Samson, David, and Rambo

Yesterday we went on a field trip through the Shephelah, which is the region of lowlands coming down from the hill country in the center of Israel and stretching along the Mediterranean. It was neat, and had a lot of history, particularly around the relations between the Philistines and the Israelites. I guess that would make sense, because parts of the Shephelah were controlled by the Philistines during the times of Saul and David.

I don't have a picture of these particular caves, but we stopped at some chalk caves which are notable because a part of Rambo III was filmed there.

We also went to Gath, though I don't have any good pictures here either. There wasn't a whole lot of good ruins to see, and I wanted to take in the great view and breeze atop the city mound.

On a less important note, there were a few of us who also had a debate about which is better: The Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi. I think I made a good case for The Empire Strikes Back.

Here are some pictures (not of our debate):

This is the Sorek Valley, as seen from Beth-Shemesh. This valley is where Samson had many of his dealings with the Philistines.


















This is the Elah Valley. This is where the battle between David and Goliath took place.














Here is the brook in the Valley of Elah from which David drew his five smooth stones. I had to pick up a couple for good measure.



















Of course we needed a coonskin moment at the Valley of Elah.














We had another coonskin moment later at a Roman ampitheater near Beth-Guvrin. Naturally, we had to fight and have a gladitorial competition.














These are the ruins of the city of Lacish. Lacish was an important city in the southwest of Judah. It served as the main line of defense against Egyptian marauders. It was also one of the last holdouts of Judah during the Babylonian siege in 586 BC. The siege ramp that Babylon built is still evident on one side.

Happy New Year

Today marks the beginning of Rosh Ha-Shanah, the new year of the Jewish calendar. I'm not sure what all this entails, but I guess I'll find out.

Oh, and last night I got to do some serious grilling. I labored over a grill making burgers for everyone here. It felt good flipping meat over a hot grill again.

Ephesians 2:19-22

This morning, we went to a church in Jerusalem rather than our normal church/assembly with others living at the Moshav. The makeup of the church was a bit strange; I had never heard of a Baptist/Pentecostal church before (they didn't seem too Pentecostal), but evidently they exist in Israel. Nonetheless, it was a great and interesting time. The people were very gracious to have us there, and it seems that they get quite a few visitors from other nations. That was what struck me as the neatest thing: their demographic was extremely diverse. Although they didn't really have a sermon today and they instead spent time reading Scripture and praying, they had people come forward to read and pray in a total of seven different languages. It was a great picture of all of God's redeemed from across the world joining together to sing praises to God for eternity. I think we in America forget that the Church is universal across the Earth and throughout time, and have the mindset that it is simply us at this present moment.

I think that they were very encouraged by us as well. I was asked to introduce who we were and then gave my testimony. We all then sang "It Is Well" for them all (no, we're not a traveling choir). Talking with the people afterwards was a fun time as well. I even met one of them later in the afternoon hanging out in the Old City and had a nice talk with him (he's the first real ship captain I've ever met!). Even though we might have some varying doctrinal differences, we can all stand together under the banner of the Gospel of Jesus Christ/Yeshua Ha'Mashiach to offer Him our praise for His work on the cross.

A Blessing of Rain

It rained today. Evidently, it was the first rain they've received since May. Afterwards, the hills were full of a dense, clinging fog. It was pretty neat.

Here are a few pictures from our trip the other day...

A coonskin moment while atop the Mount of Olives facing the Old City.

An Arab man giving donkey rides.

Drew and Eric sitting in Gethsemane.

A coonskin moment in front of a tourist group at the church of Gethsemane. They loved us.

The Orthodox Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, standing over the site of the birth of Christ. It was probably the most beautiful church I've seen yet, but I didn't like it. There was too much mysticism and iconography around.

The ruins of the Herodium, Herod the Great's personal fortress built on top of a steep hill south of Jerusalem near the wilderness.

A coonskin moment among the ruins of the Herodium.

I Am Spartacus

In November, we get a week totally free where we can travel wherever we want to. Its not only for fun, but also a way for us to leave the country briefly so our visas can renew themselves. So I just bought plane tickets to go to Greece for ten days with three other people.

The days are getting less hot, which I like. Although whenever we've been out in the wilderness, its hotter than three dogs screaming. But its been cooling off very nicely in the evening. I even have a slight chill right now.

On Saturday, we went to the beach at Ashkelon. The sunset on the Mediterranean was quite possibly the most beautiful I've ever seen.

Purple Rain

Our homemade grape juice from the vines here at the Moshav. Triple-strained for the highest quality possible.

Video shot and edited by Cesar Peynetti.

Here's To Abner...

Abner Chou. A man among men. Remember that name, because he is going to be the next great Bible scholar from America.

And I have the privilege of being his student and friend.

Abner is an absolutely brilliant guy. He is a genuine genius. The wealth of knowledge that he has in his mind is boggling, and the way that he can recall it is even more baffling. His thought process is incredible. Heck, he can even read two pages of a book at a time. God has given him a truly amazing mind. But more importantly, he is an incredible teacher. He relates with his students extremely well. His humility in spite of his acute mind is inspiring. And on top of all that, he is only a few years older than I am. I think he is around 26, and he is finishing his doctorate program already (he graduated from seminary in three years with multiple degrees).

But he is also a friend as well. We are doing Greek New Testament reading with a couple other guys one night a week, and his home is almost always open if we want to come over and hang out. I'm not writing this to suck up to him or anything. I assume you readers want to know what its like out here. Studying with Abner is one of the great joys and privileges that I have here in Israel. And I'm serious, in 15-20 years, I'm sure that he will be known as one of the next great Bible scholars.

On a different note, here are some pictures from our last field study:

This is the Beth-Horon ridge. It was an important ridge for travel. One of the events which happened here was when the Lord pounded the Amorites with hailstones and Joshua asked the Lord for the sun to stand still in Joshua 10.

Here are some ruins from a Crusader-era church built on the site of Nebi-Samwil, the traditional site of Samuel's burial (though its probably not really it).

I'm hanging out in the abandoned and unfinished home of the former Jordanian King Hussein in the West Bank (the West Bank is quite safe; the dangerous part of Israel is Gaza). It also stands upon the ancient city of Gibeah.

"The Pass" between Michmash and Geba. Jonathan and his armor bearer crawled up its side and attacked the Philistines in 1 Samuel 13.

This is just an IDF soldier at a checkpoint as we crossed into Jericho, which has been granted control by the Palestinians.

This mosaic was at Jericho.

The walls of Jericho which were brought down by Joshua and the Israelites.