The wheels touch down on the Tel Aviv shore,
But my spirit is yearning for something much more.
Through the coastal breeze and the modern sea spray,
My mind traces the ancient, ascending highway.
A journey to Sion, where history breathes,
Where the faithful find solace and the weary believe.
On the day I arrive where the mountains rise sorrounding Jerusalem,
Tears of deep reverence well up in my eyes.

I think of the Patriarchs, stepping on stone,
And the great shepherd King who established the throne.
King David the warrior, who fought and who bled,
Who conquered the stronghold, just as Adonai said,
And crowned it the capital, sacred and bright,
The city of Yahweh, bathed in His light.

2 Samuel 5:7
"Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Sion, that is, the city of David."

Oh, the echoes of shouting that shattered the air,
When the Ark of the Covenant was carried up there!
The very presence of God in a glorious trance,
And David, triumphant, erupting in dance.
He leapt and he whirled as the holy Ark neared,
Shedding his royal robes as the Israelites cheered.
Energetic in his worship, humbled and free,
To welcome the Lord in His majesty.

2 Samuel 6:14–15
"And David danced before the LORD with all his might. And David was wearing a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the horn."

Now I walk in the footsteps of prophets and priests,
Who journeyed to Sion for holy decrees.
The kings and the pilgrims, the blind and the seekers of God,
All drawn to the majesty of God’s holy name.
And I think of my Savior, the Carpenter’s Son,
Who walked these same roads till His mission to willingly atone for the whole world was done.
Jesus, who wept as He looked out above,
Who journeyed to give us His ultimate love.

Luke 19:41
"And when he drew near and saw Jerusalem, he wept over it."

This is Salem, the ancient, the cradle of peace,
Where the echoes of heaven will never surcease.
Look at her walls, standing mighty and tall,
A royal pavilion, surviving the fall.
God is within her, she shall not be moved,
The bastion of Sion, eternal and proved.
Oh, beautiful city of towering grace,
You are the fingerprint of the Almighty's embrace.

Psalm 46:5
"God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns."
Zechariah 2:5
For I,’ says the LORD, ‘will be a wall of fire all around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.’ ”

The exiles once wept by the Babylonian streams,
And wove this great vow through their desperate dreams:

Psalm 137:5–6
"If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill! Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy!"

For as the sun sets with a radiant fold,
The limestone is bathed in a heavenly gold.
Yerushalayim Shel Zahav—Jerusalem of Gold,
A glowing, bright copper, majestic and bold.
The poets have sung of your magnificent light,
A beacon of beauty that shatters the night.

And the promise remains: Jesus is coming again,
The King of all Kings will walk the same Jerusalem.
To this very city, His feet will descend,
And the sorrow of this world will come to an end.
Then the saints of the Lord from the ends of the earth,
Every nation and tongue, every tribe of new birth,
Will gather in Sion with banners unfurled,
In the city of God, the great joy of the world.

Zechariah 14:4
"On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lays before Jerusalem on the east..."

Psalm 48:2
"...beautiful in elevation, is the joy of all the earth, Mount Sion, in the far north, the city of the great King."

So I bow down my head by the ancient Jerusalem stone,
And I lift up my voice to the heavenly throne:

Psalm 122:6–7
"I pray for the peace of Jerusalem! May they be secure who love you! Peace be within your walls and security within your towers!"

May prosperity dwell where the worshippers bow,
Until the Maker of Salem is Lord over all.

I Am Esther 😁

Circa, 1967, Naomi Shemer wrote a song I love so much, called “Yerushalayim shel zahav” [Jerusalem of Gold]. It’s a song we love in my family because it reminds me of my mom, Naomi is her namesake, and we are proud of our Jewish ancestral heritage.