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The Pool of Siloam, where Jesus healed a blind man and whom Pastor John Hagee says is one of the most inspiring stories of the Bible, will open soon to the public and will put on display yet another affirmation of the validity of Holy Scripture.
Just prior to the New Year, the Israel Antiquities Authority, the Israel National Parks Authority and the City of David Foundation announced that the site will be open to the public in the near future for the first time in more than 2,000 years, Fox News Digital reported. The Pool of Siloam is a site cherished by both Christians and Jews, and religious leaders, including some Christians, are touting it as indisputable evidence that God’s Word is indeed true.
“When I think of this news, I think of another phrase from the Hebrew Bible, ‘My ears have heard of you, but now my eyes have seen you,'” Rev. Johnnie Moore, president of the Congress of Christian Leaders, told Fox News Digital.
“In the Pool of Siloam, we find evidence of history preserved for us, revealed at just the right time. This is a truly historic event. Theologically, it affirms Scripture, geographically it affirms history and politically it affirms Israel’s unquestionable and unrivaled link to Jerusalem. Some discoveries are theoretical. This one is an undeniable. It is proof of the story of the Bible and of its people, Israel.”
Hagee, the founder and Chairman of Christians United for Israel, told Fox News Digital: “The Pool of Siloam’s excavation is highly significant to Christians around the world. It was at this site that Jesus healed the blind man (John 9), and it is at this site that, 2,000 years ago, Jewish pilgrims cleansed themselves prior to entering the Second Temple.
“The Pool of Siloam and the Pilgrimage Road, both located within the City of David, are among the most inspiring archeological affirmations of the Bible. Christians are deeply blessed by the City of David’s work and Israel’s enduring commitment to ensuring religious freedom to all who visit and live in the Holy Land, especially Jerusalem—the undivided capital of Israel.”
Fox News reported that a small section of the pool, which has been fully excavated, has been accessible to the public for several years. But the vast majority of the pool is being excavated and will either be opened piecemeal or once the entire site is unearthed. The archeological project to fully excavate the pool will last a few years. There is a plan to build a space for visitors to the pool to view the ongoing excavation.
“Despite ongoing efforts at the United Nations and Palestinian leadership to erase Jerusalem’s heritage, in a few years time, the millions of people visiting the City of David annually will literally be able to walk in the footsteps of the Bible, connecting with the roots of their heritage and identity,” Ze’ev Orenstein, the director of affairs for the City of David Foundation in Jerusalem, told Fox News Digital.
The pool was first built around 2,700 years ago as part of Jerusalem’s water system in the eighth century B.C. The construction unfolded during the reign of King Hezekiah as cited in the Bible in the book of 2 Kings 20:20, according to the two Israeli agencies and the City of David Foundation.
According to estimates, the Pool of Siloam passed through many stages of construction and reached the size of 1¼ acres.
“This news means that one of the most important archeological discoveries in history can soon be seen by visitors from all over the world,” Moore says. “It will affirm all they believe. Having faith is part of worshipping God, but faith alone isn’t required to believe. There are historic facts attesting to the truth of Scripture. In the Pool of Siloam, we find evidence of history preserved for us, revealed at just the right time. This is a truly historic event.
Theologically, it affirms Scripture, geographically it affirms history and politically it affirms Israel’s unquestionable and unrivaled link to Jerusalem. Some discoveries are theoretical. This one is an undeniable. It is proof of the story of the Bible and of its people, Israel.” {eoa}
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Shawn A. Akers is the online editor at Charisma Media.
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