The Great Stone and Bridge Tour at The Western Wall (March 6, 2024)

In Jerusalem two of the first guided tours we took were going through the underground tunnels right next to the Western Wall. As you probably know, this is a very special, sacred place for the Jewish people. It’s where they come and pray. There is a men’s side and a women’s side. While we were there it was bustling with a lot of people.

We gathered with our group and set out on our first tour called “The Great Stone Tour” where we got to see and walk alongside of the 570-ton stone that is the lower section of the Western Wall. (That’s the weight of 200 elephants or two full 747 airplanes!) To this day, engineers don’t know how this great stone was moved and fit into place. In fact, modern day cranes and equipment would not be able to move this stone. We learned how the walls were built at different time periods, walked through ancient passageways, and water channels. Amazing!

The second tour was called “The Bridge Tour” where we stood under the archways of the long bridge that was built as a passage from the city to the Temple mount in Jerusalem. We also walked upon part of the original road built by the Romans and saw fountains and a theatre that had only been excavated one year ago! So here we were taking a brand-new tour! As we watched them animate these ancient fountains, I heard the Holy Spirit say, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:19)

Something really stood out to me on both tours. We watched people file in and pass our tour group as they made their way to a specific area, they believe is the closest point to the Holy of Holies in the Temple. The guide described it like when your computer is next to the internet router that’s when you get the “best WIFI connection”. So, people believe if they are close to the Holy of Holies, they will be able to tune into God and he will hear their prayers even more clearly. Praise God we don’t have to stand in a specific place to pray to get God’s attention! As believers the Holy Spirit dwells inside of us and we have a clear, uninterrupted connection with our Lord. As Hebrews 4:16 reminds us, “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

One other incredible feature of this tour was a beautiful synagogue built UNDERGROUND called the “Shearei Teshuva Synagogue”. It took my breath away! I had seen photos of dignitaries and presidents standing in a place underground, near the Temple mount but never thought you could have access to it. I could hardly believe my eyes. What was in front of us was a giant globe sculpture, in the shape of a pomegranate. This arc holds the Torah scrolls. At the top was a flame glowing in red and orange. And what made the globe shape were individual Hebrew letters and words from Song of Songs, “I am my beloved and he is mine.” In that moment God’s love washed over me like a flood. The bridegroom is coming! I believe he is coming soon.

After our tour I stood at the Western Wall and had an overwhelming sense that people were also praying for the rebuilding of the third Temple. We had seen signs and kiosks throughout Jerusalem campaigning for this. Everyone is talking about it and everyone wants it to happen! When this occurs, end time prophecy will be fulfilled and the Jewish people will rejoice. The words of Isaiah 61:3-4 came to mind. ” To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the LORD has planted for his own glory. They will rebuild the ancient ruins, repairing cities destroyed long ago. They will revive them, though they have been deserted for many generations.”

Just as the ancient walls and ruins are being rebuilt, God is building us. As the apostle Paul put in 1 Peter 2:4-5, “As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” We need to continue to pray that God's chosen people will discover and accept Yeshua as their Messiah. He is the one, pure sacrifice that is acceptable to atone for sin.

Here is a video of our Great Stone Tour!