Departure to the Holy Land.  

We arrive at Ben Gurion Airport, where we will be met by our guide and bus driver for the trip. Afternoon or Evening Arrival: DINNER & REST From the airport we will travel to our hotel on the Mediterranean Coast or Judean Hills. Time permitting, we may have an opportunity to stroll on the beach or swim before dinner. Later we will have a brief meeting for introductions, some orientation, and prayer. Dinner and overnight.  

We begin our journey in the steps of the Patriarchs to the southern desert region called the Negevin the Bible (a name it still carries today). Here we visit Tel Beersheva, one of the most impressive and ancient fortified cities of the Kingdom of Judah. Along our way we will examine the Bedouin culture in order to shed light on the lives of Abraham and the Patriarchs. We will visit the ancient caravan city of Avdatto discover how the ancient Nabateans made the desert bloom. We conclude our day traveling through the Wilderness of Paranto a spectacular view over the Ramon Crater where we discuss the importance of Moses and the Exodus from Egypt in Jewish religious thinking and its influence on Jesus and the Gospels. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Here we consider the true location of Mount Sinai and study the geology of the area. This morning we will be traveling through the Wilderness of Zin where Mosess truck the rock in disobedience. We will take a short hike to a beautiful oasis in the Zin Canyon. We will then visit the grave or home of David Ben Gurion, founder of Israel, at Sde Boker. As Ben Gurion is often called a prophet, we will take time to discuss the nature of biblical prophecy and the role of a prophet in the biblical period and today. Time permitting we will visit Tel Arad, a pre-Abrahamic major city and later an Israelite fortress.We will have a short camel ride before dinner at our accommodation in Bedouin-styletentsor relax in thespa at our Dead Sea hotel. Overnight. 

Our theme today is the wilderness and what it signified to the ancient Israelites. We begin our day at Masada, Herod the Great’s magnificent fortress palace in the desert, and the last stand of the Zealots, a Jewish revolutionary group at the time of Jesus. From Masada we drive north to the beautiful subtropical oasis of Ein Gedi, where David hid from Saul. Depending on conditions, we can walk into the nature reserve and possibly to the water falls. We may see some wild life, including the furry rock badger and the grace fulibex. We will also discuss the temptation of Jesus in the Wilderness. Our last site will be Qumran, likely the home of the Essenes, a First Century Jewish sect which may have influenced early Christianity, and the site of the most exciting archaeological discovery ever made in Israel–the Dead Sea Scrolls. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Today we leave the desert and journey north up the spectacular Syrian African Rift Valley to the Sea of Galilee. We will study the cultural tensions that existed at the time of Jesus, both between Greco-Roman culture and Jewish culture (and later theearly church), and also between the Jewish religious establishment of the day and various spiritual reformers. Passing by the region of Jericho–the oldest and lowest city on earth, we come to the Jordan River, where we will discuss the ministry of John the Baptist and his relationship with Jesus. If the tour leader wants to do baptisms, the group can visit a baptismal site on the Jordan River. Conditions permitting, we will have dip in the beautiful spring fed pools at Sachne, near the base of Mt. Gilboa. Our final stop of the day will be the Biblical city of Beit Shean to examine the visually impressive excavations of its Roman-Byzantine period when it was one the ten Hellenistic cities of the Decapolis. From here we continue to our hotel near the Sea of Galilee. Dinner and overnight.

Our day will be spent visiting various sites around the Sea of Galilee as we try to picture daily life and religion in the First Century, and seek to better understand the miracles and teachings of Jesus in His original Jewish context. Today we will visit the Mount of Beatitudes, traditional site of the Sermon on the Mount, where we will consider the Kingdom of Godin Jesus’ teachings. After a short walk or drive down the hill we will arrive at Capernaum, the town where Jesus lived during the majority of His ministry. Other sites may include Chorazin, the well-preserved ruins of atypical Galilean village, where westudy village life, Jewish religion, and the Pharisees. At the newly excavated Magdala, the home of Mary Magdala, we will visit the remains of an ancient synagogue from the time of Jesusor the lovely Tabgha, which commemorates the multiplication of loaves and fish, and where Jesus met the disciples after the resurrection. Later in the afternoon we will visit Kibbutz Ginosar to see the“Jesus Boat”, a Galilean fishing boat from the First Century. From here we will set sail for aboat ride on the Lake to enjoy the views and some worship, prayer and reflective time. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight. 

