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NAZARETH
A. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
This small town in the Lower Galilee Area became a city of importance during the New Testament period. It was the town in which Jesus spent his childhood and youth, and from which He set out to visit the towns and villages of Galilee. The New Testament mentions there was a synagogue here (Luke 4:16). This city was the Galilean seat for many Jewish priests. Because of it, the town was religiously oriented.
After the destruction of the Second Temple (70 A.D.), Jews continued to live in Nazareth. It then became the seat of the priestly family of Pises. Eusebuis mentions a small village called Nazareth in the 4th century after Christ. No church was built there until the time of Constantine and it is not mentioned before 570 A.D. The first church was destroyed by the Arabs in 636 A.D. and rebuilt by the Crusaders a few centuries later. The modern Church of the Annunciation incorporates remains of the Byzantine basilica.
B. BIBLICAL REFERENCES
1. Mt. 2:23 Upon returning from Egypt, Joseph, Mary, and Jesus go to Nazareth, the city which Joseph and Mary were from. This region was politically calmer than the region of Judea. Archelaus ruled in Judea while Herod Antipas ruled the Galilee area.
2. Mt. 4:13 Jesus leaves Nazareth to begin His public ministry.
3. Lk.1:26 In Nazareth, Mary is spoken to by Gabriel.
4. Lk. 4:16 At the synagogue here, Jesus stands up and read from the scroll of Isaiah (61:2). The people of the synagogue cast Him out and lead Him to the cliff with intentions of throwing Him over. Jesus escapes unharmed!
5. John 1:45-46 Nathanael asks, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”
C. ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS OF INTEREST
1. ROMAN I: With visible archaeological remains being few and far between here in this modern city of Nazareth, there is evidence, however, of a water well and corresponding well steps that very probably were present during the time of Christ’s early childhood years. This well and step area can be seen beneath one of the many traditional churches in this city.
2. BYZANTINE PERIOD: The small remains of a church can still be seen in Basilica of the Annunciation. This beautiful basilica, complete in 1966, is built over the ruins of a church built by Emperor Constantine at the request of his mother, Helena. It marks the traditional site of Mary’s home. Other “modern” churches that still can be visited today, some of which are built over early Byzantine ruins, include St. Joseph’s Church, St. Gabriel’s Church, the Synagogue Church, and the Mensa Christi (a Franciscan chapel).