New Dead Sea Scrolls cave discovered; A Story of God’s Saving Power...more

Archaeologists to break ground at biblical site where Ark of the Covenant stood  ...According to the Book of Samuel, the Ark of the Covenant was stored at Kiryat Ye’arim for 20 years after it was returned to the Israelites by the Philistines, who had captured it in battle and to their dismay were smitten with disease. The text says the ark was stored “in the house of Avinadab in the hill” and tended by the priest Elazar before King David conveyed it to his capital in Jerusalem...

BBC: New Dead Sea Scrolls cave discovered
It hasn’t happened since 1956, but Israeli archaeologists are announcing the discovery of a new cave – the 12th so far – used by Jews of the Second Temple era to hide scrolls containing copies of the Hebrew Bible and other texts.

“This is one of the most exciting archaeological discoveries, and the most important in the last 60 years, in the caves of Qumran,” said Oren Gutfield of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Institute of Archaeology, co-discoverer with his colleague Ahiad Ovadia.

The discovery and excavation were part of “Operation Scroll,” a program of the Israel Antiquities Authority to systematically survey the Judean Desert to identify all its caves and to explore them....

An Incredible Story of God’s Saving Power
 Just a few weeks ago, I got this update from one of our missionaries. He and his family are living in a predominantly Muslim context, in an incredibly remote part of the world. They may be the most remote family we have on the field. When we talk about missionaries dangling at the end of a long rope, these are the people I think of.

This story is an astounding testament to God’s saving power, and a reminder to me that God is so often at work in ways we can’t see...

Syrian Government Brutally Killed 13,000 in 4 Years, According to Amnesty International Report Some 13,000 people were hanged and executed by the Syrian government between 2011 and 2015, according to a report by Amnesty International.

The report, Human slaughterhouse: Mass hangings and extermination at Saydnaya prison, says that every week or sometimes twice a week, prisoners in groups of up to 50 were taken from their cells and hanged.

The report also describes “inhuman” conditions at the prison, including deprivation of water, food and medical care.

"The horrors depicted in this report reveal a hidden, monstrous campaign, authorized at the highest levels of the Syrian government, aimed at crushing any form of dissent within the Syrian population," said Lynn Maalouf, deputy director for research at Amnesty International's regional office in Beirut...