We left our party temporarily to visit Mt. Zion, and following the example of Israel, (Jeremiah 50:5, “They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thither-ward,”) we asked our driver to take us to the most important spot in all Israel. The name Zion means fortress and is the most important of the seven hills upon which Jerusalem is built. Arriving at the foot of the hill, for it is so called in Psalm 2:6, (Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion) we stood for a few minutes of contemplation. Could this be the hill about which so much has been written in the Bible? It almost seemed too sacred to tread upon ; it seemed like holy ground. No it was not emotion but deep reality when we considered Joel 3 :17 ; (So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God dwelling in Zion My Holy mountain.) To a Christadelphian such an experience is thrilling and in a measure awesome. We started the ascent and we repeatedly asked each other, “do you think we are walking in the footsteps of the Master”? Quite possibly. The path to the summit is a winding well kept path which finally terminates at the reputed tomb of King David, and the upper room of the last supper.
We were sorry indeed that we could not go into the Jordan half of the city, but to compensate for our disappointment the Israeli authorities have erected a large balcony overlooking Jordan territory and have provided a large sign pointing out the prominent places by means of directional arrows. We could see at close range the Garden of Gethsemane, Calvary, Mt. of Olives, the road to Bethany and the reputed garden of Joseph of Arimathaea. What profound history was made in such a small space! For instance Gethsemane, (the lonely cry the anguish keen) Calvary, (the cross, the thieves and the great fulfilment of prophecy).
Following this the words that mean all in all to us “He is risen”. As we view the Mt. of Olives by retrospect we see Him ascend, we see the astonished faces of his disciples and we hear the angels words, “He shall come again in like manner as ye have seen Him go into Heaven.” All these thoughts and many more came into mind as we stood upon Mt. Zion. Evening began to usher in the close of the day as we descended the hill, slowly we reached the end of the path and hoped that ere long we might be among the redeemed of whom it is written in Isaiah 35:9; (But the redeemed shall walk there: And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.)
A visit to Jerusalem would not be complete without visiting the last resting place of the man who founded Zionism and who is called the “Prophet of the Jewish State.” What a wonderful man Theodor Herzl was ; having set his mind to the establishment of a Jewish State, he never gave up. It was he who wrote, “I believe that a wonderful race of Jews will grow out of the soil, the Maccabees will come to life again.” When he died at the early age of 44 he wrote in his will, “I wish to be buried in a metal coffin by my father’s side, there to lie until the Jewish people transfer my body to the land of Israel.” A modern Joseph, Exodus 13 :19; (Moses took the bones of Joseph with him : for he had straightly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you ; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you.) And so in 1948 his body was transferred from Vienna to Jerusalem. While standing at the foot of the grave of a man undoubtedly raised up by God to commence the miracle of Israel we marveled, this was the shaking of the dry bones in Ezekiel 37. How often have we heard the closing words of Herzl’s plea at the Basle Conference in lectures given by our brethren, Psalm 137 :5,6 ; (If T forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth ; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.”) Reverently we left this historical spot to pursue our journey.
It was arranged that we should visit a farm in the Negev that was cultivated long before the days of King Solomon. In the company of Professor Even-Ari we travelled several miles over sun baked desert until we finally arrived at a farm which had recently been uncovered from the desert sands. Wonderful arrangements had been made for our visit. Food and fruit had been provided for in abundance, and a tank car had been brought along for our fresh water supply. To demonstrate the earnestness of these people Professor and Mrs. Even-Ari are spending the next two years in developing this ancient farm, he having given up his position as Vice President of the Hebrew University. He showed us small trees that he had planted, almond. fig, pomegranate and olive: Water is the great need, he explained how the farm had been terraced in order to capture the water and to manually make openings in the walls to allow the water to run from one terrace to another. They have annual flash floods, and they must capture every drop of rain.
We saw the ancient farm house now being restored, also a well which actually contained water. Adjacent to the farm were the well preserved ruins of a synagogue and other once beautiful buildings. We were particularly interested in a stone bath built in the form of a cross, reputed to have been a baptismal bath used by the Essenes who believed in baptism. This large bath was hewn out of one piece of stone. What is it that comes into mind when in all this desolation and loneliness you see these wonderful excavations ? Well to us it meant that the very stones were crying out, “It’s true, the Bible is true.” We stood and wondered and asked ourselves, who lived here, could it have been Abraham, Isaac or Jacob ? Did Hagar find refuge here? Let us read Genesis 21 :14-20; The name of the place is called Subeita.
We returned to our hotel after a wonderful day spent in the heart of the Negev, and fully believing that err long the wilderness again will blossom as the rose. Isaiah 35: 1 & 2; (The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them ; and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing : the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God.)
Everywhere we went we passed small groups of soldiers marching along roads. The men stern and determined, the women singing as they marched, carrying arms, they reminded us of the days of Nehemiah when everyone wrought with one hand and with the other hand held a weapon. A marvellous latter day likeness to those days of Nehemiah 4 :2 ; Sanballat said as do the present day Arab nations, (What do these feeble Jews ? will they fortify themselves ? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day ? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish which are burned?) And like the Jews of Nehemiah’s day, the Jews of today, “have a mind to work.” Neh. 4:6.
Another thing that interested us as it will all our brethren was the glaring white immigrant villages and towns that have sprung up along the border from one end of Israel to the other. When Israel took over the land they had armed patrols parading day and night to prevent Arab attacks, but when the young immigrants entered the land they armed them and established these villages and so the patrols became unnecessary. Today in every respect they are a land of unwalled villages. This very definitely fulfills the prophecy of the last days by Ezekiel 38:11, And thou shalt say (The King of the North) “I will go up to the land of unwalled villages ; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates. To take a spoil, and to take a prey ; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.”
Brethren, the vision tarryeth not, God has spoken and He has fulfilled His promised this far, therefore, “Let us watch and be vigilant.”
We shall visit Rehovoth in our next message to you, God willing.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One