Do you ever feel confused when you read the Bible?  Do you feel like you are missing things the author intended for you to understand? Would you like to gain clarity and confidence reading the Bible? Would you like to encounter God in the lands of the Bible?

Accompany Conrad Griggs and Biblical Expeditions on this exciting thirteen day expedition of Israel and Jordan.  Walk in the footsteps of Jesus as you explore the lands where he and the disciples walked.  Explore sites familiar from the Scriptures, such as Jerusalem, Bethlehem, the Sea of Galilee, and many more.

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Join us as we use the world of the Bible to help you understand the words of the Bible.

Upon arrival to Ben Gurion Airport, our representative will meet you in the arrival hall to assist you with your luggage. You will meet your guide and bus and travel to your hotel in Israel’s south, the Negev. Dinner and overnight in the Negev.

Our morning begins at En Avdat located in the biblical Wilderness of Zin (Numbers 20). While the children of Israel wandered in the Wilderness of Zin, Moses disobeyed God’s command by striking the rock instead of speaking to it. From En Avdat, we drive to the Aravah Border and cross into Jordan. After crossing the border into Jordan, we will meet our Jordanian guide and driver and travel to Wadi Rum for an afternoon Jeep ride. Dinner and overnight in Wadi Rum. 

We depart Wadi Rum this morning driving to the magnificent Nabatean city of Petra, one of the modern wonders of the ancient world. We spend today touring Petra and seeing its magnificent monuments cut into the sandstone cliffs. Dinner and overnight in Petra.

This morning we drive along the Desert Highway to Dana and then on to Umm ar-Rasas with its Byzantine Church and mosaics. We next visit the recent archaeological site of Al-Lagun, a palace of Mesha, King of Moab (2 Kings 3), which is situated overlooking the Arnon Gorge (Joshua 13). We continue on to the ancient site of Dibon (Joshua 13; Isaiah 15), one of the Moabite capitals. From Dibon, we travel to Mount Nebo, where Moses looked into the Promised Land before he died (Deuteronomy 32). We then proceed to Heshbon, the capital of the Amorite king Sihon (Numbers 21; Deuteronomy 2). From Heshbon, we travel to the town of Maedeba (Joshua 13; Isaiah 15) where we will visit the Byzantine Church with its fifth century AD mosaic floor (map) of the Holy Land. Dinner and overnight at a hotel located on the Dead Sea.

Our morning begins with an opportunity to float in the Dead Sea after breakfast. After a relaxing morning, we check out of our hotel and drive to the Allenby Border Crossing and cross back into Israel. After crossing the border, we drive through the Jordan Valley to the Sea of Galilee, the lowest fresh water lake in the world. Dinner and overnight on the Sea of Galilee.

Today we travel into the Golan Heights and the upper Jordan Valley. Our day begins at the nature reserve of Dan. The ancient city of Dan, which formed the northern boundary of biblical Israel, sits on the Dan Spring, one of the three tributaries of the Jordan River. In addition to walking through the beautiful nature reserve, we will visit the ancient site of Dan seeing its high place (1 Kings 12:29), Israelite gate, and the Middle Bronze Age gate from the time of Abraham (Gen. 14:14). Next, we travel to Banias, ancient Caesarea Philippi (Matt. 16:13; Mark 8:27). In the vicinity of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do men say that I am?” From Banias, we drive up into the foothills of Mount Hermon (Ps. 133) and into the Golan Heights. At a high overlook on the Israel-Syrian border, we look into Syria towards Damascus. Our day concludes at Katzrin, a Talmudic village located in the Golan Heights that has been reconstructed to help guests visualize ancient villages in Galilee and Golan, like those Jesus traveled to and ministered. Dinner and overnight on the Sea of Galilee.

Our journey today focuses upon the ministry of Jesus around the Sea of Galilee. Our morning begins at Almagor, a beautiful overlook of the Sea of Galilee and the Beitsaida Valley, where Jesus fed the 5,000 (Luke 9:10). Next, we journey to Chorazin one of the three cities cursed by Jesus (Matt. 11:21; Luke 10:13). At this site, we see the ancient homes and Jewish ritual immersion pools, as well as the magnificent basalt synagogue from the fifth century AD. Inside the synagogue is a replica of a Seat of Moses (Matt. 23:2). Our journey continues with an opportunity for people to be baptized in the Jordan River. From the baptismal, we visit the ancient town of Capernaum where Jesus made his home around the lake (Matt. 4:13). Here he healed the centurion’s servant (Matt. 8:5). In our visit, we will see the modern church built over an ancient church, which was built over a first century home, identified as the home of Peter. The magnificent limestone synagogue of the fourth century AD has been party reconstructed and looms over the site. From Capernaum, we travel to the small museum at Kibbutz Ginnosar that houses an ancient boat discovered in the 1980s in the Sea of Galilee. This boat dates to the first century and was a boat used by fisherman on the lake. Our touring day concludes with a visit to one of the most exciting and important ongoing archaeological excavations in Israel, Magdala. Here we will visit one of the few, excavated, first century synagogues in the land of Israel. Its date coincides with the time of Jesus ministry in the area. We will also see wealthy homes from the village, as well as the first century harbor. Our day concludes with an evening boat-ride on the Sea of Galilee. The ancient fishermen fished the lake at night. Riding on the waters of the lake in the evening offers a unique opportunity to connect with Jesus and his disciples on the lake. Dinner and overnight at the hotel on the Sea of Galilee. 

