NOTES

Part 1 The Birth and Early Years of Jesus

1. A full discussion of the narrative flow of the Bible and additional primary sources used throughout this manuscript can be found in James C. Martin, Exploring Bible Times: The Gospels in Context. For further information, please email bibleworldseminars@gmail.com.

2. Examples include Genesis 5, 10; 1 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah.

3. For a further discussion of the relationship between genealogy and Israelite culture, see James C. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 44–46.

4. Josephus, The Life of Flavius Josephus 1:6.

5. Joachim Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1969), 214. See also Josephus, Against Apion 1:7.

6. Josephus, Against Apion 1:31. The prospective wife’s line had to be traced through a total of eight mothers: “Her mother, mother’s mother, mother’s father’s mother, and this one’s [the priest’s] mother; also her father’s mother and this one’s [the priest’s] mother.” Mishnah, Kiddushin 4:4.

7. “The priestly, Levitic, and Israelitish stocks may intermarry; the proselyte, freedman, . . . may all intermarry.” Mishnah, Kiddushin 4:1.

8. Josephus, Life 1:6.

9. Mishnah, Yebamoth 4:13.

10. Mishnah, Tanith 4:5; usually during the month of July.

11. Eusebius, The History of the Church from Christ to Constantine, 1.7.13.

12. When King Uzziah’s pride got in the way of his obedience to God, he entered the Temple to burn incense on this altar and became a leper as a result (2 Chron. 26:16–20).

13. Mishnah, Tamid 5:2.

14. For an in-depth discussion of these activities, see Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 201n, 206.

15. Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1971), 1:134.

16. Bargil Pixner, With Jesus Through Galilee According to the Fifth Gospel (Rosh Pina, Israel: Corazin Publishing, 1992), 14–15.

17. For a summary of Herod’s era, see Ben Witherington III, New Testament History: A Narrative Account (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001), 53–61.

18. Macrobius, Saturnalia, 2.4.11. Herod, claiming Jewish ancestry, held regard for the prohibition against pork but apparently had no such prohibitions against killing his sons!

19. Gideon Foerster, “Herodium,” in The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, ed. E. Stern (Jerusalem: Carta, 1993), 618.

20. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:85.

21. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 51.

22. The betrothal was usually to an extended family member (Josephus, Against Apion 2:200), and the contract was done by one’s own act or through an agent (Mishnah, Kiddushin 2:1). The girl was to remain out of public view (Philo, De Specialibus III, 169) and have no physical or relational contact with any person of the opposite gender (Mishnah, Ketubot 7:6).

23. Mishnah, Ketubot 5:2; Mishnah, Kiddushin 2:1; Babylonian Talmud, Pesahim 113a; Mishnah, Aboth 5:21.

24. “These are they that are to be stoned . . . he that has a connection with a girl that is betrothed.” Mishnah, Sanhedrin 7:4a.

25. The social stigma of the circumstances of his birth followed Jesus into his adult life (John 8:41). But the current threat of execution was very real for Mary. If Joseph did not divorce her, he would be considered the father, thus putting the two of them at risk for execution. Since Joseph went ahead and took Mary as his wife, rabbinic literature states that Joseph and Mary had committed adultery: “She, who was a descendant of princes and governors, played the harlot with carpenters.” Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 106a.

26. Hannah lived in the hill country of Ephraim, while Elizabeth lived in the hill country of Judea. There is a geographical connection between the home of Hannah in Ramathaim (Ramah) and the traditional home of Elizabeth at Ein Kerem. On Ein Kerem, see Jack Finegan, The Archeology of the New Testament: The Life of Jesus and the Beginning of the Early Church, 2nd ed. (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1992), 3–4.

27. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 65.

28. Writing about AD 150, Justin Martyr seems to have taken this position. See Dialogue with Trypho 78.

29. Grottoes serve to screen against uncleanness. Mishnah, Oholoth 8:1–6.

30. Early Christian writers from the second through the fifth century such as Justin Martyr, Origen, and Jerome all provide witness of a specific cave in Bethlehem associated with Jesus’s birth. For a discussion of their contribution, see John McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1991), 156.

