Engedi

From Masada, we traveled a short distance to Engedi, which is written about in the Bible in several places, not the least of which is in the book of 1 Samuel chapter 24. In it, the story is told of how David was hiding from Saul and taking refuge at Engedi. When Saul found out, he pursued him there, and was "relieving himself" in a cave, not knowing that David and his men were hiding in the same cave. You can read the rest of the story yourself, but one of the main points is that David did the right and honorable thing, for which he was proven later before Saul.

There are numerous caves at Engedi, as well as a stream and several pools fed by a spring. It's easy to see it as a place of refuge - it's quite beautiful and refreshing. A few of us hiked up to the "Waterfall of David," named for obvious reasons after King David. On the way we stopped at a pool with a small waterfall and took a quick dip in the water, which kept us cool for the rest of the hike. When we got to the top, Patrick, Mark, Harold, Andrew, Shirley, myself and I don't remember who else of our party took some time to read one of David's Psalms that may well have been written in the very spot. It sends chills up my spine just thinking about it.

We in America have such a short history. 230+ years since the country became independent is but a fraction of the time spanned by the history of Israel. More than 5,000 years of history are recorded in this place, and all I can say is, "you gotta go." It's incredibly inspiring.