New Testament places associated with Jesus

Geography and ministry

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. 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.The Gospel according to Matthew by Leon Morris page 71 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. Jesus' ministry in the Galilee area draws to an end with the death of John the Baptist. ; Journey to Jerusalem: After the death of John the Baptist, about halfway 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. After these events, a good portion of the Gospel narratives deal with Jesus' final journey to Jerusalem through Perea and Judea. As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem through Perea he returns to the area where he was baptized.Mercer dictionary of the Bible by Watson E. Mills, Roger Aubrey Bullard 1998 page 929 ; 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 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.

; Post-Resurrection appearances: The New Testament accounts of the resurrection appearances of Jesus and his ascension place him both in the Judea and the Galilee area.

Locations

Galilee

• Bethsaida: includes the account of the healing of the "Blind man of Bethsaida".
• Cana: includes the marriage at Cana during which Jesus performs his first miracle.
• Capernaum: The pericope of Jesus in the synagogue of Capernaum amounts to the beginning of the public ministry of Jesus in the New Testament narrative. Capernaum is mentioned in the Gospels several times, and events such as healing the paralytic at Capernaum take place there.
• Chorazin: In and this village in Galilee appears in the context of the rejection of Jesus.
• Gennesaret: This town (which no longer exists) was on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee. The town was perhaps halfway between Capernaum and Magdala. The town is mentioned during Jesus' healing ministry in Gennesaret recorded in and .
• Mount of Transfiguration: The location of the mountain for the transfiguration of Jesus is debated among scholars, and locations such as Mount Tabor have been suggested.
• Nain: The pericope of young man from Nain appears in . This is the first of three instances in the Gospels in which Jesus raises the dead.
• Nazareth: Nazareth is where young Jesus grows up. During this time he is found in the Temple in Jerusalem by his parents.
• Sea of Galilee: The lake features prominently throughout the New Testament narrative, from the beginning of his ministry to the end. The calling of his first disciples takes place on the shores of this lake. Towards the end of the narrative, in the second miraculous catch of fish, a resurrected Jesus appears to his apostles again.

Decapolis and Perea

• Bethabara: The Gospel of John (1:28) states that John the Baptist was baptizing in "Bethany beyond the Jordan". This is not the village Bethany just east of Jerusalem, but the town Bethany, also called Bethabara in Perea. A different interpretation places Bethabara on the opposite, western bank of the Jordan, in Judea rather than Perea; best known among these is the Madaba Map, which places Betahbara at today's west side of Al-Maghtas, officially known as Qasr el-Yahud.
• Decapolis: The healing the deaf mute of Decapolis takes place in this area.
• Gerasa (also Gergesa or Gadara) is the location of the exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac in , , and .

Samaria

• Ænon: The Gospel of John (3:23) refers to Enon near Salim as the place where John the Baptist performs baptisms in the River Jordan, "because there was much water there".
• Caesarea Maritima: This port city is the location of the 1961 discovery of the Pilate stone, the only archaeological item that mentions the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate, by whose order Jesus was crucified.
• Sychar: The encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well in takes place in Sychar in Samaria near Jacob's Well. This is the location of the Water of Life Discourse in .

