Page 58 - Advanced Bible Geography ebook

Bethlehem was five miles south of Jerusalem while Nazareth was 80 miles north of Jerusalem, in the
Galilee. By this time, Herod’s son Archelaus was ruling Judea and another son, Antipas, oversaw the
Galilee. Archelaus turned out to be such a violent ruler, the Romans would eventually remove him from
power 10 years into his reign. Antipas, on the other hand, showed much tolerance to his Jewish
subjects. Mary and Joseph could not have known that Nazareth would be the safer place to live, but God
gave them direction and Jesus was raised in Nazareth.

As you read this familiar passage, note the references to the change of power in Jerusalem and the
description of geography in relation to Nazareth. As is consistently the case throughout the Bible,
Matthew’s record of events matches information we have from historical records outside the Bible. It
also gives an accurate description of the land.

After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Get up,
take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the
child’s life are dead.” So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But
when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go
there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and he went and lived
in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be
called a Nazarene.
- Matthew 2:19-23, with historical and geographical information highlighted

The importance of such details in Matthew’s account may not be evident at first glance. But as is
consistently the case throughout the Bible, the geographic details and the information about the
current political environment coincide perfectly with the actual land and history recorded in other
sources. It’s yet another case of affirming the Bible’s accurate record of history. No other religious book
comes close to matching the Bible in these areas.

Scholars struggled with the historicity of Pontius Pilate for many years. Though he is
mentioned prominently in the Gospels as the man who condemned Jesus to the cross,
outside sources were scant regarding him. Then, in 1961, a limestone block was found near
the theater at Caesarea. The inscription on the stone indicates that a structure had been
dedicated to the emperor Tiberius by “Pontius Pilate, Prefect of Judea.”

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