Mitch, Umm Qais is a town at the North end of the Jordan Valley overlooking the Sea of Galilee. It is very beautiful, particularly in the spring, There are substantial Roman ruins there including a 7,000 seat amphitheater (pictured) built from black basalt which is quite spectacular. The poem is about the musings that came to my mind contemplating the history of the region while looking down on the Jordan Valley.

The oldest recorded city is Jericho, so I lead off with that. Also, it represents the beginning of the ongoing conflicts that have wracked the region.

Waiting for another trumpet is a reference to a putative resurrection.

The wreck of a Pharaoh's dreams is a reference to the Battle of Megiddo. (Armageddon).

Moloch is a reference to all the blood that has been spilled in the region.

The ray of man's hope is a reference to Jesus.

The ancient abattoir is Bethlehem, which in Hebrew literally translates as House of Meat.

The road to Damascus is a reference to St. Paul and to the stylites.

The abomination of Desolation is a reference to the second Caliph, Umar ibn Al Khattab who after the Arab conquest of Jerusalem visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The Patriarch of Jerusalem took this as the fulfillment of a prophecy in the book of Daniel, 'The abomination of desolation standeth in the Holy place'.

The stricken Greeks are the Byzantines who the Arabs conquered.

The dark and pale faces are references to the crusades, colonialism and the Jewish migrations to the region.

The amphitheater has a large crack down the middle of it from an earthquake in the 700s.

By the hand of which God is a reference to the Christain, Jewish and Muslim God who have contended over the region for centuries.

The last verse is a sentimental expression of love and the transitory nature of human life. Death is final and there is no resurrection. The hoped for trumpet from verse 2 never sounds.

What I was trying to do was to encapsulate the history of the region and highlight its never-ending strife in as economical a way as possible.

I hope that this clarifies the meaning. Thanks very much for reading and commenting. I deeply appreciate it.