From Galilee to the Dead Sea...

We started this morning with several people getting baptized on the Jordan River, as it leaves the Sea of Galilee. We then drove to Beit Shean, an ancient settlement that has been rebuilt several times and existed even before the Hebrews came. It was here that King Saul fought his last battle and killed himself rather than be taken captive. Most recently it was rebuilt as Scythopolis, one of the 10 cities of the Decapolis (although it is not mentioned by name in the New Testament). Our guide reminded us of the story of the prodigal son and how he squandered his money… this has all the makings of a city that would allow someone to squander all their money! The earthquake of 749 AD destroyed the city, actually preserving it for all to see.

We next drove a little over an hour to Qumran where the Dead Sea scrolls were found. This settlement was active before and after Jesus’ lifetime, and may have had John the Baptist as one of its members. Portions from almost all of the books of the Old Testament were found here (all except Esther) and ALL of Isaiah was intact. When compared with the Masoretic text, the previously known oldest copy of the Jewish Old Testament from the 10th century, it was nearly an identical match!

Just past Qumran, we visited En Gedi, a natural spring in the mountain range west of the Dead Sea. This was one of the places David ran to while trying to keep away from King Saul. There is an inscription in the floor of this synagogue stating that God would curse anyone who told the secret of this place. To this day, no one knows what that secret was! How to use plants from here, how to use the minerals for cosmetics, something else?

Finally we arrived at our hotel near the Dead Sea, where we took a swim in the VERY salty water and caught up on the latest events from the newspaper. There are about 7 hotels here and it is a very popular resort destination for local Israelis.
Tomorrow… Masada and on to Jerusalem!