Our morning begins at the boyhood home of Jesus, Nazareth. We visit the Church of the Annunciation, built over the traditional place where the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would be the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:26-37). The church is built on top of the ancient village of Nazareth, and we will visit a small museum that shows some of the finds and homes from the village. We will end our visit in Nazareth with an overlook of the Jezreel Valley from Mount Precipice. From this vantage point, we will see the settings for a number of biblical stories. From Nazareth, we travel to Mount Carmel to the traditional location that remembers Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of Ba’al (1 Kings 18). Our day concludes at the port-city of Caesarea built by Herod the Great (Matt. 2). This was the second largest harbor in the Roman Empire during the first century. At Caesarea, Peter visited the gentile centurion Cornelius (Acts 10), and he and his household became the first gentile followers of Jesus. The Apostle Paul remained under house arrest in Caesarea for two and a half years. Here he stood before Felix, Festus, and Agrippa II (Acts 23-25). From the harbor of Caesarea, Paul sailed to Rome leaving Israel for the last time. While at the site, we will visit the ancient theater with its magnificent view overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. We will see Herod the Great’s palace that served as the residence of the Roman officials in the land, like Pontius Pilate. We will remember Pilate’s governorship of Judaea by looking at a replica of a stone inscription mentioning Pilate dedicating a temple to the Roman Emperor Tiberius. Our visit takes us through the ancient stadium and harbor and ends looking at the ancient aqueduct of Caesarea that supplied the city with its water. After departing Caesarea, we travel along the coast and up to Jerusalem. Dinner at Angelica. Overnight in Jerusalem. 

Our morning begins in the Elah Valley, the site of the famous confrontation between David and Goliath (1 Sam. 17). Here we will open the biblical story and see the landscape recorded in the Bible come alive before our eyes. Our day concludes in David’s hometown, Bethlehem. In Bethlehem, we remember the birth of Jesus and visit the Church of Nativity, the oldest church in the Holy Land, built over the traditional site of Jesus’ birth. From Bethlehem, we return to Jerusalem for free time. Dinner at Adom. Overnight in Jerusalem. 

Our morning in Jerusalem begins with a visit to the Israel Museum. Here we will see a scale-model of Jerusalem on the eve of its destruction in AD 70. We will visit the Shrine of the Book, which houses some of the Dead Sea Scrolls, including some of the oldest copies of the Old Testament. Our tour of the museum concludes with a walk through the archeological wing to visit the two galleries dedicated to Israel in the Old and New Testament periods. We will see original artifacts found in sites we visited, as well as other artifacts that make the Bible come alive. Our lunch today is a tasting tour of the Mahaneh Yehudah market of Jerusalem where we will have opportunity to sample many cuisines. From Mahaneh Yehudah, we travel to the City of David, the oldest part of Jerusalem, the city David conquered and made his capital. After visiting the City of David, we stop at the Western Wall, the most sacred site for Jews. We continue to the southern wall of the Temple Mount. On the first century street, we see the shops and markets around the Temple, a possible location for the money changers (Luke 19:45-48). We then proceed to the southern entrances of the Temple where we walk the steps ancient pilgrims took to ascend to the Temple. We will have free time to wander through the Old City of Jerusalem its shops and markets. Dinner at Eucalyptus. Overnight in Jerusalem.  

Our morning begins with a beautiful view of the city of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. We walk down the mountain following the modern path used by pilgrims on Palm Sunday visiting the church of Dominus Flevit, which remembers Jesus’ weeping over the city as he rode into it, and the traditional location of the Garden of Gethsemane. We cross the Kidron Valley into the Old City and visit St. Anne’s Church built over top of the Pools of Bethesda (John 5) where Jesus healed the lame man. We will take the opportunity to sing in the beautiful Crusader church on the site. Our journey continues at Jaffa Gate where in the first century Herod’s palace stood. Here the story of Jesus begins (Matt. 2) with the visit of the wisemen to Herod, and here his story ended because at Herod’s palace Jesus stood before Pontius Pilate (Mark 15:16). From Jaffa Gate, we walk into the Jewish Quarter and visit the Herodian Quarter, a series of priestly homes from the first century. We then walk along the Byzantine Cardo and see the walls of Jerusalem from the eighth century BC and the first century BC. Passing the Gennath Gate, we follow the historic route Jesus traveled from Pilate to his place of execution at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. After a farewell dinner, we depart Jerusalem for Ben Gurion Airport where you will return to your home country refreshed, challenged, and renewed in your faith.

Arrive back in USA