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Looking east
through "Shumacher's Ditch," a great trench excavated by the
German
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Perhaps the Holy Land’s best-known Biblical city is Megiddo – better
known in its Latin form "Armageddon". Located at the foot of the
Carmel
mountain range, Megiddo commands one of the most strategic points in
the Holy Land.
Archeologists believe that Megiddo has been inhabited some 22 times and
was the site of countless wars and bloody battles. Shishak of
Egypt set up
a monument at Megiddo to commemorate his victories over the towns of
Israel and Judah.
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Like other Israelite cities, Megiddo was destroyed and
rebuilt over and over again producing a mound or "tel." In about 609 B.C.
"while Josiah was king, Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt went up to the
Euphrates
River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to meet him in
battle, but Neco faced him and killed him at Megiddo. " Josiah's servants
brought his body in a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem and buried him in
his own tomb."
[2 Kings 23:29-30]. |
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Of all these exciting findings, the most impressive was a system of water works hewn from the center of Megiddo by way of a 60-meter vertical shaft and a horizontal tunnel about 120 meters long. This water system permitted Megiddo's inhabitants secret access to a spring located outside the city walls.
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Stairway descent
through Megiddo's amazing 9th century BCE water system
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Archaeological excavations have unveiled monumental fortifications and gateways dating to the days of
Solomon - exactly as recorded in the Bible. The
acropolis includes altars, palaces made of ashlar stones, and many public and private buildings.
In the Book of Revelation, the site of the final and conclusive battle
between good and evil, involving “the kings of the Earth and the whole
world,” on the “great day of God Almighty.” Armageddon refers, generally,
to end times or Earth ending catastrophes in various religions and
cultures. "Armageddon" also refers to any great loss of life in battle
etc. |
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