He Hath Said

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Hebrews 13:5

If we can only grasp these words by faith, we have an all-conquering weapon in our hand. What doubt will not be slain by this two-edged sword? What fear is there which shall not fall smitten with a deadly wound before this arrow from the bow of God’s covenant? Will not the distresses of life and the pangs of death; will not the corruptions within, and the snares without; will not the trials from above, and the temptations from beneath, all seem but light afflictions, when we can hide ourselves beneath the bulwark of ‘He hath said’? Yes; whether for delight in our quietude, or for strength in our conflict, ‘He hath said’ must be our daily resort.

And this may teach us the extreme value of searching the Scriptures. There may be a promise in the Word which would exactly fit your case, but you may not know of it, and therefore you miss its comfort. You are like prisoners in a dungeon, and there may be one key in the bunch which would unlock the door, and you might be free; but if you will not look for it, you may remain a prisoner still, though liberty is so near at hand. There may be a potent medicine in the great pharmacopoeia of Scripture, and you may yet continue sick unless you will examine and search the Scriptures to discover what ‘He hath said.’

Should you not, besides reading the Bible, store your memories richly with the promises of God? You can recollect the sayings of great men; you treasure up the verses of renowned poets; ought you not to be profound in your knowledge of the words of God, so that you may be able to quote them readily when you would solve a difficulty, or overthrow a doubt? Since ‘He hath said’ is the source of all wisdom, and the fountain of all comfort, let it dwell in you richly, as ‘A well of water, springing up unto everlasting life.’ So shall you grow healthy, strong, and happy in the divine life.

2.21a

Weekly Links (6/11/2012)

“Sin is cosmic treason. Sin is treason against a perfectly pure Sovereign. It is an act of supreme ingratitude toward the One to whom we owe everything, to the One who has given us life itself. Have you ever considered the deeper implications of the slightest sin, of the most minute peccadillo? What are we saying to our Creator when we disobey Him at the slightest point? We are saying no to the righteousness of God. We are saying, “God, Your law is not good. My judgement is better than Yours. Your authority does not apply to me. I am above and beyond Your jurisdiction. I have the right to do what I want to do, not what You command me to do.” (RC Sproul, The Holiness of God)

by Stephen Rodgers

If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s an empty threat. And since last week I threatened another edition of the Weekly Links to highly available resources…now I’ve got to follow through.

Articles of Note

New Resources

See you Sunday!

Pro Rege

 

Israel Journal #19

by Pastor Patrick Cho

This morning, we were given a very unique opportunity to work together with the Associates for Biblical Research in an archaeological dig at Khirbet el-Maqatir. While et-Tel is the modern accepted location of biblical Ai (Josh. 7-8), there is no archaeological evidence that anyone inhabited the city during the days of Joshua’s conquest. Khirbet el-Maqatir offers an alternative site for Ai that fits well with the biblical narrative.

Those who participated in the dig needed to be up at around 4:00am to get ready. Breakfast was at 4:30am and the bus left for the dig at 5:00am. I really didn’t know what to expect, but when we arrived at the site, it was pretty impressive. Before we actually got on our hands and knees to start excavating, Gary Byers, the administrative director for the dig, walked us around the site to get us acclimated. He showed us how this site better fit the details of Joshua 7-8 than et-Tel. We were able to see where Joshua and his men might have set up their ambush (Josh. 8:4). We were also able to see that the gate of the city faced north towards Shiloh and Shechem.

I was assigned to dig in a first-century house that was discovered at the site. The first hour or so was pretty discouraging because we spent most of the time moving dirt and rocks. But after some time, we discovered a jug handle and rim that was probably from the Roman period. Those who were assigned to sift through our dirt also found a small purple coin that might be a widow’s mite. In the area just next to us, a group discovered a cistern about eight feet deep in one of the rooms of the house. It was pretty exciting and every time something was discovered, you could hear cheers around the dig.

Later in the morning, the rest of our group who did not participate in the dig joined us. We walked back down to the bus and headed north to Shiloh. This was Israel’s religious capital during the days of Joshua. The Tabernacle was erected at Shiloh and remained there for over 300 years. Shiloh was also where Joshua cast lots to divide the land amongst the twelve tribes. We didn’t spend a lot of time at Shiloh, but it was interesting to see a possible location where the Tabernacle might have been set up. An area is there that would have been able to meet the dimensions of the Tabernacle.

