Israel’s second largest lake, after the Kineret (Sea of Galilee), has been inaugurated in Beersheba, the city named after the spot where Abraham, the founder of Judaism, dug a well and forged a peace treaty with King Abimelech of Gerar.
Hence that place was called Be’er Sheva, for there the two of them swore an oath. (Genesis 21:31)
The lake is located at the southern part of the city. It will be the biggest man-made lake in Israel. “The image has turned into a reality. Who does it depend on? It depends on us” said the city’s mayor Rubik Denalovitch.
The location of the lake used to be a site for waste including sewage and building materials dumped illegally the mayor said. “The place that was once the junk yard of Beersheba is now alive and blooming with grass and birds migrating” he added.
The lake will include three picnic sites, boat rentals and tens of thousands of fish that are currently inside the lake. A residential complex consisting of 5,000 condominium units will be built on the lake’s shores as well as a new hospital and Biotech park.
The lake will also replenish a dried out 4-mile long creek in the city known as the capital of the Negev.
Beersheba is also the site where Abraham’s son, Isaac also dug a well there and secured a deal of his own with Abimelech as well.
So he built a mizbayach there and invoked Hashem by name. Yitzchak pitched his tent there and his servants started digging a well. (Genesis 26:25)
See footage of the lake below
