ERETZ ISRAEL will span much of the Bible, beginning with Abraham, the progenitor of the nation of Israel, then progress through the remainder of the Old and New Testaments in the eleven distinct Sessions shown above, so that the entire Biblical span of Jewish occupation in the Land may be viewed. The focus is on "what" happened historically, so archaeology and geography are incorporated into the episodes along the way so that you may better put Bible stories into their proper settings.

This material was conceived after an extended trip to Israel in 1984, when I had the opportunity to study the Land of Israel in detail. The material draws from notes, lectures, field trips, and subsequent historical and archaeological studies of the Land over the years since the trip. It was originally organized in the form of a Seminar that was given to various audiences, and here is adapted to an Internet format using text, slides, and RealAudio.

HOPE YOU ENJOY ERETZ ISRAEL!!!

Since the REDEMPTIVE PLAN portion of OLIVE TREE STUDIES devotes considerable effort toward showing that the Bible may be treated as an historical book with dates that are quite precise, those dates and time periods will be used here in ERETZ ISRAEL. However, the primary intent is to provide a composite, flowing picture of Bible times in a way that can be easily viewed. Almost 500 slides and over 5 1/2 hours of RealAudio cover the eleven Sessions so that you may simply look and listen (Some Scriptures have been added to the Frames so that you may see where the particular story being viewed is found in the Bible).

You may obtain a RealAudio player at the following location if you do not already have one.

To get RealAudio

Each of the eleven Sessions vary in their length of viewing time from about 20 minutes to over an hour. However, they don't need to be viewed in any particular order, so just review the brief summary of each one below, then pick the Session of greatest interest within your time available.

Archaeology is the study of ancient cultures, conducted by examining their physical remains. Biblical archaeology focuses on such remains primarily in the Near East as they are related to the Bible, but although Biblical Archaeology obviously deals with subjects related to the Bible, its primary objectives are not to "prove" its accuracy or historicity. Nevertheless as we will see, Biblical Archaeology has already demonstrated the historical and geographical reliability of the Bible in many important areas, making it a potentially valuable tool to incorporate in ERETZ ISRAEL.

Biblical Archaeology has become a very complex science, making use of the most recent advances in technology, so that a lay person must be dependent on the interpretation of finds provided by professional archaeologists. Of course, these scientists also hold private views relative to the Bible, causing them to approach their profession from different perspectives. As with most other segments of society, a few have a high view of the Bible, holding it to be the Word of God, while others take the view that it should be regarded as mythology or is simply reflective of ancient traditions. A few archaeologists today who write on Biblically related subjects even disregard it completely, claiming that the Bible is irrelevant to the subject of "Biblical" Archaeology. In recent years, these divisions have become so dissident and divisive that truth concerning numerous topics within Biblical Archaeology has become obscured.

Now the entire thrust of OLIVE TREE STUDIES has adopted an approach that the Bible is reliable and historically accurate. In fact, it is felt that the extensive work by Edwin Thiele cited in REDEMPTIVE PLAN should be sufficient proof that Biblical dates do produce correct answers. Moreover, when those dates are viewed prophetically in COMING GLORY, they show the Bible to be both internally consistent and capable of identifying and relating with precise accuracy, the prophetic nature of major events that have occurred even in the 20th century. Therefore, interpretations by archaeologists who advance views that the Bible is mythological or irrelevant cannot be accepted, for such views are proved incorrect by scholarship available from other disciplines independent of archaeology. Hence, it becomes necessary to distinguish the evidence that comes from Biblical Archaeology from certain archaeologists who offer untested or extraneous interpretations of that evidence. Thus, ERETZ ISRAEL will not discount the evidence, but will suggest ways of evaluating it so as to be in harmony with the Bible.

Accordingly, if Biblical Archaeology is to continue to have practical meaning for those interested in the Bible but not acquainted with the intricacies of that science, a step back from the detailed interpretations of data at individual sites needs to be taken, to determine whether they contribute to the fund of knowledge already assembled from Biblical Archaeology as a whole, as well as that available from other disciplines. In essence, it becomes important to be guided by an overall "model" for Biblical Archaeology which should be both the recipient of new evidence, but also the reference for comparison and testing of new interpretations of that evidence. By the way, such models are routinely devised for other scientific endeavors, so archaeology should be no exception.

