June, 1934
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
218
WALK S ...^About Jerusalem B y J. A. HUFFMAN* Marion, Indiana
feet. The last rebuilding o f the walls took place under the sultan Suleiman, in the sixteenth century. In these walls there are, on the north, three gates: the New Gate, the Damascus Gate, and Herod’s Gate. On the east, there are two gates: St. Stephen’s Gate, near the traditional site o f the stoning o f Stephen, and the Golden Gate at the east o f the temple area. This gate has been walled up by the Turks since the sixteenth century. It was probably through this gate that Christ rode, on the day o f His triumphal entry into the city. The Palm Sunday pro cessions passed through this gate in the days o f the Cru sades. On the south, there are two gates: the Dung Gate in the Tyropean Valley, and Zion Gate, near the southwest corner o f the city. There is only one gate on the west, the Jaffa Gate, almost at the northwest corner. This is the entrance to David Street, the principal street o f the city. H er V alleys
L ong before I really saw Jerusalem with my eyes, I had seen it and its environment a thousand times in imagi nation and fancy. I had approached it from so many angles— historical, geographical, archaeological, and theo logical— that I knew, in a sense, its every nook and corner. On visiting the city, however, I was prepared to be disap pointed in some things, and surprised about others. On the second day after my arrival (the first day being Sunday), I decided to walk about the city alone and un guided. I wanted to locate the interesting places outside the walls, without the interruption o f a guide. I therefore encompassed the city, going in the opposite direction from the movement o f the hands o f a clock. The distance is ap proximately three and one-half miles around the ancient city, if one traverses the valleys." It required almost a half day to cover the distance and inspect the places o f interest. The walls themselves are two and one- half miles in length.
Except on the north side, Jerusalem is surrounded with valleys, and a small one, now almost filled up, divides the eastern and western hills. None o f these valleys are as deep as they once were, for they have been gradually filled with debris from the city, whose hillsides have been scenes o f many vicissitudes. These valleys, however, are still very important, as in them are located some of the most interesting things outside o f the city walls. These valleys with their precipitous banks, together with the city’s walls, gave to Jerusalem in ancient times a double security, making her well-nigh invulnerable. On the west side, and turning to the east, is the Valley o f Hinnom, in which, in the days o f Solomon, an altar to Moloch was set up, and where, in the days o f the wicked king Manasseh, human sacrifice was practiced. In this
The second time I walked about the city, I went in the company o f a Jew- ish-Christian guide, and in the opposite direction. I saw only a few new things, and my guide could not understand how I had found the interesting places which I pointed out to him, alone. My third trip about the city was not completed. This time I started to make the trip upon the walls, beginning at the Damascus Gate, accompanied by an Arab soldier. Just why he insisted upon accompanying me, I did not know, but his aim was probably to insure my safety. All went well for a time, until I had gone part o f the way around the city. As it was becoming very warm, and we came to a convenient place to descend from the wall, the Arab soldier said “ cholos” which means “ finished,” and to my regret, it was necessary for me to discontinue my proposed trip
Copyrighted by American Colony, Jerusalem From Jerusalem's Wall
valley, too, the refuse o f the city was burned, a smoke constantly ascending. It was this which Christ used as a type o f punishment o f the wicked, and from which comes the name “ Gehenna” (Matt. 5:22, R .V . margin). This valley in rough, and along it may be found an occasional threshing floor, where, in harvest time, the natives tread out their grain and winnow it. On the east is the Valley o f the Kidron, also called the Valley o f Jehoshaphat. The valley runs along the eastern side o f the hill called Moriah, which is the ancient temple area, on which are now located two Mohammedan mosques, one o f which is the celebrated “ Dome o f the Rock.” Except in the rainy or winter season, the brook Kidron which flows through this valley is dry. The Valley of Jehoshaphat, sloping from the Kidron eastward up over the Mount o f Olives, is literally filled with the graves o f the Jews o f many generations. It is their favorite burying place, because o f the belief that the judg ment o f the world will occur in this valley. Among the most interesting o f these graves are the so-called tombs o f
about the city upon its walls. Psalm 48, verses 12 and 13, came into my m ind: “ Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following.” This was exactly what I was attempting to do. H er W alls The most conspicuous feature o f Jerusalem is her walls, completely encompassing the “ old city.” Though these walls have been thrown down a number o f times, they have been rebuilt as often, and are in a wonderful state of preservation. A great deal o f labor and money has been expended upon the walls in the last decade, which fact accounts for their present condition. I have seen remains o f wonderful city walls, in Europe and Egypt and the Near East, but, in every case, they are only “ remains.” The walls o f Jerusalem are real walls o f masonry, as much as eight feet thick, and with an average height of thirty-eight *Dean o f Theology, Marion College, Marion, Ind., and Dean of Winona Lake School o f Theology, Winona Lake, Ind.
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