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1671. The sacred rock where the temple altar stood
The sacred rock where the temple altar stood
Description
In the interior of the building we walk around an octagonal corridor, and entering a door we stand before a mass of slanting native rock, 57 feet long from north to south and 43 feet wide. Here was the threshing floor of Araunah, bought by King David for the site of his altar; but Jewish tradition claims that a thousand years before David, Abraham built his altar on this rock for the sacrifice of Isaac. Without a doubt here stood the altar of Solomon' Tmeple, and in the two temples that succeeded Solomon's. Think of the great men of the Bible who stood here and worshipped; prophets, priests, kings, and apostles, saints! We may well look upon this rock as one of the hallowed places of the earth.
1672. Jerusalem from the new calvary
Jerusalem from the new calvary
Description
On the northern side the New Calvary hill is an easy ascent either on foot or on horseback, and from its summit we take a view of Jerusalem. Close at hand we see the northern wall of the city, pierced by the Damascus Gate, the very gate through which Saul of Tarsus went forth on his persecuting errand, expecting to scatter the church in Damascus, as he had scattered the church in Jerusalem. That modern building on the right is the Latin Convent and hospice for the entertainment of Catholic pilgrims. You note a large dome standing prominently with a smaller dome beside it; that is the Church of the Holy Sepupchre where a mistaken tradition locates all the events connected with the death and resurrection of our Lord. This part of the city is largely Christian in its population and is more modern and thrifty in appearance than some of the other sections.
1673. Mount Gerizim from Mount Ebal
Mount Gerizim from Mount Ebal
Description
There is a record in the Gospel of John which gives to these twin mountains an interest deeper than any of the Old Testament events, and, for the sake of that story, we look once more at Mount Gerizim from the base of Mount Ebal. Do you see a village yonder, at the foot of Mount Gerizim? That is the modern Askar, the ancient Sychar. Do you perceive beyond it another small enclosure? Within that wall is Jacob's Well, dug by the ancestor of the Israelites thirty-five hundred years ago, and still giving forth its water. Over yonder road, winding around the mountain, walked Jesus and his disciples one morning; and he sat weary beside the well while his disciples came to this village to obtain food for their breakfast. Waiting by the well he met a woman from the neighboring village, bearing her water-jar upon her shoulder; a woman, bright, quick-witted, and of deep, spiritual insight, although her past had been guilty. He saw her traits of mind and heart, and engaged her in conversation, while above them both loomed the summit of Mount Gerizim. That old well is there today, and every traveler receives a drink from its cool depths.
1674. Bethel from the south
Bethel from the south
Description
On every mile of our journey through this land, we pass by mountains, but we can pause only to note a few of those associated with the Bible story. That hill before us is Bethel, one of the early homes of Abraham, where he reared his tent and built his altar. But its chief interest centers in Abraham's grandson Jacob who paused here on the night after he had fled from the anger of his brother Esau, and resting on his stony pillow saw a wondrous vision. Let us hear the poet's story of that dream: "I saw the Syrian sunset's meteor-crown Hang over Bethels for a little space: I saw a gentle wanderer lie down With tears upon his face. "Sheer up the fathomless, transparent blue Rose jasper battlement and crystal wall. Rung all the night air pierced through and through. With harps angelical. "And a great ladder was set up the while From earth to heaven, with angels on each round; Barks that bore precious freight to earth's far isle, Or sailed back homeward bound."
1675. Shechem and Mount Ebal
Shechem and Mount Ebal
Description
We have come now to the exact center of western Palestine, half-way between the River Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea. Here we find the ancient city of Shechem, lying between the twin mountains, Ebal and Gerizim. From the foot of Mount Gerizim, we are looking over the city of Shechem northward to the slopes of Mount Ebel. The story of this place begins with Abraham who pitched his tent and built his altar here, at his first tarrying place in the land of promise before the city was founded; Jacob who came here a century and a half later found a little village established and had a war with its inhabitants. From its central location and its abundant supply of water the city grew and has ever been one of the most important places in the land. Here Rehoboam came to be crowned king, and here took place the revolution that tore the twelve tribes apart into two nations.
1676. Shechem and Mount Gerizim
Shechem and Mount Gerizim
Description
In our last view we looked at Mount Ebal from the foot of Mount Gerizim from the slope of Mount Ebal. Again we see the city of Shechem, but from its opposite side, the north. The tower which was in the foreground in our last view is now far in the background on the right and scarcely visible. Shechem is the home of that ancient people, the Samaritans, who reject all the Bible except the five books of Moses, and have lived apart for nearly twenty-five centuries. They look upon Mount Gerizim just as the Jews looked upon Mount Moriah, for upon it stood their temple. You remember the words of the Samaritan woman to Jesus; "We worship in this mountain, but ye say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Let us climb yonder mountain and look at its summit."
1677. Mount Gerizim, place of Abraham's offering to Isaac
Mount Gerizim, place of Abraham's offering to Isaac
Description
To this Samaritan reading his Bible, this spot, the summit of Mount Gerizim, is the most sacred place in the world. Here, he believes, Abraham built his altar for the sacrifice of his son Isaac; an event which the Jews claim took place on Mount Moriah at Jerusalem. Here stood the ancient Samaritan temple, and on this mountain is held every year the Samaritan passover, according to the exact ritual in the Book of Exodus, even to sprinkling the blood on the doors, no longer observed by the Jews.
1678. Mohammedan school at Ramah
Mohammedan school at Ramah
Description
While we are passing through Ramah we pause in the courtyard of one of its homes to look at a Mohammedan school. You see the turbaned teacher, with a page of the Koran in his hand; for throughout the world of Islam, the Koran is the only text-book. Before him are seated the young pupils in a circle, while around visitors are looking on. In some such group as this sat the boy Jesus at school in Nazareth, only there he held a leaf of the Old Testament; and in another circle like this in the temple at Jerusalem sat Saul the youth from Tarsus at the feet of Gamaliel.
1679. Ramah from the south
Ramah from the south
Description
A few miles to the south of Bethel, we reach another storied hill, Ramah. Here in answer to prayer was born the child Samuel, before his birth set apart for the service of Jehovah, the God of Israel. His childhood was passed at Shiloh in the tabernacle; but during his manhood and to the close of his long life his home was here at Ramah. Here Saul was anointed to be king of Israel, and from this plaace the prophet afterward went to Bethlehem to anoint David as Saul's successor.
1680. Jordan and the promised land, Palestine
Jordan and the promised land, Palestine
Description
In the study of rivers and their valleys the Jordan must be considered as a special case. Rivers cannot cut even at their mouths, but a little below the level of the body into which they flow. The Jordan does not violate this law and yet a portion of its course is far below sea level. It rises west of Mt. Hermon and after spreading out into Lake Merom and the Sea of Galilee, discharges its waters into the Dead Sea, which has no outlet and is a body of salt water, and here the Jordan is below sea-level. The Valley of the Jordan, the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee occupy a portion of a long narrow depression in the surface of the earth. At the east and west margins of the depression there are great fissures or breaks in the rocks and land between these fissures has fallen or been drawn in toward the center of the earth. The Jordan varies in width from 30 to 70 yards, but in January and Febraury it overflows its banks and is from half-mile to two miles wide. The soil in the valley is very rich except near the Dead Sea. In the midwinter the landscape is green with grass and bright with flowers, but in summer it has the general appearance of a desert.
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