The cave in which Jesus was born may very well lie beneath the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. Emperor Hadrian (AD 135) attempted to eliminate the memory of Jesus’s birth at this location by building a pagan worship site there dedicated to Adonis (Venus). But his efforts to eliminate the memory only served to mark the birth cave of Jesus, waiting for the day of Emperor Constantine when a Byzantine church was built there (AD 339). A Christian church has continuously marked this cave from the fourth century to the present. Jerome Murphy-O’Connor, The Holy Land: An Oxford Archaeological Guide from the Earliest Times to 1700, 4th ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998), 200–201.

31. The information in this chapter is adapted from Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 63–64.

32. Victor H. Matthews and Don C. Benjamin, Social World of Ancient Israel 1250–587 BCE (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1993), 55.

33. The traditional location of the Shepherds Field has been marked by a number of early Christian worship sites. For more information, see Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 42–43.

34. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:186.

35. “If cattle [sheep and goats] are found between Jerusalem and as far as Migdal Eder [Bethlehem], or within the like distance in any direction, males must be deemed to be Whole-offerings and females Peace-offerings. R. Judah says: If fitted to be Passover-offerings, they must be deemed to be Passover-offerings [if they are found during] thirty days before the feast.” Mishnah, Shekalim 7:4.

36. “Abba Gorion of Zaidan says in the name of Abba Guria: A man should not teach his son to be an ass-driver or a camel-driver, or a barber or a sailor, or a herdsman or a shopkeeper, for their craft is the craft of robbers.” Mishnah, Kiddushin 4:14. “None may buy wool or milk from herdsmen.” Mishnah, Baba Kamma 10:9.

37. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 164.

38. Alfred Edersheim, The Temple: Its Ministry and Services as They Were at the Time of Jesus Christ (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978), 345.

39. This chapter is adapted from Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 72–74. The identification of these men as Persian is supported by second-century Christian art found in the catacombs of Rome that depict these visitors in Persian garments. The reason the invading Persians spared the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem (AD 614) was that they saw a mosaic depicting the Magi who were wearing Persian headdress. Paul L. Maier, In the Fullness of Time: A Historian Looks at Christmas, Easter, and the Early Church (San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1991), 48.

40. Some suggest the Magi were looking at the collocation of Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars in the constellation Pisces that occurred in 6 BC. Jupiter was associated with kingship and Pisces with Palestine. Maier, In the Fullness of Time, 54–55.

41. Neither Joseph nor Mary saw Jesus during the first day of travel, and it then took a full day for them to return to Jerusalem. “After three days they found him in the temple courts” (Luke 2:46).

42. This gave the family time to worship together and to reflect on the great things God had done for Israel (Deut. 16:1–8).

43. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 76. See also Mishnah, Yoma 8:4; Niddah 5:6.

44. The Temple built by Solomon was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC. It was rebuilt and rededicated seventy years later in 516 BC.

45. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 81.

Part 2 Jesus Reveals His Legitimate Authority

1. John the Baptist was born of priestly lineage—his father, Zechariah, was from the priestly house of Abijah and his mother, Elizabeth, was from the priestly house of Aaron (Luke 1:5).

2. 2 Macc. 4:7–17.

3. See also 2 Kings 1:7–8; Matt. 3:4; Josephus, Jewish War (hereafter J. W.) 5:231, 232, 235. For a discussion of John’s distinctive diet, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 83–84.

4. Miqvaot 1:6, 8.

5. Miqvaot 5:5. The water could not be drawn by hand from a pool. McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 49.

6. In first-century Judaism, people underwent ritual washing in order to identify with the doctrinal position of a teacher or to show one’s submission to the authority of a particular rabbi. Furthermore, Gentiles who wished to convert to Judaism underwent proselyte baptism as a way of associating themselves with the Jewish faith. For a further discussion of each use of Jewish ritual washing, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 86–90.

7. Mishnah, Aboth 5:21.

8. Of the 165 uses of the term “Jordan River” in the Old Testament, 117 deal with the notion of crossing a boundary. Henry O. Thompson, “Jordan River,” Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. D. N. Freedman (New York: Anchor, 1992), 3:954.

9. This summary is based on Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 235–36.

10. No principle was more firmly established than that authoritative teaching required the endorsement of one already in authority. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:381–82.

11. The hometown of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus is also called Bethany, but that town was located near Jerusalem (John 11:1, 18). A different Bethany, Bethany of Perea, also existed. It was located on the other side of the Jordan River, about four and a half miles north of the Dead Sea. Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 13.

