Exploring the prophet Elisha's hometown

Not far from Beit She'an is another tel. This one isn't built up into a national park; there's honestly not a lot going on with it. It's just there in a field, with beautiful 360 degree views of the Jordan Valley, Mount Gilboa, and Jordan. 

It's also believed to be the hometown of Elisha.

So one particularly warm day in January, I took a metronit to a train to a bus and then walked a lot to explore Elisha's hometown.

It took a lot longer to get there than I thought it would, mostly because one bus never came and then I tried to enter the field in a way that was blocked by barbed wire and had to back track to the road. But finally, I found the right path. 

Then, I climbed up and started to explore. 

First, can we talk about the views?

To the west, to Mount Gilboa

To the east... the mountains in the distance are Jordan (at the time of Elisha, that was still Israel).

Wow! At the top there are also dirt paths like you see above. There are motorcycle and dirt-bike tracks all over them, as well as footprints and pottery shards.

Most of the tel is smooth, but one excavated part remains open:

According to BibleWalks, Rehov was likely settled at the same time as Megiddo, and likely conquered by Egypt at the same time as Megiddo. It's passively mentioned as one of Beit She'an's towns in Judges 1:27. Around the time of David, it was conquered by Israel and eventually was part of the Northern Kingdom.

Excavations in 9 areas revealed that it was a large and prosperous city. Findings of artifacts from other countries prove the residents continued to practice Canaanite/Phoenician and Syrian traditions and customs.

It was eventually destroyed by the Assyrians in the 736 BC invasion. The Assyrians lived there for a while but then moved to Megiddo. It laid in ruins for 1500 years, and then a small Jewish town was built nearby in the Roman Era. In the Middle Ages, an Arab town settled on top.

What's most interesting about this tel are the findings in the opened excavated areas:

Found in the ruins was an apiary dating back to the 10th Century BC, with the remains of dozens of beehives in clay cylinders. This is unique for many reasons:

First, the apiary was very close to a bunch of houses. This means it was likely this was a source of income for the townspeople. 

Second, signs on the property say that when they tested the apiary, the found the bees themselves didn't originate from Israel. This particular group of bees came from Turkey! Apparently, they were less aggressive and more productive than Syrian bees.

So funny! 

It gives new meaning to the phrase "land flowing with milk and honey"!

My favorite part of the day, other than the adventure and the views, was going back from the tel and finding the local springs right beside it. Even though it was January, it was close to 80 degrees that day and I was hot! I waded in and cooled off before heading to the bus stop.

Definitely a great adventure!

An oasis near Mount Gilboa

About 10 minutes from Mount Gilboa, where Saul fell in battle, is one of the coolest natural parks I've seen in Israel.

Fed by the Amal stream, Gan HaShlosha is an incredible oasis on a hot day. It stays at a constant 28 degrees celsius, or 82 degrees Fahrenheit, so it is even swim-able in the winter.

On a hot Friday in August, it felt like paradise. Surrounded by grass (GRASS!! still green!) and trees swaying in the wind, practically in the shadow of the mountain cursed by David after Saul’s death, these natural pools are an amazing place to explore- and cool off!

I can understand why a movie called "Garden of Eden" was filmed here... just be ready for some fish to nibble at your ankles!

I was unprepared for Tel Be'er Sheva

Ancient Be'er Sheva isn't too far from the modern city, but their distance spans millennia.

That's the thing about Israel... the ancient and modern are inextricably linked. You can travel a few feet and go back in time 1000 years (or more), and vice versa. It's mind-blowing!

But that's not what left me breathless this time. 

It was a hot, beautiful day in August, yet somehow I was surprised to not be overheating. Probably because it was dry heat. We walked up to tel Be'er Sheva with not long before the park was to close. 

Like I shared last week, I'd always associated Hebron with Abraham, and missed Be’er Sheva altogether in his story- until visiting one of the well museums.

I was unprepared for just how moving it was to stand in amongst the ruins of ancient Be’er Sheva and realize that it all began there. Abraham lived HERE.

But he lived here, dug wells, made a peace treaty, and offered hospitality and I couldn’t wrap my brain around that. Not only him, but Isaac and Rachel lived here, and likely Jacob as well.

This is where it all began.

the map above shows Abraham's route from Ur to Be'er Sheva

As the hot desert wind whipped my hat off my head, I read the account of him and Abimelech, and then remembered another passage I suddenly had to read. I was certain the passage I wanted was Galatians (later I remembered it was Hebrews). But Galatians 3:6-9 is where God led me and it left me speechless.

Verses 7-9: that's me! This is also the early beginnings of my story of faith, even though I am a Gentile.

There, right there, in Be'er Sheva. My roots go down there too.

WOW.

Let that sink in for you too.

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Now, for the tour!

More than just Abrahamic history happened here. The land in view is also where significant events in WWI happened!

Here you can see a continued example of rebuilding on original foundations. There are 2 different time periods represented here!

Unfortunately, I did not get to go into the water system, as the lady running the park wanted to leave before closing and was angry at us. But I found out that it was dug by Jacob... you can bet I'm going back!

An early street!

Storehouses!

My favorite, though, is the ancient residential areas. I couldn't get enough of it, especially with the modern skyscrapers in the distance!

Not pictured (I could see it but my lens wasn’t powerful enough) was the IKEA right on the edge of the city.

Sarah’s favor spot for home decor?

The 1st recorded peace treaty in history

In Genesis 21, the servants of the king of Gerar, Abimelech, took over the wells that Abraham and his servants had dug in the Negev. Abraham told Abimelech about it, and who said he hadn't been aware of it until that moment.

"So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two men made a covenant. Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock apart. And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs that you have set apart?” He said, “These seven ewe lambs you will take from my hand, that this[d] may be a witness for me that I dug this well.” Therefore that place was called Beersheba,[e] because there both of them swore an oath. So they made a covenant at Beersheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army rose up and returned to the land of the Philistines. Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God." (Genesis 21: 27-33).

Many wells were dug throughout Be'er Sheva in the millennia since. This one here dates back to Roman times. You can see grooves in the walls where ropes slowly wore them in over time. Next to this one, is a young tamarisk tree just like what Abraham planted.

While it is unlikely to find the exact well that Abraham and Abimelech disputed and settled in peace over, that's okay. What's important about this story is not the exact physical location down to the millimeter; it's that this story happened and what it meant. '

This is the first recorded peace treaty in all of history, brokered by the father of Israel.

That's pretty cool!

It's also a 3-day walk to Jerusalem, which is what happened when Abraham went to sacrifice Isaac at Mount Moriah.

Modern day Be'er Sheva is pretty cool. Like ancient times, it is complete desert.

So when I was there last August, I was stunned at how much green I did see! I mean, I was in a desert, and at places, there was grass! There were gardens!

And, so many fountains. This one was my favorite. Can you see why?

It's Moses leading the Israelites through the Red Sea! Below are the Egyptians.

So cool! It looks like those underground springs are still present today, almost 4,000 years after that peace treaty!

I definitely recommend visiting Be'er Sheva if you ever come to Israel! You'll understand why in next week's post.