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1 Kings 16 (WEB)

Jericho — Healing of Blind Men on the Road to Jericho·City

It is certain Jesus traveled the road from Jericho to Jerusalem several times on his trips between the Holy City and Galilee, as Jericho was a major stop over on the way through the Jordan Valley between the two. Although by no means the easiest route, the Jordan Valley-Jericho-Jerusalem road was one of the only ways to travel from Galilee to Jerusalem without having to go through Samaria. Many Jews famously avoided the Samaritans.

The road from Jericho to Jerusalem in the first century A.D. was a steep one, rising from 770 feet below sea level to 2,500 feet above sea level in only about twenty miles, a grade of about 3%. It was also located in an arid, rugged desert with few sources of water.

The route followed the Wadi el-Qelt, running along the ridge above the canyon. Herod had built several aqueducts along the way to channel water from the springs in the wadi to Jericho, including the spring of Parat, a few miles from Jerusalem. He also built several bridges to aid travel along the wadi.

As shown by Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, the road could be dangerous, with the wilderness areas between Jericho and Jerusalem a perfect place for brigands. The area was very difficult to patrol with so many hiding spots among the canyons and hills, and it remains so to this day. Sometime after Jesus’ time, the Romans paved much of the road and built a fort along the route, at a place referred to in the Bible as the “Ascent of Adumim” (Josh 15:7), a pass in the mountains about thirteen miles east of Jerusalem and a strategic spot on the route. As a testament to the area’s lawlessness, there has been some fortification there ever since, including a police station there today watching over the extremely politically sensitive East Jerusalem area. It was also in this area that early Christians remembered Jesus’ story about the Good Samaritan. In about A.D. 480 a monastery was built on an earlier pilgrimage site, the ruins of which are in the courtyard of the modern police station.

Also along the route is the ancient monastery of St. George. Although the monastery was built in the fifth century by John of Thebes, it was first occupied much earlier by local desert hermits. It is named for a sixth century resident of the monastery – George of Koziba. It is built into the cliffs of the Wadi el-Qelt, and is said to be the spot where Elijah stayed on his journey to the Sinai. It was destroyed in the Persian invasion of A.D. 604, rebuilt in 1179, abandoned after the Crusader era, and finally rebuilt from 1878-1901. 

See also Jericho

Jack Finegan, The Archaeology of the New Testament: The Life of Jesus and the Beginning of the Early Church, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1992), 145, 152. Finegan discusses the road from Jericho to Jerusalem and the ruins along the way.

Todd Bolen, “Jesus’ Final Journey to Jerusalem” Jerusalem Perspective Online, March 17, 2004. Online: http://www.jerusalemperspective.com/Default.aspx?tabid=27&ArticleID=1850 (accessed April 27, 2010).

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1 Kings 16 (WEB)

1Yahweh’s word came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, 2“Because I exalted you out of the dust and made you prince over my people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and have made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins, 3behold, I will utterly sweep away Baasha and his house; and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 4The dogs will eat Baasha’s descendants who die in the city; and he who dies of his in the field, the birds of the sky will eat.”

5Now the rest of the acts of Baasha, and what he did, and his might, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 6Baasha slept with his fathers, and was buried in Tirzah; and Elah his son reigned in his place.

7Moreover Yahweh’s word came by the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha and against his house, both because of all the evil that he did in Yahweh’s sight, to provoke him to anger with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he struck him.

8In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha began to reign over Israel in Tirzah for two years. 9His servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots, conspired against him. Now he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah; 10and Zimri went in and struck him and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place.

11When he began to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne, he attacked all the house of Baasha. He didn’t leave him a single one who urinates on a wall among his relatives or his friends. 12Thus Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha, according to Yahweh’s word which he spoke against Baasha by Jehu the prophet, 13for all the sins of Baasha, and the sins of Elah his son, which they sinned and with which they made Israel to sin, to provoke Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger with their vanities. 14Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

15In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. Now the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. 16The people who were encamped heard that Zimri had conspired, and had also killed the king. Therefore all Israel made Omri, the captain of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp. 17Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah. 18When Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the fortified part of the king’s house and burned the king’s house over him with fire, and died, 19for his sins which he sinned in doing that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he did to make Israel to sin. 20Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and his treason that he committed, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

21Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed Omri. 22But the people who followed Omri prevailed against the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath; so Tibni died, and Omri reigned. 23In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri began to reign over Israel for twelve years. He reigned six years in Tirzah. 24He bought the hill Samaria of Shemer for two talents of silver; and he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, Samaria, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill. 25Omri did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and dealt wickedly above all who were before him. 26For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sins with which he made Israel to sin, to provoke Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger with their vanities. 27Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his might that he showed, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 28So Omri slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria; and Ahab his son reigned in his place.

29In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel. Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30Ahab the son of Omri did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight above all that were before him. 31As if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. 32He raised up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. 33Ahab made the Asherah; and Ahab did more yet to provoke Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him. 34In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho. He laid its foundation with the loss of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the loss of his youngest son Segub, according to Yahweh’s word, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

World English Bible · public domain · ebible.org

Jericho