A fascinating exploration of an enduring mystery: how did a small city, inherently difficult to defend from attack, that lies far from key trade routes and vital bodies of water, and that has never boasted an essential commercial or strategic reason for being, capture the imagination of Judaism, Christianity and Islam for the past 3 millennia? The answers to this enigma unfold with brilliant style and lovely erudition in the pages of a book that reviewers have called a "sweeping and eloquent meditation" and a "masterful biography of a city." Elon has updated the book to reflect conflicts that grip the region today.

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