MATTHEW 4:12-17

Remember , Jesus was born in Nazareth but would spend his time mostly in and around Capernaum,

Nazareth was never the Saviour’s residence during his public ministry. After the wedding at Cana he lived a short time at Capernaum, and henceforth that city will be his abode, till he leaves Galilee six months before the crucifixion—most of the time, however, being actually spent in several journeys throughout Galilee, together with a trip to Jerusalem, and retirement to districts around Galilee.1

From the baptism, the temptation to work. To do what he set out to do.. redeem us from our sins, teach us how to love and live in this world.. so he begins to move to Capernaum in verse 12 we are told why he moved to this area. But the main reason was to fulfill prophecy – we will spend some time in a future lesson on Capernaum, for now..

Capernaum means “ village of Nahum ” and was possibly named for the prophet Nahum. But Nahum means “ compassion, ” and it may be that the town simply had been named for its compassionate people. By Jesus’ day it was a flourishing, prosperous city. It was here that Matthew had his tax office (Matt. 9:9), and it was this place that Matthew refers to as “His city,” that is, Jesus’ own city (9:1). Yet a short while later Jesus would say of it, “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You shall descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day. Nevertheless I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you” (Matt. 11:23–24). Today Capernaum, though a popular attraction for Christian visitors, is virtually uninhabited.2

Not much left of Capernaum today, just tourist visit the ruins of the synagogue and a house that was a focal point in church history

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Matt. 4:12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

we won’t learn until Matthew 14:3-12 the story behind Johns Death, at this point he has been thrown into prison.

1Robertson, A. T. (2009). A Harmony of the Gospels (Mt 4:13–Lk 4:31). Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.2MacArthur, J. (1989). Matthew. Chicago: Moody Press.

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He withdrew into the Galilee The motivation was John’s arrest. Why did He move? Several possible answers:

1. He was fearful of arrest by being associated with John so He kept His distance. Problem with this view is that Herod Antipas ruled both Judea and Galilee.

2. John’s ministry was completed so it was time for His to begin.John knew this.. he must increase he said.. it was time to get after it..

BEFORE very long disaster came to John. He was arrested and imprisoned in the dungeons of the Castle of Machaerus by Herod the king. His crime was that he had publicly denounced Herod for seducing his brother’s wife, and making her his own wife, after he had put away the wife he had. It is never safe to rebuke an eastern despot, and John’s courage brought him first imprisonment and then death. We shall come later to the details of that story which Matthew does not tell until Matthew 14:3–12.

For Jesus the time had come when he must go forth to his task. 3

Matthew mentioned the arrest of John the Baptist as merely a signal for the ministry of Jesus into Galilee, his home region. He moved from Nazareth (where his family had settled, 2:23) to Capernaum. Luke explained that John had been put in prison because he had publicly rebuked King Herod for taking his brother’s wife (Luke 3:19–20). John’s public protests had greatly angered Herod, so he put John in prison, presumably to silence him. The Herods were renowned for their cruelty and evil; Herod the Great had ordered the murder of the babies in Bethlehem (2:16). The Herod who had imprisoned John was Herod Antipas; his wife was Herodias, Herod Antipas’s niece and formerly his brother’s wife. The imprisonment of John the Baptist was only one evil act in a family filled with incest, deceit, and murder. (The full story is told in 14:1–12.)4

This ruin is in Jordan today, we hiked up the hill, this is a site that has had no excavation.. known as a mini – Masada

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali,

3The Gospel of Matthew : Volume. 2000, c1975 (W. Barclay, lecturer in the University of Glasgow, Ed.). The Daily study Bible series, Rev. ed. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press.4Barton, B. B. (1996). Matthew. Life application Bible commentary (Page 65). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.

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And leaving Nazareth, The word can also be translated “abandoned.” The reason for leaving Nazareth was his rejection in the synagogue. This event would take place two time, we will see the other later. John performed his ministry in the wilderness, Jesus in populated areas. Josephus tells us that no town in the Galilee had a population smaller than 15,000 (Wars of the Jews 3:43). Judea was on the road to nowhere while Galilee on the way to everywhere. The ministry of Jesus had better possibilities in Galilee which had a more tolerant atmosphere and was far removed from the Pharisees center of power. He came and lived in Capernaum, which was alongside the sea, by the regions of Zebulon and Naphtali Little is known about Capernaum. It is mentioned in the other gospels as a scene of Jesus’ ministry, but only Matthew makes it clear that Jesus made it His home (cf. 9:1; 17:24-25). 8:20 suggests that it was only a temporary base in which Jesus and His disciples returned from time to time from the traveling ministry. The busy lakeside town would have a wider audience than Nazareth.

