As the New Testament opens, Judaea is pretty much a chaotic place. There are a lot of cultures in a small area. All areas would be considered Gentile except for Judea and Galilee. Yet, there were pockets of Jews in the other geographical areas as well. Let’s examine some of these areas.

Nabataea: Nabataeans were once a nomadic people and later settled in the ancient area of Edom south of the Dead Sea and had close connections with the Edomites (Idumeans). One of their more notable cities was Petra. They had a big influence on the trade routes between Egypt and the Far East. Herod the Great’s mother was Nabataean. As a nomadic people, they had been around for centuries and were sometimes called Arabs. It is possible that the Shulamite woman described by Solomon (SS 1:5-6) may also have been Nabataean. During early New Testament times, they also occupied the area east of the Dead Sea south of Perea. This area was ruled by Aretas IV whose daughter was given to Herod Antipas whom he later divorced and for which John the Baptist reprimanded him (Mk 6:17-29). Later Herod Antipas had John beheaded at Machaerus in Perea (Mk 6:21-27). By the end of his reign, Aretas had influence as far north as Damascus (2Co 11:32), likely because his army attacked and defeated Herod Antipas, who governed Perea east of the Jordan River, because he divorced his daughter.  He also seemed to have disputes with Philip the Tetrarch who governed Ituraea and Trachonitis. Some believe Paul went to Petra after his conversion to Christ (Ga 1:17).

Judaea: This term was used to describe the area that was composed of Idumea, Judea, and Samaria. Herod was originally made governor of Galilee by his father. Herod later married the Hasmonean princess Mariamne, got Rome to name him “King of the Jews,” and found a way to always be in Rome’s favor. This got him control over all of Judaea. Then to endear himself to the Jewish people, he upgraded and beautified their temple and its court. Herod seemed to know how to always play both sides of the street, so to speak. He became known as Herod the Great because of his spectacular building projects: the Jewish temple as well as other buildings in Jerusalem, the building of Caesarea Maritima, Herodium, Masada, Machaerus in Perea, a winter palace in Jericho, and the rebuilding of Sebaste (former Samaria), as well as other projects. By the end of his reign, he governed Idumea, Judea, Samaria, Perea, Galilee, Ituraea and Trachonitis. These territories were divided among his sons after his death in 1 BC. The territories of Idumea, Judea, and Samaria went to his son Archelaus, although the emperor downgraded his position from king to ethnarch. This decision to give these areas to Herod’s sons was so unpopular with the people that the Syrian governor Publius Quinctilius Varus had to bring no less than three legions of Roman soldiers to put down the uprising. There were so many riots and unrest under Archelaus’ rule that Joseph and Mary decided to head back to Galilee rather than to Judea when they left Egypt (Mt 2:22). Complaints of his rule from both Judea and Samaria were so great the Roman emperor exiled him. About this same time the next Syrian governor Publius Sulpicius Quirinius had to intervene and put down a tax revolt that had resulted. The emperor decided to rule these territories via Roman prefects instead of replacing Archelaus’ position. Pontius Pilate served as such starting in 26 AD (Lk 3:1).

Idumea: Once Judah was taken captive by Babylon, many Edomites moved farther north in the more fertile area of the Negev than the rocky and mountainous regions which had previously been their home. This area became known as Idumea. John Hyrcanus of the Hasmonean dynasty forced the Idumeans to be circumcised and follow Jewish customs. Although many did so, they all did not strictly follow them. One of the wealthy, Antipater, who had become governor of Idumea supported one of the later Hasmonean king rivals, Hyrcanus II, and also supported the Roman general Pompey when Rome entered the area. He later was a supporter of Julius Caesar when he came to power which earned him becoming procurator in Judea with the right to levy taxes. He made his two sons Phasael and Herod governors in Jerusalem and Galilee, respectively.

Judea: This was the area of strongest and most consecrated Jewish worship since Jerusalem and the temple were in this territory. However, even that was not without issues. There were now two prominent sects of Jewish leaders: Sadducees and Pharisees. They did not get along very well. The Sadducees were more Hellenized, endeared to Greek influence, and were more supportive of Rome because the position of High Priest had become a politically appointed position rather than a father to son position as by Jewish tradition. Yet in spite of their more liberal lifestyle, they were much more conservative in their view of the Scriptures and did not believe in the Oral Law of Moses but just the Written Law which they interpreted very conservatively. The Pharisees were more conservative in their lifestyle, were more attuned to the people, and believed in both the Written Law and the Oral Law of Moses. Both groups were part of the Sanhedrin which officiated the Law to the general populace and set the spiritual direction for the nation. There was a third faction, the Essenes, who had become disgusted with both groups and formed a group among themselves to study the scriptures at Qumran near the Dead Sea. They kept out of normal day-to-day interactions. Jesus was born in Judea (Mt 2:1), and he spent a great deal of time teaching at the temple (Mt 21:13, 23; Mk 12:35; Lk 19:47, 21:38; Jn 10:25-30), healing (Mt 21:14; Jn 2:23, 5:8-9), as well as being crucified there (Mt 27:35; Mk 15:25; Lk 24:20; Jn 19:18). Judea was ruled first by Archelaus, son of Herod the Great, for a short time and then by prefects.