After Shiloh, we headed even farther north to a lookout on Mt. Gerizim overlooking Shechem and opposite Mt. Ebal. According to the command of Moses, Israel was to put six tribes on Mt. Gerizim for blessing and six on Mt. Ebal for cursing to review the covenant God made with His people (Deut. 11:29; 27:12-26). Joshua obeyed this command after destroying the city of Ai (Josh. 8:30-35). After the land had been allotted to the tribes of Israel, Joshua gathered the people at Shechem to renew the covenant (Josh. 24).

In the Old Testament, Shechem was set aside as one of the six cities of refuge (Josh. 20:1-9). As we stood on the lookout, we could look down below to Shechem where there is a building marking the traditional location of where Joseph’s body would have been buried (Josh. 24:32). There is also a large red-roofed church built over Jacob’s well where Jesus would have met the Samaritan woman (John 4:1-42). Given the biblical significance of this area, it was neat to be able to stand there and envision all that took place surrounding the city.

It is Friday so we celebrated Sabbath dinner together back at the moshav at Yad-Hashmona. Dinner and dessert were delicious, and afterwards one of the leaders for IBEX stood and read from Psalm 92 declaring the greatness and goodness of YHWH. It was another tiring day in Israel but also very rewarding. This was also our last day of touring in Israel. Tomorrow, we have a free day in Jerusalem before heading back to the moshav to pack and enjoy our last dinner together as a team.

Sonlight’s Spring 2012 Outings

by Abram Kim

On May 20, 2012, some of the Sonlight boys and girls experienced the first of hopefully many more fellowship outings. The staff’s goal for these outings is to further develop relationships with the children and parents we serve outside the classroom setting. We pray this will be the first of many such outings.

The boys, dads, and male Sonlight staff went to the Padres/Angels game at Petco Park in downtown San Diego. It was a nice San Diego afternoon at the ballpark. Our seats were at the upper decks, right behind home plate. It was shaded until about the 7th inning so it wasn’t too hot. The ballgame was tied 2-2 after the 9th inning, so the game went into extra innings. We tried to stay to the end, but it was getting to be long and with no end in sight, we left after the start of the 12th inning (the game finally ended in the 13th inning, with the Padres winning it). The game was a great informal way to just be in each other’s presence.

Here is some reaction from some of the boys.

Matthew

  • Matthew, are you having fun? Yes.
  • What’s been fun about this outing? Food.
  • Are you glad you came out with Sonlight guys? Yeah.
  • What’s something encouraging to say to your Sonlight staff? Thank you.
  • Thank you for what? For teaching us.
  • Teaching you what? About God.
  • What about God have you learned this year? I learned to be like Jesus.

Caleb

  • Caleb, did you have fun today? Yea.
  • What was the funnest part? (seeing that I was holding a recorder) Dadadada gonawana tadagana woganana. Turn it off, turn it off, turn it turn it off.
  • Alright (hiding recorder), what was the funnest part? Us winning [the Padres].

The girls, moms, and female Sonlight staff held a tea party in the courtyard at church after a time of devotion and crafts in the Sonlight room. Stephanie McAdams led the devotion, speaking of true beauty out of Proverbs 31:30. The girls then got to decorate picture frames to reflect on what they learned. Then all the ladies went out to the courtyard where the tea party would be held, with the works (sandwiches, baked goods, fruit, tea and juice).

Here is some reaction from some of the girls.

Ellie and Megan

  • We like the desserts. We’ve been looking forward to this day.

Dana

  • I like the food.
  • I am looking forward [to this event] because I want to have some fun with everybody.

Mia

  • We learned about what is real beauty. I like what we learned because … I don’t know.

Melody

  • We got to learn about the heart being pretty and beautiful.

Kasey

  • We got to do Bible study together with the girls. And the boys did other things. We had a tea party.

BOB – Lamentations

by Stephen Rodgers

LAMENTATIONS IN 10 WORDS OR LESS

“A despairing poem about the destruction of Jerusalem.”

TITLE

/sigh

I need to be more careful about what I write. A couple of times now I’ve written the following

I’ll let you in on a little secret: this section is about to get really repetitious for the next few months.  ALL the prophetic books take their name from the prophet who…well…prophesied them. So there’s really no great mystery here.  However, there may be some good background material…

Well, now we come to the one prophetic book that doesn’t take it’s name from a particular prophet: Lamentations.