He went into Galilee. When Jesus went into Galilee to begin his mission and his ministry, he knew what he was doing. Galilee was the most northerly district of Palestine. It stretched from the Litany River in the north to the Plain of Esdraelon in the south. On the west it did not reach the sea coast of the Mediterranean, because the coastal strip was in the possession of the Phoenicians. On the north-east it was bounded by Syria, and its eastern limit was the waters of the Sea of Galilee. Galilee was not large; it was only fifty miles from north to south, and twenty-five miles from east to west.

But, small as it was, Galilee was densely populated. It was by far the most fertile region of Palestine; its fertility was indeed phenomenal and proverbial. There was a saying that it was easier to raise a legion of olives in Galilee than it was to bring up one child in Judea. Josephus, who was at one time governor of the province, says, “It is throughout rich in soil and pasturage, producing every variety of tree, and inviting by its productiveness even those who have the least inclination for agriculture; it is everywhere tilled; no part is allowed to lie idle, and everywhere it is productive.” The result of this was that for its size Galilee had an enormous population. Josephus tells us that in it there were two hundred and four villages, none with a population of fewer than fifteen thousand people. So, then, Jesus began his mission in that part of Palestine where there were most people to hear him; he began his work in an area teeming with men to whom the gospel proclamation might be made.

But not only was Galilee a populous district; its people were people of a certain kind. Of all parts of Palestine Galilee was most open to new ideas. Josephus says of the Galileans, “They were ever fond of innovations, and by nature disposed to changes, and delighted in seditions.” They were ever ready to follow a leader and to begin an

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insurrection They were notoriously quick in temper and given to quarreling. Yet withal they were the most chivalrous of men. “the Galileans,” said Josephus, “have never been destitute of courage.” “Cowardice was never a characteristic of the Galileans.” “They were ever more anxious for honor than for gain.” The inborn characteristics of the Galileans were such as to make them most fertile ground for a new gospel to be preached to them.

This openness to new ideas was due to certain facts.

(i) The name Galilee comes from the Hebrew word galil which means a circle . The full name of the area was Galilee of the Gentiles. Plummer wishes to take that to mean “ heathenish Galilee. ” But the phrase came from the fact that Galilee was literally surrounded by Gentiles. On the west, the Phoenicians were its neighbors. To the north and the east, there were the Syrians. And even to the south, there lay the territory of the Samaritans. Galilee was in fact the one part of Palestine that was inevitably in touch with non-Jewish influences and ideas. Galilee was bound to be open to new ideas in a way that no other part of Palestine was.

(ii) The great roads of the world passed through Galilee, as we saw when we were thinking of the town of Nazareth. The Way of the Sea led from Damascus through Galilee right down to Egypt and to Africa. The Road to the East led through Galilee away out to the frontiers. The traffic of the world passed through Galilee. Away in the south Judea is tucked into a corner, isolated and secluded. As it has been well said, “Judea is on the way to nowhere: Galilee is on the way to everywhere.” Judea could erect a fence and keep all foreign influence and all new ideas out; Galilee could never do that. Into Galilee the new ideas were bound to come.

(iii) Galilee’s geographical position had affected its history. Again and again it had been invaded and conquered, and the tides of the foreigners had often flowed over it and had sometimes engulfed it.

Originally it had been assigned to the tribes of Asher, Naphtali and Zebulun when the Israelites first came into the land (Joshua 9) but these tribes had never been completely successful in expelling the native Canaanite inhabitants, and from the beginning the population of Galilee was mixed. More than once foreign invasions from the north and east had swept down on it from Syria, and in the eighth century B.C. the Assyrians had engulfed it completely, the greater part of its population had been taken away into exile, and strangers had been settled in the land. Inevitably this brought a very large injection of foreign blood into Galilee.

From the eighth until the second century B.C. it had been largely in Gentile hands. When the Jews returned from exile under Nehemiah and Ezra, many of the Galileans came south to live in Jerusalem. In 164 B.C. Simon Maccabaeus chased the Syrians north from Galilee back to their own territory; and on his way back he took with him to Jerusalem the remnants of the Galileans who were left.

