Bible Passages Blog

By John W. Moore "For the Lord has chosen Zion; he has desired it for his dwelling place." — Psalm 132:13 "As the mountains are around Jerusalem, so the Lord is around his people." — Psalm 125:2 It is early morning on the Sabbath during Ramadan, and a peaceful calm blankets the Old City of Jerusalem. Most of the Jewish and Muslim communities are locked away at home, and many shops lie closed inside their respective quarters. It's my favorite part of the day. At the Western Wa

A Helpful Look at a Powerful Story The Sea of Galilee from Mount Arbel and the Plains of Gennesaret below The disciples of Jesus rowed painfully throughout the night to navigate their ship. In the early morning hours their battered vessel was still some three miles from the shore. When night seems its darkest, the unthinkable gradually unfolded before their eyes. It was a ghostly figure moving upon the surface of the deep, and adult men (some of them seasoned commercial fishe

BP IMAGE INSIGHT: I can’t believe I’m writing this. I’m not really a flower enthusiast, but this delicate flower from Israel has an important lesson for living life. It’s known as the Black Iris, and it is a part of a rare and legally protected family of irises found only in an area east of the Mediterranean. Judean Iris of the same Family of the famous Gilboa Iris in Israel Among the most popular and well-known is the Gilboa Iris found on the Gilboa mountain range mentioned

IMAGE INSIGHTS: In the rocky terrain northwest of present-day Ein Bokek, a large rugged escarpment known as Masada stands defiantly in the desert territory of the Dead Sea. Located in the lowest region on earth, this natural defensive outpost towers some 1,424 feet above the dry and barren creek-beds below. The word masada is found in the Hebrew Bible and is often translated in English as “stronghold” or “fortress.” This uniquely shaped escarpment was only approachable by a

IMAGE INSIGHTS: The ancient city of David and Jerusalem’s temple mount (Mount Zion), where Islam’s Dome of the Rock rest today, is lower than the adjacent hills. Biblical Jerusalem is surrounded by three valleys and sits at an approximate elevation of 2,428 feet above sea level. This Bible Land Passages photo was taken from the slope of Mount Scopus which is nearly three hundred feet higher than where the Temple once stood. To the south lies an even higher hill, Eztel Hill (H

BY JOHN W. MOORE The personal pressures of life and the collective concerns of a people during civil unrest are often overwhelming. Problems in our nation, challenges in our homes at work, and issues within the church can be a bit overwhelming and unsettling. Add to this the daily grind of life, and we can easily experience periods of melancholy and distress. There are bills to pay, health to sustain, children to raise, relationships to maintain, and things to settle, repair

On a rugged, isolated mountaintop, despite the darkness of a cave, David grew in faith and composed some of the world's greatest poetry.