One such "model", if it can be called that, has evolved within Biblical Archaeology over the last fifty or so years. Unfortunately, the archaeological timeline that it produces has grown increasingly conflict with the evidence obtained at a large number of digs in and around Israel in recent years. This has prompted a revised "model" and timeline that appeared in a paper in the Biblical Archaeological Review, September/October 1987, titled "Redating The Exodus". That paper actually went far beyond the issue of the Exodus, for it considered many of the major "tels" in Israel where archaeological results were available at that time. Though some problems may still remain with this revision, it appears to achieve correlation with site analyses far better than the Generally Accepted Dates (GAD), i.e. timeline, derived from the earlier one. This "Revised Timeline" is therefore the one that is used in ERETZ ISRAEL.

If you would like to study this issue in more detail, just go to,

"TIMELINES FOR BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY"

The Old Testament portion of ERETZ ISRAEL is divided into seven "Sessions", essentially beginning with Abraham. Since it covers a time period of about 1500 years, it cannot deal with all the details, but will try at least to highlight the more significant features of Israel's history and their relation with God during that long span of time.

The period of the Patriarchs is described in the book of Genesis and covers thousands of years. However, our more detailed knowledge of Bible times really begins a little over 2000 BC, around the time of Abram (later Abraham) who became the progenitor of Israel. Therefore, it is with Abraham that ERETZ ISRAEL begins. We see this pagan Gentile given promises by God and told to travel to a Land he had never seen. His journey by faith to the Land of Canaan has become an example of the kind of faith that pleases God. Issac, his son of the promise, then his grandson Jacob, were both born and raised in this Land of promise, but in Jacob's later years, a series of circumstances involving one of his sons by the name of Joseph caused he and his whole clan to move to Egypt. Though the early years were good, the final ones of that 430 year stay were under the harsh yoke of an Egyptian Pharaoh who enacted a policy of genecide against the Hebrew male children.

It was during this time that Moses was born. His story as both the "deliverer" and "lawgiver" of the Hebrew people, is perhaps one of the most familiar in all the Bible. Israel's Exodus from Egyptian slavery by the mighty hand of God is indeed a moving story. Unfortunately, its conclusion is sadly tempered by Israel's subsequent refusal to enter the Promised Land of their inheritance when given the opportunity, thereby forcing them to continue wandering in the Sinai wilderness for a period of 40 years.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• An introduction to the patriarchal period from Noah to Abram.

• The story of Abram's birth, early life, and sojourn in the Land of promise, with pictures and maps showing where he traveled, lived, and was tested when the Lord commanded him to offer his son Issac for a sacrifice.

• Jacob and his clan in Egypt as archaeology is able to shed some light on when and where they lived, and the conditions of their slavery just before the Exodus.

• The birth and early life of Moses, who after being raised in the palace of the Pharaoh with privilege and power, rejected worldly fame and was used by God to deliver his people from their slavery through a series of plagues vented upon Egypt.

• The region of the Sinai Wilderness where the Hebrews made their Exodus out of Egypt, received God's Covenant of Law, then made their trek to the southern border of the promised Land under the leadership of Moses.

• God's offer to Israel of their inheritance, but their tragic decision to spurn it, forcing them to wander 40 years in the wilderness.

(18 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 40-50 MINUTES)

Understanding Bible times requires an appreciation of the geography of the Land, and the geo-political situation created by neighboring Gentile powers before and during Israel's time in the Land. This Session serves as an interlude in the historical account to provide such an overview.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• A summary of the geology, communication routes, climate, ancient economy, and housing in the Land during Old Testament times.

• The identification and influence of the peoples who lived in and around the Land prior to Israel's occupation.

• The concept of the "Land Between" as a land bridge between international powers to the South and North, showing the interplay between Israel and those various Gentile powers throughout their history.

