Day Five - Masada and to Jerusalem

Sunrise on the Dead Sea.

Cable car ride to the top of Masada.

Looking outside as we rode to the top.

Roman mosaic floor in one of the rooms.

A model of how water came to the base of Masada from a reservoir built by Herod high up in the Judean hills and carried by aqueducts.

The three levels of Herod’s Palace.

The Israeli flag atop Masada. This is a special place for the nation of Israel.

Looking at the Old City from the Mount of Olives.

The Garden of Gethsemane where we spent quiet time praying.

The Golden Gate (The Eastern Gate).

Day Five -The Dead Sea to Jerusalem After a late wake-up call, we went back toward the north to the famous archaeological site of Masada. This is the ancient fortress of King Herod built to escape his enemies if attacked in Jerusalem. It was here that Jewish Zealots made their last stand against Rome in 73 AD. It was an amazing site both in viewing the construction of the palace, water cisterns, and the storage areas that enabled them to live and seeing the courage of those Jewish Zealots. Driving past En Geri, we stopped at Qumron for lunch. From there we headed up to Jerusalem. As we ascended the mountain to Jerusalem, Ed read to us Psalm 121, a psalm of ascent that a Jewish person would say as they “went up”. As we passed by Bethany and entered the tunnel we listened to the beautiful song “Jerusalem Gold” by Robert Stearns. It was an incredible feeling to see this wonderful city as we come out to look over the city. We stopped at Mt. Scopus where the Hebrew University is located for an awesome view and explanation of the city. We then, still on the Mount of Olives, walked down the Palm Sunday Road to the Garden of Gethsemane. What a privilege to be given time, on our own, to spend some time with the Lord. Ed challenged us with the question that Jesus asked His disciples the night of His betrayal, “Could you not keep watch with me one hour?” After walking through the rest of the garden past the Church of All Nations we headed to our hotel.