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Derech Hayam – lecture 1
Introducing the site: The Ancient International Highway – “Derech Hayam”. Where did this highway pass? What are the important biblical sites along the highway? And what road passes there today? This lecture will include a quiz that presents initial questions and answers about the site.
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Derech Hayam – lecture 2
We will get to know the route of the “Derech Hayam” – from Egypt to Mesopotamia. We will see on the map why this road is so important. We will start from its southern end, which is called in the Torah “The Road of the Philistines”. Why didn’t God take the Israelites from there when they left Egypt? An analysis of the verses in the Torah will raise many interesting questions
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Derech Hayam – lecture 3
If avoiding the “Road of the Philistines” after leaving Egypt was to avoid war, then they also encountered war at the Red Sea! So what was the real reason for avoiding the short and direct road? We will see different explanations, arriving at an interesting hypothesis: The Israelites had to go through a long process in order to free themselves from dependence on Egypt, to be truly free and not slaves in spirit. That is why God led them into the desert!
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Derech Hayam – lecture 4
Why doesn’t “Derech Hayam”, go along the sea? Studying maps and understanding the topography of Biblical times will clarify many interesting things for us. We will focus on the question: Why does the road go eastward at a point called “Afek”? What is the strategic importance of “Afek” that made it such a central place in Biblical times? And where is “Afek” today?
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Derech Hayam – lecture 5
The first site we will focus on along the sea route – “Derech Hayam”, is Afek. Israel had two major battles with the Philistines, in the days of the prophet Samuel, between Afek and “Even HaEzer”. In one battle, there was a complete defeat and the destruction of Shiloh, and in the other, a great victory. The two battles did not take place in the same place, but the Tanach calls both places “Even HaEzer”! What is the message of the Tanach in using this name?
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Derech Hayam – lecture 6
We will make a linguistic comparison between the two battles of “Even HaEzer”, which were 20 years apart and in different places, but the Tanach tells of them in adjacent chapters and calls the two places “Even HaEzer”. The Tanach conveys a clear message here: that Israel’s perception in the first battle – that the presence of the “Ark of the Covenant” would help them – is mistaken. What helps to defeat the enemy is emphasized in the second battle: faith, prayer, repentance and most importantly – unity. Together we will win! יחד ננצח!
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Derech Hayam – lecture 7
This time too, we will compare two battles – the battle of Israel’s defeat at “Afek” and the battle of Israel’s defeat at Gilboa. They took place at different times and in different places, but the Tanach connects them – when it tells us, without any reason, that in the second battle too, the Philistines gathered at “Afek.” The entire story is also described in exactly the same words and phrases. What is the educational message that the Tanach teaches us by comparing the two battles? And how does this relate to the issue of the hostages in Azza?