• An illustration taken from ancient records of a military campaign into Canaan by one of the Egyptian Pharaohs just prior to Israel's entrance into the Land.

(8 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 20-25 MINUTES)

The book of Joshua describes the occupation of the Land as a military conquest. It is an exciting and fast moving account of a succession of military campaigns that led to Israel's decisive victory over the Gentile inhabitants of Canaan. However, the Biblical scenario for both the Exodus and subsequent entrance into the Land has come under sharp attack by a growing number of archaeologists who minimize the Biblical story as simply mythological or traditional. This requires that the grounds for these alternative renditions be identified and then countered by the use of the "Revised Timeline" for Biblical Archaeology.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• A review of the historical setting in the wilderness region to the South of the Land that forced Israel to make a circuitous route to enter the Land from the East .

• Scenes in the Gilead east of the Land, and Israel's preparations just prior to the crossing of the River Jordan.

• The crossing of the River Jordan with descriptions of the region where the crossing occurred and a possible explanation for this "miracle" in light of recorded history.

• The importance of ancient and modern Jericho with maps and pictures, and its destruction related to archaeological finds and the unique geology of the region.

• Joshua's military tactics and strategy through the entire campaign from Jericho to Ai, then against the five Amorite kings in the South, emphasizing the ancient and modern-day military significance of the "Bethel Plateau" and "Central Benjamin Plateau".

• Archaeological finds, correlated with statements in the Bible, concerning those cities destroyed or occupied by the Hebrews.

• A possible connection between archaeological finds pertaining to the "Amarna Age", and Israel's military strategy for the taking of the Land.

• The final battle for the north country centered about the city of Hazor, and results of that campaign.

(20 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 50-60 MINUTES)

A long period of almost 360 years followed Israel's initial occupation of the Land before the arrival of Israel's kingdom. Following a brief period of territorial allocation among the twelve Tribes, the book of Judges defines the bulk of that period. It describes repeated times of apostasy among the Tribes as they fraternized with the Gentile inhabitants of the Land, but also depicts notable acts of heroism as certain Israelites and Tribes rose to prominence as defenders against various Gentile threats.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• A detailed review of the way the Land was allocated to the twelve Tribes in its relation to both internal and international Gentile threats.

• A recounting of four historic events during the period of the Judges.

1. The civil war with Benjamin

2. The story of Deborah and Barak.

3. Gideon's defense against the Midianites in the Jezreel Valley.

4. The Tribe of Dan's move to the north and Samson's escapades against the Philistines.

• The pattern of apostasy during the times of the Judges.

(17 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 40-50 MINUTES)

In the closing days of Samuel, the last judge, Israel's form of government gave way to a kingdom, much like those of the surrounding Gentile nations. The kingdom began with Saul during a time of great trouble with the Philistines. Then a young upstart by the name of David was chosen by God, and anointed by Samuel to be the next king. After years of intense conflict with jealous Saul ending with his death at the hands of the Philistines, David became the second king. following more years of Tribal division, David was able to consolidate his position, becoming king over all Israel from Jerusalem, its new capital. Then following a brief co-regency near the end of David's reign, his son Solomon became successor to the throne. During the reigns of David and Solomon, ancient Israel reached her glory, becoming a center of power, both feared and respected by nations over the entire Middle East. Unfortunately, Solomon's riches and glory caused him to turn away from the Lord, and with his death, this brief 116 year period constituting the United Kingdom, came to an abrupt end.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• Samuel's legacy as a founder of ancient Israel's kingdom.

• The destruction of Shiloh & taking of the Ark by the Philistines

• The years of king Saul's reign and military campaigns.

• David's anointing as the next king and rise to fame by his victory over Goliath, then his exile as he fled from Saul's insane jealousy into the Judean wilderness.

• The occasion and circumstances of Saul's ignoble death in the Jezreel Valley.

• David's rise as the greatest king in Israel's history, chronicled by showing both his political and military prowess in the taking of the Jebusite city to become Jerusalem.

• David's great sin with Bathsheba and his resulting decline.

• Solomon's building of the Temple, the glory of his reign, and his decline.

