Bible Holy Lands in Photos, Scripture, and Commentary

See and learn about the Holy Lands of the Bible. New sites will be added every week. See the famous and off the beaten track sites referenced in the Bible.

Tag: Old Testament

  • Olive and Olive Oil: Health Facts and Religious Symbols

    Dennis

    The olive and its oil are an amazing and wonderful fruit and oil. It is mentioned throughout all scripture for both it’s religious and health uses. Both uses seem to be related to each other in some way. Let’s first review the health benefits of olive oil. When I say olive oil, I am only… Read more

  • Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls

    Dennis

    Qumran was a small settlement during New Testament times by a fringe Jewish religious group called Essene. The settlement was located in the Judean wilderness desert near the northwest shores of the Dead Sea. The Essenes removed themselves from mainline Judaism because of the corruption of the temple priests at Jerusalem. They lived a communal… Read more

  • Woman Healed from an Issue of Blood, Luke 8

    Dennis

    While Jesus was making his way through a crowded street in Capernaum, a woman desiring to be healed touched the fringe of Jesus’ tallit’s tzitzit (see definition below): “But as he went the people thronged him. And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither… Read more

  • The Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) Holiday

    Dennis

    If you live in a big city, last October you may have seen makeshift huts in the yards of your Jewish neighbors. Let me give a little context to why they did this. Sukkot (also spelled Succoth, and called feast of tabernacles) was October 16-23, 2024. This holiday celebrates gathering in the harvest, and commemorates… Read more

  • Biblical Chariots and Wagons

    Dennis

    Chariots were mainly a military vehicle. The basic design was as pictured above. However, they decoration could vary widely. In ancient times they were the “heavy battle tanks” of any army. Foot soldiers feared them as the horses were trained to run over anyone in the way. But they were ineffective in mountainous, marshy, or… Read more

  • Jesus Christ’s Baptism at Bethabara Beyond Jordan

    Dennis

    Bethabara (Hebrew word meaning place of fording/crossing) has been identified through geographical references and by the Byzantines who built a church and baptism place across the Jordan river from Judea in what is today the country of Jordan. The site is where a spring flowed into the Jordan River. Many pilgrims came here to be… Read more

  • Apostle Peter Raises the Dead and Takes Gospel to Gentiles from Jaffa

    Dennis

    Jaffa (also known as Joppa, Japho, and Yafo) was the most important sea port during the Canaanite and Israelite periods (pre-Old Testament and Old Testament times). During the New Testament and Roman periods it was replaced as the predominant port by Caesarea which was built by Herod the Great. Caesarea was replaced in importance during… Read more

  • Elijah vs 450 Prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel

    Dennis

    About 700 BC, the Prophet Elijah ministered in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Under King Ahab and his infamous Phoenician wife Jezebel, Israel was converted to worshiping the Phoenician god Baal. Elijah was sent to reclaim the Lord’s people. In 1 Kings 18:18-40, it reads: “And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said… Read more

  • Elijah’s Cave in Haifa

    Dennis

    A Holy site to Jews, Christians, Muslims, and Druze. Elijah’s Cave (also called a Grotto) is the traditional place where Elijah prayed before challenging priests of Baal as reported in 1 Kings 18. And some claim also the place where he hid from Queen Jezebel after the 500 priests of Baal were executed. However, during… Read more

  • The Dead Sea

    Dennis

    The Dead Sea, also known as the Salt Sea in the Bible, is located at the southern end of the Jordan valley. The Dead Sea is 53 miles long (85 km), with an average breadth of 9 miles (14.5 km). The Dead Sea’s surface is at about 1,290 feet (393 meters) below sea level, and its greatest depth… Read more