Page 18 - Holyland Magazine - 2020 Edition

Zedekiah’s

Cave
Three Thousand Years of History in One Remarkable Site

By Nick Mancino

cratch the surface anywhere in Israel, limestone that is so familiar to visitors to the Babylon where he was blinded and eventually
and you are apt to find level upon level of city, this large quarry was developed over a killed, but only after seeing his sons killed
history – from the dawn of time, through period of several thousand years, a remnant of before him. At one of the deepest parts of the
biblical eras, perhaps past some Knights the largest quarry in Jerusalem. Cave, there is a constantly dripping natural
Sin the Middle Ages, and into our own spring that today is known as Zedekiah’s
recent centuries. Beginning as a natural cave, formed by time Tears, weeping not only for the death of his
and erosion, once discovered, it proved to be sons, but for the fall of Jerusalem. Zedekiah
the perfect source of high quality building stone. would be the last king of Judah.
Just outside the walls of the Old City of The location couldn’t be closer to Jerusalem’s
building sites. Some archaeologists believe that
Jerusalem, not far from Damascas Gate, the quarry was first developed for the building Seventy years later, the Hebrew people were
there is a simple iron door in the wall. A of the First Temple – Solomon’s Temple, three allowed to return home, and work began on a
small white metal sign with green letters in thousand years ago. second temple. Once again the local quarries
Hebrew, English, and Arabic tells you that this were put to work, supplying the workers with
is the entrance to King Solomon’s Quarries Biblical history (2 Kings 25) tells us that high quality stones for its construction. The
(Zedekiah’s Cave). This modest entrance in no centuries after it was first built, Solomon’s work was completed under the leadership
way offers a glimpse of amazing underground Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar of the last three Jewish Prophets, Haggai,
wonder that lies just beyond its portals. II in 587 BCE, centuries after the time of the Zechariah, and Malachi, with Persian approval
and financing.
Zedekiah’s Cave is known by many other great builder king, known for his wisdom.
As the Babylonian troops marched toward
names as well – Zedekiah’s Grotto, Suleiman’s Jerusalem, Judea’s King Zedekiah and his During the Second Temple Period (516 BCE
Cave, and the Royal Caverns, and Korah’s family made their escape. – 70 CE) the people found themselves under
Cave, to name a few. Each name links the various other ruling nations including Persia,
site to a different period in its long history. The Legend has it that Zedekiah hid in the caves, Greece and Rome. It was under the rule of
5-acre site stretches over five city blocks, deep as he made a plan to escape to Jericho. Herod the Great, Roman client king of Judea,
underground, beneath the Muslim Quarter Eventually, the Babylonian soldiers captured that work was begun to rebuild the second
in the Old City. Carved out of the meleke him and dragged Judea’s last king off to temple. Geologists today have been able to

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