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The most amazing thing of all is that in 104 B.C. Aristobulus reconquered Galilee for the Jewish nation, and proceeded forcibly to circumcise the inhabitants of Galilee, and thus to make them Jews whether they liked it or not. History had compelled Galilee to open its doors to new strains of blood and to new ideas and to new influences.

The natural characteristics of the Galileans, and the preparation of history had made Galilee the one place in all Palestine where a new teacher with a new message had any real chance of being heard, and it was there that Jesus began his mission and first announced his message. 5

From Nazareth to Capernaum is miles 30 miles about a hour drive , 10 hours to walk

The Way of the sea

The international trade route sometimes called the Via Maris (the Way of the Sea), ran through this area near the city of Capernaum. Matthew records that Jesus chose that town as his home to fulfill the prophecy that the Messiah would live in Galilee by "the way to the sea" (Isaiah 9:1-3; Matt. 4:12-17). God's people, Israel, had always lived in the land that connected the great empires of the ancient world. The whole world knew of them because the trade routes passed through their country. As the nations of the world passed by, Israel could obey God's command to be his witnesses (Isa. 43:10-12). Jesus, bringing the next chapter of God's message to the world, made his home a few yards from the great trade route. Galilee was not a backwoods region; it was on the crossroads of the world. Jesus' message was heard by many people from around the world.

Isaiah 9:1–2 Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles. 2 The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined.

5The Gospel of Matthew : Volume. 2000, c1975 (W. Barclay, lecturer in the University of Glasgow, Ed.). The Daily study Bible series, Rev. ed. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press.

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Matthew 4:12–16 Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: 16

The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”

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The Sea of Galilee

The rabbis of ancient times said, "The Lord has created seven seas, but the Sea of Galilee is his delight."

The Sea of Galilee is fed by the Jordan River, rainfall and springs on the northern side.  More properly designated a lake, the Kinneret (the OT and modern name.  At its deepest point the lake is only 157 feet deep.  At 683 feet below sea level, the Sea of Galilee seems smaller that visitors expect. At 14 miles long and 7 and 1/2 miles across , the entire sea is in view with a sweeping glance. In Hebrew, the lake is known by its biblical name of Kinnereth. It is also known as Chinneroth and Lake of Gennesaret.

It lies in part of the Great Rift Valley that extends south all the way to Kenya in Africa. To the west, the rocky hills of the Lower Galilee rise irregularly, here almost sheer, there in rounded piles. To the east, the dark volcanic cliffs of the Golan Heights loom menacingly in an almost unbroken line high above the lake. In only three places does the shore widen to form a plain capable of extensive cultivation: Ginosar (Gennasereth) on the west, Bethsaida on the northeast, and where the Jordan River leaves the lake in the south. The Jordan has its source 13 miles to the north at Mount Herman.

There are over 20 species of fish found in the lake and fishing is still an important industry. The unique St. Peter fish (tilapia) is enthusiastically recommended in Israeli restaurants although most now comes from fish farms rather than the lake.

The Sea of Galilee is mentioned in The Bible by 3 other names:

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1. The Sea of Kinnereth (or Chinnereth), from its harp-like shape.2. The Lake of Gennesaret. ( Greek form of Chinnereth )3. The Sea of Tiberias.

Much of the ministry of Jesus Christ, and numerous of His miracles took place in the area of the Sea of Galilee. From the fishermen of the Sea of Galilee came at least four of The Twelve Apostles - Peter, Andrew, James and John. Jesus stilled the raging storm on the Sea of Galilee that was about to swamp their boat. Jesus, and Peter to a limited extent, walked on the water there. Near its shores Jesus fed the five thousand men, women and children from the miraculous multiplication of five loaves of bread and two fish. Mary of Magdala, the first human to see and speak with the Savior after His resurrection, was from the town of Magdala on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.

Matt 4:18-23 18And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20They immediately left their nets and followed Him. 21Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.23And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This is the fifth of the ten fulfillment quotations used by Matthew. It explains why Jesus spent His time in despised Galilee.

Isa 9:1-2----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—

“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, refers to the two northern tribes bordering on the Sea of Galilee.

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on the road by the sea, via Maris. This road connected Damascus with Caesarea on the Mediterranean coast.

beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—This was the common designation for Galilee with its large Gentile population. Matthew does not refer to a mission of Jesus to the Gentiles. This may be a foreshadowing of what would occur after the resurrection.