12. The proposed location of Jesus’s stay in the Wilderness of Judea is northwest of Old Testament Jericho where Byzantine Christians built a church on a mountain called Jebel Quarantal (Mount of the Forty). McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 161–62.

13. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:439. See also, for example, Matt. 5:1; 26:55; John 8:2.

14. Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 97. Jesus instructed his disciples to obey the teachings of Pharisees when they sat in the Seat of Moses (Matt. 23:1–3).

15. Josephus, J. W. 1.16.4.

16. For a further discussion of this foreign occupation, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 103–4.

17. Mendel Nun, The Sea of Galilee and Its Fishermen in the New Testament (Israel: Kibbutz Ein Gev, 1993), 28.

18. Mendel Nun, “Cast Your Nets upon the Waters: Fish and Fishermen in Jesus’s Time,” Biblical Archaeology Review 19 (November–December 1993): 53–55.

19. In addition, Hellenized Jews dominated the west and northeast of the Sea of Galilee. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 99.

20. To learn more about the archaeology of the first-century synagogue at Capernaum, see McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 163–64.

21. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:437.

22. Examples in rabbinic literature of rabbis doing miracles include Rabbi Honi HaMe’aggel (Talmud, Taanit 19a) and Rabbi HaNinah Ben Dosa (Talmud, Berakhot 34b).

23. “Son of Man” was a title for the Messiah (Dan. 7:13–14). Healing works were associated with the coming of the Messiah (Isa. 61:1–2; see also Luke 4:18–21).

24. This home was likely an insula home. Such homes were constructed of local basalt and built according to a common floor plan. A larger courtyard was surrounded by a set of smaller rooms, all with doorways that opened into this central courtyard. See McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 81.

25. The “house of Peter” lies just a few yards away from the synagogue in Capernaum. Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 107–10.

26. The region northwest of the Sea of Galilee was dominated by an observant Jewish presence. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 99.

27. Graham Webster, The Roman Imperial Army of the First and Second Centuries, 3rd ed. (New York: Barnes & Noble, 1979), 12. Originally centurions commanded units of one hundred men, but after the Marian reforms (ca. 107 BC) most centurions controlled units of eighty men.

28. Witherington, New Testament History, 117.

29. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:549–50.

30. Mishnah, Sheqalim 4:1, 3–4.

31. Josephus, Antiquities (hereafter Ant.) 14.7.2.

32. Most other English translations (i.e., NASB, NRSV, NKJV) state that Peter was to throw in a line with a “hook”—which may have been a grappling hook—and then look into the mouth of the first fish he caught.

33. These fish congregate near the shore in order to spawn. Once the eggs have been fertilized, they carry the eggs in their mouths for two to three weeks until they hatch. They are known to pick up items and carry them in their mouths just before spawning. For a further discussion, see Nun, Sea of Galilee and Its Fishermen, 6–7.

Part 3 Jesus’s Parables and Teaching

1. The Hebrew name for the city is Migdal Nuniya (Babylonian Talmud, Pesahim 46a); Josephus calls it Taricheae (J. W. 2.21.3–4). The Hellenized Jews were those who adapted to Greek culture, and the fact that Magdala had both a synagogue and a hippodrome speaks to the Hellenized nature of the Jews living there. Josephus, J. W. 2.21.3–4.

2. Anson F. Rainey and R. Steven Notley, The Sacred Bridge: Carta’s Atlas of the Biblical World (Jerusalem: Carta, 2006), 355.

3. The practice is still used today in certain villages in the Holy Land.

4. Murphy-O’Connor, The Holy Land, 429.

5. For a discussion of roadways and transportation, see John A. Beck, “Travel and Transportation,” in The Land of Milk and Honey: An Introduction to the Geography of Israel (St. Louis: Concordia, 2006), 171–80.

6. Josephus, Life 2:10.

7. The school of Shammai considered it important to follow the letter of the law while those of Hillel generally held to the spirit of the law. For example, “The School of Shammai say: . . . Nets may not be set out for wild animals [on a Friday] . . . unless there is time for them to be caught the same day [prior to the coming of Sabbath]. And the School of Hillel permit it.” Shabbat 1:6b.

