   
In Jordan, about 8km south of Pella, Wadi el-Yabis empties into the Jordan River. This wadi is widely believed to be the biblical Brook Cherith of 1 Kings 17:2-7. It is here that Elijah, after his dire prediction to King Ahab of drought, was told to go to be protected and fed. He was brought food by the ravens and drank water from the brook. When the brook dried up, it was time to go.
Likewise, in John 10.40 we read that Jesus withdrew across the Jordan to escape the hostile land and people of Palestine to find the faith that was lacking in his own land. Could Jesus have sought refuge in this same area? Jesus certainly would have known of Pella and the surrounding region as a part of his travels into the Deacapolis and Peraea (Mark 5:1-20; 7:31-37; 10:1-16 and parallels). The region is part of the history of the newly formed church in Jerusalem. In A.D.67, when the Romans began to threaten the Jewish population during the First Jewish Revolt, the Christians of Jerusalem are said to have fled to Roman city of Pella for refuge. Might they have stopped short of Pella and taken refuge in the Wadi only 8km south of it? Might this region have had a special meaning to those in the land of the Bible? Might they have left any traces of their existence in the many caves that dot the Wadi? These and other questions are being examined by Dr. James Tabor of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. His web site is The Jewish Roman World of Jesus. Below are pictures of Wadi el-Yabis from Dr. Tabor's 1992 exploratory trip to Jordan. Perhaps one day, we will be able to explore the Wadi scientifically so that we may find the answers.
   
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