Images from floor in a villa in Sepphoris

Galilee of the Gentiles.

It is not strange, then, that the reaction of many Jews in Jerusalem was, “Surely the Christ is not going to come from Galilee, is He?” (John 7:41). The idea of a Galilean

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Messiah seemed ludicrous. When Nicodemus tried to convince the Pharisees that Jesus should be given a fair hearing, “They answered and said to him, ‘You are not also from Galilee, are you? Search, and see that no prophet arises out of Galilee’ ” (vv. 51–52).6

Also as stated earler, that Galilee was surrounded by Gentiles, we see that today with the discovery of the very pagan town just a couple miles from Nazareth, called Sepphoris

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.” ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, It probably refers to the Jewish people (this term in Greek laos is used elsewhere in Matthew only for Israel) living in conditions of frustration and despair among the pagan Gentiles—who are the first to be privileged to see the fulfillment of God’s promises.The word “great” is emphasized in Greek.

and to the ones sitting in the land and in the shadow of death, Note the description of this area.

a light dawned to them.” Galilee, so often looked down upon both in political fortunes and in the eyes of the official Jewish religion, was in fact destined to play a crucial role in the unfolding of God’s plan of salvation. Again we have Matthew’s emphasis on outsiders in the purposes of God.

Matthew continued to show how all of Jesus’ life, even his travel, followed God’s plans and fulfilled Scripture. Some Jewish readers may have wondered why Jesus’ ministry was not focused in Jerusalem—wouldn’t the promised Messiah begin by speaking in the temple itself? However, Matthew explained that Jesus’ move to the region of Galilee where Capernaum was located fulfilled [that] which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet in Isaiah 9:1–2. Isaiah had prophesied that the Messiah would be a Light to the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali.7

God was so specific about where to look for messiah, right HERE !!

The prophecies concerning Jesus so specific ..

6MacArthur, J. (1989). Matthew. Chicago: Moody Press.7Barton, B. B. (1996). Matthew. Life application Bible commentary (Page 65). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.

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300 prophecies fulfilled -

Josh McDowell's book evidence that demands a verdict… he takes

61 major , detailed prophecies.

Could we not find someone in history to fulfill these prophecies.

If you can find someone in history to just fulfill Half of the prophecies.. God was specific:what Geological line to look for, what town he was to be born in, Before he was to come there would be a messenger , he would begin his ministry in Galilee, he would come and cleans the temple, ride in on a donkey to Jerusalem, to be betrayed by a friend, for 30 pieces of silver, false accused, he would keep silent before his accusers, wounded, bruised, smitten spit upon, mocked, carry a cross, was to be crucified, between two thief’s, gave us the year of the Crucifixion,, Resurrection, Ascension, on and on and on, specific details,

was is the odds that a man could by accent fulfill these prophecies, Peter stone in Science speaks does the calkulations of this

rain tomorrow 50, 50 chance, at 2:00, only over sandy, only for 3 minutes, ect. each detail I shorten the probably of guessing,

8 Prophecies coming true, 10 to the 17th power.

Silver dollars, 2 feet deep, mark one, blindfolded.

God was very specific do you see why Jesus wept over the city,, -------------------------

Our Scriptures are like no other "religious writings". Nothing can be compared with them. God has clearly shown us that He speaks in the Scriptures because they give detailed pictures of the future and then are fulfilled. There are hundreds of prophecies dealing with hundreds of topics.One of the greatest topics is that of the coming of a Savior. Over three hundred specific prophecies were given concerning the first coming of Jesus Christ. There are about five hundred more that are concerned with His Second Coming.In all there are over 300 prophecies that detailed the first coming of Jesus to the earth.God went into great detail so there would be no mistake about who the Messiah would be.The prophecies contained such things as:His deity. (Ps.2:7; Is.7:14) His lineage. (Gen.22:8; 21:12; Num.24:17; Gen.49:10; Is.11:1) His birthplace. (Mic.5:2) The miracles. (Is.35:5) His teachings. (Ps.78:2) His

