Did the Ark of the Covenant rest here?

The thing about being in Israel is that you never know when you will see or learn something that will take your breath away. Tel Beit Shemesh definitely was one of those places!

In 1 Samuel, the Ark of the Covenant was stolen from Shiloh by the Philistines, where it began a tour of the major Philistine cities, as crazy things happened wherever the Ark was: statues of false gods fell over face first, decapitated and missing limbs, and all the people broke out in tumors to name a few. Eventually, the Ark was put on a cart led by two nursing cows, and they carried it out of Philistine territory to Beit Shemesh, where the Ark was eventually placed on a large stone.

Then, more tragedy struck. Because some Levites peered into the Ark, people died. Different versions of 1 Samuel 6 are unclear; some say it was 70 people and some say it was 50,070. The text also doesn't say how long the Ark was actually in Beit Shemesh, which means "House of the Sun". Either way, it was a hard-learned lesson.

Modern day Tel Beit Shemesh isn’t a national park; we literally parked on the side of the road and walked up, where we could see the modern city (below), and

and even glimpse Samson’s hometown (the far right peak in the distance).

There are ruins of a monastery, an amazing view towards the ancient Philistine territory, and a massive, cross-shaped cistern dating back to the Assyrian invasion.

But the coolest part is this place in the oldest part of the ruins dating to the Canaanite era, with the fields just beyond them. There are 3 flat, smooth rocks partially covered by grass in the photo below. They look a lot like places where sacrifices have been made, and tests of the ground around it reveal the remains of kosher animals used in sacrifices.

the 3 flat stones with the groove are in the center below, partially hidden by grass:

Behind those 3 stones is an unnatural wall, called “fill”. It was left after digging around it and now it acts as a wall, showing what the earth absorbed over the past millennia. On the edge of the “wall”, a bone is sticking out. Can you see it?

Can you see it?

We even found an animal bone lying just off the path where we were staying (bonus).

And behind that fill “wall”, is an even larger stone, also partially hidden in long grass. It’s flat, smooth, and almost the exact shape and size of what the stone holding the Ark needed to be.

Could that be where the Ark rested after returning from the Philistines?

I was pretty much speechless at that point, to be standing in this unprotected place, looking at a place that likely held the presence of God (as if He can be contained). Then it struck me, as incredible as that was, and is, even more so is that those of us who know Him have His Holy Spirit inside of us.

What a special place! The end of 1 Samuel says that after this, the Ark went to Kiriath Jearim, where it stayed in the house of Abinadab for 20 years.

The Last Jihad Series by Joel C. Rosenberg

So, I was definitely late to the party when it comes to reading Joel C. Rosenberg's books, but I'm so glad I'm here now!

I just finished reading Rosenberg's 5-book series, The Last Jihad, and all I can say is: Wow! (I feel like I say that a lot when it comes to his books.

What's so incredible about this one is the story behind it, how the first book was almost completely written before September 11, 2001. And then, the same could be said for things that happened in the next year and book 2. Reading this in 2021, it's still eerie to see, because there are things in there that are happening now. 

How did this happen? Well, he based this books on Biblical prophetic texts, specifically Ex 38-39. Most recently, in book 4, The Copper Scroll, he talks about deal signed by Iraq and China as an exchange of oil for weapons. And on March 27, 2021, a very similar deal was signed in real life between China and Iran. I was literally reading book 4 when this announcement was made. 

While I've loved reading all of Rosenberg's novels so far, this one has caught my attention because it literally deals with the last days and what it could be like. I've always loved imagining what those would be like. So it definitely caught my attention and let imagination fly!

The other thing I wanted to point out from this series is how Rosenberg treats the depiction of honor and shame in this culture and explains it to the Western readers (and characters). He does an amazing job of that in book 2, The Last Days, specifically while describing the view point of Palestinian society. Pages 253-255 have an especially beautiful description of the heartache of the shame felt as a whole by the culture of the character who is speaking. His request to the President of the United States in this scene isn't so much about power or winning, so much as restoring some honor to his people.

Anyway, I loved this series! It's going on the shelf and will be read over and over, haha. If you've read it, I'd love to know what you think. Please let me know in the comments below!

The Livingstone Chronicles: Hidden in Time

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

I  just finished reading book 2 in Michael Phillips' The Livingstone Chronicles, and again, his book came alive for me in a new way.

In Hidden in Time, once again we travel with British explorer and archeologist Adam Livingstone, Juliet Halsey, Scott Jordan, Rocky McCondy, and a few others as they pursue another major Biblical artifact. Again, it's not a secret because it's on the cover: the Ark of the Covenant!

This time, they travel in Europe, Ethiopia, and finally, Jerusalem, where they end up mere steps from my favorite place in the entire world *ahem* spoiler alert *ahem*.

I probably first read this book 15 years before I ever went to Israel. So I had no idea of so many of the locations and their importance; at least, not to the understanding that I have now. So as Adam and his team are racing around the city and exploring the tunnels underneath it, I could literally see these locations in my mind... which made the final chapters all the more incredible!

This fictional series is definitely worth a read, especially if you love Biblical history and archeology!