Jacob’s well is now located in a lower level grotto of a Greek Orthodox church in the middle of Nablus.
(John 4:5, 6). This is one of the few sites in Palestine about which there is no dispute. It was dug by Jacob, and hence its name, in the "parcel of ground" which he purchased from the sons of Hamor (Gen. 33:19). It still exists, but although after copious rains it contains a little water, it is now usually quite dry. It is at the entrance to the valley between Ebal and Gerizim, about 2 miles south-east of Shechem. It is about 9 feet in diameter and about 75 feet in depth, though in ancient times it was no doubt much deeper, probably twice as deep. The digging of such a well must have been a very laborious and costly undertaking.
Since this is the last day of my Isreali-Palestine Conflict tour, I was grateful to have at least one visit that related to the Bible.
Most of the day was given over to speaking with a worker for an NGO providing some assistance to refugee Palestinians in the Balata Refugee Camp, His story and the tour of the camp was emotionally stirring. There is a lot Americans need to know about the situation “on the ground”.
This narrow alley way is all that separates families in this crowded camp, provided by the United Nations as a stop-gap measure to house Palestinians forced from their homes in the northern part of Palestine in 1948. Now, 63 years later, these people, direct descendants of those who were forced to move, are still waiting for a resolution of their situation.
The story of the refugee camps is much longer and much more complicated, but suffice it to say, the story deserves hearing.
And for dessert…..Kneva. hmmm, an Arabic sweet that is hard to beat.
A little of this and a little of that and you have a yellow flour mixture that gets spread on the pan. Cover the flour with goat cheese and put on a flame until the goat cheese begins to melt. Flip the pastry over so now the baked flour layer is brown and on top. Liberally shellac the top with honey syrup and serve it up warm. Hmmmmmm, good. Kneva.
Today was Nakba, or the day Palestinians remember the 1948 day over half their land was given to the Israelis by the British. We watched closely for disturbances that might affect our tour, but we were pretty much spared any inconvenience. In other parts of the country there was some violence quickly quelled by the Israeli military.
So, I am now in Netanya for a day or two of rest before starting the next phase of this fantastic adventure.
