Daily Devotion for July 1, 206

Day 6

 

Petra

 

'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, Mount Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you and make you a desolate waste.   Ezekiel 35:3

 

Petra, where breath-taking architecture is carved into rose-colored sandstone cliffs, is a three-hour drive south of Amman, Jordan. Petra is like no other city on earth. It is one of the most mysterious, fascinating and beautiful of all the ancient Biblical sites. Known in the Scriptures as "Selah", during the time of Abraham, it is situated in the mountains of Seir-the land of the Edomites.

         (click on the photo below for a LARGER view)

So perfectly concealed among the rose-red cliffs of Edom, this amazingly well preserved city of Petra remained lost and almost forgotten for over a thousand years. Nestled in a craggy canyon of red, pink, white, brown and violet rock, the city is practically invisible from the air and impregnable from the ground. The natural caves that honeycomb the area were home to man thousands of years before history began.

 

Accessible only through a narrow gorge, Petra was one of the most easy to defend cities of the ancient world. Its leaders became rich through trade, good water management and by exacting tolls from caravans. Petra's glory days were in the century before Christ's birth. When Rome annexed it in the second century, Petra had about 30,000 residents.

 

Petra's temples, tombs, theaters and other buildings are scattered over 400 square miles. It is not uncommon for people to spend a week to 10 days exploring the area. We had only a day but it is still an unforgettable experience.

 

To enter the ancient city, you need to walk about a mile between towering sandstone cliffs. Some of the group rode a horse or took a two-passenger horse-drawn chariot. As we walked we could see the channels the Nabataeans had carved into the sides of the cliffs. Modern engineers say the Nabataens were "absolute geniuses" at controlling rainwater to prevent flooding and to avoid shortages in times of drought.

 

"The Treasury," the first facade you see as you enter Petra, is world famous because of the Indiana Jones "The Last Crusade" movie. Carved into the cliff, "The Treasury" is so-named because at the top of the enormous structure is a carved, stone object that looks like an urn. According to legend, the urn contains treasure. Chips on the inaccessible urn are the results of unsuccessful attempts to break it with bullets and stones.

 

"The Treasury" and many of the other buildings in Petra are tombs. One of Petra's mysteries is that no bodies have ever been found there.

 

Some of the tombs have colorful interiors. Splashes and swirls of magenta, midnight blue and ocher create pictures on the walls and ceilings that rival paintings in the finest museums. But the "masterpieces" are solely due to the natural colors of the sandstone.

 

Wandering around Petra are Bedouin children and adults, trying to sell everything from postcards to polished stones to camel rides. Bedouin families used to live in Petra's caves, but in 1984 the government moved them out into more modern housing. Now Bedouins only come to hawk their wares.

 

Following Petra's decline a few centuries after Christ's birth, most of its buildings were buried by sand which sheltered the carvings over the centuries. Petra was rediscovered in 1812. Now, without the protection of the sand and because of the growing number of tourists, there are concerns about how to best preserve the area for future generations.

 

Prayer
Heavenly Father – one can think that we can build something somewhere and be secure from all outside forces; we can hide in the rocks.  But help me always to remember that security can only be found in the true ROCK, your son Jesus Christ.  Amen

 

HISTORY OF PETRA
7,000 BCE: The first settlement here is believed to date back to this time.
4th century BCE: Petra becomes the capital of the Nabateans.
312: Attacked by Antigonus, who killed many of the women and children, while all men were absent.
106 CE: Conquered by the Romans. The Romans start constructing their form of city, with colonnaded streets, baths and theatres. Petra was included into the Roman province of Arabian Patraea.
2nd century: Petra has economic progress.
4th century: The rise of Palmyra results in a quick decline of Petra's importance, as there is no trade left.
7th century: Arab occupation, but by now Petra is only a small town.
12th century: Captured by the crusaders, who settled here and altered many of the buildings.
1812: Petra is "rediscovered" by the Swiss Johann Louis Burckhardt who experienced an understandable unwillingness of the local Bedouins to have foreigners intrude into their areas.

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While in the Middle East for a Biblical Study Journey with fellow Word Among Us Students, a 5-person crew is filming and taking pictures of the various sites. This vibrant photographic material will be incorporated into next year's Word Among Us classes.

Want to learn more about the Bible Jesus used – The Old Testament – and the Bible Jesus taught?  Enroll today in Word Among Us – Cover to Cover study of the Bible starting in Genesis and going through Revelation including the inter - testamental period, using history and archeology and Biblical culture to make the text alive - taught by Tim Hetzner.
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