Ben Robinson's Trip to Israel Pt11

Today: March 11, 2010

Ben Robinson's Trip to Israel Pt11

Posted: Tue 22nd December 2009 10.51 AM | Author: Ben Robinson

Hello reader. In these last two posts, I complete my travels around Israel by going into the desert and then returning to Jaffa to touch base before flying back to the UK…

Giving thanks to ADONAI for watching over and blessing me in Jerusalem, I drove west out of the city in order to make an obligatory detour around the West Bank, then went south then east into the Judean Desert arriving at my first port of call 100 miles after leaving the capital: Masada. This is the name given to a site of ancient palaces and fortifications on top of an isolated rock plateau 450 metres above the Dead Sea to the east. The name in Hebrew is Metzuda, which means "stronghold". Here is a photo I took facing north-east:

According to Josephus, a first-century Jewish-Roman historian, Herod the Great fortified Masada between 37 and 31 BC as a refuge against his enemies and as a winter palace. After the death of Herod in 4 BC, the Romans stationed a garrison there, which, in 66 AD, was overcome by a group of Jewish fighters called the Sicarii at the beginning of the First Jewish-Roman War.

The Sicarii and their families fled Jerusalem when the Temple was destroyed in 70 AD and settled on the mountain top, using it as a base for raiding Roman settlements. In 73 or 74 AD, the Romans began a siege of the fortress, which eventually led to the mass suicide of all but 7 of the 960 inhabitants, who preferred death to surrender. Today, Israel Defence Forces (IDF) soldiers who have completed their basic training are sworn in on top of Masada. The ceremony is held at night and ends with the declaration: " Masada shall not fall again."

From Masada, I drove around 40 miles westwards to Be'er Sheva, where I spent the night. Be'er Sheva is often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", being the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Be'er is the Hebrew word for "well", while sheva could mean "seven" or "oath" (from the Hebrew word shvu'a).

Two reasons are provided by Scripture for the origin of the name. The first is when Abraham and Abimelech swear an oath at Abraham’s well and witness it with seven female lambs (Genesis 21:25-34). The second is when Isaac and Abimelech also swear an oath at the same place (Genesis 26:23-33). The first of these reasons is given prominence in Be'er Sheva today owing to the presence in a courtyard on one of the main city roads of a well and a tamarisk tree believed to be those referred to by the Scripture account. I saw them the following morning:

Moving from the ancient to the modern, my next stop was the Israeli Air Force (IAF) Museum, which is located at the Hatzerim IAF Base on the western outskirts of Be'er Sheva and provides a fascinating glimpse into the world of Israeli aviation. My highlights here were seeing the Arrow 2 missile and the Kfir C-7 jet fighter. Arrow 2 has been in operational use since 2000 and is intended to intercept ballistic missiles launched against Israel from medium and long ranges. For its part, the Kfir C-7 was developed in the 80s and played a key role in routine security missions on the Lebanese border before being withdrawn from active duty in the IAF during the second half of the 90s. Here are photos of both the Arrow 2 and the Kfir C-7:

Leaving Be'er Sheva behind, I ventured further into the Negev and, after a 45 minute drive, reached Sde Boker. Meaning "Cowboy's Field" in English, Sde Boker is a long-established kibbutz but is best known as the modest retirement home of the first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion. He fervently believed that the success of the reborn nation of Israel would depend to a great extent on the development of the Negev and, as such, he completely identified with the Sde Boker pioneers in their determination to cultivate and settle the desert.

Ben-Gurion moved to the kibbutz in 1953 when he was 67 and, notwithstanding his return to politics in 1955, lived there with his wife Paula until his death in 1973. As was Ben-Gurion’s wish, his home was left virtually as it was during his life and is now a museum:

The walkway to the Ben-Gurion home is lined with some of his famous maxims. One in particular caught my eye:

"Wisdom goes with south. It is written: ‘Whoever seeks wisdom, south he shall go’."