MSB:

“Lamentations” was derived from a translation of the title as found in the Latin Vulgate (Vg.) translation of the Greek OT, the Septuagint (LXX), and conveys the idea of “loud cries.” The Hebrew exclamation ekah (“How,” which expresses “dismay”), used in Lam. 1:1; 2:1, and 4:1, gives the book its Hebrew title. However, the rabbis began early to call the book “loud cries” or “lamentations” (cf. Jer. 7:29). No other entire OT book contains only laments, as does this distressful dirge, marking the funeral of the once beautiful city of Jerusalem (cf. Lam. 2:15). This book keeps alive the memory of that fall and teaches all believers how to deal with suffering.

Constable:

The English title of this book comes from the Talmud, which called it “Lamentations” (Heb. qinoth). The Hebrew Bible has the title “Ah, how” or “Alas” (Heb. ‘ekah), the first word in the first, second, and fourth chapters. The title in the Septuagint is “Wailings” (Gr. Threnoi).

So just to be completely clear, there is no Hebrew poet named “Lamentations.” Which actually is a great segue into…

AUTHOR & AUDIENCE

Other than a tiny kerfuffle brought on by people who occupy their time by studying the anthropology of poetry (I’ll get to that in the OBJECTIONS section), the only real excitement related to the reliability of Lamentation is the fact that it’s technically anonymous.

Now before I go much further, let me preface that by saying that I think Jeremiah wrote it, and I’m not alone on that. Many scholars, liberal and conservative, believer and unbeliever tend to think that Jeremiah wrote it. The ESVSB is surprisingly reserved on this subject however:

The book does not identify its author, which should keep interpreters from unnecessarily contentious debates. Many scholars consider Jeremiah the author. They base this decision on (1) the statement in 2 Chronicles 35:25 that Jeremiah “uttered a lament for Josiah”; (2) the fact that Jeremiah was an eyewitness of Jerusalem’s destruction; and (3) the similarities in theological emphasis and vocabulary between the books of Jeremiah and Lamentations. In addition, much Jewish tradition (such as the Septuagint, the Targum on Jeremiah, and the Babylonian Talmud, Baba Bathra 15a) attributes this book to Jeremiah. The problems with this view include: (1) Lamentations does not name Jeremiah as its author; (2) the book of Jeremiah details much of Jeremiah’s post-587 b.c. activities but says nothing about his writing Lamentations; (3) there are differences in key vocabulary between Jeremiah and Lamentations; and (4) Lamentations provides material for worship in Jerusalem, whereas Jeremiah spent his last years in Egypt.

Let me briefly address the points that are raised in objection:

  1. This is the most troubling of the arguments raised, since it would seem to imply that unless the Bible explicitly tells us something, then we cannot know it with certainty. I’m going to move on fairly quickly so that I don’t work myself up into a full-fledged rant here, but suffice to say I would cheerfully reject that claim…with both barrels. Such a position finds itself at odds with any number of historically orthodox creeds and confessions (WCF 1.6: “The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man’s salvation, faith, and life, is either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture…”). Furthermore, it’s going to get rather uncomfortable around here if it gets trotted out and set against historically orthodox doctrines that would otherwise fail “test by word search”…and here I’m thinking of the trinity. Ok, deep breaths…
  2. Argument from Silence? Really?
  3. Fair point.
  4. Assumes facts not in evidence. The fact of the matter is that while Jeremiah clearly records that he was unwillingly shanghaied to Egypt following the assassination of a Babylonian official, almost immediately we run into conflicting Rabbinic notes and traditions. Some say he was stoned to death in Egypt; others say he returned to Babylon. We don’t know, (and I’d point out that according to the standards entailed in (1) and (2)), we can’t know.
In any event, belief that Jeremiah is the author is hardly marginal.

DATE

Ok, so remember what I wrote about dating the book of Jeremiah:

For the most part, the writing of the book of Jeremiah is concurrent with it’s setting. Jeremiah began his ministry during the thirteenth year of King Josiah (the last good king of Judah, 640-609 BC), and continued to prophesy and preach throughout the reigns of Jehoahaz (609 BC), Jehoiakim (609-598 BC), Jehoiachin (598-597 BC), and Zedekiah (597-586 BC). He survived the fall of Jerusalem, and was relocated to Egypt against his will following the assassination of Gedaliah.

Lamentations takes place after that whole “fall of Jerusalem” bit in 586 BC, but prior to the return of the exiles in 538 BC (remember Nehemiah). That’s less than a 50-year window of opportunity. On top of that, a number of internal indicators seem to point towards an earlier date, as the pain and trauma from the fall of Jerusalem is still fresh in the mind of the poet.

