Michelangelo

Without knowing it David became one of the most influential of historical figures. Whether he existed as told in the biblical stories or not has no importance here. For millenia and till today people hear the stories about King David, and many believe them true.

The account of David is one of the most detailed accounts of anyone in the Bible, beginning with his ancestors and to his death,  and descendants. We hear about his accomplishments as a warrior, as a player of the lyre and the writer of songs. But we also hear about his frailties and faults, of his relationships with some family members and supporters.

Who Was King David

David was the second king of ancient Israel. He is accredited with uniting the two kingdoms, Judah and Israel, under one united Kingdom of Israel. He is also the conqueror of the small town of Jebus, making it into his capital, under the new name Jerusalem. It is these two events that made the historical imprint.

He is generally believed to be born in 1040 BCE*, became king of Judah 1010 BCE and in 1003 BCE created the united Kingdom of Israel. He died in 970 BCE, to be followed by his son Solomon.

The only sources for the life and reign of David can be found in the Bible, in Samuel 1 and 2, 1 Kings and 1 Chronicles. There is to date only one extra biblical record where the name David appears. This is the Tel Dan Stele, an Aramaic inscription from 9th or 8th century BCE, commemorating victories over local peoples including Israel and The House of David.

Biblical Narrative – Early Days

David was the youngest of eight sons of Jesse, a grandson of Ruth and Boaz (Ruth 4:17). As a young man, while King Saul still ruled, he was annointed to be king by the prophet Samuel. (1 Samuel 16:13).

Carravagoio, 1600

While still a youth he was sent by his father to meet his three oldest brothers, who had joined King Saul in the battle against the Philistines in the Valley of Elah (1 Samuel 17:17). There David killed Goliath, the mightiest of the Philistine warriors, with a stone from his sling (1 Samuel 17:49), causing the Israelite victory. Saul takes him to his court and a deep friendship develops between David and Jonathan, Saul’s son (1 Samuel 18:1).

David becomes the most successful and renowned fighter in the Israelite army, loved by all, but causing Saul’s jealousy (1 Samuel 18: 5-16). Hoping to snare David, Saul arranges for his daughter Michal to marry David (1 Samuel 18:27). David is also known as an accomplished harp player (1 Samuel 18:10), and is accredited with writing many of the psalms.

David becomes an accomplished warrior, and captain of Saul’s army. His popularity enrages Saul, and David flees the court into the desert, where many men join his band. He comes to an agreement with one of the Philistine rulers, Achish of Gat, and stays in Ziglak for many years (David in wilderness and Ziglak 1 Samuel 19:1-30:31), only to return to Judah on the death of Saul and Jonathan during the battle with the Philistines at Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 31).

David As King

David mourned the death of Saul and his sons (2 Samuel:11), moves to Hebron (2 Samuel 2:3), from where he rules for 7 years. After the death of Ish-boshet, Saul’s surviving son and ruler of Israel (2 Samuel 4:7), David is anointed king of Judah and Israel, the United Kingdom (2 Samuel 5:3).

He now conquers the Jebusite stronghold (2 Samuel 5:7), to become known as The City of David, Jerusalem. He establishes it as his capital and the center of worship by bringing the Ark of the Covenant into the city (2 Samuel 6:12). The Ark is placed on Mount Moriah, but David is not allowed by God to build a temple around it. This falls to his son, Solomon.

There are many stories about David as king, how he keeps defeating the Philistines and his relationship with friends and family. To recount them here would make long and tedious reading. But two stories are better known. The first is the story of his infatuation with Batsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite, how he disposes of Uriah, so he can marry Batsheba, who becomes the mother of Solomon (2 Samuel 11:1-27).

The other story is about his son, Absalom, who rebels against his father (2 Samuel 15:1—)  and his death (2 Samuel 18:14). The cause of the rebellion is partly the rape of Tamar, Absalom’s full sister, by her brother or rather half-brother Amnon (2 Samuel 13:1-14).

The End

Before his death David finally made order in his inheritance, and had Solomon annointed king (1 Kings 1:39). He dies soon hereafter (1 Kings 2:10), after having ruled his kingdom and people for 40 years.

