Finding Dor

It was an afternoon about two and a half weeks ago that I found myself wandering along the shore of the Mediterranean sea.  The waves were gently lapping at the shore, making tidal pools full of crabs and fish and various other curious sea creatures available to those sure of foot and curious of heart.

These were the first ruins we found, possibly part of a warehouse or dye factory.

With fields of green-gold wheat on our left and the sea on our right we wandered south, in search of ancient ruins.  The scent of the fields wafted by on the gentle breeze, overpowering any smell the sea might have been giving off.  If we had been over the first line of hills, out of sight and sound of the water, it would have been easy to think we were deep inland.

As we walked along I thought about how an ancient Israelite would have felt, similarly walking along this shore.  A waterless wilderness would have probably felt more hospitable to him than this endless, changeable expanse of water.  One day deceptively calm and inviting, but treacherous for those who couldn't swim or who took their boat out too far; the next day, hurling itself at the land as if it wished to destroy everyone and everything, chaos raging against order.  It could be a terrifying experience for one who has spent their entire life in a land where water is only found in cisterns and a few small springs.  It's a reflection of the psalmist's deep faith when he says,

"You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, you still them." 

~Psalm 89:9 

The site we were searching for was ancient Dor.  A few bits of information about it:

1. It was mentioned in an Egyptian inscription from the time of Ramses II (often claimed to be the pharaoh of the exodus, though the evidence in inconclusive).

2. It was assigned to the tribe of Manasseh in Joshua 17:11, but Judges 1:27 tells us that the Israelites were unable to drive out the Canaanites dwelling there.  

3. It was an important sea port for a while, though never a great one, and Herod's development of Caesarea decreased its relative importance even more.  

4.  It was controlled in turn by the Ptolemies, the Seleucids, the Hasmoneans, and then liberated by Pompey.  After that it decreased in importance, but there are Byzantine and Crusader ruins also found at the site. 

Flowers bloom in profusion in front of what was probably the harbor.

It wasn't exactly a beautiful day, but it was a beautiful site, full of flowers and rocks.

After our visit to the ancient site, we visited a nearby Moshav with the remains of a Crusader fortress in the middle of it.