BACKGROUND & SETTING

Everything I wrote regarding the setting for Jeremiah would seem to apply here.

Per Constable:

The biblical records of the times in which Jeremiah ministered are 2 Kings 21—25 and 2 Chronicles 33—36. His contemporary prophets were Zephaniah and Habakkuk before the Exile, and Ezekiel and Daniel after it began.

Per the MSB:

Politically momentous events occurred in Jeremiah’s day. Assyria saw its power wane gradually; then Ashurbanipal died in 626 B.C. Assyria grew so feeble that in 612 B.C. her seemingly invincible capital, Nineveh, was destroyed (cf. the book of Nahum). The Neo-Babylonian empire under Nabopolassar (625–605 B.C.) became dominant militarily with victories against Assyria (612 B.C.), Egypt (609–605 B.C.), and Israel in 3 phases (605 B.C., as in Dan. 1; 597 B.C., as in 2 Kin. 24:10–16; and 586 B.C., as in Jer. 39,40,52).

Jeremiah records one of the most pivotal moments in OT history: the fall of Jerusalem at the hands of the Babylonians. While the northern kingdom had fallen to the Assyrians already, the southern kingdom had held out until now. However, as the Babylonian empire grew, their opinion of Israel shifted from considering them a military ally against Egypt (especially after they successfully fought Egypt to a standstill), to considering them a likely candidate for conquest. And so, in 586 BC the Babylonians successfully attacked and destroyed Jeruasalem, leading the kingdom of Judah off into exile.

This is the time of Jeremiah.

And the time of Lamentations would literally be right after that.

HISTORICAL & THEOLOGICAL THEMES

There are three major themes in Lamentations:

  • Judgment. Sin has consequences, and God uses secondary agents to execute His judgement (Lam. 1:14-15; 2:1-8, 17, 22; 4:11).
  • Response to Judgment. The appropriate to God’s judgment is repentance (Lam. 3:40-42) and a desire for forgiveness and restoration (Lam. 5:21-22).
  • God’s Character. God is just in His judgment, but he is also the God of hope (Lam. 3:21, 24-25), love (Lam. 3:22), compassion (Lam. 3:22), faithfulness (Lam. 3:23), and salvation (Lam. 3:26).

INTERPRETIVE CHALLENGES

While there are a number of verses that require additional study (as in any book of the Bible), none of them (that I am aware of) rise to the level of being fundamental or even well popularized.

LITERARY FEATURES

Per the ESVSB:

As its title indicates, the book of Lamentations is a collection of laments, or melancholy dirges, for a ruined society. The poems in the book could also be termed elegies or funeral orations, in which the author expresses deep personal and communal grief for the dead and for all of the suffering that surrounds their loss. In terms of structure, the first four poems are acrostics. This structure, using the entire Hebrew alphabet, matches the poet’s intent, which is to give full expression to the suffering of his people and the sorrows of his own soul—in effect, to offer a lament “from A to Z” (or aleph to taw). Perhaps the highly structured form of the acrostic is also an attempt to impose some sense of order on a tragic situation that is chaotic beyond what anyone can bear.

If you need a refresher on poetry, you can refer back to the article on the Wisdom Books. Also, it’s an interesting footnote that the text of Lamentations is one of the primary sources used by scholars who wish to argue that the ANE Israelites employed particular forms of metered verse in their poems, and not just parallel structures and acrostics.

OBJECTIONS

So I promised an objection based on the anthropology of poetry, so here it is (notice I never said it was a particularly impressive objection). Basically the argument goes something like this: “Lamentations is a series of sophisticated acrostic poems. Sophisticated acrostic poems are too sophisticated for a primitive ANE culture like the Israelites. Therefore, the date of Lamentations is unreliable and we can assume influence from more literary societies.”

On the contrary, not only is there ample evidence for highly sophisticated literary forms that pre-date Lamentations (for example, the majority of the Wisdom Literature), but one could quite easily make the case that of the various forms of poetry, acrostic poetic forms would be one of the earlier forms to arise within a culture that has a written alphabet (as the ANE Israelites did).

NOTABLE QUOTABLES

  • Lamentations 3:22-23
  • Lamentations 5:21

DID YOU KNOW?

  • The Hebrews divided the night into three watches: 1) sunset to 10pm, 2) 10pm to 2am, and 3) 2am to sunrise (Lam. 2:19).