(15 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 35-40 MINUTES)

Following the death of king Solomon, the ten Tribes to the north broke off to form the kingdom of Israel, with Judah, Simeon, and part of Benjamin continuing as the kingdom of Judah to the South. Thus began a period of slightly over 200 years while the two factions remained inexorably split. After the destruction of Israel by the Assyrians in 723 BC, the southern kingdom of Judah remained in the Land until 586 BC when it too was destroyed by the Babylonians, thus ending Israel's ancient kingdom.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• A discussion of the period of disruption from inter-tribal, spiritual, and international perspectives.

• The rise of Aram to the north and its impact on the two kingdoms.

• Apostasy in the northern kingdom under Ahab, and his confrontation with the prophet Elijah.

• The rise of the Assyrian empire, and events leading up to the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel.

• Assyria's attack on the southern kingdom of Judah at the time of Hezekiah.

• Places of cultish worship by the Israelites during the Divided Kingdom, and the roles of the prophets.

• The end of Israel's ancient kingdom at the hands of the Babylonians.

(11 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 25-30 MINUTES)

God's Covenant with Israel rested upon the people, the Law, the Tabernacle, and the Land of their inheritance. Among those, the Tabernacle is a fascinating subject because it expressed a unique privilege for fellowship with God, but having prophetic implications not fulfilled until New Testament times.

Though the prophets were not prominent initially, Israel's continual violations of the Covenant caused their role to increase over time. During the latter phases of Israel's kingdom, the Lord used prophets, first to admonish and correct, then predict the ultimate consequences of Israel's violations. The prophets were used by the Lord to provide a unique provision for His people to complement the written decrees of the Law, but their prophecies also reveal amazing insights concerning events, many of which have already been fulfilled in New Testament times, and others which are still future to us in the 20th century!

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• A review of the giving of the Covenant at Mount Sinai, and construction of the wilderness Tabernacle.

• The Tabernacle pictured and studied by proceeding step by step through the "Outer Courtyard", "Holy Place", and finally into the "Holy of Holies", where only the High Priest was permitted on the Day of Atonement.

• The prophetic implications of the Tabernacle as an Old Testament "picture" of the New Testament Covenant.

• The role and rise of the school of the prophets at the time of Samuel.

• Several examples of the prophets' ministry, including the prophet Joel's prediction of the date on which the New Testament Covenant would be given.

(12 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 30-35 MINUTES)

The New Testament portion of ERETZ ISRAEL is divided into four "Sessions". The first Session focuses on Jesus' Life & Ministry, but also sets the stage for the dramatic changes that occurred in Israel between Old and New Testament times. The remaining Sessions look both at the religious upheaval within the Land following Messiah's coming, and Israel's mounting problems with their Roman oppressors, eventually leading up to a terrible war and utter destruction.

Jesus was born at a time long after Israel's glory had departed, with the nation under the heavy heel of the Roman empire. A period of nearly 400 years had transpired since the time of the prophet Malachi in the Old Testament, and new Jewish leadership from sects like the Pharisees and Sadducees had emerged. Herod, though not a Jew, had parlayed himself to become king over the region at the bequest of the Romans. It was in such a setting that Jesus the Messiah was born in Bethlehem of Judea, at the appointed time in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. Much of His subsequent life and ministry took place in Galilee, and scenes in and around that area where He preached and performed miracles have continued to inspire His followers to this very day.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• Intertestament backgrounds on the genesis of the synagogue during or following the Babylonian Exile, and the subsequent influence of Hellenization on the Jews.

• Herod the builder.

• The birth of Jesus.

• The arrival of the "magi", and Herod's reaction.

• Jesus' early life with scenes ancient and modern in and around the city of Nazareth.

• Jesus' baptism in the River Jordan, and temptation in the Judean wilderness.

• A review of the history and geography of the Land at the time of Jesus.

• Jesus' ministry at first in Nazareth, then in Capernaum and around the Sea of Galilee.

• Scenes in Galilee where Jesus spoke and performed miracles.

• Jesus near the close of His Galilean ministry atop the Mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James, and John.