His legacy is not only in creating the United Kingdom and making Jerusalem the religious center of Jewish worship. It goes much deeper. For Jews in later generations he becomes the ultimate symbol of unity and belonging to the Land. In later generations he came to be seen as a model for the mashiah (Hebrew for messiah). This is still true to some degree for certain parts of Jews today.

*BCE – Before Common Era; CE – Common Era.

The land in question lies below the Israel Museum, with the Botanical Gardens adjoining, and touching upon the cross-city Begin Highway. It had been leased to the two kibbutzim as agricultural land for many years, but the lease was up. However, the kibbutzim together with a land developer claimed the land.

The problem is that the last small herd of gazelles from the hills of Jerusalem had this land as their home. Being between two hills, the area has become known as Gazelle Valley. These gazelles were cut off some 15 years before the dispute started from their natural habitat and other herds of gazelles in the Judean Mountains, due to roads and homes being built all around.

As if this was not enough the herd of gazelles have been depleted through hunting by wild dogs. It took months of relentless activity by the SPNI to catch the dogs, but by then only three does were left

The District Planning and Building Council of Jerusalem has finally given approval for a plan ensuring the does’ future and enabling the re-population of the herd. Their plan calls for part of the valley to be left in its natural state, to accommodate the gazelles, while the remainder would be a public park.

The SPNI has also committed to bring in fresh blood to maintain the herd of gazelles.

Biblical reference
This is a tremendous boost in animal protection, and especially important to readers of the bible. One of the earliest references to gazelles in this area comes from Song of Solomon 3:5 – I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or the does of the field …

Thanks goes to: Ha’Aretz Daily Newspaper and the Jerusalem Post

As if Jerusalem needs more landmarks, what with the Old City, Mt. Olives, Temple Mount, Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, just to mention a few.

But Jerusalem also wants modern landmarks, and the latest is the Harp Bridge, or as it is often referred to in English – the String Bridge. It is one of those things that will not leave you cold. Either you hate it or you love it. For sure, it can be seen from long way away. On entering or leaving Jerusalem by Route One, you can’t help seeing it.

The Harp Bridge has been built to serve the light rail being installed in Jerusalem to relieve congestion and to get rid of some of the busses that today make up all of public transport in the city. Though construction of the rail is way overdue, the bridge was inaugurated a couple of years ago, and expected to be taken into use within two years. The only ones so far using the bridge are pedestrians, who can now safely cross the extremely busy intersection at the entrance to the city.

However, as a landmark is can also claim to be a world landmark. It is the longest, curved single support suspension bridge in the world. The support, or the Finger, rises to a height of 183 meters. I don’t know how long it is, but it is long. The whole structure was designed by the Spanish architect, Santiago Calatrav, the world’s expert on suspension bridges. It was built to the tune of $73 million, way above what a more conventional bridge would have cost. This alone was the subject of much of the controversy over the bridge. Discussions were also over the whether it fit into the Jerusalem landscape.

It became know as the Harp Bridge or String Bridge due to the massive wires strung from various points of the finger down to the bridge itself.

So now Jerusalem has its new landmark, whether we like it or not, whether we agree to the extraordinary cost (after all its already built). The citizens of Jerusalem have become used to it by now, and may already have forgotten, what they thought about it at first. You will see it, no doubt, when you visit Jerusalem.

Here is a news item on the String Bridge that give you different perspectives from around the time of its inauguration.

It is just coincidence that Jerusalem’s International Annual Half Marathon, the 18th, falls on March 18th this year. Participating in sports events of this kind is definitely being alive, and bringing more life to the city.

As in previous years participants come from all over Israel and all over the world. The route begins and ends in the Givat Ram Stadium of the Hebrew University and goes through some of Jerusalem’s unique and pictoresque landscapes. The route will take runners on a slightly hilly and challenging route and past the Shrine of the Book, housing the Dead Sea Scroll, the Israel Museum, the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, and the Jerusalem forest.

The Marathon is set with two lengths: half marathon of 21.1 km and the fun run of 10 km. There are 18 different race categories, split by gender and age, from below 16 to 73 and above. 6 prices will be given out.

Participants of the half marathon are invited to participate in a gala dinner of pasta the evening before the race. All runners will receive a t-shirt and a certificate and medal.