Other Works Referenced

  • Apologetics Study Bible, “Lamentations”
  • Archaeological Study Bible, “Introduction to Lamentations”
  • ESV Study Bible, “Introduction to Lamentations”
  • MacArthur Study Bible, “Lamentations”
  • NET Bible, Lamentations
  • NIV Study Bible, Lamentations
  • Reformation Study Bible, “Lamentations”
  • The Baker Illustrated Bible Handbook, “Lamentations”
  • Know Your Bible
  • Dever, The Message of the Old Testament
  • Driscoll, A Book You’ll Actually Read On the Old Testament
  • Knight, The Layman’s Bible Handbook

Israel Journal #18

by Pastor Patrick Cho

We had a bit of a later start this morning, and I was glad for the extra sleep. At this point of the trip, many people have commented that they are ready to go home. It has been a phenomenal time here in Israel, but we miss family, friends, and church. Three weeks is an awful long time to be away. I’ve been thankful to at least have had brief opportunities to video chat with Christine. That really has helped the time go by. Everything we have been able to experience in Israel has been tremendously rewarding, and I think all of us are just excited to tell our loved ones about it all.

We began the day stopping along a roadside and walking past a banana field towards the Sea of Galilee. When we got fairly close to shore we were told that we were in the area of Gadara. After Jesus had calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee, He and His disciples came to the country of the Gadarenes where they met two men possessed with the legion of demons (Matt. 8:28-34). These demons were cast into a herd of swine, which ran off an embankment into the water. The spot where we were standing was probably the likely area where this incident occurred.

As we drove away from the Sea of Galilee, Dr. Grisanti told us to say goodbye since we weren’t going to return again on this trip. It was actually really sad to leave because the stops we made along the Sea of Galilee were some of the most memorable for me. The hotel we stayed at for the week was called the Ma’agan Eden, so that made it even more special. I took a bar of soap from the hotel to show my daughter Eden.

Our next stop was Beth-Shean just south of the Sea of Galilee. This was an amazing place to visit because of its enormity. Dr. Grisanti showed us some pictures of the site from just a few decades ago and it was completely covered with dirt. It was incredible to consider how much had been excavated since. Beth-Shean was a Roman Decapolis city, so it was very significant. We first walked by a Roman theatre and learned a little bit about the city’s history while sitting there in the sun. Afterwards, we walked down to the bathhouse and even got to see a Roman public restroom. It was co-ed.

The major Roman city of Beth-Shean is located at the base of the tel, but the ancient city is actually up on the hill. There were some stairs (154 of them. Yes, I counted.) that took us to the top. The view of the city from the tel was amazing! By the time the Romans conquered the city, it didn’t need the defensive advantage of being up on the hill, so they moved the city down. This would have made access to water much easier. Since they didn’t really need the hill anymore, the Romans tore down the wall and erected a temple to Zeus.

Biblically, the ancient city is where Saul and his sons’ bodies were hung after they died in battle against the Philistines before the people of Jabesh-Gilead retrieved the bodies (1 Sam. 31:8-13). We had about an hour or so to run around the city and pretty much needed every minute to see all that was there. Dr. Grisanti had mentioned that this was one of his wife’s favorite sites, and I could see why. The city was very impressive. It kind of made me want to visit the other nine Decapolis cities, but most of them are in modern day Jordan or Syria. Hippus is the only other in Israel, and we only got to drive by it because we ran out of time.

After Beth-Shean, we drove to the southern end of the Jordan River just north of the Dead Sea. This would have been around the land of the Moabites in Old Testament days, and is an area of incredible biblical significance. When Elijah ascended to heaven and passed the mantle to Elisha, it would have happened around this area (2 Kings 2:1-15). With its proximity to Jericho, this would also have been around the place where Israel crossed into the Promised Land under Joshua’s leadership (Josh. 3). Given its spiritual significance, the southern end of the Jordan River is also what is believed to be the place where Jesus came to be baptized by John (Matt. 3:13-17).

As we drove west into Jerusalem, we said goodbye to the Jordan River and had a chance to review some of the things we had learned during our time in Israel. It seemed like forever had gone by since we first entered Jerusalem. We spent the last couple nights at Yad-Hashmona, where the IBEX campus (an extension of The Master’s College) is located. We quickly got unpacked and enjoyed a wonderful dinner together before catching up on emails and getting some rest.