8. They criticized Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners (Matt. 9:11), and they said he was driving out demons with the help of the prince of demons (Matt. 9:34).

9. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:52.

10. The discussion of what constituted work was represented in the Mishnah. The debated activities include: the extinguishing of a lamp (Shabbat 2:5), the amount of wood one could gather (Shabbat 12:2), the number of letters that could be written (Shabbat 12:3), and the type of knot one could tie (Shabbat 15:1).

11. Shabbat 7:2.

12. “A great general rule have they laid down concerning the Sabbath: . . . If he knew that it was Sabbath . . . If he committed many acts of work of one main class, he is liable only to one Sin-offering.” Shabbat 7:1. “R. Akiba said: I asked R. Eliezer, If a man did many acts of work . . . on many Sabbaths . . . what happens?—is he liable to one [Sin-offering] for all of them?” Kerithoth 3:10.

13. “These are they that are to be stoned. . . . he that profanes the Sabbath.” Mishnah, Sanhedrin 7:4.

14. Josephus pictured every patch of land in the Galilee as cultivated land. J. W. 3.3.2.

15. K. C. Hanson and Douglas E. Oakman, Palestine in the Time of Jesus (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1998), 104.

16. Making use of fertilizer and mechanized planting, plowing, and harvesting, farmers in Israel today can produce a yield forty times what was sown. Ibid., 105.

17. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 99.

18. Nun, Sea of Galilee and Its Fishermen, 28–34.

19. Ibid., 16.

20. This description of the seine net (dragnet) and manner of fishing with that kind of net is derived from Nun, “Cast Your Net upon the Waters,” 51–52.

21. These men would go so far as to rebuke those who brought their children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them (Matt. 19:13). The increase of a person’s value with age is implied in Mishnah, Abot 5:21.

22. In this instance, a child remains the focus of the parable because the lost sheep is equated with a child. Jesus uses the same parable in a different setting to affirm the value of tax collectors and sinners when he is criticized for spending time with them (Luke 15:1–7). In both cases, the parable affirms the value of all people no matter how they are valued by society.

23. They were raised for their food value, for their wool, and for sacrifices to the Lord. For a further discussion, see George Cansdale, All the Animals of the Bible Lands (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1970), 48–56.

24. McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 77–78, 80–82.

25. Josephus, Ant. 16:3.

26. “If a man said, ‘I will sin and repent, and sin again and repent’, he will be given no chance to repent. [If he said] ‘I will sin and the Day of Atonement will effect atonement’, then the Day of Atonement effects no atonement. For transgressions that are between man and God the Day of Atonement effects atonement, but for transgressions that are between a man and his fellow the Day of Atonement effects only if he has appeased his fellow.” Mishnah, Yoma 8:9.

27. Significant tensions and even hostility existed between Jews and Samaritans in the first century (John 4:9). Josephus speaks of incidents in which the Samaritans attacked and injured Jews who were passing through Samaria on their way to the festivals in Jerusalem. J. W. 2.12.3; Ant. 20.6.1.

28. In the Old Testament this road is called the Arabah Road (2 Kings 25:4; Jer. 39:4; 52:7). It appears that the later Roman road follows the same route that had been in use for centuries. David A. Dorsey, The Roads and Highways of Ancient Israel, ASOR Library of Biblical and Near Eastern Archaeology (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991), 204–6.

29. The region generally receives less than eight inches of annual precipitation. What rain does fall quickly runs off the marl-coated slopes cascading toward the Dead Sea.

30. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:183–84.

31. See David’s experience with predators related in 1 Sam. 17:34–37.

32. One of the most stinging criticisms God leveled at the corrupt religious leaders of the Old Testament was when he called them abusive shepherds (Ezekiel 34).

33. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:466.

34. Josephus, J. W. 1.14.4; Ant. 14.14.4. Witherington, New Testament History, 54–55.

35. Jesus was at the home of Zacchaeus in Jericho when he told this parable (see Luke 19).

36. McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 133–36.

37. See Mark 7:24; Luke 10:5; 19:5; John 12:1.

38. Philip J. King and Lawrence E. Stager, Life in Biblical Israel, Library of Ancient Israel (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2001), 39.