Price for participation is $25-$40. Registration can be done online through marathon page in English on the municipality’s site www.jerusalem.muni.il.

If you are lucky you may run side by side with Nir Barkat, the mayor of Jerusalem, and an avid marathon runner himself.

Rare bust of Herod the Great, 1st C

Herod was born in 73 BCE to an Arab mother and an Edomite father, who some claim had converted to Judaism. He grew up in Hasmonean Judea, where he was raised as a Jew. At this time the Hasmonean kingdom, which had ruled since the Maccabean Revolt in 162 BCE, was being torn apart through a civil war between two princely brothers, Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II. This at a time when Rome was the rising superpower of the ancient world.

Around the year 67 BCE Hyrcanus turns to Rome for help, and Rome enters under the conquest of General Pompei. Herod, as his father, had early on seen the benefits of siding with the Romans, and eventually it was the Romans who installed Herod as King of Judea.

This was not seen kindly by the Jewish population, and Herod had to fight for the throne against the people he was to rule over, a fight he finally won in 37 BCE. Despite having had to fight for the rule, throughout his rule till his death in 4 BCE he strove to keep a delicate balance between the Romans and his Jewish subjects, who fiercely strived to maintain their political and religious independence and uniqueness. Topped by this was the Jewish attitude to Herod. They always saw him as a “half-Jew”, an outsider imposed on them by the Romans.

This political astuteness is also displayed in his attitude to the Romans. In his early years he had aligned himself with Mark Antony, who ruled over the eastern part of the Roman Empire, while Octavian, later Augustus, ruled over the Western part. In 31 BCE Octavian defeats Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle at Actium, to be followed by their suicide.

Herod is now in a precarious position. He travels to Cyprus to meet Octavian. Instead of denying his loyalty to Mark Antony, he underscores it, and promises the same loyalty to Octavian. Octavian, impressed, confirms him as ruler of Judea and later even adds land to the Herod’s realm.

Not only was Herod an astute politician, he was also a great economist and architect. Throughout his rule he rebuilds trade routes and industries, bringing the country to unprecedented prosperity and relative peace. Though raised a Jew, in heart he is Roman, and encourages Roman culture at all stages.

Herod is probably best known for two things: his cruelty and his architectural feats. To the Christian world he is known as the king, who ordered the killing of all male children to the age of two, as reported in Matthew 2: 16 (The only source to this story).

But in reality he was more cruel to his own family. When rumors reach him of a possible rebellion in favor of Miriamne, his beloved wife from the Hasmonean family, he orders her killed. At a later stage he also orders their sons to be killed, and later still he had three more sons killed.

As a builder he has gone unsurpassed throughout history. He built several fortresses throughout the country, the most famous – Masada and Herodion. Since the country lacked a deep-sea water port, he created one on the northern coast of the country, and surrounded it with a magnificent Roman town – Caesarea. He built himself palaces everywhere of a magnitude rarely seen elsewhere, in Jerusalem, in Jericho, on Masada and his pleasure palace and burial site, Herodion.

He donated money for many more building projects inside and outside of the country. But his greatest building project was Temple Mount in Jerusalem, a project he never saw completed.

Herod died in the year 4 BCE in his winter palace in Jericho, following long and painful illness, and short time later buried at Herodion.

Following his death, the Romans divided his kingdom among his three surviving sons: Archaelaus in Southern Judea with Jerusalem as his capital; Herod Antipas in the Galilee with Zippori as his capital; and Herod Phillip in the Gaulanitis with Banias, also known as Caesarea Philippi, as his capital.

For more detailed description of Herod, his career and his building projects, see National Geographic

© Copyright: Birte Edwards, Your Guide to Israel, January 2010

From around the year 200 BCE the land of Judea has been under the rule of the Seleucid Greeks. The first ruler Antiochus III was benevolent towards the Jews and had granted them the right to live according to their ancestral traditions. However, his son Antiochus IV Epiphanes turned this around, banned the daily sacrifices at the Temple in Jerusalem, in effect outlawing Judaism. He also banned circumcision and ordered pigs to be sacrificed in the Temple, and had a statue to Zeus installed in the Temple.

