Saul and three thousand men chased David and army to this area called En-gedi which means “Spring”. While Saul was asleep in a cave, David cut a piece of his robe. The next morning Saul prophesied that David would become the future king of Israel.
Masada is an ancient stone fortress in Israel, located high above the Dead Sea on a tall, rocky mesa. Recognizing the defensive advantages of Masada, Herod built a Palace there as a winter escape and haven from enemies, complete with storerooms, cisterns and a foreboding wall. A group of rebels fled from Jerusalem to Masada when Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 A.D. and lived in Herod’s complex.
A legion of 8,000 Romans built camps surrounding the base, a siege wall, and a ramp on a slope of the Western side of the mountain made of earth and wooden supports. After several months of siege without success, the Romans built a tower on the ramp to try and take out the fortress’s wall. When it became clear that the Romans were going to take over Masada, on April 15, 73 A.D., all but two women and five children, took their own lives rather than live as Roman slaves.
Qumran was established during the Hellenistic Period 134-104BC and remained inhabited up until 68BC. It was during the Hellenistic Period that the Essenes Jewish sect settled here, removing themselves from Jerusalem and living as a communal community. The sect is thought to have eaten communal meals, studied sacred scriptures, taken a daily ritual bath and practiced celibacy.
In 1947 local Bedouins discovered a clay jar containing 7 scrolls in a cave about 1.5km from Qumran. The ancient scrolls were sold to antique dealers and after changing hands several times they reached scholars who could accurately evaluate the age and value of the parchments. Further exploration uncovered a total of 972 texts including the oldest known existing copy of the Old Testament. In all there were 12 caves where scrolls and fragments of parchment were found.
The Dead Sea’s eastern shore belongs to Jordan, and the southern half of its western shore belongs to Israel. The Dead Sea has the lowest elevation and is the lowest body of water on the surface of Earth.