And the Walls Came Tumblin' Down

"And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city..."


It seems fitting that the only remains from the ancient city of Jericho is a few excavations of it's once-standing walls. But, despite that fact, in standing at the top of hill and gazing upon the surrounding land, one can almost see in minds eye Joshua and his army camped at Gilgal. After his famous march and with rousing shout, they climbed up the shattered walls and destroyed all of the inhabitants except for Rahab and her family. Pretty cool for them. (Rahab... not all of the others...)


For those that would also like to experience this grandiose story first hand, lend your ears---- Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho

A neolithic tower dated to around 8000 BCE. The oldest known man-made structure in the world. We stayed a few minutes to look at it, but it got a little old after a while.

In addition to Tel (Hill of) Jericho, we made a little stop at Herod's Winter Palace a few miles out of Jericho. Here the infamous Herod the Great accomplished his abhorrent deeds i.e. murdering his sons and bro-in-law, attempted poisoning of Cleopatra, and a variety of other colorful trophy's to his darkened past. It was also here where he took his last breaths in this life, journeying on to a ... better world. 

An overlook of the once great Winter Palace.

Our final yet culminating stop came after venturing a few miles into the wilderness and ascending a rocky face. Once we had arrived, an awe-inspiring view burst upon us. From the haze we made out the tower from Jerusalem, and there followed the road to Jericho, and our eyes finally rested on modern day Jericho.


A taste-tester of how delightful this view was:

Click on the picture for the full effect.

  
The canyon below, known as the Wadi Qelt, is the location for many scripture stories. It was here that the Savior made His last journey to Jerusalem prefacing the last week of His mortal ministry. It was here where Levites and priests made the journey from Jericho to the temple. It was here where the Savior mentioned in his parable of the Good Samaritan, encouraging all of us to let the 'better' things take precedence over the 'good' things. We internalized the reminder as we gazed over the road to Jericho.

St. George's Monastery

The road to Jericho