Masada

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We drive along the west shore of the Dead Sea, called the Salt Sea in the Bible. The people still call it the "Sea of Lot", and believe that the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah now lie covered underneath. It is nine times as salty as the ocean, and lies 1,300 feet below sea level, making it the lowest spot on the surface of the earth. We are now in the territory of Judah.

Looming massively before us is the mountain fortress of Masada, strengthened by Herod the Great and captured by the Romans in 73 CE. It took a Roman army of 15,000 soldiers almost 2 years to capture Masada, which was defended by about 967 Jews, including the women and children. The mesa towers 1,400 feet above the level of the Dead Sea below.



We are now in the Negev, spelled Negeb in the Bible: an awesome expanse of scorched rock, raw mountains, bone-dry valleys, intense light, and consuming heat. The area gets about 8 inches of rain a year. It was inhabited by the Amelekites at the time of the Exodus, and it was here that the 12 spies entered the Promised Land.

Halfway between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea is the city of Beer-Sheba. Generally, the Bible describes this as the southern end of the Promised Land, "from Dan to Beersheba". This is where Hagar and Ishmael fled when dismissed by Abraham. In fact, Abraham named the location Beersheba ("Well of the Oath") after settling title to an important well with the king of the Philistines, Abimelech. Here it was that Isaac blessed Jacob instead of Esau, and Jacob stopped here on his way to meet Joseph in Egypt. It later became a city of Simeon. Currently it is a city of 170,000, largely populated by Russian Jews.

Thank you to all of you who are following my adventure. I am enjoying the comments and messages. Please note that it is much easier for me to use this software to respond to a public comment than it is to a private message.

Tomorrow, from Jerusalem....

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Comments

[shaunda]

no wonder it took the romans 2 yrs to capture masada. it is much more impressive than the movie we saw about it, don't you think? tell ricki hi and i hope that he is having a good time too. i love you. jacq says hi and anja keeps asking if you are home every time we drive up and she sees your car. can't wait to see your next entry. shaunda

[marilyn]

tell us more
The pictures are really good. Have you had any interesting conversations with the locals? Will there be any chance to meet friends from there? I can't wait to see what's next!

[dan and britt]

hello
We just wanted to tell you that we are really enjoying your pics and comments. Be safe!!!

[Jerry]

David, I am very impressed with your pictures. I see so many picture of the Middle East with my work and I have never seen the view of Masada that you took. Your pictures are fantastic. What a wonderful thing for you to do to let everyone see what you are seeing each day. Greetings to the group!