Small talk with the contractors before my husband's arrival on the night we signed the paperwork revealed to me that both men are Christians.

The first baited me casually with a passing mention of an early stint in California at a Bible college. I made a mental note without seizing upon the disclosure. Even to inquire which school would have been idle curiosity on my part because I haven't any familiarity with California Bible colleges.

The second man hails from New Orleans, so adherence to the Christian faith is safely presumed.

Neither man carried business cards, so in jotting down their contact information for me, I made available a handy piece of scrap paper from a scratch pad for an Exodus study. I didn't realize until after the paper was returned to me that, during an earlier study time, I had scribbled on the paper a list of the ten plagues. Before writing out his reach numbers, one of the men studied the page carefully but made no comment. I was not embarrassed too much except for the final plague listed, "first born," due to its potentially negative connotation where human contracts are concerned.

The second man returned tonight to complete the permit paperwork.

Again my husband was delayed in arriving home, so again, we were forced into small talk as we waited.

The man took a close look at our Israel pictures hanging on our great room wall. He couldn't be sure of the location, so I informed him of their origin as I quickly identified each place. He wasn't familiar with my favorite, the mosaic at Tabgha, an image I have had on this blog. The miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes apparently not significant for him.

I had been working on a study of Revelation 7 when he arrived, but I had placed my Bible and paperwork aside on a nearby table. He asked whether I had been studying the Bible just as he arrived and I said that I do a number of studies throughout the week.

He mentioned that he has recently heard the Mt. of Olives referred to as "the mount of corruption" in 1 Kings. I showed him our picture of Jerusalem as seen from the Mt. of Olives and explained the messianic tradition of the Eastern or Golden Gate. But, off-hand, I was unfamiliar with the mount's association with corruption.

After he left, I tracked down the references with ease: Solomon's high places in 1 Kings 11:7 to honor of his wives' pagan gods and Josiah's reforms in 2 Kings 23:13.

What's more interesting to me than calling the Mt. of Olives "Mt. of Corruption" is the Valley of Hinnom's reputation as a place of human sacrifice and a trash heap and how that reputation works its way into the New Testament language as "Gehenna".

Still, what a curious thing to mention, "Mt. of Corruption"? Talk about biblical minutiae!