Description
Israel Tour with Pastor Lonnye Finneman & Faith E Church - April 2026
“Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem”
Psalm 122:2
We want to invite you on an unforgettable journey into the Holy Land, filled with ancient biblical history, culture, and spiritual blessings. We’ll visit places that witnessed events of decisive and enduring importance in the history of humanity.
This journey will provide you a deeper understanding of the scriptures as you travel through the lands of the Bible. You’ll get a closer look at the life of Jesus Christ and His mission of redemption. When you make this journey in the company of friends and others of like mind, you can look forward to an unforgettable experience.
Picture yourself sailing in a boat like the disciples on the Sea of Galilee (“And Jesus said to them, follow me and I will make you become fishers of men” Mark 1:17), floating in the Dead Sea, seeing our Lord Jesus’ birth place in Bethlehem, walking the streets of Jerusalem, and having communion at the empty tomb where Jesus rose from the dead (“He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay” Matthew 26:6).
At the end of this tour, two things will most certainly be changed: you, and your understanding of the Bible.
Sincerely,
Pastor Lonnye Finneman
What's Included
Our tours are all-inclusive. Always.
Videos
Watch the experience
Itinerary
Day by Day
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Wednesday
Tel Aviv / TiberiasUpon arrival in Tel Aviv we meet our guide and travel northeast across Israel to the famous Sea of Galilee (Matthew 4:18-10; Mark 7:31-32). Here in the ancient city of Tiberias (John 21:1-3) we enjoy dinner and retire for our first night in the Holy Land. Tomorrow is a big day!
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Thursday
Hazor / Dan / Caesarea PhilippiToday’s travel takes us to the furthest limits of northeastern Israel, and it is breathtaking! Along the way we visit where Jesus preached and pronounced a curse upon Chorazin (Matthew 11:21-22; Luke 10:13). Our drive continues to the northern limits of Jesus’s travels, where we combine a nature walk beside the Upper Jordan with views of the ancient ruins of Dan. We then take a leisurely walk along one of the three tributaries of the Jordan River at Banias (Caesarea Philippi), where Peter made his great confession about Jesus (Matthew 16:13-20).
After lunch, we drive along the foot of Mount Hermon and ascend onto the Golan Plateau for a magnificent view of Upper Israel. In the afternoon, we travel back towards the Sea of Galilee to the town of Magdala. This hometown of Mary Magdalene (Luke 8:2) was frequently visited by Jesus, and it contains one of the oldest synagogues in the world. We conclude our day at our hotel with dinner and overnight.
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Friday
Sea of Galilee / Beit She’an / Jordan RiverThis morning we sail on a replica wooden boat from Jesus’s day and float where Jesus walked (Matthew 14:22-33)! We also have a chance see the New Testament boat found below the sea. We then proceed on land to view many biblical sites, including the ancient city of Capernaum (Matthew 9:1). We walk the shore of Tabgha (John 21:4-17) and we read the Sermon on the Mount...on the mount itself (Matthew 5-7)!
In the afternoon, we travel south from the Sea of Galilee along an often traveled route for Jesus until we arrive at Beit She’an. Here we see evidence of Egyptian, Roman, and Byzantine occupations, as well as ancient architecture and church mosaics. From here, time permitting, we may walk up to the top of Mount Gilboa, where King Saul and his two sons were slain (1 Samuel 31:10-13). Our final stop for the day is the River Jordan (Joshua 3:15-17; 2 Kings 5:10-14), where travelers with a pastor may be baptized in a similar fashion as Jesus was to begin His ministry (Matthew 3:13-17). We then return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.
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Saturday
Nazareth / Caesarea Maritima / Dead SeaThis morning we depart westward from the region of the Sea of Galilee and travel through Cana of Galilee, where Jesus performed His first miracle (John 2:1). We continue to Jesus’s childhood town of Nazareth (Luke 1:26-27) and ascend Mount Precipice (Luke 4:29-30) for a panoramic view of the famed Jezreel Valley. We also visit the Mount of Megiddo, where 34 battles have been fought over 4,000 years, with the great final battle yet to come: the battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16:16). From there we travel to Mount Carmel, site of Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18).
Our day is capped off with a tour of the Mediterranean coast city of Caesarea Maritima and the great Roman Aqueduct from 10 BC (Acts 25:11-14, 23). After our visit to this ancient harbor, we proceed by way of the Aijalon Valley past the modern city of Mo’dim and to the Dead Sea, where we check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.