Samaria: The Samaritans were descendants from the Jewish remnant that had been left in the land of Israel after Assyrian captivity and had intermarried with the local inhabitants who were not of Jewish descent. Since that time, they were never allowed to participate in Jewish culture again (Er 4:2-3). Many followed the style of Jewish worship using the temple at Mt. Gerizim which had been built by Sanballat, a Persian governor several centuries earlier. Although destroyed earlier by the Hasmonean John Hyrcanus, it seems many Samaritans of the New Testament Day still went to the temple ruins to pray, or at least still considered the place holy (Jn 4:20). The Samaritans were despised by most Jews of the day and would even cross over the Jordan River to go north to Galilee and thereby by-pass even traveling through Samaria itself. Jews would rather travel through the land of the Decapolis rather than through Samaria. They were considered by many as worse than Gentiles because they were considered half-breeds. Jesus often went through Samaria during his travels between Jerusalem and Galilee. He healed lepers (Lk 17:11-14), taught people, and many believed on him (Jn 4:4, 39-42).

Decapolis: The Decapolis was an area composed of ten Greek cities that had been established after the time of Alexander the Great’s conquest of the area. The Romans gave them their own political entity. Nine of the cities were east of the Jordan River (Damascus, Canatha, Dion, Raphana, Hippus, Gadara, Pella, Gerasa, and Philadelphia) and one west of the Jordan (Scythopolis). The Decapolis had their own courts, army, and coinage. They were an advanced people, but Hellenized and polytheistic. Jesus did visit many of these cities during his ministry and many asked to be healed (Mt 4:25; Mk 5:20, 7:31).

Perea: Perea was usually described as the “land beyond the Jordan” (Mt 19:1; Jn 1:28, 3:26) and was opposite the Jordan River from Judea and Samaria. There was a large Jewish population that lived there. This area was ruled by Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great. Jesus had many followers from here (Mt 4:25; Mk 3:8), healed many here (Mt 19:1-2), and taught them (Mk 10:1; Jn 10:40-42). John the Baptist baptized here (Jn 1:28) and was beheaded in this region as well (Mk 6:21-27).

Galilee: Galilee was located north of Samaria and south of Phoenicia. The Sea of Galilee was its eastern border with the Jordan River also the eastern border for Upper Galilee and the Decapolis the eastern border for Lower Galilee. This was the second largest area with a Jewish population. This area was also governed by Herod Antipas (Lk 3:1). Jesus grew up in Galilee in Nazareth (Mt 2:23) and stayed in Capernaum on the northwest side of the Sea of Galilee for much of his ministry (Mt 4:13).

Ituraea and Trachonitis: These areas were to the east and north of Galilee, east of the Jordan River and encompassed Bashan, the Golan Heights, and parts of what are today Syria. This area was sometimes broken down further into more discrete areas, including Gaulinitis (Golan Heights) and Batanaea (Bashan). These areas were ruled by Philip the Tetrarch (Lk 3:1), son of Herod the Great and brother of Herod Antipas (same father but different mothers). This area was probably one with the least Jewish residents. However, Jesus did take his disciples to this region at Caesarea Philippi where he began in earnest to teach them about his coming crucifixion (Mt 16:13, 21). Bethsaida, on the northeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee was part of this territory, was the home of Peter, Andrew, and Philip (Jn 1:44), and the place where Jesus taught and did several miracles (Mk 8:22; Lk 9:10-11). He also criticized the city because of their unbelief (Mt 11:21; Lk 10:13).

Syria: This territory was north of Galilee and north of Caesarea Philippi, reaching to the Euphrates River and was the Roman border territory to Parthia. It included the city of Damascus as well as all of Phoenicia. The city of Damascus, although considered one of the cities of the Decapolis, was not physically in the territory of the Decapolis. However, in another sense, Syria during Roman times included all the area in the Middle East under Roman domain and Rome would parcel pieces of Syria up into autonomous areas. Therefore, it seems the Syrian governor, Publius Sulpicius Quirinius, had much power and helped Rome keep the peace in both the Jewish hotbeds of revolt in Judea as well as be the front line of defense at the Parthian border in the north. He had four legions of Roman soldiers at his disposal. This is likely why Syrian forces came to help keep the peace when riots were so bad in Judea when Herod Archelaus reigned. To prevent further revolts, the emperor had Archelaus exiled and established prefects to rule that area. The fame of Jesus Christ and his miracles spread to Syria and many were brought to Jesus for healing (Mt 4:24; Mk 3:8; Lk 6:17-18). Also, Jesus made statements that the Gentiles in Tyre and Sidon, part of Phoenicia Syria at the time, would have already repented if what was observed in Korazin and Bethsaida (i.e., cities with a large Jewish contingent) had been observed (Mt 11:21). Jesus also healed the daughter of a Gentile woman in Sidon because of her faith (Mt 15:21-28).

Now, keep in mind that all these divisions were within an area about the size of New Jersey or the island of Taiwan. Romans, Jews, Samaritans, and other differences in such a small area provided a constant clash of cultures, ideas, and beliefs. In our next post, we’ll discuss more about these differences.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens