Sunday, May 29, 2011

Sandstorms




I took this picture while we were driving through the Arava Desert. Visibility was poor and by the time we arrived in Eilat, our skin and hair were grimy and dirty, even though the windows in the car were up and the vents were closed. This sandstorm was definitely not one of the Middle East's worst; by comparison, really treacherous sandstorms make this one seem tame.

I remember Jean Saad - a British-born Jordanian - talking about sand to depict a point during a teaching session. She said, "There's a lot of sand in this part of the world." And she's right. It's everywhere. In the United States, it's okay to dust only once a week. In the Middle East, if you don't dust nearly every day, big dust bunnies will accumulate under beds and in corners of rooms.

When we first went to Jordan, we stayed with the Reeds until we got settled into our own apartment. The breeze was nice, so one day I opened the window. The cleaning lady happened to be there and let me know that an open window was not a good idea. The breeze I was enjoying would bring with it fine, almost imperceptible, dust. It would be everywhere...and she would have to clean it! That was my introduction to how dust creates an annoyance for people who live in modern Middle Eastern homes.

Sometimes the Bible compares multitudes of people to the sand of the seashore. Abraham was promised that his descendants would be as innumerable "as the sand which is upon the sea shore" (Genesis 22:17). God reaffirmed this promise to Jacob, Abraham's grandson, again using sand as an illustration (Genesis 32:12). The final battle of all ages will be a dreadfully spectacular display of troops, "the number of whom is as the sand of the sea" (Revelation 20:8).

Aside from representing vast numbers of people, the Bible uses sand in other contexts also. In Egypt, Joseph stored up so much food that it was "as the sand of the sea" (Genesis 41:49). Solomon's wisdom is compared to the sand along the sea shore (I Kings 4:29). And God's thoughts "are more in number than the sand" (Psalm 139:17-18).

God used sand as an object lesson because people living in the Holy Land would have no question about what He meant. Though the landscape varies dramatically, it is still mostly all desert. And desert means sand...a lot of sand, so much sand that no one can measure it.

Biblical people lived with sand, adjusted to its brutal intensity. For them, there were no intercontinental flights available so they could cash in the harsh desert for a cooler locale. The desert was their world. From birth to death, it surrounded them, influenced them, shaped who they were.

And the Middle Eastern sand is not pleasantly arranged along the beautiful backdrop of a Hawaii-type setting. The sun is ruthless and the temperatures are merciless. Where the desert is flat and punctuated by little more than an occasional acacia tree, dust devils form. Where the desert land becomes cragged, impenetrable, and steep, it deters all but the most tenacious individuals. Even where the sand dunes rise and fall, creating a gloriously daunting sight, the desert - not fragile man - commands respect. This is not a place for the faint-hearted.

The lifestyle of Bedouin tribes closely mirrors the lives of biblical patriarchs. When sand swirls around the Bedouin - the people of the desert - they draw their head coverings around their faces for protection. Today, when a sandstorm threatens cities, residents are told to stay indoors if they have asthma or other respiratory problems or if they are very young or very old. A person caught unprotected in a sandstorm has little hope of survival, so the long head covering is an essential item of clothing for a Bedouin desert dweller.

From my first naive introduction to desert life, as I enjoyed the curtains gently blowing in the dusty breeze, to driving through a genuine sandstorm in Israel's Arava Desert, I have gleaned a fresh respect for and understanding of biblical people. Their lives were not easy, but they thrived, they grew, they learned. They had no choice, no alternatives, no options. God assigned them to life in the desert. End of discussion.

Interestingly, I observed that the weather is not a popular subject in the Middle East, as it is in the United States. Whatever comes, they will face it, but they have little interest in analyzing it.

The tendency to ask, "Why?" seems to be imbedded within us Americans. We also ask, "Why me?" We want a logical explanation, a professional analysis that makes sense of our storms.

Job wanted answers also. In the heat of the desert sun, he sought relief from the sore boils - the black leprosy - that plagued him. The sun's heat somewhat eased his pain but even so, he was driven to scrape himself with shards of pottery. He asked "Why, God?" But God's voice was silent.

After many chapters of analysis and questions, Job got his answer. It wasn't the one he wanted. To Job's many questions, God finally replied, "Who is God? Are you God, Job? Who created this world and everything in it? Did you do that, Job? Why don't you stop talking and just trust me?" In the end, God's ways really were best for Job. God really did know what He was doing. Rarely will we understand the storm or its purpose until it is over.

The most difficult storms to accept are the ones we create ourselves. The 1930s Dust Bowl - a time of drought and severe dust storms - resulted mostly because farmers did not use proper farming techniques. They ravaged the fragile topsoil layers of Oklahoma and other areas. Essentially, farmers destroyed their own land. The repurcussions were devastating. When the drought and wind came, it took with it the farmable soil. But even when we create our own problems, God will still help us. He is overwhelmingly patient and kind. He'll help us pick up the pieces of our lives and start anew.

