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Here we see Avir posing as a statue at the entrance to the Lion’s Gate. This road leads from the Old City of Jerusalem to many place including the Mount of Olives. Avir is trying to look as fierce as a lion, ready to pounce. If you look closely, you can see a pair of lions embedded in stone on both sides of the gate. The road, inside the wall, approximately one hundred metres distance, becomes the Via Dolorosa Road.
The symbol of Lions is well-known in Jewish history and in the Bible. The Lion of Judah identifies the Jewish people with Jerusalem, King David, the Nation of Israel and Messiah. Many surrounding nations at one time or other throughout history have also identified with an image of the lion. The lions which appear on the upper wall of both sides of this gate were added by the Ottomans in honuor of the Mameluke Sultan, Bybars (1223-1277), who was known as the “The Lion of Egypt and Syria”, a great warrior who conquered the Middle East, defeating both the Crusaders and the Mongols.
The Bible text attributes the characteristics of a lion, being fierce and forceful, to the Kingdom of Judah and the Messiah who would come from the line of Judah as part of the promises to the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Y’hudah is a lion’s cub;
my son, you stand over the prey.
He crouches down and stretches like a lion;
like a lioness, who dares to provoke him? (Genesis 49:9)
– Parashah 44: D’varim (Words) –
(Complete Jewish Bible)
Copyright exists in all the material on this website and is owned by Messianic Education Australia Ltd. unless otherwise explicitly stated. This copyright extends to the images, logos, layout and presentation styles as well as the text material.
Picture 160817 Avir on Mt of Olives overlooking Jerusalem
The Mount of Olives, where Avir is today, (with green backpack) is the site of many important biblical events, and offers expansive views of the city of Jerusalem. The Mount of Olives, which rises over 60 metres above the Kidron Valley, is one of three peaks of a mountain ridge that runs for 3.5 kilometres just east of the Old City across the Kidron Valley, in this area called the Valley of Joshaphat.
This is an important place to pause and consider that the Mount of Olives is not only a geographical link between the desert and the fertile Jerusalem hills, it is where many of the most important people of the Bible, walked at some time in their life. King David fled over this Mount to escape from Absalom’s rebellion (2 Samuel 15:30). When King Solomon became corrupted by his pagan wives, he built pagan altars in “high places” here (1 Kings 11:7). By the time Josiah was made King, this place became known as the Hill of Corruption (2 Kings 23:13-14). It was here that Ezekiel had his vision of the glory of the Lord and the flying cherubim (Ezekiel 11:22-23). The Jewish people gathered olive branches here for their first Feast of Tabernacles in the Promised Land after their return from their 70-year Babylonian Exile (Nehemiah 8:15)
In the New Testament Yeshua (Jesus) regularly went up onto the Mount of Olives (Luke 22:39). Yeshua began his famous donkey-ride into Jerusalem over and down from this Mount (Luke 19:28-44), and He appeared to the disciples here after His Resurrection (Acts 1:1-12).
– Double Portion Parashah 42 and 43:
– 42: Mattot (Tribes) –
(Complete Jewish Bible)
Matthew 5:33-36; Matthew 10:5-13
– 43: Mas’ei (Journeys) –
(Complete Jewish Bible)
Copyright exists in all the material on this website and is owned by Messianic Education Australia Ltd. unless otherwise explicitly stated. This copyright extends to the images, logos, layout and presentation styles as well as the text material.