(24 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 50-60 MINUTES)

After Jesus completed His ministry in Galilee, He began the final journey south through Jericho, then up to Jerusalem where He would be crucified. Following a brief stay at the house of His friends, Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, He made a triumphal entrance into Jerusalem as King, on the day that has come to be known as "Palm Sunday". During the following week, repeated confrontations with Jewish leadership made it apparent that those previous Sunday acclamations by the multitude would be short lived. He and His disciples held their final Passover supper together in a room on Mount Zion, then departed across the Kidron Valley to the Mount of Olives.

The rest of the story is familiar to millions as He was arrested there, interrogated, judged by Pontius Pilate, and summarily crucified. Though many thousands of convicted souls were undoubtedly crucified unjustly during the times of the Roman empire, only One in all the history of mankind is recorded to have been resurrected back to life in a glorified body. Unquestionably, it is this epochal event recorded in the New Testament that has served to define Christianity, for it is not built on the religion a dead martyr, but on the promise of a personal relationship with the One who now lives and is ascended into Heaven. That record of Jesus Christ's resurrection as the glorified Messiah makes it imperative that we retrace those last seven days, so that we too might make our decision for or against Him.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• Jesus' journey to Jerusalem.

• His triumphal entrance into Jerusalem as King on Palm Sunday.

• Scenes in and around the Temple during the following week.

• The Last Supper.

• A night of prayer at Gethsemane.

• Jesus' arrest, interrogation, and judgement.

• Golgotha.

(13 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 30-35 MINUTES)

The disciples' unremitting grief at Messiah's crucifixion was instantly replaced by inexpressible joy upon seeing Him again alive. The book of Acts records His ascention back to the Father, after confirming the truth of His resurrection over a period of 40 days. They had been told to remain in Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Spirit. When that transpired just 10 days later on Pentecost, many accepted this new "Way" and were baptized. However Jewish leadership remained adamantly opposed and launched a program of persecution again the Lord's disciples. This finally came to a climax when a disciple by the name of Stephen confronted an enraged Jewish Sanhedrin and was stoned to death. As the disciples were forced to flee Jerusalem, the message of the resurrected Messiah spread to the Gentiles. However it was Saul (later Paul), a Pharisee and undoubtedly the chief instigator of Stephen's death, who surprisingly became the chief spokesman to the Gentiles in behalf of Christianity . In the years following his conversion on a road between Jerusalem and Damascus, he conducted missionary journeys throughout the Roman world. Though his commission came to an end at the hands of the Roman emperor Nero, his timeless letters defining the true meaning of Christianity constitute almost half of the New Testament, and have been treasured by literally hundreds of millions of people through the centuries.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• The general area of Jesus' ascention back to Heaven.

• Pentecost and the beginning of the Church.

• The stoning of Stephen.

• The "Way" is opened to the Gentiles.

• Paul's missionary journeys.

• The end of Paul's ministry.

(10 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 25-30 MINUTES)

In AD 66 a rebellion broke out by the Jews against Roman injustices against them. It began in the coastal and northern areas of Israel, but ended at Jerusalem itself. After one failed attempt to enter Jerusalem by the Syrian general Cestius, the Romans mounted concerted efforts, first under Vespasian, then his son Titus. The Coup de Grace occured when Titus laid siege to Jerusalem in AD 70, bringing about its destruction in the fall of that year. The walls were breached, the Temple destroyed, and most of the inhabitants of the city put to the sword. A few zealots managed to escape to continue their defiance from a stronghold near the Dead Sea called Masada, but with the fall of that fortress in AD 73, the ancient nation of Israel essentially ceased to exist. Thus ended the 2000 year story of Israel's Biblical history, and our story in ERETZ ISRAEL.

SESSION TOPICS ARE:

• The accounting of events leading up to Jerusalem's destruction.

• Scenes of Jerusalem's first century destruction.

• The story of Masada.

1. Masada's history.

2. Masada's facilities and fortifications.

3. The Roman campaign against Masada.

4. The fall of Masada.

• Israel's tragic demise but her COMING GLORY!

(7 FRAMES @VIEWING TIME OF 15-20 MINUTES)