the happy sound of the shofar

If any single detail of God’s Word could be definitively disproved, none of His Word could be believed. But on the contrary, if external evidence for the historicity and accuracy of the Scriptures is found, every jot and title of the internal evidence that we already have can be affirmed as infinitely true (Isaiah 40:8). Our field trip to the Benjamin territory was one more reminder of the wonderful truth that God’s Word will stand forever. The geography, topography, pottery, and so many other things in the land attest to this.
We visited one biblical site after another, mostly in the Central Benjamin Route, where many important historical events (like Jericho- we actually walked around it once! and the high place of Gibeon, where Saul prayed to receive wisdom) in Scripture took place. Three highlights. Four, actually:

• Remember those guys in the book of Joshua who come with moldy bread and tattered clothing and trick Joshua into making a peace treaty with their people, the Gibeonites? Why was it such a big deal? Why did five Amorite kings come and attack Gibeon because of this peace treaty? If you understand the geography of the land, you know that the peace treaty was in effect giving control not only over the eastern and western approaches to Jerusalem, but also the northern (most vulnerable) side to Jerusalem. As we stood on the Beth Horon Ridge Route, we read the account of Joshua 10:1-15, when Joshua protects Gibeon against five Amorite kings who attack the city. The Amorites fled down this route, and God caused hail stones to fall on them (not on the Israelites!!) as they fled. We looked to the east and there was Gibeon, where God caused the sun to stand still, and on our west was Aijalon, where the moon stood still.

• Between two cities in the Central Benjamin Plateau, Geba and Michmash, there is a place that the Bible calls "The Pass," which is the only way to cross over a huge canyon. There's a neat story in 1 Samuel 13 and 14 about how Jonathan and his armorbearer sneak out of his dad's camp and take on all the Philistines at Michmash. Chapter 14:14 says that between the passes was a rocky crag in Michmash, underneath which Jonathan crawls and where he defeats the Philistines from Michmash down to Aijalon. As we were reading the account, our professor pointed out some cliffs at Michmash. These were the very cliffs that Jonathan crawled under to sneak up on the Philistines! (Look very closely at the mountains behind my head.) These stories are NOT made up!
  
• What do you imagine when you think of the Judean wilderness where John the Baptist preached and where Jesus was tempted? I always pictured something like the Sahara desert, with cacti and maybe some sand dunes. Silly Joey. The Judean wilderness is actually full of hills made up of a type of white chalk. Think about that the next time you read Isaiah 40, which is bursting with wilderness vocabulary. Compare Kaiser Wilhelm, for part of the Jaffa Gate in Jerusalem was torn down to make way for him, and Yeshua, the King of Kings. The entire geography of the land had to be altered: valleys lifted up and mountains leveled. We were given a chance to spend some time alone in reflection and prayer, and I continued to read and mediate on Isaiah 40. I thought about how the wilderness may be green for a few weeks out of the year, but the beauty quickly fades away. As I read v. 9: “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever,” I was completely in awe of God’s Word that I held in my hands. May we continue to daily be filled with awe by this amazing, true, historically accurate Book of Life.
• Me burrying my head in my backpack as I tried to discreetly eat my non-kosher turkey and cheese sandwich at a kosher cafe in a mall near Jericho. Maybe it's not spiritual but definitely unforgettable.

On another note, the Jewish holy days are upon us (those "appointed times" we tend to skip over when we read Leviticus 23). On Wednesday was Rosh Hashanah, or the Feast of Trumpets. It was amazing to celebrate this with Messianic Jews and believers in Yeshua. We ate the traditional pomegranates and dipped apples in honey (symbolizing a fruitful and healthy New Year), and had a great time learning about Jewish thought and culture. Rosh Hashanah and the days before Yom Kippur is a time of repentance, a time to meditate on one's own sinfulness and seek reconciliation with the Judge of the Universe. The sounding of the shofar (the ram's horn) is meant to remind us of our need for repentance. Sound familiar? 1 Thess. 5:16: "the Lord himself will descend...with the sound of the 'shofar.' Praise God that we do not have to grope for God in the darkness like so many Jews are doing as I write. Christ has shone His light into our hearts. The sound of His shofar is no longer terrifying! "Happy are those who know the sound of the shofar!" (Psalm 89) Let us wait and hope and long for it as we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.