39. Mishnah, Baba Bathra 6:4.

40. Thus great risk attended a household that was divided (Matt. 12:25), explaining the great burden the disciples of Jesus took on by leaving a household for the sake of following him (Matt. 19:29).

41. King and Stager, Life in Biblical Israel, 39–40.

42. Athalya Brenner and Jan Willem van Henten, eds., Food and Drink in the Biblical Worlds, Semeia (Society of Biblical Literature) 86 (1999): 22.

43. Matthews and Benjamin, Social World of Ancient Israel, 47.

44. Brenner and van Henten, eds., Food and Drink in the Biblical Worlds, 26.

Part 4 Jesus in the World of the Gentiles

1. The Greek word sēmeion is repeatedly used by the Septuagint translators in reference to the initial signs Moses used before the elders of Israel and the Egyptian pharaoh (Exod. 4:8–9, 17, 28, 30) as well as when speaking about the plagues God leveled against Egypt when they refused to release the Israelites (Exod. 10:1–2; 11:9–10; Deut. 4:34; 7:19; 26:8; 29:3; 34:11).

2. Gath Hepher was on the northern side of this ridge, while Nazareth was located three miles away on the south side. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 95.

3. Jonah served as a prophet during the days of Jeroboam II (see 2 Kings 14:25–29).

4. John uses the Greek word dei to express the necessity of this particular move.

5. The social tension between those who were pure blood descendants of Abraham and those of mixed descent rose and fell during the biblical period. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 354. The fact that in spite of the ethnic tension the Jews still traveled on the road through Samaria is supported by the Gospel accounts (Luke 9:52–53) and reports from Josephus, J. W. 2.12.3; Ant. 20.6.1.

6. For a further discussion of the demographics around the Sea of Galilee, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 99.

7. James Martin, “Crossing Enemy Lines,” TableTalk (Ligonier Ministries), May 1990, 34–35.

8. Nun, Sea of Galilee and Its Fishermen, 54.

9. E.g., Matt. 4:15; 10:5, 18; 20:19, 25.

10. The large crowd that had gathered to hear Jesus speak may well have done so after hearing the witness of the formerly demon-possessed man he had healed. That man had asked to accompany Jesus but was told instead to remain and tell others about his experience (Mark 5:18–20).

11. Leland Ryken, James C. Wilhoit, and Tremper Longman III, eds., “Seven,” in Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1998), 774–75.

12. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:679–80.

13. For further discussion, see David G. Hansen, In Their Sandals: How His Followers Saw Jesus (Longwood, FL: Xulon Press, 2007), 33–40.

14. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 122.

15. Caesarea Philippi is different from Caesarea Maritima, the port city on the Mediterranean Sea that was built by Herod the Great.

16. For more on Bashan, see Carl G. Rasmussen, NIV Atlas of the Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1989), 29–30.

17. McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 173.

18. LaMoine F. DeVries, “Caesarea Philippi,” in Cities of the Biblical World (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1997), 266.

19. Eusebius, History, 7.17.301.

20. James and John had just been with Jesus during his transfiguration. During that experience, they had seen Elijah (Luke 9:28–36).

21. Since Ahaziah clearly expected them to return from Ekron with an answer, his surprise must relate to the fact that they had returned so quickly (2 Kings 1:1–5).

22. The Samaritans were people of mixed Gentile and Jewish bloodlines whose theology was similar but not identical to the theology of the Jews. The first century was a time of embittered relationships between these two ethnic groups. See Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 352–58.

23. In addition to the illustration that follows, Jesus tells a story about a Samaritan who befriends an injured Jew on the road to Jericho (Luke 10:25–37). He also rebuked James and John when they wished to call down fire on a Samaritan village (Luke 9:51–56).

24. The road to Dothan formed part of the border between Samaria and Galilee.

25. Medieval reports place this miracle at Ginae (modern-day Jenin). George Turner, Historical Geography of the Holy Land (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1973), 121. This may in part be associated with the observation that Ginae is located on the border between Samaria and Galilee. See Josephus, Ant. 20.6.1. Ginae is just a short distance from Dothan, a location associated with Elisha (2 Kings 6:13). See Hansen, In Their Sandals, 55–59.

26. Murphy-O’Connor, The Holy Land, 412.

27. Josephus, Ant. 18.2.1; J. W. 2.18.11; 3.2.4.

28. See Josephus, Life 12; J. W. 2.21.6.

Part 5 Jesus in and around Jerusalem

1. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 198.

2. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:370–71.

3. Josephus, J. W. 5.5.2.

4. Josephus, Ant. 15.11.4–5.

5. Eilat Mazar, The Complete Guide to the Temple Mount Excavations (Jerusalem: Shoham Academic Research and Publication, 2002), 33–34.

6. There are some exceptions where we find “the Jews” used in a generic sense. For example, Jesus speaks to the woman in John 4:22 and announces, “Salvation is from the Jews.”

7. There is some uncertainty about the name of the pools due to the variety of names offered in the Greek manuscripts of John. Yet the best support is for the name Bethesda. For a discussion of the evidence, see Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 228–29.

8. The northern of the two pools may be the same as the Upper Pool (2 Kings 18:17; Isa. 7:3) in existence during the days of the Divided Kingdom. The southern pool may have been added by the high priest Simon in about 200 BC (Sirach 50:3). Murphy-O’Connor, The Holy Land, 28–29.

9. Edersheim, The Temple, 275.

10. Mishnah, Sukkah 4:9.

11. Mishnah, Sukkah 3:9.

12. Prophets such as Isaiah and Micah prophesied of Jesus being the Messiah (see Isa. 9:1–7; Mic. 5:2).

13. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:225.

14. Ibid.

15. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 72, 267.

16. For an analysis of this event, see Hansen, In Their Sandals, 67–73.

17. For an overview of the traditional Jewish perspective, see Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:178–79.

18. Josephus, J. W. 5.5.1.

19. Ibid., 5.5.2.

20. This festival is also called the Feast of Lights or Hanukkah.

21. For the Messiah’s role in restoration of worship, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 42–43.

22. This route was already in use during Old Testament times and had been improved as part of the Roman road system during the first century. See Dorsey, Roads and Highways of Ancient Israel, 204–6.

23. On the palatial structures in New Testament Jericho, see McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 133–36.

24. Jews were required to pay a land tax, import and export taxes, and a personal head tax. Witherington, New Testament History, 86–87.

25. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 310.

26. The oasis of Jericho nurtured a variety of income-producing trees like the balsam, sycamore, and palm. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:350.

27. For an overview of the despised trades, see Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 303–12.

28. The prophet Amos emphasized his lowly origins in terms of his work as a shepherd and as a day laborer in the sycamore-fig plantations (Amos 7:14–15). Nogah Hareuveni, Tree and Shrub in Our Biblical Heritage (Kiryat Ono, Israel: Neot Kedumim, 1984), 91.

Part 6 Jesus Faces the Cross

1. Josephus, J. W. 2:411. “Men of power” were rich land owners.

2. Mishnah, Yebamoth 16:3. “Evidence [of the identity of a corpse] may be given only during the first three days [after death]; but R. Judah b. Baba says: [Decay in corpses is] not alike in all men, in all places, and at all times.” Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:324–25.

3. For a discussion, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 161.

4. For a review of the location of Bethpage and the churches that have occupied this site, see Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 162–64.

5. Babylonian Talmud, Menahot 78b; Mishnah, Menahot 11:2.

6. Josephus, Ant. 18.2.2; Talmud, Pesahim 57a.

7. Many living in the first century believed that the faithful priest mentioned in 1 Sam. 2:35 was Zadok, a priest living at the time of David and Solomon (2 Sam. 8:17; 15:24; 1 Kings 1:8; 2:35). See Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 181–82.

8. Josephus, Ant. 18.4.3.

9. For a discussion of the preseason fig, see Michael Zohary, Plants of the Bible (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982), 58–59.

10. See part 5, note 24.

11. Josephus, Ant. 18.1.1.

12. For a description of the building, see Josephus, J. W. 5.5.8.

13. Josephus states that, following the practice of earlier Roman governors, Cumanus, a later Roman governor, ordered this very deployment. Josephus, Ant. 20.5.3.

14. The Temple proper was surrounded by a number of courts that increasingly limited access to segments of society the closer one got to it. Jewish men and women were allowed in this court, but not Gentiles (such as the Roman soldiers). The Court of Women functioned as the Temple treasury. For a discussion, see Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 194–96.

15. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:387.