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triumphant entry into Jerusalem. (Ps. 118:25) The very DAY of His arrival. (Dan.9:24-27) His betrayal by a close friend. (Ps.41:9) The price of His betrayal. (Zech.11:12) Explicit details of His death. (Ps.22) His resurrection. (Ps.16:10)What are the odds of someone fulfilling these prophecies?If just eight of the prophecies are taken, mathematicians have figured that the odds would be 1 in 1017 (That’s a "10" with 17 zeroes after it).What's that like?Peter Stoner writes, "we take 1017 silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They will cover all the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir up the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one silver dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man, from their day to the present time, providing they wrote them in their own wisdom."If we take 48 of the prophecies, the odds increase to 1 in 10157 (That’s a "10" with 157 zeroes after it).What's that like?Stoner writes, "We must select a smaller object. The electron is about as small an object as we know of. It is so small that it will take 2.5 times 1015 of them laid side by side to make a line, single file, one inch long. If we were going to count the electrons in this line one inch long, and counted 250 each minute, and if we counted day and night, it would take us 19 million years to count just the one inch line of electrons. If we had a cubic inch of these electrons and we tried to count them it would take us, counting steadily 250 each minute, 19 million times 19 million times 19 million years, or 6.9 times 1021 years"."With this introduction, let us go back to our chance of 1 in 10157. Let us suppose that we are taking this number of electrons, marking one, and thoroughly stirring it into the whole mass, then blindfolding a man and letting him try to find the right one. What chance has he of finding the right one? What kind of pile will this number of electrons make? They make an inconceivably large volume"And this is only the chance of one man fulfilling 48 prophecies.There were over 300 prophecies of Jesus!8

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Remember this is the first call of the gospel. REPENT… REPENTANCE.. if you want help.. do this ..

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This verse marks one of the three main divisions in Matthew. Jesus will now begin His public ministry. First, He must call certain disciples to follow Him.

From that time This verse serves as a turning point in the gospel of Matthew. It marks the beginning of His public ministry. The phrase is repeated verbatim in 16:21 where another major turning point of the gospel occurs.Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” These are the same words that John the Baptist preached.

This passage serves as an important transition, bringing Jesus to Galilee where His ministry is to have its formal beginning. He has been prepared by the baptism and temptation in the wilderness, the stage is set. Word comes that John has been arrested— the work of the forerunner is now complete. Jesus comes to Nazareth and to Capernaum beside the sea, so significant to the prophecy of Isaiah. Jesus begins to proclaim the presence of the kingdom of God by word and deed—a great light appears to those who sit in darkness.

The darkness in which the people lived was the darkness of sin and evil. Jesus was saying, “The great darkness has been upon you because of the great darkness that is within you. You must be willing to turn from that darkness before the light can shine in you.” To turn from sin is to repent, to change one’s orientation, to turn around and seek a new way. Metanoeō literally means a change of perception, a change in the way we see something. To repent, therefore, is to change the way a person looks at sin and the way he looks at righteousness. It involves a change of opinion, of direction, of life itself. To repent is to have a radical change of heart and will-and, consequently, of behavior (cf. Matt. 3:8).cf. Matt. 3:8).9

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Capernaum

cf. Matt. 3:8).cf. confer (Lat.), compare9MacArthur, J. (1989). Matthew. Chicago: Moody Press.

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A city on the western shore of the “Sea of Galilee” (Matt. 4:13) frequently mentioned in the bible as the home of Jesus. It was lower than Nazareth and Cana, from which the road to it was one of descent (John 2:12; Luke 4:31). It was of sufficient size to be called a “city” (Matt. 9:1; Mark 1:33), and had its own synagogue, in which our Lord frequently taught. (John 6:59; Mark 1:21; Luke 4:31-38) This synagogue was built by the centurion of the detachment of Roman soldiers that appears to have been quartered in the place (7:2; Matt. 8:8). Besides the garrison there was also a customs station, where the dues were gathered both by stationary and itinerant officers.

Capernaum was the residence of Jesus and His apostles, and the scene of many miracles and sermons. While Jesus was raised in Nazareth, he claimed Capernaum as his own city. It was when He returned to it that those around him referred to Him being “home.” (Mark 2:1). Here He chose the evangelist Matthew, or Levi (Matt. 9:9), the brothers Simon Peter and Andrew who belonged to Capernaum (Mark 1:29), and one can imagine that here on the sea beach they had the quiet call that was to make them forsake all and follow Him. It was here that Christ performed miracles on the centurion’s servant, on Simon’s wife’s mother, the paralytic and the man afflicted with an unclean demon. In the synagogue He spoke the wonderful “bread of life” sermon of John 6.

The doom pronounced against Capernaum and the other unbelieving cities (Matt 11:23) ahs been remarkably fulfilled.

