Because of the coronavirus, Song For Israel postponed our Israel/Greece tour that would have been in Israel now! Today we would have been visiting Magdala, so here is an article about that place.

Magdala was the home town of Mary Magdalene. Roman historian Josephus Flavius also counted Magdala as his hometown from 66-67 CE. It is a village on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee that was primarily known in the New Testament as a fishing town. Last year on our tour we could see new excavations that showed us where fishing boats had been docked. The waters of the Sea of Galilee must have been much higher for the boats to have been docked as high up as we observed. Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus), after multiplying fish and bread for the multitudes, got into a boat and came to the region of Magdala. Matthew 15:39 His boat was docked at this place, Magdala.

As of 2016, Magdala has the only first-century existing synagogue excavated in the Galilee area. The so-called Magdala Stone was found during the excavation. It is a stone block which is carved with symbols of the Temple in Jerusalem, with the core of the Temple represented (the Hall, Sanctuary, and the Holy of Holies). The stone measures 1.8 by 2 feet with a height of 1 foot. Found almost in the center of the synagogue, the Magdala Stone is believed to be a piece of ceremonial furniture on which the Torah and other sacred scrolls were placed. But is it simply a bimah (a traditional holder for the scrolls), or does it have some deeper significance?

“Mary” was a very common Jewish name in the first century and it was necessary for the authors of the gospels to call her “Magdalene,” meaning that she came from Magdala, which distinguished her from other Marys who followed Yeshua. Mary was one of the women that was often found by the side of Yeshua and His disciples. Luke 8:1-3 gives us this information about her: Now it came to pass, afterward, that He [Yeshua] went through every city and village, preaching and bringing glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities—Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons…who provided for Him from their substance. This means Mary was likely wealthy and spent her own money (as did others) to support Yeshua’s ministry.

But let’s back up a bit. How did Mary Magdalene become a follower of Yeshua? Mark 16:9 gives us the answer. Yeshua had cast seven demons from her. First century demons were widely believed to be the cause of physical and psychological illnesses. After Mary’s healing, she became a faithful follower and supporter of Yeshua and His ministry. She was also present at Jesus’ crucifixion (John 19:25).

There is an account of another woman who was healed but we do not know exactly where this occurred. Could it have been in Magdala? Mark 5:21 say that Yeshua had crossed over the Sea of Galilee by boat and a great multitude gathered to Him. He was by the sea. There could have been many ports at which a boat could be docked but we know from Scripture and archaeology that Magdala was a large and common place to dock a boat on the Galilee. Plus there was a synagogue there…another reason for Yeshua to visit Magdala.

“If I can just touch the hem of his garment, I will be healed.” This was said by a broken woman who was looking for healing. Bleeding for 12 years, she was considered an outcast. Due to her condition, she was not allowed into the temple, nor was she allowed to touch another person. She felt cut off from God and from man. The doctors offered her no hope, but Yeshua had come to town.She believed that if she could just touch the hem of His garment that she would be healed. She did touch Yeshua that day, and He touched her as well. He touched her more deeply than she had ever imagined. The scripture records, “Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering” (Mark 5:29 She reached out to Yeshua in faith, and she was rewarded with a divine release of power from the son of God into her life. Her blood had been flowing out for 12 years. Blood is symbolic of life in the Scripture. It was as if her life was flowing away, ebbing out of her. And then His life flowed in.

The same power of Yeshua is still available today. The power of Yeshua still flows from the cross of the Messiah. The apostle Paul referred to Yeshua as a life-giving spirit. He gives life to those who truly look to Him in faith, to those who reach to Him in faith. You can go ahead and ask Him to give you His life even now.

Yeshua didn’t just heal this woman physically though. She was freed from her suffering in her body, but Yeshua wanted to touch her soul as well. The woman had snuck up behind Yeshua in an anonymous fashion among the crowd. As His power flowed into her body, Yeshua knew something was going on. He stopped in the crowd having “realized that power had gone out from Him” (Mark 5:30). He turned to his disciples and said, “Who touched me?”

The disciples thought it was a ridiculous question. The crowd was so big and everyone was crowding around Yeshua. They were thinking, “Who hasn’t touched you?” Yeshua asked the question again though, “Who touched me?”

It wasn’t just the tug of a hand He had felt. It was the tug of a heart. It was the tug of faith that He sensed. He knew someone had reached out to him in faith. Yeshua scanned the crowd looking for who it was. He wasn’t about to let this woman just get lost in the crowd.

This woman came up to Yeshua from behind. Yeshua wanted her to come face to face with Him though. He wasn’t satisfied just to be this lady’s healer. He didn’t want her to remain nameless and faceless. He wanted this woman to know that He knew… her. He wanted to become her God, her king, her savior, her lover, her heavenly father.

This Scripture lets us know that God always wants to make Himself personal to us. Yeshua wanted a real relationship with this woman. He didn’t want to be just a mystical force that can touch and heal. He wanted to be a personal God who was real, loving and intimate. He is not satisfied until we come face to face with him.

She finally fell at his feet, grateful for his touch, fearful of his rejection. Yeshua said, “Daughter, your faith has healed you.” This woman had not heard tender words from a man in more than 12 years. She had the word unclean written on her heart. Just like that though, Yeshua wrote a new name on her heart. Not content to just touch her physical body, he spoke love and acceptance into her heart. Now she was healed, really healed, and she would never be the same again.

Last year on our tour, we visited a little church in Magdala. Evidently, others have determined that the interaction between this woman and Yeshua occurred in Magdala because inside this little church was a giant mural depicting this account.

If you were in Magdala with us on one of our trips, please leave a comment.

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