We are now home from a month of study in the land of Israel, having grown from learning many new things there. Check the and Israel photo gallery for more pictures. We are also excited to announce that our book, Listening to the Language of the Bible. is now available! Please see the flyer by clicking the previous link. And please read on for more news items:

 Israel Travel Report

On July 10, the 32 participants in En-Gedi's study trip in Israel arrived from around the world - coming from Michigan, Colorado, California, New York, South Africa, Australia, Hong Kong and Uganda! We spent 14 days touring with Dr. Steven Notley and Dr. Wink Thompson of Emmaus Educational Services. Our guides have both lived in Israel for years, and have taken hundreds of students from  Jerusalem University College on study trips around the land. With our bus driver, an Arab Christian who grew up in Bethlehem, we were able to go to many sites off the beaten path and in the West Bank. Our itinerary often grew as we had an opportunity to go to new archaeological digs in progress, or on the Temple Mount. At no time did we feel unsafe, and in fact felt welcomed in areas where the lack of tourists had resulted in much lost business. For a mini-tour of where we went, see the photo gallery from our trip.

Our trip focused on the life and ministry of Jesus, looking at his words in light of the land and Jewish culture of the first century. We spent time around the Sea of Galilee, discussing Jesus' teaching in light of John the Baptist's ministry and the context of other Jewish thought of his time. Then we headed south to Jerusalem and looked at Jesus' activities there, especially the events of his last week and death. We also spent a couple of days in the desert, visiting Masada, Qumran and En-Gedi. We found the scenes coming to life before us, with many new ah-hah's, and often our own pictures changed.

 Renewed and Revised Imagery

Sometimes older beliefs that had been challenged were re-confirmed. For instance, two sites have been considered for the place of the crucifixion: the older site is at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher since 400 AD, while the site of the Garden Tomb has been proposed as the place in the past 150 years. The earlier site was challenged because it appeared to be within the city walls, instead of outside, as it says in the gospels (John 19:20). However, Dr. Notley showed us evidence of first century Jewish graves in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher which only would have been dug outside of the city walls. He also pointed out remains of ancient walls and a "Garden Gate" that would have placed the older site outside the city, exactly as tradition has it. So the oldest tradition about where Jesus was crucified was more solidly confirmed in our minds.

On the other hand, other pictures of ours have been redrawn in the light of archaeology. Many of us already know that DaVinci's picture of the Last Supper is quite far from reality - that the disciples didn't sit in chairs at a long table, eating fish for the Passover meal that required lamb and unleavened bread (See the director's article here). It has been thought that they may have reclined at low seats around a triclinium - a U-shaped table. Dr. Notley challenged even that, suggesting that no tables were present at all in the room but that people reclined around large platters of food that were placed on the floor. The word "table" isn't present in Greek in the gospels, and tables are rarely found in excavations of that period, but platters are much more common. He also suggested that instead of just 12 disciples present, that the room may have been packed to overflowing with people of all ages. For millennia, Passovers have always been large, jovial gatherings of family and friends, enjoying the story of God's great salvation of his people from Egypt. The participants would have been eager to hear how this powerful rabbi who may be the Messiah would retell the story. They wouldn't have been disappointed as Jesus shared the news that redemption had reached its greatest fulfillment in himself.

We have many other stories to tell that will come later out in articles and seminars - we pray this trip will enrich our ministry's teaching for a long time. We are considering another trip to Israel in a couple years. Email us to let us know if you are interested and we will start a list to keep informed.

Lessons from the Land - Water from the Rock Series

For this month, the theme of the Water from the Rock devotional series is Lessons from the Land, and it will be on insights we gain on the scriptures from having walked in the land of Israel, and understanding the physical setting, the history and the culture there. We will be sharing some observations from our recent study trip there. Many of you have been to Israel - if you have a helpful insight on the scripture that comes from your learning about the land, please consider sharing it as a devotional article by using this form.

Listening to the Language of the Bible - now available!

We have now received shipment of the first 5,000 copies of Listening to the Language of the Bible: Hearing it Through Jesus' Ears.

Listening to the Language of the Bible is a guide for discovering the richness of the scripture in its Hebraic setting. Many words and phrases in the Bible are wider, deeper and more meaningful in their original language than in English. The book contains more than 60 beautifully illustrated, brief devotionals that unpack the meaning of a biblical word or phrase for our lives. It is intended both for personal reflection and as a continuing reference. It would make a nice gift for a friend who likes Bible study, or even to share with a group of study partners.

The book was designed and written by our directors, Lois Tverberg and Bruce Okkema, and published entirely by the En-Gedi Resource Center. It is soft cover, 192 pages, and costs $9.95 US (with discounts for group orders.)

Here is an excerpt from the introduction:

Anyone who studies the Bible will notice right from the start that it often speaks in words and phrases that are difficult to understand. We need to remember that the scriptures come to us from languages and cultures very different from our own. ... If we delve further into the minds of the Bible’s authors, we often discover that their strange-sounding language actually contains rich insights that are not always apparent in the English translation. These insights are often key to understanding the text and applying it to our lives. We also discover rich poetry, humorous irony, and timeless wisdom when we hear their thoughts more clearly ... Come along with us as we open the Scriptures and discover keys that will unlock hidden treasure for our lives.

We hope that we can bless your study through this book and more to come in the future!

Once again we need to say that summer is a very lean time for support. Your contributions are always appreciated, and would be especially welcome during these dry times.