Bible Gems from Jerusalem

In the articles I have also attempted to evoke an awareness of the singular interest and beauty of the land of Israel. I have had the privilege of traveling through the length and breadth of the country - over the rugged Judean mountains, across stony deserts and down to the lowest valley on earth where the Jordan slips softly into the Dead Sea. We have made our way through the heartland of Samaria where the hills are covered with vines and groves of olives, their leaves silver in the breeze, gazed with wonder across the vast flat plain of Megiddo, the scene of so many battles, and floated over the gentle waves of the Sea of Galilee. To the west, the wooded slopes of Carmel have provided challenges for climbing; we have also noted where the long mountain ridge thrusts like the prow of a ship into the ocean, there on the long coastline lapped by the everlasting blue waters of the Mediterranean.

However, it is not so much the physical allure of these scenes which strikes the onlooker who is well versed in the scriptures. Rather, the eye everywhere meets with places which bring to mind biblical memories, so that, gazing over the sundrenched beauty of the landscape there rises up visions of the illustrious events and stirring deeds of the past, which reverberate down through the ages into our present time and forged the world in which we live. Here it is that the patriarchs walked, the prophets declaimed, kings and armies clashed; but, above all, this is the landscape which served as a background to the Messiah's presence and miracles. And thus in travelling through the land it is as if we were reading the immortal pages of a great book in which these episodes are recounted.

But it is the sacred city of Jerusalem, arched by the blue dome of heaven, her stones golden in the sunlight, where the rabbis believe God is closest, where His presence lingers in the air. The idea of the City of Gold - Yerushalayim Shel Zahav - at the heart of the earth is of divine origin: “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: 'This is Jerusalem: I have set her in the midst of the nations and the countries all around her’” (Ezekiel 5:5). The city is a dazzling mix of ancient and new, of a hi-tech society and followers of ancient customs who remain true to the ways of their forefathers, the patriarchs of the nation, Moses and David. Today, almost a million Jews, Arabs, Christians and expatriates make their home in the city, while every year new immigrants from Africa, Europe and the ends of the earth are drawn to join the native Jerusalemites. On the narrow streets of the Old City, or in the modern shopping malls, religious and secular rub shoulders; they also mingle at the shuk on Friday mornings to buy fresh produce then rush home before the siren sounds for Shabbat at sundown.

At the same time, Jerusalem remains a continual focus of world attention, for this city, set like a jewel in her mountain fastness, continues to engage the nations with her magnetic appeal. The three Abrahamic faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – all consider the city sacred. For Christians, Jerusalem is the place where Jesus walked, preached and healed, where He shed His blood and rose from the dead. For the Jews, this is where David and his descendants established a great kingdom and built two holy Temples - the irreplaceable centerpoint of their history and faith. According to the Bible, Jerusalem also holds a special place in the heart of God, who identified Jerusalem as the city He had chosen for Himself and desired as His dwelling place, where His presence would rest forever (Psalm 132:13-14).

According to Jewish tradition Jerusalem has more than 70 names, which include: Zion, City of our Solemnities, Perfection of Beauty, Faithful City, and Sought After. But the most common and favored interpretation of her Hebrew name is that it comes from a conjunction of two words: ir, which means city, and shalem, which means peace, so that Yerushalayim, Jerusalem, is thus the City of Peace. Perhaps the most beautiful accolade comes from the modern Israeli poet Naomi Shemer, who writes that the name Jerusalem "scorches the lips like a seraph's kiss". All these names are also prophecies of the Jerusalem that is yet to come and the biblical writings indicate that the prominence of the holy city set on a hill will only continue to increase. (From the Preface)