Today we explore Northern Israel, one of the most beautiful regions of the country. We will seek to understand what the Jewish people of 2,000 years ago expected of the Messiah, and how that was fulfilled in Jesus. We begin by climbing up to the magnificent Golan Heights. In the morning we will visit are constructed Talmudic village at Katzrin, where we will take another close look at life in New Testament times and the use of everyday imagery in Scripture. We will travel along the lower slopes of Mount Hermon–Israel’s highest mountain, and the most likely site of the Transfiguration. Along the way we will pass Druze Villages before coming to a look out spot near the border with Syria and the area of the road to Damascus where the Apostle Paul met the Lord. Our nextstop is the Dan Nature Reserve, where we see the incredible archaeological remains of the OT city of Dan, including the city gate from the time of Abraham, and consider ancient Israel’s apostasy. We will also enjoy a pleasant walk by a streamand discuss the meaning of “living water”in the Hebrew Scriptures and Jesus’ teaching. Time permitting we will visit Caesarea Philippi, in the region where Peter made his famous confession that Jesus is the Messiah. transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight. 

Today we travel west and then down the coast, visiting a number of Biblical sites that testify to God’s faithfulness to His word, past, present, and future. Our first visit of the day will be ancient Nazareth, Jesus’ boyhood home and place of His early ministry. We continue along the route of the ancient Via Maris to Megiddo, one of King Solomon’s cities, and according the Book of Revelation possibly the assembly point for the armies marching to the battle of Armageddon. We then travel to Mount Carmel, with a spectacular view over the North of Israel, near the spot where Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal. We complete our day at the fabulous ruins of the Herodian city of Caesarea Maritima, the site of the conversion of Cornelius and the location from which Paul left the shores of Israel and set sail on his journey to Rome. In the late afternoon we will enter Jerusalem, the City of the Great King. After dinner we will be treated to a short stroll for a roof top panorama of the Old City and talk with the Director of Shoresh Study Tours. Transfer to your hotel. Overnight.

Today will be devoted to learning about Jerusalem in Jesus’ day, when the Temple in Jerusalem was the center of Jewish life. We will study how worship was performed in the temple, the Sadducees and Jesus’ attitude to wards them, and generally enrich our insight into many important events in the gospels and book of Acts. An early start will take us up to the Temple Mount (conditions permitting), where we’ll consider some of Jesus’ activities there, as well as the claims of Islam. After a visit to the Western Wall place of prayer, Judaism’s most holy site, we will take a trip to the subterranean Western Wall Tunnels to walk at what was street level in the time of Jesus. We then make our way through the Jewish Quarter of the Old City and time permitting will visit the Herodian Villas, the palatial mansions that were the home to the Sadducees, the ruling priesthood at the time of Jesus. We complete our day at the excavations near the base of the Temple Mount and discuss Pente cost on the Southern Steps where Jesus walked. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Today we study both a great tragedy and the wonder of the Lord’s redemptive power. We will examine the systematic annihilation of six million Jews in the Nazi genocide, God coming to earth in the form of a man to save His people from their sins, and the loving witness of Christians committed to the Biblically prophesied physical restoration and spiritual rebirth of the Jewish people. We travel to Yad VaShem, the Israel Memorial Museum to the Holocaust. Here we examine the spiritual and theological roots of the most notorious genocide in history and the connection between the Church, Jesus and the Jewish people. From here we take the short drive to Bethlehem, where we will visit the Church of the Nativity, which marks the probable site of the birth of Jesus, and the“Shepherd’s Fields” where the angels heralded the advent of Messiah. This evening we will expand our understanding of the role of the Lamb of God by celebrating a Jewish Passover Seder meal together, making Biblical connections to the “last supper” that Jesus shared with his disciples. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Today we focus on sites related to the Biblical passages concerning Jesus’ last week in Jerusalem. Our goal is to understand why he was crucified, how he was buried, and what it meant to the Jewish people of the First Century that he was raised from the dead. We begin our day with a panoramic overlook of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, the site of Jesus’ ascension to heaven and His future second coming. After viewing a tomb from the time of Jesus, we will walk down the Mount of Olives to Gethsemane. Next we cross the Kidron Valley and enter the Old City through Stephen’s Gate, stopping to examine the remains of the Pool of Bethesda. From here we walk to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the most likely site of the buria land resurrection of Jesus. We end our tour with a reflective time at a site that wonderfully illustrates Jesus’ burial and resurrection, the peaceful Garden Tomb. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight.

This morning we will have the opportunity to attend the Worship Services at Christ Church, the oldest church in the Middle East. The afternoon is free for rest, reflection, shopping, or for the energetic, perhaps a walk on the walls of the Old City. Shoresh will provide a list of interesting options for those who want to explore on their own. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Depending on flight departure time, there are several options for this day.

Early Morning Departure: Straight Home.
We say farewell to Jerusalem and descend through the mountains of Judea to the airport on the coastal plain to catch the flight home.