Trust. Don't fight the storm; find the Secret Place and retreat into its shelter. As the Bedouin wraps himself in his garment, protecting himself from the wind and sand, cold and heat, so can we be protected when we submit ourselves to the coverings of our God. It is really not important that we understand the storm; even if we understood it, we are powerless to change it. Trust, rest, retreat into the arms of the Creator.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Ketef Hinnom


 
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The picture on the left is Ketef Hinnom. For perspective, I added the picture on the right. Ketef Hinnom is in the foreground with Mt. Zion in the background. Hinnom is the valley between the two.
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We were in search of Ketef Hinnom, the archaeological burial site where two tiny silver amulets were discovered in 1979. Why was I so interested in these amulets and seeing the place where they were discovered? Because they are the oldest surviving copies of biblical text. They date to the late 7th century BCE. They are about 400 years older than the more renowned Dead Sea Scrolls. The Dead Sea Scrolls were a marvelous find, and in terms of volume, these amulets cannot compare to them. But the amulets are remarkable because, not only are they the oldest copies of biblical text, but they contain the oldest inscription of the name of God: YHWH.
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The two amulets are displayed in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. They are incredibly small, about 1” x 3-3/4” and 1/2” x 1-1/2”. They are so thin that I could barely detect the inscriptions, even though the smaller one was positioned behind a magnifying glass. The explanatory sign beside them states: “The amulets, inscribed in the ancient Hebrew script, were found rolled into tiny scrolls in a burial cave in Jerusalem. They were incised with a sharp, thin stylus no thicker than a hair’s breadth, and thus deciphering the inscription was difficult.”
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Scholars were eventually able to discern that the amulets contained the Priestly Benediction, found in Numbers 6:24-26. The Lord told Moses that Aaron and his sons should speak these words to the children of Israel. Even today, priests repeat these words every Shabbat in orthodox synagogues.
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On the small amulet was written these words: “[For so-and-so, (the son/daughter of…] h/hu. May h[e]/sh[e] be blessed by YHWH, the warrior and the rebuker of [Evil]: May YHWH bless you, keep you. May YHWH make his face shine upon you and grant you p[ea]ce.”
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The large amulet was similar and scholars were able to distinguish the following: “[…]YHW…the grea[t…who keeps] the covenant and [g]raciousness toward those who love [him] and those who keep [his commandments…] the Eternal […] [the?] blessing more than any [sna]re and more than Evil. For redemption is in him. For YHWH is our restorer [and] rock. May YHWH bles[s] you and [may he] keep you. [May] YHWH make [his face] shine…”
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Ketef Hinnom means “shoulder of Hinnom.” If I remember correctly, modern day Jews pronounce it “Kay-teff Hee-gnome.” It is a hill near Hebron Road that overlooks the Hinnom Valley.
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A guide book got us to the general area, but its directions were not precise enough. We walked up Hebron Road, where we saw a sign that said “Bible Hill.” I thought that this might be Ketef Hinnom. We climbed up Bible Hill and were rewarded with a beautiful view of Mount Zion and the Old City...but no burial cave. We sat on some concrete blocks, enjoying our view of Jerusalem, joking about the “ancient” concrete structures. We could see St. Andrews Church of Scotland, which the guide book said was next to the cave, but a barbed wire fence kept us from accessing the property from Bible Hill. I later learned that this hill is termed Bible Hill because the tribes of Judah and Benjamin used this ridge it to mark their boundaries (Joshua 15:8; 18:16).
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We climbed down the hill and finally found the front gate into the Scottish Church. The clerk in the guest house/church knew nothing about the cave. Only when we described to him what it looked like did he remember that this famous cave was on his property! Anyway, we found the cave. What we were able to view was the lower portion of the burial site, since the upper portion was razed years ago, possibly during a war.
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In Bible days, people were generally buried in family tombs, usually cave-type structures that were hewn out of rocks. Many generations would use these tombs. A good example of this is Abraham’s family. Abraham purchased a cave in Machpelah. The Bible records that Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob and Leah were all buried in this same cave (Genesis 23:3-20; 49:29-32).
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At Ketef Hinnom, spaces configured to the shape and size of human bodies were carved on the floor of the tomb. We could even detect the outline of the place where the heads would lie. When a family member died, he or she was placed in one of these spaces.
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Periodically, the skeletons of the dead would be removed and placed in a pit that was in the middle of the cave. If gifts had been buried with the body, they would be placed in this pit too. Here at Ketef Hinnom, archaeologists discovered pieces of pottery, iron, and alabaster, remnants of long-forgotten but once-treasured gifts. This is where the two silver amulets were found. The process of periodic skeleton transfer freed the spaces for the burial of other bodies. One person I met told me that this procedure was practiced once a year.
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So, when the Bible says that a person “slept with his fathers” or was “gathered unto his people,” it is referring to the burial procedure common at that time.
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Of all the places I visited in Jerusalem, Ketef Hinnom, an almost forgotten site, was to me one of the most significant. Written on tiny, fragile silver fragments, is God's name. He wants us to know Who He is. I find it incredibly mindboggling that God would allow the oldest biblical manuscript ever found to be such a beautiful expression of His goodness. It is a rich reminder of God’s eagerness to bless us, to be our protector and source of peace. He is not a distant, unconcerned god, but the One True God whose nature is inherently good, generous, and kind. As a gracious father smiles down upon his children, so does our God’s face shine upon us.
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“The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
The LORD make his face shine upon thee,
and be gracious unto thee:
The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee,
and give thee peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26