Central District

After morning class today, we spent six hours walking an overview of the Old City of Jerusalem. We’ll do this two more times before we leave Jerusalem. We entered the Zion Gate, about ¼ mile from where we’re staying. Walked down to and out of the Dung Gate, wandered past the City of David, down into the Kidron Valley, up through the Lion gate, out the Damascus gate, then back through the Christian, Muslim and Jewish Quarters, finding ourselves exhausted and happily back at the Zion Gate. Most of you won’t care about that, but for those that do, you now know.

My favorite spot of the day was to sit in the small valley of Kidron while our professor read Psalm 130. We all squinted in the scalding sun as we took in the history of this place. 1 Kings 15:13 tells the story of Asa around 913 B.C. in the Kidron valley, burning "an abominable image for an Asherab" which his mother, Maacah, had created. He lit the fire in the Kidron Valley, not far from where we stood. As Hezekiah again sought reform for the nation about 200 years later, "all the uncleanness that they found in the temple of Yahweh" was carried to the brook Kidron (2 Chronicles 29:16); "All the altars for incense took they away, and cast them into the brook Kidron" (2 Chronicles 30:14). Josiah’s reforms of Israel in the 7th century B.C included bringing “the Asherah from the house of Yahweh, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and beat it to dust." (2 Kings 23:6).

“The Kidron Valley is a place of cleansing. It is the place where God puts things right,” he said. Which then makes it no surprise that Jesus’ return will be right above this spot, on the Mt. of Olives. “On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east.” (Zechariah 14:4)

As we sat in the Kidron Valley and listened to Psalm 130, it was a blatant reminder that we too need to come to the valley every once in a while and purge our lives of the burdens and sins that weigh us down. Our idols, our high-handed sin… bring them on down and beat ‘em to dust. Then make slow, steady climb back up out of the valley to the Holy City.Read more