More Stones Bear Witness: Archaeology in Jerusalem

By Michael Lane

Following the publication of The Stones Bear Witness, the second book in this series takes the reader on a tour of biblical Jerusalem. On this journey, the reader will again encounter many places and artifacts providing support that the Bible is not a book of myths and fables but a special revelation of true events that actually occurred in history. In some chapters, the author takes a biblical story and shows the archaeological evidence supporting the historicity of the event. In other chapters, a comparison of traditional thought is cross-examined with archaeological evidence. Even though Jerusalem is a very old city, the historical record of biblical events are still present, adding tremendous evidence to show that the Bible can be trusted and is authentic.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: May 19, 2018
• ISBN: 9781546240990

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© 2018 Michael Lane. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 11/28/2018

ISBN: 978-1-5462-4098-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5462-4099-0 (e)

English Standard Version (ESV)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

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Contents

Baptisms in Jerusalem

The Burial Place of Jesus

David’s Tomb

Gethsemane & the Mount of Olives

The Gihon Spring

Hezekiah’s Wall in Jerusalem

Hezekiah’s Tunnel

The House of the High Priest

The Location of the Jewish Temple

The Pool of Siloam

Pool of Bethesda

The Caiaphas Ossuary

Conclusion

Baptisms in Jerusalem

Just before Jesus returned to Heaven from the Mt. of Olives, the disciples and other followers of Jesus met together in an upper room for prayer. Jesus had instructed them not to proceed to Galilee or some other areas, but to remain in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came. While they were meeting together in an upper room on the holiday known as Pentecost, the Holy Spirit did indeed come upon them and they began to speak in many languages. This was not a quiet event, but one that drew many curious onlookers.

No one knows for certain the location of the room where the followers of Jesus were sitting when the Holy Spirit descended upon them, but it must have been close to the Temple. The only mention of its location is found in the opening chapter of Acts.

Now the holiday of Pentecost is also known in the Bible as Feast of the Harvest (Ex. 23:16), the Day of Firstfruits (Num. 28:26), and later Shavuot. This was one of three pilgrimage feasts when all Jewish males were required to appear before the Lord in Jerusalem (Ex. 34:22-23). Jerusalem would have had thousands of extra visitors at the time of Pentecost.

As the Holy Spirit descended upon the followers in the upper room, the noise of the rushing wind and the people all praising God in different languages was heard by the multitude and they ran to the source. Peter then stood and preached a sermon that led many to believe that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. Thus, many people came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and they were then baptized into the Church.

Acts 2:41 (ESV)

So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

Some skeptics of the Bible will try to point out a problem found within the opening chapters of the Book of Acts when the Christian Church is just in its infancy. Where could 3,000 people be baptized at one time? There is no mention of where the multiple baptisms took place. If a river were nearby, that would suffice, but alas there is no river near the Temple. Of course, there were pools nearby. Just north of the Temple was the Pool of Bethesda.

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Model showing the Pool of Bethesda.

The Temple is the building to the extreme left of the pool.

Down to the south of the Tomb of David was another pool, the Pool of Siloam.

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Drawing courtesy of Stephanie Bergquist.

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Model showing the City of David, south of the Temple. The location of the Pool of Siloam would have been inside the walls at the lower part of this model. The Temple is the large building in the upper right part of this photograph.

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Ruins of the Pool of Siloam.

Either one of these two pools would have ample water for baptizing new converts. To baptize in the Pool of Siloam, thousands of people would have to journey down to the southern tip of the city. To baptize the people in the Pool of Bethsaida, they would travel to the area north of the Temple. But if the people were very near the Temple, there is another place that archaeologists have found that could have been a solution.

On the southern side of the temple mount was a major entryway to the Temple courts called the Hulda Gates. Just below this entryway are found many mikvahs used for spiritual purification. As Jews would come close to the Temple, many would need to go through a cleansing process so this area was constructed to accommodate the many people entering the Temple. Because the Temple was so holy to the Jews, many people required a spiritual cleansing before entering the holy site. Though many mikvahs were destroyed during constructions and reconstructions though the ages, it is very likely that these were the sites where the mass baptisms mentioned in the opening chapters of Acts were held. With perhaps a hundred or more mikvahs at hand, the immersion of the 3,000 converts could be performed in a single day.

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This is the area on the southern side of the Temple where scores of mikvahs have been discovered. The Hulda Gates, a major entryway to the Temple, are located at the top of the steps on the right side of the photograph.

The masses wanting to enter the Temple from the southern regions would first stop at a mikvah to be purified, and then proceed up the step to the Hulda Gates. There were two sets of gates. On the left side were the Double Gates and on the Right side were the Triple Gates.

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Today, the Triple Gate is easily ascertained, though it is sealed off as is the Double Gate. The three arches are still quite visible. The Double Gate is much harder to find, but the right arch of this entryway does remain. A Crusader fortress blocks part of the Double Gate.

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Original 1st Century A.D. stone in front of the Triple Gate. Jesus and His disciples would have walked over this same stone.

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