So here I am in Israel. No more days to count, no more bags to pack... Every time I walk outside my dorm room I am absolutely amazed at God's grace in bringing me here. The moshav (kind of like a kibbutz, but more privatized) where I live is absolutely breathtaking. This morning I read my Bible in front of a replica of the tomb where Jesus was buried: part of the biblical garden here at the moshav. And I look out at the mountains nearby and see Kiriath Jearim, where the ark of the covenant for a hundred years. I am realizing more and more every day what a unique opportunity this is.Thirty-seven other students and I arrived here on a Sunday afternoon, piled into a bus, and immediately got our first taste of on-site Bible study, on the bus. It turns out that the airport in TelAviv is actually located in Lod, or Lydda, where Aeneas was healed (Acts 9). Nearby we saw Joppa and nearby Caesarea, which is where Peter had his vision and realized that salvation was for the Gentiles. We thought about how we as Gentiles would never have this message if it weren't for the Jews who brought it to us. This message is of the Jews, and God chose the Jews to be His special people. As I looked out the windows of that bus, it suddenly hit me that I was in a VERY special place. Yahweh's name is attached to this place in a very special way that we don't and can't understand.
Two days later found us on another bus, this time heading for Old Jerusalem for our first field trip. "Walk around Zion," Psalm 48 commands us. "Go around her, number her towers, consider well her ramparts, go through her citadels, that you may tell the next generation that this is God, our God forever and ever. He will guide us forever." This is exactly what we did. We walked. And walked. And walked. In the 100 degree heat. But needless to say, I loved every minute of it. I could fill up pages and pages talking about what I learned, but it's getting late and I have a Hebrew quiz tomorrow, so I'll try to highlight the main points.
-The importance of HISTORY. It's not just Abraham's and the Israelites' history, or even Jesus'. It's ours. We have been adopted into the family of Abraham through the blood of Christ, and studying our family history shows us where God has worked, where He is working, and where He will continue to work.
-God's SOVEREIGNTY over history. Every little detail. This has been a reoccurring theme throughout all my classes. God has not only ordained each and every event in Israel's history, but also each and every cause all of those events to take place. If Medo-Persia had not become powerful enough to overtake Babylon, or if it had not had the ideology and policies that it did, Cyrus would have never issued the decree in 538 B.C. allowing the Jews to come back to Israel from captivity. They'd still be scattered all over the world, and I would not be here today.
- Scripture came to life in a very powerful way. For instance, Proverbs 1:21. Wisdom is crying out at the entrance of the city gates. Standing in the city gate, which was the most public place in the city and was used for public declarations, I understood this verse for the first time. Or Psalm 125:2, which was running through my head all day: "As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people, from this time forth and forevermore." As you walk around Jerusalem, you start to realize that not only is the city fortified, but it is a hill country, and is very difficult to get to from the coast, which protects it. 
Or Matthew 23:27: "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees. For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful..." Outside of the Eastern (Golden) Gate we saw a ton of tombs. Most of them were small and insignificant (the white dots along the hill) But there were a few huge, decorative, temple-looking ones (bottom of the picture): rich Jews were buried in these Greek-style tombs to show the world their glory. Jesus very well could have been pointing to these very tombs as he condemned the scribes and Pharisees.
Or Matthew 23:27: "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees. For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful..." Outside of the Eastern (Golden) Gate we saw a ton of tombs. Most of them were small and insignificant (the white dots along the hill) But there were a few huge, decorative, temple-looking ones (bottom of the picture): rich Jews were buried in these Greek-style tombs to show the world their glory. Jesus very well could have been pointing to these very tombs as he condemned the scribes and Pharisees. Yes, I am definitely learning a LOT. Not all of it is fun and adventure, though. I was definitely not prepared for how strenuous the work load would be. I hardly have time to breathe. But how could I possibly complain when I get to study the BIBLE and all of its many, many facets in the place where it unfolded?
"As we have heard, so we have seen in the city of Yahweh of hosts...which God will establish forever. We have thought on your steadfast love, O God, in the midst of your temple. As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends of the earth." Ps. 48:8-10
Lila tov (Good night),
Michal. (No name in Hebrew for Joey ;) My middle name will do, I guess.)