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Sunday
Masada / Dead Sea / JerichoAfter breakfast we drive along the Dead Sea and ascend to the ancient fortress of Masada. It is here where Jewish defenders in the first century AD made their last stand in the Judean revolt against Rome. We see the remains of storehouses, cisterns, and a sixth-century Byzantine church. We follow the coast of the Dead Sea, the lowest point in the world at 1,300 feet below sea level. Time permitting, we’ll proceed to the pleasant walking trail of Ein Gedi, where David found refreshment during his escape from King Saul (1 Samuel 24:1-12; Psalm 63).
Our tour continues to the Qumran Caves where the Dead Sea scrolls were found, the most significant archeological discovery of the 20th century. After lunch we have the opportunity to relax and float in the mineral-rich waters of the Dead Sea. Next we travel to Jericho, the world’s oldest city (Joshua 6; Matthew 20:29-34). From the excavated tel atop the ruins of ancient Jericho we view the lush green Jordan Valley, Elisha’s Spring, and Qarantal, the traditional Mount of Temptation (Matthew 4:1-11). We drive back to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
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Monday
Mount of Olives / Gethsemane / Jerusalem / BethlehemFollowing breakfast we take a group photo on the Mount of Olives while enjoying a breathtaking panoramic view of Jerusalem. We then begin retracing the steps of Jesus (Psalm 132:13-14) at Dominus Flevit (“Our Lord Weeps”). Our walk descends the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane, where we take time to meditate on the Gospel text of Jesus’s agony and view the Church of All Nations (Matthew 26:36-50). We then enter the Old City and make our way to the Western Wall, the last remaining outer wall of the ancient Jewish temple (Ezra 4:3; John 2:20). We head south along the wall to the Southern Steps where Jesus entered on countless occasions.
We continue to Bethlehem and visit one of the possible sites of the Shepherds’ Fields (Luke 2:8-14). We then walk through the restored old town of Bethlehem to the Church of the Nativity, and we visit the manger and see the adjoining cave of Saint Jerome. We drive back to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight.
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Tuesday
Jerusalem / Rabbi Tunnel / Temple Institute / Yad Vashem / Shrine of the BookThis morning we will board our bus for our exciting tour to the famous Rabbi Tunnel. Here we will enter by the Western Wall Plaza and go down to the foundation of the Second Temple. We will see a model that will demonstrate where we are in location to the Temple in the time of Christ. Continue along the tunnel as we proceed to the Gateway of the Priests entry to the Holy of Holies. We will continue to the Temple Institute where we will see the making of the instruments for the new temple. We will see how they are following the Bible for exact instructions. We will see a film explaining where the Rabbi believes the Temple and courts could be located.
This afternoon we will head to Yad Vashem and see the Museum of the Holocaust. Continue to Shrine of the Book and the model city of Jerusalem at the time of the Second Temple. Return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
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Wednesday
Jerusalem / Wohl Archaeological Museum / Rampart Walls / Temple Menorah / City of DavidThis morning we will board our bus for the Old City where we will visit the Wohl Archaeological Museum, considered to be one of the most fascinating Jerusalem museums. Here we see the remains of six houses from the Herodian period, excavated in 1967. In Temple times, this part of the city was home to wealthy priestly families. Continuing on we will view the city of Jerusalem from atop the ancient walls of the Old City walls via a Ramparts Walk. We continue to the Jewish Quarter in the Old City to view the Golden Menorah that was constructed by the Temple Insitute. We will have time to explore the Old City on our own and have lunch before we enter the excavations of the City of David. We will continue on to the Warren Shaft, descending to Gihon Spring and walk through Hezekiah’s Tunnel as we make our way to the Pool of Siloam. We will return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
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Thursday
Old City / Via Dolorosa / Garden TombAfter breakfast, we enter the Old City through the Dung Gate (Jeremiah 19:2) and ascend to the Temple Mount, where the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque are located. This, the holiest of sites in the world, is the location of countless biblical events, including where Abraham was commanded to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22:11-14; 2 Samuel 24:16-25). Walking off the Mount, just to the north, we find the Pool of Bethesda, the perfectly preserved Church of Saint Anne (John 5:1-9), and the start of the Via Dolorosa. Continuing on, we see Pilate’s Judgment Hall, the Chapel of Flagellation, Lithostrotos, and the Arch of Ecce Homo (“Behold the Man”). We follow the movement of Jesus on his pre-crucifixion journey along the Via Dolorosa (John 18:28), winding through the modern day bazaars on our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
We go on to Mount Zion (Psalm 125:1) where, time permitting, we’ll visit the Upper Room (Matthew 26:1-129) and the Tomb of King David. We continue to the grounds of a church called Peter in Gallicantu, which affords the best view of early Jerusalem from the west. Here, as some suggest, was the house where the High Priest Caiaphas interrogated Jesus (John 18:19-38). Later, we pay a visit to the Garden Tomb for private communion, prayer, and worship (John 19:38-42; 20:1-10) before returning to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
From Billings