Day 4: Galilee - Dan, Caesarea Philipi, Golan Heights

Dan, Caesarea Phillipi, the Golan Heights (with wine tasting for the church group!).

Got up at 5:30 AM for the sunrise. Very good, not great. We’re tough to please.

Dan is the site of a Caananite city later occupied by Isrealites. Earliest occupation 3700 years ago. The Caananite city gates have been found - they were made from mud bricks, so didn’t last very long. It’s amazing archeologists were able to isolate the gates - they were part of the soil by this time.

The Israeli area had been excavated. The temple area had been used to worship other gods as well as Jehovah, in keeping with locals’ practices. Dan was a part of the Northern Kingdom - all the kings were bad. This was the first area occupied by the Assyrians; they wiped out the 10 lost tribes of Israel in the northern kingdom.

Dan is also the headwaters of the Jordan. It’s amazing how much water flows out of the rocks as a spring here; it must originate in the hills around Dan, and flow through extensive fracture system. Beautiful semi tropical area, with natural maples, birch, etc.

Caesarea Philipi was a largely Roman city dedicated to Pan with many other temples to Zeus and other pagan deities. It’s the one pagan city Jesus seems to have come near, at least as far as is written in the bible. This is where Jesus asked, “and who do you say I am?” - and upon that rock He built His church. Lionel Garcia gave an excellent reading and teaching here.

This had another very large spring, the headwaters of the Hermon river, a tributary to the Jordan. Lots of water. The pagan temples carved from the side of the hill were very impressive. Some of the old city of Caesarea Philipi had been excavated, not much.

After lunch we drove up the Golan Heights to Mount Bental, overlooking the Golan on one side and Syria on the other. Lots of fortifications, and excellent overview of the surrounding areas. On the way we received a capsule history of Israel from our guide, a Messianic Jew named Leor. Excellent presentation, and I learned a lot, but very definitely a history from the Israeli viewpoint. I have a close, old friend who was born in Amman, Jordan, whose parents were Palestinian. He gives a very different story. Who’s right? What’s your viewpoint? I think….. I’d better save it for now.

Tomorrow, the Dead Sea.