Haas Promenade

On our last morning in Jerusalem we went to the Haas Promenade where we had our final teaching by David Arthur. The Mount of Olives is in the right of the photo. You can barely see the Dome of the Rock in the center. The tower on the right on the top of the Mount of Olives is where Jesus is supposed to have ascended into heaven.

From this vantage point tradition holds that Abraham was shown Mount Moriah as the site for the binding of Isaac. Hidden under this ridge are the remains of an aqueduct built by Herod the Great to bring water from the south, by way of his summer palace, Herodium, to the second temple. This area was a no man's land in the period between the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 and the reunification of Jerusalem in 1967. At one end of the promenade, on the Hill of Evil Counsel (I love the name), is the United Nations Middle East Headquarters, located in the former Palace of the British High Commissioner. In front of the promenade on the slope is the Jerusalem Peace Forest. The Jerusalem municipality plants a tree in this forest for every child born in Jerusalem, representing the eternal hope of peace bridging the Arab and Jewish populations. Of course, we know that Jerusalem will experience no peace until the return of Jesus.

 

We are with Freda. We ate dinner with her family every night. They are dear people.

Our last lesson raised the question, “What are you going to do with what you have learned?” and “What sort of people should we be?” I will never look at the Bible in the same way again. Having been in the place where much of it was written and walked in the places where Jesus walked, has had a profound impact on my life. Also being able to see the fulfillment of prophecy right before my eyes, I know that there is nothing more important for me than being prepared for Christ’s eminent return.

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God…But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless…be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. 2 Peter 3:9-18

After our lesson, we sang “Jesus Messiah.”

Now we’re on to the Israel Museum, a free afternoon, a last dinner, and the airport…