I am not too sure what Ben-Gurion meant by this statement. One could look at Scripture and say that it is a reference to Abraham’s route southwards through Canaan. Anyway, please let me know if you can shed any light on this mystery! Ben-Gurion and his wife are buried 2 miles south of Sde Boker on a spectacular cliff-top overlooking the Zin valley near the northern entrance of the Ein Avdat National Park. It is a truly delightful spot:

This is the Zin valley:

From here, a drive of a little more than 20 miles further south brought me to my base for the next three days, Mitzpe Ramon. All the tents at the campsite where I was staying had different names and, as I had just seen the Ben-Gurion quote, I was pleasantly surprised to see that my tent was called "Wisdom"! Here is the evidence:

I returned to Ein Avdat National Park after a good night’s sleep in my tent and explored it thoroughly. Ein Avdat is a 3 mile long canyon in which fertile vegetation abounds due to the water of numerous springs that begins at the southern opening of the canyon, and descends into deep pools in a series of waterfalls. This environment, in turn, attracts numerous species of animals. Ein is actually the Hebrew word for "spring" or "water source", while the word Avdat derives from the neighbouring city of Avdat to the south. Here are two photos of the area:

The canyon of Ein Avdat is part of the 120 kilometre long Nahal Zin, the largest vadi in the Negev. Vadi is the Hebrew name given to a stream in the Negev desert. A vadi is dry most of the year but, when there are heavy rains, a flash flood can occur by which it can fill to overflowing within a matter of minutes. When it does so, the parched desert will be soon covered with a carpet of flora. Knowing this background, one can see the intended meaning of Psalm 126:4, which was the Scripture that came to my mind as I saw the lush greenery in the midst of the dryness:

Return our people from exile, ADONAI,

as streams fill vadis in the Negev.

The psalmist is calling on ADONAI to quickly and miraculously bring back the people of Israel to their land in the same way that dry vadis can be suddenly filled with raging water. Since the rebirth of Israel in 1948, we have seen "flash floods" of Jewish immigrants at different times and the country has come alive again. However, I believe that these influxes, though wonderful in themselves, are small compared to the huge numbers of chosen people who will return to the land of their forefathers in the future. The best is yet to come.

The day after, I also made a visit to the nearby ruins of Avdat. This city was built in the 2^nd century BC as a caravan stop on the Incense Route (see here). However, more memorable in my mind is the fact that the 1973 Oscar-nominated film adaptation of the rock opera, Jesus Christ Superstar, was shot primarily at Avdat! Imagine one of its hit songs as you look at this impressive view:

As I mentioned previously, I was based in Mitzpe Ramon, which is Hebrew for "Ramon Lookout" and is inspired by the small town’s position on the northern ridge of the massive Makhtesh Ramon ("Ramon Crater") at an elevation of 800 metres (2,400 feet).

Makhtesh Ramon is also the name of Israel's biggest national park, which includes both the (natural) crater itself and the surrounding area. Unsurprisingly, I did quite a bit of walking here, admiring the awesome handiwork of ADONAI. The crater is approximately 40 kilometres long, 9 kilometres across at its widest point and 500 metres deep. Here, in order, are views looking east, west and south. The first two photos are of the crater while the third is elsewhere in the national park:

Three days later, I was on the road again, eating up the 90-plus miles remaining between me and the last stop of my desert trip, the southernmost city in all of Israel, Eilat. Before that though, I had to make one more detour 20 miles north of the city.

Timna Park in the Arava desert was the place; home to the world's oldest copper mines (at least 6,000 years old apparently) and noted for its rare stone formations and multicoloured sand. I drove around the 60 square kilometres of the park and saw as much as I could in the time that I had available.

Photo opportunities were everywhere but space does not permit me to show you all my snaps. Suffice to say, I was struck immediately by the majesty of the scenery as I entered the park:

Despite being surrounded by natural wonders, the most special feature of the park that I saw was the life-size replica that has been constructed there of the Wilderness Tabernacle.

This was the portable dwelling place for the presence of ADONAI from the time of the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt through to the conquering of the Promised Land. The replica was built to the precise specifications revealed by ADONAI to Moses at Mount Sinai and recorded in the Book of Exodus (which you must read for yourself).

It does not use the original metals but is faithful to the biblical description in every other way. In the first photo, you can see the laver (ceremonial basin) and altar in the outer court, while the second photo shows the Ark of the Covenant inside the Most Holy Place (Kodesh Hakodashim in Hebrew):