Judea

• Bethany (near Jerusalem): The raising of Lazarus, shortly before Jesus enters Jerusalem for the last time, takes place in Bethany.
• Bethesda: In , the healing of the paralytic takes place at the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem.
• Bethlehem: The Gospel of Luke (2:1-7) states that the birth of Jesus took place in Bethlehem.
• Bethphage is mentioned as the place from which Jesus sent the disciples to find a donkey for the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. mention it as close to Bethany. Eusebius of Caesarea (Onomasticon 58:13) located it on the Mount of Olives.
• Calvary (Golgotha): Calvary is the Latin term for Golgotha the Greek translation of the Aramaic term for the place of the skull—the location of the crucifixion of Jesus.
• Emmaus: Jesus appears to two disciples on the road to Emmaus () and eats supper with them.
• Gabbatha (Lithostrōtos): This location is referenced only once in the New Testament in . This is an Aramaic term that refers to the location of the trial of Jesus by Pontius Pilate, and the Greek name of Lithostrōtos (λιθόστρωτος) meaning stone pavement also refers to it. It was likely a raised stone platform where Jesus faced Pilate.
• Gethsemane: Immediately after the Last Supper, Jesus and his disciples go to the garden at Gethsemane, the location of his agony in the garden and his arrest.
• Jericho: The healing the blind Bartimaeus occurs near Jericho.
• Mount of Olives: This mountain appears in several New Testament passages, and the Olivet Discourse is named after it. During his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jesus descends from the Mount of Olives towards Jerusalem, and the crowds lay their clothes on the ground to welcome him. In Acts 1:9-12, the ascension of Jesus takes place near this mountain.
• Temple in Jerusalem: The Temple is featured in the cleansing of the Temple incident, where Jesus expels the money changers.

Other places

• Egypt: The Flight to Egypt episode in the Gospel of Matthew takes place after the birth of Jesus, and the family flees to Egypt before returning to Galilee a few years later.
• "The region of Tyre and Sidon" ( and ) in what had once been Phoenicia and had become in Jesus' time part of Roman Syria, today situated in Southern Lebanon. There Jesus exorcises a demon from the daughter of a Syrophoenician woman.
• Caesarea Phillippi ("the villages around Caesarea Philippi"): the capital city of the tetrarchy of Philip is mentioned in and its surroundings are the first location where Jesus predicts his death (). This area is also important in the New Testament because, just before entering it, Jesus asks his disciples "who do you think that I am?", producing the "You are the Christ of God" response from Apostle Peter in Matthew 16:13-20, Mark 8:27-29 and Luke 9:18-20.
• Road to Damascus: In the Acts of the Apostles (9, 22 and 26), this road is the location for the conversion of the Apostle Paul, during which the resurrected Jesus appears to him.

Archaeology

No documents written by Jesus exist, 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.

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.

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. Later, Tiberius who was emperor at the time of Jesus came to be accepted as the son of divus Augustus. Reed discusses this coinage in the context of 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".

