Galilee 9: Hazor, Tel Dan, Banias, Nimrods Castle, Syria Overlook

Hazor- Canaanite Hazor- the largest in all of Canaan, guards international highway known as the Way of the Sea (Froad from Damascus, Hulo valley and that lead to galilee) Great Israelite tower that watched for the Assyrians. 200 acres. But 25 acres preserved, old synagogue, about 40,000 people. Destoryed by Joshua (Joshua 11:10-11) 1 meter thick of burned stuff.

Started by king Solomon- 9 acres King Ahab doubled it in size, then Solomon, then Tiglath Peleasar conquered. This is happening to our ancestors! The took control of them and spread them everywhere. 6 chamber Solomonic gates. Casemate walls where they would fill up rooms of rocks if necessary, but not in the war it was used for storage. 1 kings 9:15

Hazor

1. What are the trade routes Hazor controlled during the Canaanite Era?

1) North to south Via Maaris trade route between Damascus and Megiddo

2) A northwest to southeast route from Sideon to Beth Shean.

2. How many occupation levels did archaelologists identify at Hazor?

21 layers

3. What is the name of the city in northern Syria, which had a trade relationship with Hazor?

Mari

4. What are the two types of Canaanite temples found at Hazor?

1. one of “standing stones” (like the temple at Gezer)

2. a broadroom temple (like the acropolis temple found at Lachish)

5. What did the archaeologist A.Ben Tor hope to find at Hazor? Why?

the Canaanite royal archive (library); because other discovered royal archives had the Mari Tablets and Amarna Letters (which mentioned Hazor as the “Head of all those kingdoms”)

6. How does the stratigraphy of Hazor support the Biblical account of the Israelite Conquest?

    Sophisticated Canaanite stratum are topped by a destruction layer, and on top of that is an Israelite stratum (identified by collar-rim jars and the architecture of relatively primitive         huts). 

Pretending to be a gate!

Tell Dan! This was probably one of my very favorite parts!

Dan

Dan was called LAISH in Canaanite times. The Middle Bronze arched GATEWAY was built about the time that ABRAHAM went to Dan to rescue his nephew, LOT. This area became a second inheritance for the tribe of DAN. The phrase from DAN to BEERSHEBA’ indicated the north and south borders of ancient Israel. The first king of Israel, JEROBOAM, built an idolatrous altar (a golden calf) and worshipped it at Dan.

Dan- Gorgeous nature walk. Christ as the living waters. John 4. Beautiful springs that came right out of the river, drank from the river, it is the main feed into the Jordan river. This water is completely pure, travel down the Jordan river, float in Galilee for 10 days then go down the Jordan to the dead sea. Fig leaves- Adam and Eve.  I loved just walking through the forest, it smelled like a beautiful forest and I didn’t want to leave. Pooh bear tree. This city had so much potential and numerous resources,  just like we do, but this old city was taken by the gold calf, worshipping Idols, what are our idols? High place Jereboam built so they would worship there, not in Jerusalem. They worshipped Jehovah, but in a manner that against the 10 commandments as Idol worship, gate from time of Abraham Genesis 14, lovely to be outside. Bunker, Lebanon. War happened here and still had shells, mines, old tanks. 4 chamber gates. Brother Chadwick talked a lot about Ganjar- the city that is owned by Lebanon and Israel. HUGE issues, big problems with splitting it up, in the west bank completely off limits for us. Aloite muslims- town inbetween Israel and Lebanon don’t want to be ruled by the Shiite muslims.

Fig! What Adam and Eve covered themselves with!

Freshest water there is! Fresh spring!

Looking at Syria!

This tomb has something to do with Abraham....?

Look at that itty, bitty castle on top! That's our next stop!

Banias
Temple of Pan, cut outs in the mountain and worshipping amy, worship Ba’al, Peter recognizing “Thou art the Christ” Matt 16:13-23 still didn’t know what kind of Messiah, they thought a political messiah, but wasn’t.

            Rock we build our testimonies are like. What kind of Messiah is Christ for us?

Nimrod’s Castle- SO COOL! Castle that anyone could walk through, we could seriously get lotst in there. We only got to stay for 40 minutes it was on a gorgeous cliff, this castle had no possible way of losing a battle because it was so high on the hill jutting with cliffs, they could kill anyone that came in contact with it.

Nimrod Fortress

Nimrod Fortress lies below Mt. Hermon and above BANIAS. Replacing an earlier castle built by CRUSADERS and destroyed in 1219, the surviving fortress was built by AYYUBID rulers. Yet it contains at least 3 features of Crusader architecture:  MASSIVE PIERS, POINTED ARCHES, AND PAINTED VAULTS. 

Syrian Overlook! It was soooo cold... we had completely forgotten what cold was!