The Christian’s Response to Politics

by Elder Mike Chon

Since the elections are coming up I thought I would write about the type of perspective believers should have regarding politics and the government. There is a saying that says “if you don’t want conflict, don’t talk about politics or religion.” Well, I’m going to talk about both. There was a time in the history of the United States, when most Americans would have acknowledged that marriage is between a man and a woman, where killing fetuses were wrong, when alternative lifestyles were frowned upon and premarital sex was taboo. Currently these same issues are either allowed by law or are accepted by our culture as the norm. What should our response be to a decline and even a rejection of morality and absolute truth in our society and culture? Unfortunately, many believers have invested time and money to form organizations to counteract this decline in our country using methods that are not found in Scripture, whether it is protesting with signs, forming barriers, yelling and screaming about the injustice, or even worse, using violence to get their message across. If anything, these groups have caused believers to become angry and even antagonistic toward those very people that we are called to love and share the gospel with.

So how are believers to respond to this decline in our society? Are we to remain silent? We have to remember that our battle is a spiritual battle and not a battle against our government to become more “Christian”. As the Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.” We are in a spiritual battle against those ideologies and worldviews that are against our God, and the weapon that we use is the Word of God. I am not saying that we ignore what is happening around us. We should vote for things that are honorable and be supportive of those things that are good. We should grieve over the decline of our country in its morality and beliefs. We should stand up and speak up when God is being ridiculed or misrepresented and give a defense for the veracity of God’s Word. At the same we need to realize that the goal is not for our country to become more “Christian-like” but instead it is to share the gospel. We cannot get so caught up trying to change the government and forget or lose the time and energy that should be used in saving souls with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

When we live in a world that is constantly changing for the worse, believers can’t be using all their time and energy reacting and trying to change laws or advocating for social causes. We must keep our focus on the mission of the church to share the gospel and make disciples of Christ through the faithful preaching of God’s Word and godly living. If we begin to devote time and energy to anything else it will weaken the mission of the church. Now there is nothing wrong getting involved in politics or social reform but you must ask yourself: are we in the world to conform it to some moral standard, or we are here to evangelize the lost so save people from the eternal condemnation, one person at a time, to God’ glory alone?

Israel Journal #17

by Pastor Patrick Cho

This morning, we had a chance to visit Bethsaida, another significant biblical town. In the Old Testament, this city was called Geshur. This is where Absalom fled after killing Amnon and avenging his sister Tamar (2 Sam. 13:37-38). We had a chance to walk into the ruins of the Old Testament city. Sadly, at the entrance to the gate, there were some standing stones and an altar to Baal.

In the New Testament section of Bethsaida, there were a couple very large homes. One belonged to a fisherman and the other to a winemaker. In the winemaker’s home, archaeologists discovered a wine cellar. It was odd to see a fisherman’s home in Bethsaida because the city is almost two miles from the Sea of Galilee. It would have been quite a chore walking down to the water, catching fish, and hauling the catch back home each day.

Bethsaida was originally the hometown of Peter and Andrew before they moved to Capernaum. It is feasible that they moved because Capernaum is right on the water and not two miles away. Besides, business would have been considerably better in Capernaum. Bethsaida is also the biblical location of the feeding of the 5000, but one of Jesus’ most interesting miracles took place in this city as well. In Mark 8:22-26, Jesus heals a blind man in two stages. At first, his sight was blurred but then he was healed completely. The text doesn’t explicitly say why Jesus did not immediately heal the man, but at the time there must have been a clear teaching point or reason.

From Bethsaida, we drove up to Hazor (pronounced “hot-sore”), which is another major city on the International Coastal Highway. Hazor is actually the largest uninhabited tel in Israel (almost 200 acres), and most of the city has not yet been excavated. There is a classic example of a four room Israelite house that was discovered along with an oil press with stone weights and basins. There was also a very impressive palace in the city. It was said that in ancient days, the Babylonian ambassador lived in this city, so it was a significant place.

Biblically, Joshua defeated Hazor during the time of conquest when Jabin was its king (Josh. 11:11). This was one of the three cities that the Israelites destroyed (Jericho and Ai are the other two). As we walked around the walls of the city, we could see clear signs of burning. Later in the period of the Judges (about 200 years later), Hazor was the city that Deborah and Barak defeated under a different Jabin’s rule (Judg. 4). Archaeologists say that the ashes found in the palace were three feet deep, and because of the massive quantities of olive oil found, it may have heated up to 2000 degrees!

We left Hazor and drove up to Tel Dan, which is one of the northernmost cities in Israel. (Earlier in the trip, we were at Eilat, which is a port city on the southernmost tip of the country.) In the Old Testament, this area was referred to as Laish before the Danites relocated here (Judg. 18:27-29). In an act of covenant treachery, the tribe of Dan resettled in the north, taking land that was not part of their divinely appointed inheritance.