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

References

References

1. 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 [[Crucifixion of Jesus. 1563383942, p. 18.
2. ''Christianity: an introduction'' by Alister E. McGrath 2006, {{ISBN. 978-1-4051-0901-7, pp. 16–22.
3. ''Matthew'' by David L. Turner, 2008, {{ISBN. 0-8010-2684-9, p. 613.
4. ''The Life and Ministry of Jesus: The Gospels'' by Douglas Redford 2007 {{ISBN. 0-7847-1900-4 pages 117-130
5. ''Jesus in the Synagogue of Capernaum: The Pericope and its Programmatic Character for the Gospel of Mark'' by John Chijioke Iwe 1991 {{ISBN. 9788876528460 page 7
6. ''The Sermon on the mount: a theological investigation'' by Carl G. Vaught 2001 {{ISBN. 978-0-918954-76-3 pages xi-xiv
7. ''The Synoptics: Matthew, Mark, Luke'' by Ján Majerník, Joseph Ponessa, Laurie Watson Manhardt, 2005, {{ISBN. 1-931018-31-6, pages 63–68
8. Steven L. Cox, Kendell H Easley, 2008 ''Harmony of the Gospels'' {{ISBN. 0-8054-9444-8 pages 97-110
9. ''The Life and Ministry of Jesus: The Gospels'' by Douglas Redford 2007 {{ISBN. 0-7847-1900-4 pages 165-180
10. ''The Christology of Mark's Gospel'' by Jack Dean Kingsbury 1983 {{ISBN. 0-8006-2337-1 pages 91-95
11. ''The Cambridge companion to the Gospels'' by Stephen C. Barton {{ISBN. 0-521-00261-3 pages 132-133
12. Steven L. Cox, Kendell H Easley, 2007 ''Harmony of the Gospels'' {{ISBN. 0-8054-9444-8 pages 121-135
13. ''The Life and Ministry of Jesus: The Gospels'' by Douglas Redford 2007 {{ISBN. 0-7847-1900-4 pages 189-207
14. Steven L. Cox, Kendell H Easley, 2007 ''Harmony of the Gospels'' {{ISBN. 0-8054-9444-8 page 137
15. ''The Life and Ministry of Jesus: The Gospels'' by Douglas Redford 2007 {{ISBN. 0-7847-1900-4 pages 211-229
16. ''The Miracles of Jesus'' by Craig Blomberg, David Wenham 2003 {{ISBN. 1592442854 page 419
17. H. Van der Loos, 1965 ''The Miracles of Jesus'', E.J. Brill Press, Netherlands page 599
18. Dmitri Royster 1999 ''The miracles of Christ'' {{ISBN. 0881411930 page 71
19. ''The Miracles of Jesus'' by Craig Blomberg, David Wenham 2003 {{ISBN. 1592442854 page 440
20. Lamar Williamson 1983 ''Mark'' {{ISBN. 0804231214 pages 129-130
21. B. Meistermann, "Transfiguration", The Catholic Encyclopedia, XV, New York: Robert Appleton Company
22. ''Luke'' by [[Fred Craddock]] 2009 {{ISBN. 0664234356 page 98
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25. ''Luke'' by Fred B. Craddock 1991 {{ISBN. 0804231230 page 69
26. J.W. Wenham, ''The Elements of New Testament Greek'', Cambridge University Press, 1965, p. 75.
27. Boyce W. Blackwelder, ''Light from the Greek New Testament'', Baker Book House, 1976, p. 120, {{ISBN. 0801006627
28. Lamar Williamson 1983 ''Mark'' {{ISBN. 0804231214 pages 138-140
29. ''The Life and Ministry of Jesus: The Gospels'' by Douglas Redford 2007 {{ISBN. 0-7847-1900-4 page 168
30. ''Big Picture of the Bible - New Testament'' by Lorna Daniels Nichols 2009 {{ISBN. 1-57921-928-4 page 12
31. ''John'' by Gerard Stephen Sloyan 1987 {{ISBN. 0-8042-3125-7 page 11
32. ''Historical Dictionary of Jesus'' by Daniel J. Harrington 2010 {{ISBN. 0810876671 page 32
33. ''Studying the historical Jesus: evaluations of the state of current research'' by Bruce Chilton, Craig A. Evans 1998 {{ISBN. 9004111425 page 465
34. ''The Gospel of John'' by Joseph Ponessa, Laurie Watson Manhardt 2005 {{ISBN. 1931018251 page 39
35. ''The Gospel According to St. John: An Introduction With Commentary and Notes'' by C. K. Barrett 1955 {{ISBN. 0664221807 page 12
36. Francis J. Moloney, Daniel J. Harrington, 1998 ''The Gospel of John'' Liturgical Press {{ISBN. 0814658067 page 325
37. ''The Miracles of Jesus'' by Craig Blomberg, David Wenham 2003 {{ISBN. 1592442854 page 462
38. Mills, Watson E.; Bullard, Roger Aubrey (1998). ''Mercer dictionary of the Bible''. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press. p. 556. {{ISBN. 978-0-86554-373-7