16. Even the rabbis taught that giving was from the heart. “It is said . . . to teach that it is all one whether a man offers much or little, if only he directs his mind towards heaven.” Mishnah, Menahoth 13:11.

17. See 1 Kings 15:13; 2 Kings 23:4, 6, 12; 2 Chron. 15:16; 29:16; 30:14.

18. See 2 Chron. 22:10–23:15; Ant. 9.7.3.

19. This prophecy included a warning for Jesus’s disciples fulfilled with the pouring out of the Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28–32; Matt. 24:29; Acts 2:17–21) and the destruction of the Temple in AD 70 (Dan. 9:27; 11:31; 12:11; Matt. 24:15–21).

Part 7 The Arrest and Trials of Jesus

1. This reconstruction of the Passover (Last Supper of Jesus) is taken from Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:492–95. For further information on the reconstruction of the Passover, see www.biblicalresources.net.

2. John is not directly identified as the one reclining on Jesus’s chest. The Greek, NASB, NIV, King James, ASV, and other translations state that the disciple whom Jesus loved was reclining on his chest. Many maintain that disciple is John (see John 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20).

3. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:494–95.

4. Concerning the authority of rabbis: “Rabbi, tell us the two or three things which you stated [formerly] on your father’s authority.” Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 15a. “He shall loosen all the fetters which bind them that is in his Congregation.” The Damascus Rule xiii.10. G. Vermes, The Dead Sea Scrolls in English, 3rd ed. (New York: Penguin Books, 1987), 97.

5. For a discussion of the rare phenomenon of hemohidrosis, see William D. Edwards, Wesley J. Gabel, and Floyd E. Hosmer, “On the Physical Death of Jesus,” Journal of the American Medical Association 255, no. 11 (March 21, 1986): 1456.

6. John gives us this man’s name: Malchus. The Hebrew equivalent may be “counselor.” See Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:544.

7. Josephus, Ant. 20.8.8.

8. Josephus, J. W. 1.13.9.

9. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 176.

10. For a thorough treatment of the attempt, see Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 242–45.

11. Josephus locates the house of Ananias (i.e., Annas) the high priest in this part of Jerusalem. J. W. 2.17.6. But the context of the event may place the “courtyard” within the Temple complex.

12. McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 78.

13. Mishnah, Sukkah 5:4; Tamid 1:2; Yomah 1:8. A stone that had tumbled from the southwestern corner of the Temple complex bears the paraphrased inscription, “To the place of trumpeting.” In its original location, high above the central valley, it marked the spot where the priest sounded the trumpet. Mazar, Guide to the Temple Mount Excavations, 42–45.

14. Mishnah, Arakhin 9:3.

15. Mishnah, Arakhin 9:4.

16. This chapter follows the position of Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 139–40.

17. Acts 1:18 says that Judas bought the field. The chief priests regarded this money as continuing to belong to Judas. From the perspective of Acts, the chief priests purchased the land, but they did so with Judas’s money.

18. Those bringing coins to the Temple as an offering placed them in one of thirteen trumpet-shaped boxes, each of which was designated for a specific cause. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:387.

19. Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 140.

20. With some exceptions, cemeteries were located outside the city walls.

21. For a further discussion, see Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 245–46.

22. This palace was much more luxurious than the Antonia Fortress. Josephus was overwhelmed by the beautiful groves, gardens, canals, art, and architecture. Josephus, J. W. 5.4.4. Philo notes that this was Pilate’s residence of choice while in Jerusalem. Philo, The Embassy of Gaius, par. 38.

23. Edersheim, The Temple, 89.

24. Priests who had been defiled could not offer sacrifices. “They [the priests] were like them that have a blemish: they may share and they may eat [of the holy things] but they may not offer sacrifices.” Mishnah, Menahoth 13:12.

25. For further information on Jewish law concerning uncleanness of Gentile homes and how entering a Gentile home made a Jew unclean, see: Mishnah, Ohalot 18:7, 10; Mishnah, Kelim 1:4; Josephus, Ant. 18.4.3.

26. Josephus, J. W. 1.6.1; 1.7.2.

27. Philo, Embassy of Gaius, 299–300, 305.

28. Josephus, Ant. 18:55.

29. The judge’s seat was most likely set up in front of Herod’s palace, which was the palace that served as the residence for Pilate while he was in Jerusalem. In a later instance we see Florus living in the same residence and setting up his judge’s seat in the same location. Josephus, J. W. 2.14.8.

