very aware of these kinds of things. I just know when I walked out of the water I felt like a turkey that had been brined prior to cooking. I still feel salty even after a shower.
All in all, the tour guides "took it easy on us" since they walked us through and around Jerusalem for six hours yesterday. Masada was a great story to hear of bravery, ingenuity, and determination. It will preach. Qumran was the site of one of the most important biblical archeological finds in recent history. And the Dead Sea was just plain fun.
All of our minds are beginning to think about going home. We leave tomorrow night. In fact, my next post will likely be from New York City. Wheels are up from Tel Aviv on Thursday morning at 1 am here. Twelve hours later, we land at JFK. I will then spend a few days with Pastor Won Tae Cho and his family. I fly back to Tampa Saturday night.
My seat mate on the bus and I both agreed that we miss our families and congregations, but this has been the trip of a lifetime. We are so glad we came. I really don't know what impact this will make on me or the ministry God has given me, but I do know that I am more resolved than ever to honor God and help others do so as well.
It is time for dinner and we have a meeting after dinner.
Shalom
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