39. Marsh, Clive; Moyise, Steve (2006). ''Jesus and the Gospels''. New York: Clark International. p. 37. {{ISBN. 978-0-567-04073-2.
40. ''The Holy Land: An Oxford Archaeological Guide from Earliest Times to 1700'' by Jerome Murphy-O'Connor 2008 {{ISBN. 0199236666 page 150
41. ''Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land'' by Avraham Negev 2005 {{ISBN. 0826485715 page 80
42. ''Encountering John: The Gospel in Historical, Literary, and Theological Perspective'' by Andreas J. Köstenberger 2002 {{ISBN. 0801026032 page 181
43. ''Luke'' by [[Fred Craddock]] 1991 {{ISBN. 0-8042-3123-0 page 284
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46. ''Jesus and archaeology'' edited by James H. Charlesworth 2006 {{ISBN. 080284880X pages 34 and 573
47. [[James Charlesworth]] considers this location of high archaeological significance and states that modern scholars believe this location was in the public square just outside the [[Praetorium]] in Jerusalem and was paved with large stones.''Jesus and archaeology'' edited by James H. Charlesworth 2006 {{ISBN. 080284880X pages 34
48. ''Bible Exposition Commentary, Vol. 1: New Testament'' by Warren W. Wiersbe 1992 {{ISBN. 1564760308 pages 268-269
49. Mary Ann Tolbert, ''Sowing the Gospel: Mark's World in Literary-Historical Perspective'' 1996, Fortress Press. p189
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52. Steven L. Cox, Kendell H Easley, 2007 ''Harmony of the Gospels'' {{ISBN. 0-8054-9444-8 pages 30-37
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54. ''The Birth of Jesus According to the Gospels'' by Joseph F. Kelly 2008 ISBN pages 41-49
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56. ''The Gospel of Mark, Volume 2'' by John R. Donahue, Daniel J. Harrington 2002 {{ISBN. 0-8146-5965-9 page 336
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58. Bromiley, Geoffrey William (1979). ''International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: A-D'' {{ISBN. 0-8028-3781-6 page 689
59. Barnett, Paul (2002) ''Jesus, the Rise of Early Christianity'' InterVarsity Press {{ISBN. 0-8308-2699-8 page 21
60. ''[[Christology: A Biblical, Historical, and Systematic Study of Jesus]]'' by [[Gerald O'Collins]] 2009 {{ISBN
61. Jonathan L. Reed, "Archaeological contributions to the study of Jesus and the Gospels" in ''The Historical Jesus in Context'' edited by Amy-Jill Levine et al. Princeton University Press 2006 {{ISBN. 978-0-691-00992-6 pages 40-47
62. ''Archaeology and the Galilean Jesus: a re-examination of the evidence'' by Jonathan L. Reed 2002 {{ISBN. 1-56338-394-2 pages xi-xii
63. Craig A. Evans. (Mar 26, 2012). "The Archaeological Evidence For Jesus". [[The Huffington Post]].
64. "Jesus Research and Archaeology: A New Perspective" by James H. Charlesworth in ''Jesus and archaeology'' edited by James H. Charlesworth 2006 {{ISBN. 0-8028-4880-X pages 11-15
65. Craig A. Evans. (Mar 16, 2012). "Jesus and His World: The Archaeological Evidence". [[Westminster John Knox Press]].
66. 1-56338-394-2 page 18
67. ''Historical Dictionary of Jesus'' by Daniel J. Harrington 2010 {{ISBN. 0-8108-7667-1 page 32
68. ''Studying the historical Jesus: evaluations of the state of current research'' by Bruce Chilton, Craig A. Evans 1998 {{ISBN. 90-04-11142-5 page 465
69. Although Roman Emperor [[Augustus]] called himself "Divi filius", and not "Dei filius" ([[Son of God]]), the line between being god and [[Demigod. 978-0-415-21284-7 page 81
70. ''Early Christian literature'' by Helen Rhee 2005 {{ISBN. 0-415-35488-9 pages 159-161
71. ''What are they saying about the historical Jesus?'' by David B. Gowler 2007 {{ISBN. 0-8091-4445-X page 102
72. "Jesus and Capernaum: Archeological and Gospel Stratigraohy" in ''Archaeology and the Galilean Jesus: a re-examination of the evidence'' by Jonathan L. Reed 2002 {{ISBN. 1-56338-394-2 page 139-156