Tag: Bible
-
Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday
Jesus Christ and his disciples came from Bethany, on the east side of the Mount of Olives. “Then sent Jesus two disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village in front of you [Bethphage], and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.” Matthew… Read more
-
The First Trial of Jesus Christ at Caiaphas’ House
The Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu (Gallicantu means “cock-crow” in Latin), on Mount Zion, is over the ruins believed to be the site of Caiaphas the high priest’s home (Caiaphas was High Priest from 18 to 36 AD). The identification is strongly supported (but not proved) by archeology. A church existed here during the… Read more
-
Garden of Gethsemane
On the Mount of Olives, across the Kidron (a.k.a. Cedron) brook, are the remains of very ancient olive trees. Hebrew University botanists date the trees to be between 1,800 and 2,300 years old. The only way to be sure would be to cut one down and count the rings, which is an horrific idea. Josephus… Read more
-
Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem
As we approach Easter it is only fitting to review the sites associated with the last week of Jesus’ life (Holy Week). First I will discuss the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Revered as the holiest site by all orthodox Christian religions (i.e. Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Coptic, Armenian Apostolic, Syriac, and Ethiopian… Read more
-
Pool of Bethesda at Jerusalem
“Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called … Bethesda, having five porches.” John 5:2. Formerly, many scholars felt that a pool having 5 porches, or porticoes, must have been inaccurate. However, archaeological excavations in 1964 revealed the the Pool of Bethesda consisted of two pools separated by a… Read more
-
Sodom or Gomorrah, Located at Tall el-Hammam in Jordan
Sodom Read more
-
“Abraham’s Gate” at Tel Dan and the Battle Account in Genesis 14
Above is the mud-brick gate, flanked by two mud-brick towers of the Canaanite city of Dan. To keep the gate from collapsing, it has been bricked up. This gate and towers date to the time of Abraham (Dan was called Laish during the time of the Patriarchs, Judges 18:27, 29). This town was the northernmost… Read more
-
Magdala, Mary Magdalene’s Home Town
Magdala, Migdal in Hebrew and Taricheae in Greek, lies on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee just north of Tiberias. It is possibly the same town called Dalmanutha in Mark chapter 8. During the time of Christ, Magdala was the center for drying, salting, and exporting to the Roman empire fish caught in… Read more
-
Masada, a Fortress and Palace in the Desert
Masada, a Fortress and Palace in the Desert Introduction. Masada is a plateau in the Judean desert near the Dead Sea (seen in upper left corner of photo). The plateau is 1,476 feet (450 meters) above the Dead Sea and is a little over 48 acres in size (2,097,388 square feet or 144,900 square meters).… Read more
-
Gideon Chooses 300 Warriors to Defeat the Midianite Hordes
The Spring of Gideon, called the Spring of Herod in the Old Testament, still flows out of a cave at the foot of the Gilboa Mountains as it did in Gideon’s time (around 1400-1300 BC). As recounted in the Judges chapter 7 (Gideon’s full story is in Judges 6:11-8:35). Gideon had previously sent emissaries throughout… Read more