New_Testament_places_associated_with_Jesus

New Testament places associated with Jesus

New Testament places associated with Jesus

God

The New Testament narrative of the life of Jesus refers to a number of locations in the Holy Land and a Flight into Egypt. In these accounts the principal locations for the ministry of Jesus were Galilee and Judea, with activities also taking place in surrounding areas such as Perea and Samaria.[1]

Part of the early Byzantine Madaba Map showing Bethabara (Βέθαβαρά) on the Jordan River

Other places of interest to scholars include locations such as Caesarea Maritima where in 1961 the Pilate Stone was discovered as the only archaeological item that mentions the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate, by whose order Jesus was crucified.[2][3]

The narrative of the ministry of Jesus in the gospels is usually separated into sections that have a geographical nature: his Galilean ministry follows his baptism, and continues in Galilee and surrounding areas until the death of John the Baptist.[1][4] This phase of activities in the Galilee area draws to an end approximately in Matthew 17 and Mark 9.

After the death of the Baptist, and Jesus' proclamation as Christ by Peter his ministry continues along his final journey towards Jerusalem through Perea and Judea.[5][6] The journey ends with his triumphal entry into Jerusalem in Matthew 21 and Mark 11. The final part of Jesus' ministry then takes place during his last week in Jerusalem which ends in his crucifixion.[7]

Geography and ministry

Galilee, Perea and Judea at the time of Jesus
See also: Ministry of Jesus

In the New Testament accounts, the principal locations for the ministry of Jesus were Galilee and Judea, with activities also taking place in surrounding areas such as Perea and Samaria.[1][4]

The gospel narrative of the ministry of Jesus is traditionally separated into sections that have a geographical nature.

Galilean ministry
Jesus' ministry begins when after his baptism, he returns to Galilee, and preaches in the synagogue of Capernaum.[8][9] The first disciples of Jesus encounter him near the Sea of Galilee and his later Galilean ministry includes key episodes such as Sermon on the Mount (with the Beatitudes) which form the core of his moral teachings.[10][11] Jesus' ministry in the Galilee area draws to an end with the death of John the Baptist.[12][13]
Journey to Jerusalem
After the death of the Baptist, about half way through the gospels (approximately Matthew 17 and Mark 9) two key events take place that change the nature of the narrative by beginning the gradual revelation of his identity to his disciples: his proclamation as Christ by Peter and his transfiguration.[5][6] After these events, a good portion of the gospel narratives deal with Jesus' final journey to Jerusalem through Perea and Judea.[5][6][14][15] As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem through Perea he returns to the area where he was baptized.[16][17][18]
Final week in Jerusalem
The final part of Jesus' ministry begins (Matthew 21 and Mark 11) with his triumphal entry into Jerusalem after the raising of Lazarus episode which takes place in Bethany. The gospels provide more details about the final portion than the other periods, devoting about one third of their text to the last week of the life of Jesus in Jerusalem which ends in his crucifixion.[7]
Post-Resurrection appearances
The New Testament accounts of the resurrection appearances of Jesus and his ascension are placing him both in the Judea and the Galilee area.

Locations

Galilee

Places mentioned in the canonical Gospels in relation to the ministry of Jesus

Decapolis and Perea

Samaria

Judea

Other places

Archaeology

An Augustus denarius, stating CAESAR AVGVSTVS; and on the reverse: DIVVSIVLIV(S), which the population at large took to mean Son of God[63][64]

No documents written by Jesus exist,[65] and no specific archaeological remnants are directly attributed to him. The 21st century has witnessed an increase in scholarly interest in the integrated use of archaeology as an additional research component in arriving at a better understanding of the historical Jesus by illuminating the socio-economic and political background of his age.[66][67][68][69][70][71]

James Charlesworth states that few modern scholars now want to overlook the archaeological discoveries that clarify the nature of life in Galilee and Judea during the time of Jesus.[69] Jonathan Reed states that chief contribution of archaeology to the study of the historical Jesus is the reconstruction of his social world.[72] An example archaeological item that Reed mentions is the 1961 discovery of the Pilate Stone, which mentions the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate, by whose order Jesus was crucified.[72][73][74]

Reed also states that archaeological finding related to coinage can shed light on historical critical analysis. As an example, he refers to coins with the ""Divi filius" inscription.[66] Although Roman Emperor Augustus called himself "Divi filius", and not "Dei filius" (Son of God), the line between being god and god-like was at times less than clear to the population at large, and the Roman court seems to have been aware of the necessity of keeping the ambiguity.[63][64] Later, Tiberius who was emperor at the time of Jesus came to be accepted as the son of divus Augustus.[63] Reed discusses this coinage in the context of Mark 12:13–17 (known as Render unto Caesar...) in which Jesus asks his disciples to look at a coin: "Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?" and then advises them to "Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's." Reed states that "the answer becomes much more subversive when one knows that Roman coinage proclaimed Caesar to be God".[66]

David Gowler states that an interdisciplinary scholarly study of archeology, textual analysis and historical context can shed light on Jesus and his teachings.[70] An example is the archeological studies at Capernaum. Despite the frequent references to Capernaum in the New Testament, little is said about it there.[75] However, recent archeological evidence show that unlike earlier assumptions, Capernaum was poor and small, without even a forum or agora.[70][76] This archaeological discovery thus resonates well with the scholarly view that Jesus advocated reciprocal sharing among the destitute in that area of Galilee.[70] Other archeological findings support the wealth of the ruling priests in Judea at the beginning of the first century.[68][77]

See also

Jesus - acts and chronology
Sites associated with Jesus
Related

References

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