Ho, all who are thirsty, come for water. – Isaiah 55:1
The Bible is metaphorically compared to water. Like the ocean, it’s boundless and life giving. To visit biblical sites with running water – on a hot day is to experience God’s love.
Here are Kenes Tours favorite sites in Israel to dunk, splash, and swim or be baptized – all the while reading Scripture. Come experience the Holy Land, and refresh your body and your soul.
Jerusalem
- The Gihon Spring and Hezekiah’s Tunnel
Ancient Jerusalem had a single source of water – the Gihon Spring, whose name means ‘the gusher’ in Hebrew. The intermittent spring is also known as the Fountain of the Virgin because of the legend that Mary washed Jesus’ swaddling clothes here. The spring was diverted into a tunnel dug by King Hezekiah 2,700 years ago. A plaque found today in Istanbul’s Archaeological Museum testifies to where the two mining crews met. Today the spring is located Israel’s most active archaeological site, known as the City of David national park-where visitors can reflect on the magnitude of its history while literally immersing themselves in its refreshing waters.
The Judean Desert and Dead Sea
- Ein Gedi
When David ran away from his insanely jealous father-in-law King Saul, he fled southeast from Jerusalem to the Judean Desert to hide at the oasis of Ein Gedi. (1 Samuel Chapter 24:1-7)
Today the caves and the mountain goats, called ibex, remain the same. A series of four waterfalls, where no doubt David and Saul once frolicked, beckon visitors to Ein Gedi. The national park consists of two canyons, the David stream canyon and the Arugot stream canyon, each of which has a spring bearing the name of its gorge.
The Shulamit Spring and Ein Gedi Spring are on the slopes between the David and Arugot Streams.
- Wadi Qelt
The steep valley that leads from northeast of Jerusalem to Jericho runs full with water yearlong. Called Nahal Prat in Hebrew and Wadi Qelt in Arabic, the stream beckoned Joseph and Mary and their newborn baby as they fled en route to Egypt from King Herod’s massacre of the innocents (Matthew 2:16-18). The St. George Monastery, perched on the canyon wall, celebrates their refuge here. Similarly Elijah the Prophet fled here from the wrath of Jezebel and Ahab, and was fed bread and meat by a flock of ravens (1 Kings 17:6).)
- Qasr al-Yahud
Qasr al-Yahud on the Jordan River, just east of the oasis of Jericho, is where John baptized his second cousin Jesus. (Matthew 3:13-17) The name means “the Jews’ castle” in Arabic. According to tradition, this is the spot where Joshua Ben Nun led the Israelites to ford the Jordan River and break into the Promised Land. Qasr al-Yahud is also where Elijah the Prophet ascended to heaven. Today the well-developed baptismal site is run by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.
The Galilee and Jordan Valley
- Banias
Jesus visited the spring and city of Banias around 29 AD. “Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, ‘Who do men say that I am?’ And Peter responded that Jesus is the Messiah.” (Mark 8:27)
His miracle of the healing of the bleeding woman (Mark 5:21–43, Matthew 9:18–26, and Luke 8:40–56) took place here.
Banias’ impressive spring is one of the sources of the Jordan River. Once the cult center for the pagan Greek god Pan, the site is today a national park.
- Tabgha
Jesus lived for three years in the fisherman’s village of Capernaum, and as such was familiar with the best fishing spots around the Sea of Galilee. Some 5 km south of Capernaum were seven hot springs where tilapia, also called St. Peter’s Fish, were attracted by the warmer water and came to spawn.
Tabgha, an Arabic corruption of the Greek Heptapegon (“seven springs”), is the site where according to tradition Jesus miraculously fed 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish – and had leftovers. Because of earthquakes, some of the seven springs ran dry overtime. One remains inside the grounds of the Monastery of the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, run by German Benedictine monks. The fathers have built a playground for disabled children incorporating this spring, which feeds into the Sea of Galilee. To see Jewish and Muslim children frolicking in the water under the watchful eyes of the fathers is to witness Christian love.
- Tel Dan / Laish
Like Banias, Tel Dan national park contains one of the three water sources of the Jordan River. According to the Book of Judges, prior to the Tribe of Dan occupying the land, the town in the shadow of Mount Hermon was known as Laysha (Judges 18:7 and Isaiah 10:30) or Laish (elsewhere Judges 18).
- Gideon’s Spring
Gideon and his 300 warriors drank from the spring of Ma’ayan Harod, yet another biblical site preserved as a national park, before battling the Midianites. (Judges 7:1-8)
Today the spring is another of Israel’s more than 150 national parks and nature preserves.
- Yardenit baptism site
While today Qasr al-Yahud is well developed for pilgrims, an alternative baptism site – called Yardenit – was created further north on the Jordan near where the river exits Lake Kinneret, also called the Sea of Galilee.
To experience the beauty and serenity of the sacred places preserved in Israel’s national parks and nature preserves, contact Kenes Christian Tours.