30. For a further discussion of a Roman trial, see Witherington, New Testament History, 152.

31. Mishnah, Sotah 9:6.

32. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 186–87.

33. Pilate had murdered Galileans while they were making sacrifices at the altar in the Temple (Luke 13:1–2). He also sought to abolish Jewish laws and brought offensive images into Jerusalem. And after taking money from the Temple treasury for a public works project, he violently quelled the ensuing uprising. Josephus, Ant. 18.3.1–2.

34. Philo, Embassy of Gaius, par. 38.

35. Josephus, Ant. 18.4.2.

36. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 187.

Part 8 The Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus

1. Murphy-O’Connor, The Holy Land, 45–48. Based on Matt. 27:33 and presuming that Calvary was a hill that resembled a skull, Gordon popularized a location now known as Gordon’s Calvary. McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 206–16.

2. The exception was the tombs of the Davidic dynasty, which were allowed within the city walls of Jerusalem.

3. Today the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is located within the Old City walls of Jerusalem. But prior to AD 41, this location was outside the city walls beyond the Gennath Gate. Josephus, J. W. 5.4.2.

4. Seneca, De Ira III, 19.2–20.1.

5. For another discussion of the two criminals with Jesus, see Hansen, In Their Sandals, 449–59.

6. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 196.

7. Josephus, Ant. 13.14.2.

8. For a survey of those references, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 191–92.

9. Crucifixions are known that used a “T,” an “X,” or a “+” shaped cross. Ibid., 192–94. And we know that Jesus was attached to the wood using nails because Thomas mentions the marks they left in his hands (John 20:25).

10. For a further discussion of the archaeological evidence and the various views on how the hands and feet were attached to the cross, see McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 204–6. The actual cause of death was hypovolemic shock or exhaustion asphyxia. Edwards, Gabel, and Hosmer, “On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ,” 1461.

11. Mishnah, Yoma 5:1.

12. Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2:611.

13. This is exactly what Jacob did when he received evidence (fraudulent as it was) that his son Joseph had been killed (Gen. 37:34).

14. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 201.

15. Two locations that commemorate the site of Jesus’s burial are the Garden Tomb (associated with Gordon’s Calvary) and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. See McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 206–17.

16. Mishnah, Sanhedrin 6:6.

17. The spices were not designed to embalm the body but to prevent toxic gases from forming in the sealed tomb. Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 204.

18. For an example of a square stone, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 202. For a round stone, see the discussion of the tomb of the Queen of Adiabene in Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 318.

19. The matter of reporting to the governor mentioned in Matthew 28:14 may have in view the general Roman protection offered to tombs as noted in the Nazareth Inscription.

20. Clyde E. Billington, “The Nazareth Inscription: Proof of the Resurrection of Christ?” in Artifacts (Spring 2005): 17–21.

21. Quoted in Maier, In the Fullness of Time, 202.

22. According to the Mishnah, some families of priestly lineage came from Emmaus. “[They that played the instruments of music] were the slaves of the priests. . . . They were from the families of Beth ha-Pegarim and Beth Zipporya and from Emmaus, and they were eligible to give [their daughters] in marriage to priestly stock.” Kiddushin 4:1. R. Hanina b. Anitgonus says they were Levites. Mishnah, Arakhin 2:4.

The site of ancient Emmaus has not been identified with certainty, and more than nine locations have been suggested. Hershel Shanks, “Emmaus Where Christ Appeared,” Biblical Archaeology Review 34 (March/April 2008): 40–51. Also see, McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament, 221–22. Moreover, the Bible reports that Emmaus was “about seven miles from Jerusalem” (Luke 24:13)—close enough to walk there and return on the same day—which makes the claim that Amwas (Nicopolis) was twenty miles west of Jerusalem very problematic.

23. Since the fourth century, Christians have commemorated this event at churches erected on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee at Heptapegon (Seven Springs). Today the Chapel of the Primacy of St. Peter marks the spot. Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 92–94.

24. For a further discussion, see Martin, Exploring Bible Times, 103–4.

25. Murphy-O’Connor, The Holy Land, 124; Finegan, Archeology of the New Testament, 167–70.