This proved too much for the Jews, and under the leadership of Jewish priest, Mattathias and his five sons, Yohanan, Simeon, Eleazar, Jonathan and Judah, they rose up in rebellion against the Greeks. After two years of fighting, the Jews came out successful, and had liberated Jerusalem and the Temple from the Greeks.

Judah Maccabee (Yehuda HaMacabi or Yehuda the Hammer) ordered all vestiges of the Greeks to be removed, including the alter that had been desecrated. A new alter was made. The whole Temple compound now needed to be purified and rededicated. To do so the Menorah (the Seven-Armed Candelabra) was to be lit and burn for eight days. However, the olive oil found was too little to burn for every night for eight days, as demanded.

Zohar, Alma and Dror lighting hanukkah candles

Despite that there was only enough oil for one night, the lights were lit, and a miracle occurred that they burnt for the full eight days. This happened on the 25th day of the Hebrew month of  Kislev.

To this day Jews all over begin the Hanukkah holiday on this day. The tradition is to light the hanukkiah (a nine armed candelabra). Nine – eight arms, one for each of the day of Hanukkah, and the ninth to light the other lights. This one is known as the shamash, the servant. The tradition is that on the first night of Hanukkah one light is lit with the shamash, on the second night two, and so on, till on the eight night all lights are burning.

During the lighting of the lights blessings are said. This is followed by the singing of Ma’oz Zur, and generally, especially here in Israel, with the singing of many other songs. Hanukka is the holiday with more songs than any other of the Jewish holidays.

Special foods belong to Hanukka, as with all other holidays. The foods for Hanukkah are traditionally food fried in oil (to remind of the oil used during the dedication). This holiday, more than any of the others, is characterized by foods high in calories, such as latkes, potato pancakes, and soufganiot, a type of doughnut, often injected with jam.

The sevivon, a four-sided spinning top is an integral part of Hanukkah. Each side is inscribed with a Hebrew letter – nun, gimel, heh and peh, for the four words: nes gadol haya po – a great miracle was here. Games developed around this sevivon, still played in many households.

Hag Sameah (Happy Holiday)

The part of the wall that is exposed is what is by most is referred to as The Western Wall. However, what we today can see is only a small section of a much larger wall that stretches for some 488 meters total. This larger wall is really the Western retaining wall to the Temple Mount, built by Herod  the Great, beginning 19 BCE.

What is commonly referred to as The Western Wall is 57 meter long and 19 meters high. There are a total of 45 courses of stone, 28 above present ground level, 17 below. These 17 courses plus 7 visible courses are the original stones from Herods retaining wall. The next four courses were added in the early Arab period (636-1099), the next 14 from the Ottoman period, and the last three were added in the 20th century.

Until the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by the Romans in the year 70 CE, it was the Temple, standing on the Temple Mount platform, that was the holy place for Jews, and where they would come three times a year to worship.

In the years following this destruction, Jews were banned from living in Jerusalem, and only allowed in at certain times of the year for devotion and prayers. At this early stage, Jews still harbored dreams of being allowed to rebuild the Temple, a dream that was finally thwarted in the 2nd century folloing the Bar Kochba Rebellion.

It is not clear when Jews began coming to this section to pray. We do know that Jews in 425 were granted permission to settle again in Jerusalem by the Empress Aelia Eudocia. There are some sources that indicate that at this stage Jews were beginning to pray at the Wall. We have many more sources from early Middle Ages that show that this was the place where Jews congregated for prayers and devotional purposes.

With the Arab conquest in 636, and the building of the Dome of the Rock and The Al-Aqsa Mosque on Temple Mount itself, all non-Moslems are now banned from entering this area.

Postcard, early 20th C

The large plaza in front of the Wall today was not always there. Following the Arar conquest of the land and Jerusalem from the Crusaders in 1193, the land in front of the Wall was built up and settled by Arabs from Morocco, and therefore became known as the Mograbi Quarter (Mograbi = Morocco).

In the centuries following is the time when the tradition of the holiness of the Wall becomes permanent. At the same time, Muslim traditions around the Wall grow up, and give rise to the Arab name for the Wall – Al Buraq. Al Buraq was the name of Mohammad’s horse, and the tradition is that this is where it was tethered while Mohammad himself went up on the mountain (Mohammad’s Night Journey).

