|
Israel Diary Bet Shean Bet Shean is located 16 miles south of the Sea of Galilee at an altitude of 322 feet below sea level. It sits in the middle of an arid land and is virtually surrounded by water. Eighteen different occupation levels have been identified in the Tel. The Talmud says, "If the garden of Eden is in Israel, then its gate is in Bet Shean." Hi, this is Mike Clay with Virtual Travels from Israel. There is evidence that the first settlers at Bet Shean came about 4,000 BC. The first written evidence is in Egyptian texts in the 19C BC. Bet Shean was a place that was enjoyable to live. It had many advantages in a land that was rugged and demanding. One of its major strengths was water. The water was used for agriculture. It enabled people to live here continuously for nearly 5,000 years. Saul fought the Philistines on Mount Gilboa in 1010 BC and was defeated. First Samuel 31 says they hung his body on the wall of Bet Shean. Later, the Biblical text tells us that David conquered the Philistines at Bet Shean. Bet Shean was an interesting place to visit. It has a huge Roman theater that will seat 5,000 people. The Roman City was called Scythopolis and was an important city for trade in this area of the Roman Empire. Bet Shean has a long history. It was a place of wealth, and from time to time exerted strong influence over the people of the Middle East. But, for all of its advantages, it never achieved greatness. Christians often find themselves questioning God’s call or God’s use of them. In Western society we often measure success with dollars. Christ spoke at length about Kingdom values. He noted that God loves people most of all. He further stated that our call is to minister to people in His name. In the midst of our flourishing, are we exercising the greatness that the Lord called us to? Are we succeeding in loving people most of all? Jesus died for us. Will we live for our neighbor? You will never be the same after you visit Israel, the land of the Bible. (click on pictures to view larger picture)
e-mail comments: mikeclay@virtualtravels.com ©mikeclay.com, 1999 |
™
