During our 14 day trip to the Holy Land we will be visiting ancient sites and more modern sites in Israel. Sometimes primitive sites and modern conveniences exist together. The historic Tel Lachish is a historic area which has been modernized.
When I first visited this site in 2014, we could not enter through the city gates because of a major construction project. Ramps were being installed for the disabled so they could easily approach the site without steep inclines or rough terrain.
Our group could not enter through the gate, and we were forced to find another way to the top of the mound. The most obvious approach was to climb the high hill which still covered some of the walls.
The hill was very steep, and we ascended with great difficulty. But we managed and helped one another to the top of the site. From the top we looked down on the entire area which was once the city.
Lachish was a major historic site dating back to the Neolithic period (5500–4500 BC). It is first mentioned in the Amarna letters of Pharaoh Amenhotep III dating to the fourteenth century BC. The city was destroyed several times, but because of its location, it became a major administrative center during the reign of kings Asa and Jehoshaphat with thick walls for protection.
Sennacherib and Nebuchadnezzar were able to overcome the walls and conquer the city, which was abandoned not long after in 587 BC.
The city is inhabited by sheep and shepherds today. The shepherd and sheep pictured in the heading of week three of my book Advent Journeys was taken at Lachish. (I thought about David the shepherd as I took the picture.) Lachish is located (by air) twenty-two miles from Bethlehem.
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