March 2020 - Travel to the Bible Lands

Beersheba

Genesis 21:33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.

Beer-Sheba was at the Southern edge of the Promised Land. The Bible makes reference at least eight times to the land from “Dan even to Beersheba” in reference to the Promised Land.

Beer-Sheba, Beersheba, Beersheva, Be’er-sheva……. all refer to the same Israeli city on the Negev Desert in Southern Israel.

The name Beer-Sheba comes from the two Hebrew words, “Be’er” meaning well, as in a water well, and “Sheva” meaning oath or covenant. The name Be’er-sheva means the well of the oath. At Be’er-sheva Abraham made a covenant with King Abimelech regarding the well that he (Abraham) had dug (Gen. 21:22-32)

“Abraham planted a grove (tree) in Be’er-Sheva.” – Gen. 21:33 The word “grove” or tree comes from the Hebrew word êshel meaning tamarisk tree.

The tamarisk tree is also known as a salt cedar. The tree extracts salt from the ground and deposits the salt on its needles. During the coolness of night the salt attracts moisture which evaporates during the heat of the day. The tamarisk tree provides shade and coolness from the intense heat of the desert.

Abraham planted a tamarisk (êshel) tree at Beersheva. Our Jewish interpreter at Abraham’s Well told us that the Hebrew word “êshel” can be used as an acronym for three separate Hebrew words meaning eating, drinking, and sleeping. Perhaps this hints at Abraham’s hospitality as recorded in Genesis chapter 18 when he entertained strangers.

Gen 18:4,5 “Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree: 5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on:”

Approximately 25 years after God came to Abraham in the Ur of the Chaldees, Abraham was finally in the Promised Land with Issac, the son of promise. At Beersheba Abraham planted a tree and “called on the name of the Lord, the everlasting God.” – Gen. 21:33

In planting the tree at Beersheba Abraham was looking to the future. The tree was not just for him, but for those that would come after him. The tree signified that this place belonged to Abraham. Beersheba was Abraham’s undisputed property.

Tel Be’er Sheva

Tel Be’er Sheva is an archeological site about 2 1/2 miles from the city of Beersheva, the capitol city of Israel’s Negev region. The ruins at Tel Be’er Sheva date back to Bible times.

The Battle of Beersheva, October 31, 1917. The Australia and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), led by British General Edmund Allenby, mounted an offense against Ottoman defenses at Beersheva. The ANZAC troops pulled off a mounted infantry charge against the Ottoman defenders at Beersheva with only their bayonets in hand. The Ottomans were defeated by the ANZAC Light Horse Brigade. The strategic water wells at Beersheva were taken intact. Six weeks later, on Dec. 9, 1917, the Ottoman troops surrendered the city of Jerusalem to Allied forces.

Interestingly on the same date, Oct. 31, 1917, the British War Cabinet approved the text for what would become the Balfour Declaration that paved the way for the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948.

Ottoman era train station at Beersheva, Israel.

Steam engine at the old Ottoman rail station at Beersheva.

Beersheva in 1915. Photo courtesy of pixabay.

Patmos

“John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.” – Rev. 1:9

Patmos is a small, rocky, arid island located off the Western coast of Turkey. It is part of a group of islands in the Aegean Sea between mainland Turkey and Greece known as the Dodecanese Islands.

During the reign of Roman emperor Domitian, the Apostle John was exiled to Patmos to keep him quiet. While on Patmos, John wrote the last book of the Bible, the Book of Revelation, as inspired by God. The book of Revelation is foremost “The Revelation of Jesus Christ” (Rev 1:1). God promises a blessing to all who read the book (Rev 1:3).

Revelation 1:1-3 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: 2 Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. 3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Placard at the Cave of the Apocalypse on the island of Patmos.

Patmos does not have an airport. The nearby islands of Samos, Leros, Kos, and Kalimnos all have airports and ferry service to Patmos. We began our trip to Patmos from Kusadasi Turkey, not far from Ephesus. At Kusadasi we boarded a Turkish boat to the island of Samos, about twenty miles away. At Samos we traveled by taxi from the island’s northern port of Samos town to the southern port of Pythagoreio where we boarded a ferry to Patmos. The ferry stopped along the way at the islands of Agathonisi and Lipsi.