Sadly, in the divided monarchy, this was also one of the locations that Jeroboam set up a high place and altar for sacrifice. He placed golden calves at Dan and Bethel (1 Kings 12:28-30). We had a chance to take a gorgeous hike up to the high place where we saw the foundation stones of the altar. It was gigantic. The altar itself would have been at least ten feet tall! I tried to imagine all the people who would have made a pilgrimage here to bow down and worship before a golden idol.

Dan was also where archaeologists discovered a Middle Bronze Age gate, which dated to about the time of Abraham. The Book of Genesis says that when Lot was taken into captivity, Abraham went as far as Dan to rescue him (Gen. 14:14). We can’t know for sure, but Abraham might have walked through that gate. Unlike stone gates that were built later, this one was constructed with mud bricks. There was a giant canopy built over the site to help protect it from the elements.

Our last stop for the day was at Caesarea Philippi, also known as Panias or Banias. This was a city built by Herod Philip II, which he dedicated to Caesar. In the city, there was a massive multi-temple site dedicated to the gods Pan, Zeus, and Nemesis. The city is surrounded by considerable natural beauty with cascading waterfalls and a gorgeous spring. It’s no wonder that the largest temple was dedicated to Pan, the god of the forest. Interestingly, Caesarea Philippi is the location of Peter’s great confession, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16). This is interesting because the massive cave where Pan’s temple was located was said to be the gateway to Hades (cf. Matt. 16:18). Jesus may have used it to illustrate His point.

We ended our day with a play stop at the fortress at Nimrod. This was an old fortress built by the Muslims from the time of the Crusades. It was a giant, impressive fortress up on a very high hill, and it even had a secret passageway. We had about half an hour to run around the castle and have fun. One of the men from our group found an arrowhead that was probably used during the Crusades. Even though the fortress is called Nimrod, the biblical person named Nimrod did not establish it (Gen. 10:8). It was constructed much later. Even though it had no biblical significance, it was a fun stop nonetheless.

Israel Journal #16

by Pastor Patrick Cho

Today we got to tour the cities surrounding the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. Our hotel is located on the southern shore, so throughout the day we pretty much drove around the entire perimeter. Early on in Jesus’ ministry, He moved from Nazareth to Capernaum (Matt. 4:13). Considering the geography of the land, this move made a lot of sense. Besides the fact that He had been rejected in His own hometown (Luke 4:24), Nazareth was a small and obscure town off the beaten path. Capernaum, on the other hand, was a major city on the International Coastal Highway.

Capernaum was our first stop of the day. This is a city of considerable biblical significance where Jesus called the first of His disciples. He found Simon and Andrew fishing by the sea and also called James and John, the sons of Zebedee (Matt. 4:18-22). The Gospel accounts tell us that the disciples left what they were doing and immediately followed Jesus. This was also the city where Matthew collected taxes when he was called to be a disciple (Matt. 9:1, 9).

The centurion who showed tremendous faith in Christ was also in Capernaum (Luke 7:1-10). According to the text, this centurion helped build the synagogue in the city (v. 5). We were able to see the synagogue and its original foundation, which the centurion would have built. Apparently, this Roman centurion showed great kindness to the Jews. His kindness was also demonstrated by his concern for his servant. Being a man of authority, He understood and believed in the authority of Christ to heal, and his servant was healed.

The healing of the paralytic also happened in Capernaum. This was the man who was let down through the roof of a home by his four friends (Mark 2:1-12). It may well have happened at Peter’s house where Jesus probably stayed. There is a church that was found built around a home in Capernaum that is traditionally believed to be Peter’s house. By healing the paralytic, Jesus demonstrated His great authority not only to heal the sick, but also to forgive sins.

From Capernaum, we travelled to the neighboring town of Chorazim. There were two highlights from this stop, both from the synagogue in the city. First, archaeologists had unearthed a “seat of Moses” in the synagogue. This would have been a prominent seat for important people, which is what James was probably referring to when he wrote about partiality (James 2:1-4). Some of the members of our group took turns sitting in the chair looking very official and important.

A second interesting object of note was an engraving of Medusa in the synagogue’s décor. Like the zodiac calendar from Sepphoris, it just didn’t seem to belong in a synagogue. All sorts of explanations could be given for why it is there, but in the end, we simply don’t know. I snapped some pictures of it and thankfully did not turn into stone.

