Fri. June. 06
Welcome to Israel!
Our group will arrive at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv (flight details to follow)
Meet and assistance by Immanuel Tours representative. After border formalities we
will meet our guide and driver and check in for dinner and overnight at our hotel in
Tel-Aviv.

Sat. June 07
Caesarea – Mt. Carmel – Nazareth – Cana – Sea of Galilee
We begin this first day of our tour driving north to the ruins of the ancient city of
Caesarea (Acts 10, 12), a city built by King Herod and which later became the seat
of government for the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, who sat in judgment over
Jesus and sentenced Him to be crucified. We visit the extensive excavations of the
site including the harbor, the Crusader City, the Amphitheatre, the Hippodrome and
the Roman Aqueduct. We continue our drive over the crest of Mt. Carmel, where the
Prophet Elijah challenged the priests of Baal (1 Kings 18:17-40). This will be
followed by a visit to Nazareth, a town in the hill country of Galilee where Jesus
grew up (Matt. 2:23; Luke 1:26; Luke 2; Luke 4:16-30) to manhood. Here we will
visit the Nazareth Village, an open air museum that reconstructs and reenacts village
life in the Galilee in the time of Jesus. We pass through Cana in Galilee where
Jesus performed His first miracle at the wedding feast (John 2:1-11). We’ll travel to
the Sea of Galilee and along its southern and eastern shores. We arrive at our hotel
in the Galilee for dinner and overnight.
There may be a late check in to the rooms due to arrival on Shabbat.

Sun. June 08
Around the Sea of Galilee
We start this day with a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee to Kibbutz Ginosar and
visit to the so-called “Jesus Boat” Museum – a fishing boat of the kind used by the
disciples of Jesus.
From here drive to Magdala – the birthplace of Mary Magdalene (Luke 8:2; John
19:25; Mark 16:9 ;), was a prosperous fishing village at the time Jesus was active in
this region. The ruins of this Roman village are now enclosed within a wall. The
archaeologists uncovered the remains of the village dating from the time of Jesus,
and a Byzantine monastery. A mosaic floor featuring a fisherman’s boat was found
at the place.
On the northern shores we stop and visit the site of the Mt. of Beatitudes, the scene
of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), and the nearby ruins of Chorazim
(Korazim: Matthew 11:20), one of the small cities that Jesus visited but its
inhabitants did not listen to Him (Matthew 11:21). After lunch we visit Capernaum
where Jesus dwelt after He left Nazareth and where He performed many signs and
wonders. We visit the ancient synagogue and the “House of Peter” (Matthew 8:14)
and Tabgha. We will visit Bethsaida, hometown of Apostle Peter and Andrew (John
1:14; Mark 6:45; 8:22). Next, we drive around to the eastern shore of the Sea of
Galilee to Kursi, the “Land of the Gadarenes”, located on the Golan Heights slopes. It
was here that Jesus cured two madmen, (Matthew 8:28-32). For our final stop of
the day, we travel to the southern shores of the Sea of Galilee to the Tamar Kinneret
Kibbutz grocery store. Here you will find the best “date honey” made! We arrive
back at the hotel for dinner and overnight.

Mon. June 09
Tel Dan – Banias – Gamla
This morning we drive north into the Golan Heights to reach the Upper Hula Valley
to visit the Tel Dan Nature Reserve near Mt. Hermon. We find at Tel Dan streams of
flowing water and the ruins of the northernmost town of Biblical Israel (hence the
saying “from Dan to Beersheba” [1 Samuel 3:20; 2 Sam 3:10].) Our next stop is at
one of the sources of the River Jordan at Banias, the site of Caesarea Philippi
(Matthew 16:13-17:13), where the Apostle Peter made his great confession of faith
in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. We arrive at Gamla – an ancient Jewish city in
the Golan Heights. Inhabited since the early Bronze Age, it is believed to have been
founded as a Seleucid fort during the Syrian Wars. The site of a Roman siege during
the Great Revolt of the 1st century CE, Gamla is a symbol of heroism for the modern
state of Israel and an important historical and archaeological site. It currently resides
within the Gamla nature reserve. Before returning to your hotel, you will have the
opportunity to be baptized in the Jordan River.
Then we will see the sunset over the Sea of Galilee as we return to our hotel for
dinner and overnight.

Tue. June 10
Megiddo – Ein Harod – Beit Shean – Jerusalem
Today we leave the Sea of Galilee. After breakfast we check out of the hotel and
drive to Megiddo (Judges 5; 1 Kings 9:15), the Armageddon of the Book of
Revelation (Revelation 16) which by Christian tradition is the symbol of the final
overthrow of evil by God. From there drive to the spring of Ein Harod, along the
slopes of Mt. Gilboa, where Israel’s first king, Saul, and his son Jonathan fell in battle
to the Phillistines, around 1010 BC (1 Samuel 31). It was at the waters of Ein Harod
that Gideon collected his people, in accordance with God’s command, (Judges 7:7).
Next we visit the extensive excavations of the ancient Israelite city of Beit Shean. In
New Testament times this city became one of the 10 cities of the Decapolis
(Matthew 4:25; Mark 5:20; Mark 7:31). We then continue south, driving along the
Jordan Valley via the ancient city of Jericho (Joshua 2; 2 Kings 2; Matthew 20:29).
We continue our drive up to Jerusalem, the City of God. Before checking into our
hotel we stop at an observation point to take our first glimpse of the City of
Jerusalem, the capital city of Israel. We arrive to the hotel in Jerusalem for dinner
and overnight.

