Greetings from Israel!

We have reached the southern end of our journey through the wilderness and turned back to the north. Yesterday we spent some time at the east end of the Biblical Negev, and this morning we visited a larger Biblical settlement in the western Negev, Beer Sheba. The site is a Tel – a site upon which numerous cities, settlements, or forts have been built over time. This site is central to many Old Testament stories, including those of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. If you have time, check out the story of Isaac’s birth in Genesis 21, particularly verse 14. After visiting the region, we have a much better understanding of the difficult journey as veils back and forth between Ai and Beer Sheba.

Continuing our trip to the north we re-entered the coastal plain and stopped at The ruins of Aphek, sometimes known as Antipatris, northeast of current day Tel Aviv. Geographically this was an important site due its location at the head of the Yarqon River. It was first inhabited over 5,000 years ago, and was the location of Egyptian, Philistine, Greek, Roman, and Turkish settlements. In the Old Testament the Philistines took the ark of the covenant through this settlement (see 1 Samuel 4). Later, during the Roman period, the trip from Jerusalem to Caesarea took more than one day, so Herod and other dignitaries would stop here in route. Similarly, when Paul was being taken from Jerusalem to Caesarea to be judged before Felix, he stayed in Antipatras on the way (Acts 23:23-35). One particular highlight was to walk on a Roman road in which you can see the wheel tracks from chariots.

As we have learned from visiting Masada and the Herodium, Herod the Great made a significant architectural impact as he strengthened the Roman territories and displayed his power and wealth. Perhaps the greatest example of this that we have seen is Caesarea, along the cost of the Mediterranean Sea. Herod built a large palace complex, enormous harbor, amphitheater, and associated structures that even 2,000 years later is impressive. This site is mentioned numerous times in the book of Acts. If you recall the story of Peter and Cornelius (Acts 10), this is where Cornelius the centurion was stationed. Perhaps most remarkable, though, was visiting the court area of the complex. This is where Paul stood before Festus, Agrippa, and Bernice to plead his case (Acts 23-25). We stood in what was likely the same spot Paul stood.

As icing on the cake, we finished the day with a stop at an example of a Roman aqueduct. This example was originally more than 5 miles long, and brought water from the hills into Caesarea. The engineering and construction of this marvel are astounding.

In Him,

Pastor Matheny and Matt Brand

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