We continued our counter-clockwise tour of the Sea of Galilee coming to the Mount of Beatitudes. There is a natural amphitheatre here made by the surrounding hills and is a likely spot for the Sermon on the Mount. It is interesting that from the Mount of Beatitudes, there is a fairly clear view of the city of Hippus, which was part of the Roman Decapolis. This was a major city on a hill, and Jesus may have pointed in that direction when He taught that a city on a hill cannot be hidden (Matt. 5:14).

Our next stop was Tabgha. In this region, there are seven hot springs that run into the Sea of Galilee. The warm water attracts fish, so it would have been popular place to catch fish in Jesus’ day. Some believe that this is the traditional location of Jesus’ restoration of Peter (John 21:1-19). There is even a church built on a rock that is called Mensa Christi, the table of Christ, upon which Jesus may have cooked the fish for His disciples. It was built next to a serene and beautiful cove. Of course, there is no way of confirming whether this is the true location, but it offered a wonderful picture for that story.

Next door to Mensa Christi was a church in Tabgha with a famous mosaic of the loaves and fish (Matt. 14:15-21). Interestingly, the sign leading into the church had a picture with five loaves and two fish, but the actual mosaic only has four loaves. It really doesn’t matter anyway, even if this is believed to be the traditional location for that miracle, because the Bible says that it happened in Bethsaida (quite a distance away from Tabgha; cf. Luke 9:10).

We broke for lunch in Tiberius, which is a major city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. Dr. Grisanti mentioned that one popular dish in the area is called St. Peter’s fish, so I decided to give it a try. It’s basically a whole tilapia fried in hot oil. Honestly, I ordered it more so I could get a picture of it, but it was still really tasty and a lot of food. At the very least, I can say I tried the St. Peter’s fish in Galilee and have photos to prove it.

After lunch, we had an appointment to take a boat out on the Sea of Galilee. Before we headed out on the water, though, there was a small exhibit of a fishing boat that had been discovered in the area. They call it the “Jesus boat” because it dates to about Jesus’ time and would have been similar to the kind of boat in which Jesus would have travelled. It was really fascinating to view. There was even a section at the rear of the boat, called the “pillow,” similar to the area where Jesus would have slept before calming the storm (Mark 4:38-39).

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We ended the day with a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. Somewhere in the middle, Dr. Grisanti had the crew shut the boat off so we could sing hymns and read from Scripture. I had asked him earlier if I could try to walk on water, but he denied the request. We had a great time of worship together and enjoyed each other’s company on the boat. The wind even picked up a bit so we could see waves on the sea, though significantly smaller than Jesus’ storm. It was a relaxing way to end a busy day full of interesting stops.

This was really a highlight day because it gave us a more personal look into the life of Christ. It was great to think about how Jesus walked those roads and rode that sea. To think upon the life and ministry of Christ was really helpful, and these memories will stay with me for a long time. I know that pictures can help tell the story, but in the end there really is no substitute for being here and experiencing it in person.

…To Be Tempted of the Devil

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Matthew 4:1

A Holy character does not avert temptation-Jesus was tempted. When Satan tempts us, his sparks fall upon tinder; but in Christ’s case, it was like striking sparks on water; yet the enemy continued his evil work. Now, if the devil goes on striking when there is no result, how much more will he do it when he knows what inflammable stuff our hearts are made of. Though you become greatly sanctified by the Holy Ghost, expect that the great dog of hell will bark at you still.

In the haunts of men we expect to be tempted, but even seclusion will not guard us from the same trial. Jesus Christ was led away from human society into the wilderness, and was tempted of the devil. Solitude has its charms and its benefits, and may be useful in checking the lust of the eye and the pride of life; but the devil will follow us into the most lovely retreats. Do not suppose that it is only the worldly-minded who have dreadful thoughts and blasphemous temptations, for even spiritual-minded persons endure the same; and in the holiest position we may suffer the darkest temptation. The utmost consecration of spirit will not insure you against Satanic temptation. Christ was consecrated through and through. It was His meat and drink to do the will of Him that sent Him: and yet He was tempted! Your hearts may glow with a seraphic flame of love to Jesus, and yet the devil will try to bring you down to Laodicean lukewarmness. If you will tell me when God permits a Christian to lay aside his armour, I will tell you when Satan has left off temptation. Like the old knights in war time, we must sleep with helmet and breastplate buckled on, for the arch-deceiver will seize our first unguarded hour to make us his prey. The Lord keep us watchful in all seasons, and give us a final escape from the jaw of the lion and the paw of the bear.

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