My3sonz Adventures: The Negev

This morning early, after an awesome breakfast, we loaded the bus and headed south to the Negev. That's the desert in the south of Israel.

Our first stop was at Ben Gurion College where we saw the Wadi Zin. This is a deep canyon carved by the water in the wilderness of Zin where Numbers 20 tells us that Moses and the Israelites were when the people were complaining in desperate thirst and Moses struck the rock with his staff and drew water.

Looking at this country it is hard to imagine not complaining and being desperate for water. As you look deeply into the canyon, you see trees and shrubs that are thriving.

These trees have very deep roots and have what they need to thrive. My reminder that God provides all my needs when my roots reach to His living water and fruit is the bounty!

Leaving the canyon, we began walking across the desert. Lots of rocks! How long would it take to clear a place to sleep here?

Very little green and it's cool and rainy right now!

The Israelites wandered here for 40 years. That's 14,600 days and nights and their shoes never wore out!!

And this is what a tour group looks like while wandering in the desert.....until we found...

Camels!!

And a camel wrangler?

Our camel does not look happy

What a ride!

Next we went to Tel Arad. A tel is a large hill created when a settlement was deserted and sand blew over and covered it. Eventually, because it was a desirable location, people settled there again building on top of the previous settlement now covered by sand. Tel Arad was excavated in the 1960's. It dates to the Early Bronze Age I & II (2700-2900 BC) which predates the pyramids!

the walls around the city were about 8 feet thick.

This well was dug around the 8th century BC to reach an aquifer (remember we are in the desert - no one lasts long without water here).

Huge towers on either side of the gate to the fortress.

The fortress was a military outpost built by King Solomon and destroyed by the Babylonians in 597 BC. Over one hundred inscriptions were found in the citadel. Among these were Jewish names and the names of Jewish priestly families indicating that this was a settlement of Israelites. The north corner appears to be a Jewish temple constructed according to instructions in Exodus 20 (the altar measures 5 cu x 5 cu x 3 cu high) with a Holy of Holies. Hmmm a temple outside of Jerusalem is puzzling. No evidence has been found of Baal in the inscriptions and many references made to Yahweh. Very interesting!