Contention between Arab and Jews over the rights to the place intensified. Numerous attempts were made by various Jews and Jewish groups to purchase the right to the place, as well as the neighboring Mograbi Quarter, all without success.

In the first days immediately following the conquest of Jerusalem’s Old City during the Six-Day War in 1967, the Israel Army took upon itself to demolish the Mograbi Quarter. The reason for this were the many Israelis who began coming to Jerusalem, for the first time in 19 years, as well as the approaching holiday of Shavuot, one of the holidays Jews have to celebrate in Jerusalem.

This week it is the turn of Reggae star Alpha Blondy from Cote D’Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Alpha Blondy is not just a internationally renown reggae singer, but also a social activist in his home country and around the world. He used his music in activism against apartheid, social injustice and warcrimes, especially during the civil war in Ivory Coast.

Blondy has been her before, but this time he came with his wife, Ran Young Hong Kone, who has never visited Israel. One of the first places that Blondy wants to take her is to Jerusalem, and in particular to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This is where Blondy met Jesus, or as he calls him ‘my big brother Jesus’.

Blondy is here not just as a tourist but to perform at the inauguration of the African Center in the University of Ben Gurion, in Beersheva. The inauguration is a two-day event, and one of the songs that Blondy is planning to sing is his tribute to Yitzhak Rabin z”l, assassinated in 1995. He also intends to perform “Jerusalem”, a song he wrote in 1985 after his first visit.

“Jerusalem” at live concert July 2008

Article Source:  Ha’aretz Israeli Daily Newspaper in English

Dominus Flevit – direct translation The Lord Cried – is also known as The Tear Drop Church. The present church was built in 1952 according to the plans of the Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi. It stands over the site where tradition has it that Jesus prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem.

Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. But he answered them “You see all these, do you not? Truly I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down”
Luke 24:1-2

The tradition that the site of modern Dominus Flevit is the site of the prophesy of the destruction of Jerusalem dates back to the Byzantine period (324-636 CE). This can be seen by the remains of the mosaic floor, to be found adjoining the entrance to the modern church.

Barluzzi managed to express architecturally the events. When standing inside the church one is supposed to get the feeling of standing inside a tear drop. Since Jesus is prophesying the destruction of Jerusalem, the single large window causes the visitor to look out onto Jerusalem.
Through special dispensation this is the only Catholic church to face west, allowing the view to be the altar picture.

Outside on top of each corner Barluzzi placed huge stone replicas of tear bottles. In Roman times there was a tradition of collecting tears in glass vials and pour them out on the grave of the deceased.

Dominus Flevit, though small, is clearly seen, when viewing the Mount of Olives from the West. One of the tell-tale signs are the thousand of visitors thronging this small area, pointing to the importance of the tradition surrounding the site.

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

The Dead Sea Scrolls have been called the greatest biblical archeological find of the 20th century.

The scrolls were placed in caves at Qumran on the northwest shores of the Dead Sea, where they lay hidden in the hot, dry air for almost 2000 years, until they were accidentally discovered by a Bedouin.

Since the first scroll came to light in 1947, a total of 11 complete scrolls and some 15.000 fragments have come to light. Almost all of them are under the protection of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem and the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA).

Despite their age and the climate of where they were hidden, it is amazing that we even have this much. But they are fragile, and are kept in special vaults of the Israel Museum. This makes the reading and interpretation extremely difficult.

Of course no one uses the original when studying these ancient biblical and sectarian texts. Already back in the 1950′s they were photographed with infrared technology, and eventually published, so that any scholar who so desires can study them.

Now a new project has begun to digitally produce the Dead Sea Scrolls, using the state of the art digital and infrared photography. Experts from the world are involved in this important project. Through the use of powerful cameras that produce no heat and ultraviolet light that would damage the fragile scrolls, scientists have been able to decipher sections and letters invisible to the naked eye.

Till now some 4000 digital images have been created. The project is estimated to take five years. All images will eventually be placed in an internet data bank.

For the full article in Ha’aretz on line edition.