Bible Study
About four millennia ago, Melchizedek was king of Jerusalem, which was then called Salem (Gen. 14:18). This was an unwalled city, which was taken over in c. 1850 b.c. by the Jebusites, who built a city wall around it and called it Jebus (cf. 1 Chron. 11:4)
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Jericho (Tell es-Sultan) is perhaps the oldest city on earth, and it is the lowest city on the surface of the planet (c. 750 feet/229 m below sea level). Jericho has undergone massive excavation work; major digs were led by Ernst Sellin and Carl Watzinger (1907–1909, 1911), John
Bible Study
The illustration depicts the holy garments worn by the high priests (Exodus 28; 39). The turban of fine linen held a plate of pure shining gold, on which were engraved the Hebrew words for “Holy to YHWH.” The ephod (a colorful linen torso garment held by a skillfully woven waistband)
Bible Study
The wooden altar, overlaid with pure gold (Ex. 30:1–10; 37:25–28), was 3 feet high, and 1.5 feet long and wide (1 m x 0.5 m x 0.5 m). It stood in the Holy Place before the veil which separated the Holy Place from
Bible Study
The tabernacle was a portable temple—a “tent of meeting”—within a movable courtyard (Exodus 25–31; 35–40). It was constructed after the pattern that Yahweh revealed to Moses on Mount Sinai, and was assembled in the desert as Moses led the Israelites from Egypt to the Promised Land.
Bible Study
The bronze altar for burnt offerings (Ex. 27:1–8; 38:1–7) stood in the outer courtyard with its poles removed. It was a hollow wooden box, overlaid with bronze, measuring 4.5 feet high and 7.5 feet long and wide (1.4 m x 2.3 m
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The entire tent was 45 feet (13.7 m) long, 15 feet (4.6 m) wide, and 15 feet (4.6 m) high. It was a wooden skeletal structure, overlaid with gold, with no solid roof or front wall (Ex. 26:15–29). Five wooden bars (overlaid with gold) passed
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The golden lampstand (Ex. 25:31–40) was made of pure gold, hammered out of one solid piece. Resting on a base, the central stem had six branches, three on either side, together carrying seven lamps. The lampstand with its branches was modeled on a flowering almond tree.
Bible Study
The wooden table, overlaid with pure gold (Ex. 25:23–30; 37:10–16), was 3 feet long, 1.5 feet wide, and 2.25 feet high (1 m x 0.5 m x 0.7 m). It held the 12 loaves (Lev. 24:5–9) of the bread of
Bible Study
The ark of the covenant (Ex. 25:10–22; 37:1–9) was the only piece of furniture in the Most Holy Place; the ark and its contents were kept hidden from view at all times. The ark itself was a wooden chest, overlaid with pure gold, measuring 3.75
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The ancient city of Ur lies 186 miles (300 km) southeast of modern Baghdad on a bend of the original course of the Euphrates River. Major excavations took place at the site in 1922–1934 under the direction of Sir Leonard Woolley. Ur became an important city in Mesopotamia near
Bible Study
Ziggurats are monumental temple-towers found throughout the area of ancient Mesopotamia. They were commonly built of sun-dried mud and straw bricks held in position with bitumen as mortar. Stairways ascended to the top of these structures, where a small temple/shrine sat on the summit. The illustration depicts the Ziggurat