Wed. June 11
Jerusalem: The Mount of Olives – Old City – Garden Tomb
After breakfast we drive to the Mount of Olives overlooking the ancient and modern
city of Jerusalem, the center of the Biblical world. We walk down the “Palm Sunday
Road”, via the Chapel of Dominus Flevit where Jesus wept over Jerusalem (Matthew
23:37f), to the Garden of Gethsemane where He prayed on the night of His betrayal
(Luke 22:40-46). Next we enter within the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem through
the Lion’s Gate, walking from the Pools of Bethesda (John 5:2-9) and along the Via
Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Crucifixion site).
We end this memorable day with a visit to the Garden Tomb and Gordon’s Golgotha
(Matthew 27:33), where we will worship and celebrate the Lord’s Supper. We then
return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

Thu. June 12
Mt. Zion – Herodian – Bethlehem – Ein Karem
After breakfast we start at Mt. Zion with a visit to the Church of St. Peter in
Gallicantu, the House of Caiaphas (John 18:19-27), where Jesus was interrogated by
the High Priest. Continue to Herodian located south of Jerusalem and east of
Bethlehem, on the edge of the Judean Desert, is one of the most fascinating
antiquities sites in the country, it was built by King Herod the Great between 23 and
15 BCE, as a combined palace and powerful fortress. The complex was surrounded
by a double wall 63 meters in diameter and seven stories high, within which Herod
built a palace that included halls, courtyards and opulent bathhouses. Earth was
heaped up around the walls, which created a cone-shaped artificial mountain. At its foot, Herod built a kind of royal ‘country club’, including a large pool, a
bathhouse and a roofed pool.
Despite its desert location, the complex was surrounded by magnificent gardens
irrigated by the pool. A special aqueduct from the area of Solomon’s Pools near
Bethlehem brought water to the palace. From here we drive to Bethlehem, the royal
city of David, where Jesus was born (Luke 2). We visit the Church of the Nativity and
the Field of the Shepherds where the Angel of the Lord proclaimed the birth of the
Savior. Next we visit the neighborhood of Ein Karem where John the Baptist was
born (Luke 1:39-45). We’ll visit Mary’s spring and the Church of St. John the Baptist.
We return to the hotel in the late afternoon for personal time, dinner and overnight.

Fri. June 13
Yad Vashem – Tel Shilo
We drive through the New City of Jerusalem via Mt. Herzl, the final resting place of
Dr. Theodor Benjamin Herzl, the modern Prophet of the State of Israel, and the
Knesset (Israel’s Parliament building) to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust History Museum
and Children’s Memorial, the memorials to the victims of the Holocaust during World
War II. From here we will drive to the biblical Samaria. We will start our day at the
Psagot Visitors Center perched high on a mountain ridge between Jerusalem and
Shilo. Here we will watch a movie that will give us a clearer idea of the area we will
be visiting today. From here we will continue our drive passing by Beit El, where
Jacob said “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the House of God
and this is the gate of Heaven” (Genesis 28:17). We arrive at ancient Shilo which
held a central place in the biblical history of the children of Israel for more than 300
years and was the resting place of the Ark of the Covenant until the death of Eli the
High Priest. We return to our hotel in Jerusalem for dinner and overnight.

Sat. June 14
Day at leisure in Jerusalem
Today we will enjoy a free day in Jerusalem. Breakfast and dinner will be served at
the hotel. You will have the opportunity for shopping in the Old City or just relax and
enjoy a day off.

Sun. June 15
Qumran – Ein Gedi – Masada – Dead Sea
We drive through the Judean Hills to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on Earth! Our
first stop will be at the Inn of the Good Samaritan. Drive to Qumran, where the
Essenes, a Jewish religious sect, lived over 2000 years ago and wrote The Dead Sea
Scrolls.
We continue the drive along the shores of the Dead Sea to Ein Gedi Nature Reserve
Park where David cut off a piece of Saul’s robe (1 Samuel 24). This is followed by a
visit to the Mountain Fortress of Masada, the scene of the last Jewish Resistance
against the Romans in 73 AD. We will stop at one of the Dead Sea shores and enjoy
a float in the mineral rich waters. We return to our hotel in Jerusalem for dinner and
overnight.

Mon. June 16
The Upper Room – the City of David – Davidson Center – Jewish Quarter
We begin our day with a visit to Mt Zion on the South side of the Old City where we
visit the Upper Room where Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper. We then visit the City
of David and the Davidson Center which includes the Hulda Steps and The Southern
Wall Archaeological Garden. Our next site is the Burnt House. Archaeologists believe
that the house was burnt at the time of the conquest of the Upper City. It was
named the Burnt House due to its singular testimony to the destruction and burning
of Jerusalem by the Romans in the first century. Before returning to the hotel we will
visit the Western (Wailing) Wall, the holiest Shrine of the Jewish people and the
Western Wall Tunnel.
We return to the hotel for Farewell Dinner.

Tue. June 17
Departure
We head to Ben Gurion Airport for our homebound flight from Israel to the United
States.