The Synagogue

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The dating of this synagogue is debated, but it is clearly later than the first century.  Excavations have revealed a synagogue from the time of Jesus with walls made of worked stone and 4 feet thick.

These earlier walls were preserved up to 3 feet high and the entire western wall still exists and was used as the foundation for the later synagogue.

In the synagogue Jesus was confronted by a demoniac while teaching here (Mark 1:21-27).

In Capernaum, Jesus healed the servant of the centurion.  This Roman official was credited with building the synagogue (Luke 7:3).

In this synagogue, Jesus gave sermon on the bread of life (John 6:35-59).

The House of Peter

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One block of homes, called by the Franciscan excavators the sacra insula or "holy insula" ("insula" refers to a block of homes around a courtyard) was found to have a complex history. Located between the synagogue and the lakeshore, it was found near the front of a labyrinth of houses from many different periods. Three principal layers have been identified:

A group of private houses built around the 1st century BC which remained in use until the early 4th century.The great transformation of one of the homes in the 4th century.The octagonal church in the middle of the 5th century.The excavators concluded that one house in the village was venerated as the house of Peter the fisherman as early as the mid-1st century, with two churches having been constructed over it

1st centuryThe city's basalt houses are grouped around two large courtyards, one to the north and the other to the south. One large room in particular, near the east side and joining both courtyards, was especially large (sides about 7.5 meters long) and roughly square. An open space on the eastern side contained a brick oven. A threshold which allowed crossing between the two courtyards remains well-preserved to this day.Beginning in the latter half of the 1st century AD, this house displayed markedly different characteristics than the other excavated houses. The rough walls were reworked with care and were covered with inscriptions; the floor was covered with a fine layer of plaster. excavators had claimed to find graffiti including the name of Peter.

4th-century transformation

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In this period, the sacra insula acquired a new appearance. First, a thick-walled, slightly trapezoidal enclosure was built surrounding the entire insula; its sides were 27–30 meters long. Made of plaster, they reached a height of 2.3 meters on the north side. It had two doors, one in the southwest corner and the other in the northeast corner. Next, although there is evidence that the private houses remained in use after the transformation, the one particular room that had before been treated differently was profoundly altered and expanded. A central archway was added to support a roof and the north wall was strengthened with mortar. New pavement was installed, and the walls and floor were plastered. This structure remained until the middle of the 5th century when the sacra insula was dismantled and replaced with a larger basilica.

Octagonal Church

The 5th-century church consists of a central octagon with eight pillars, an exterior octagon with thresholds still in situ, and a gallery or portico that leads both into the interior of the church as well as into a complex of associated buildings to the East, a linkage achieved via a short passageway. Later, this passage was blocked and an apse with a pool for baptism was constructed in the middle of the east wall. From this wall ascended two stairs on either side of the baptistry, and the excess water from the rite would have escaped along this path. The Byzantines, upon constructing the new church, placed the central octagon directly on top of the walls of St. Peter's house with the aim of preserving its exact location, although none of the original house was visible any longer, as the walls had been torn down and the floor covered in mosaics.In the portico, the pattern of the mosaic was purely geometric, with four rows of contiguous circles and small crosses. In the zone of the external octagon, the mosaics represented plants and animals in a style similar to that found in the Basilica of the Feeding of the Five Thousand, in Taghba. In the central octagon, the mosaic was composed of a strip of calcified flowers, of a field of schools of fish with small flowers, and of a great circle with a peacock in the center.

Capernaum was partially destroyed in the Persian conquest in the 7th C AD. The synagogue and church were destroyed in the Arab period (7th- 12 C AD), but the village continued to function for some time.  It then was totally ruined.    The area was purchased by the Franciscans in 1894; 2/3 of the entire area of ruins were purchased, while the other third was purchased by the Greek Orthodox.  The excavations were conducted in several seasons  (1905-1915, 1968-1984).

   In 1990 a modern church was built over the 5th C church, over St Peter's house. You can walk up to the main floor, which has a glass bottom in the center, and view the holy site.

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Matt. 4:12-16 12Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 13And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 15“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: 16

The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”

Matt. 8:5-10 5Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” 7And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9“For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!

Matt. 11:23 23“And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

Mark 1:21-28 21Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. 22And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. 23Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, 24saying, “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” 25But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” 26And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. 27Then they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.” 28And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee.

John 6:16-21 16Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them. 18Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing. 19So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid. 20But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.

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