On the boat from Kusadasi Turkey to Samos.

When we arrived at the Patmos port we saw several people holding placards indicating that they had rooms for rent. We inquired with one of them, agreed on the price, and she took us to her home. The following morning we rented a car and set out to see the sights on Patmos. It didn’t take long since the island is small, only about 13 square miles. The capitol, Chora, is built around a monastery/fortress from the 12th century and is the hub of tourism. The only commercial port is the town of Skala.

Patmos is known as Greek’s “holy” island as it is home to several Greek Orthodox monasteries and more than 100 churches. On the one evening we were there, an international sacred music festival was being held.

A cruise ship departing from Skala, Patmos at dusk.

Windmills on the island of Patmos were used to grind wheat before electricity came to the island.

Agathonisi

By happenstance we spent a night and most of a day on the island of Agathonisi. I remembered the ticket agent telling me that the trip from Samos to Patmos took about two hours. About two hours into the trip we arrived at a port and just as the ferry was about to pull out I thought to myself “this must be Patmos, we need to get off.” As the ferry began to depart, our daughter stepped across the gap between the Ferry’s bridge and the dock. My wife jumped across the gap as I tossed our bags onto the dock and took a running jump. As the ferry departed I was gathering our bags when a young boy with curly red hair walked up. I asked him, “do you speak English?” He responded “yes” and I then asked him, “is this Patmos?” He replied, “No Sir, this is Agathonisi.”

Fishing boats on the Greek island of Agathonisi.

We arrived in mid afternoon and quickly discovered that the next ferry to Patmos would leave the following day at 6:00 pm. There were only 40 beds on the entire island, not so many tourists. Someone pointed in the direction of a guest house and told us that the woman might have a room. She didn’t speak English and we didn’t speak Greek. Through pantomiming we understood that she had a room available and we would have to be out by noon the next day.

There were few tourists on the island, only a few fishermen, a small team of archeologists and a Greek woman on holiday with her two children. The local restaurant served up fresh seafood brought in by local fishermen. The fresh produce and cheese all came from the island. Agathonisi ended up being the highlight of our trip to Patmos.

We visited Patmos in August, 2009.

Thessalonica

“Now when they (Paul and Silas) had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures,” – Acts 17:1,2

Roman Agora (marketplace), Thessalonica.

The Roman road, Via Egnatia, passed through Thessalonica and connected Byzantium to the region of Illyricum on the Eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea across from Italy. Today the region of Illyricum is part of the country of Albania. Paul very likely traveled the Via Egnatia as he journeyed to Illyricum.

” Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.” – Romans 15:19

When Paul arrived in Thessalonica there was already a Jewish community there. For three sabbaths “he reasoned with them out of the scriptures”, most likely in the synagogue. Paul later wrote two letters to the church at Thessalonica. In the first letter, Paul commended them for their diligence in evangelism throughout the region of Macedonia and Achaia. Achaia encompassed the region to the South of Greece including Athens, Corinth, and the Peloponnese peninsula.

“So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. 8 For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad;” – 1 Thes. 1:7,8

The Jewish population of Thessalonica surged in 1492 when Spain expelled their Jewish population. A fire in 1917 devastated the Jewish quarter. At that time the Jewish population exceeded 65,000 people. Interestingly, it was in 1917 that the Balfour Declaration set the stage for the establishment of the state of Israel.

During WW2 Greece was occupied by Germany. Between March and August 1943, more than 45,000 Jewish people from Thessalonica were shipped to Auschwitz where they died in the death camps. The once large and vibrant Jewish community was all but wiped out.

The only synagogue in Thessalonica that was not damaged during WW2 was the Monastir Synagogue. During the war the Red Cross used the synagogue as a warehouse.

**The Ten Commandments displayed on the Monastir Synagogue in Thessalonica.**

The Jewish Museum was opened in Thessalonica’s old Jewish quarter in 2001. It definitely merits a visit for anyone interested in Jewish history.