The Travels of Jesus

On Sundays we take a break from our chapter-a-day exploration of the New Testament and look at related topics.

The ministry of Jesus, from his baptism by John to his crucifixion and resurrection, is generally viewed to have lasted about three years.  (Some suggest 30-33 CE; others put the dates a few years earlier.) The synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) describe Jesus growing up in Nazareth of Galilee, the town of his parents.  In his early ministry, Jesus ministers primarily in Galilee, in and around the Sea of Galilee.  The last half of the synoptic gospels then describe Jesus's decision to travel south and visit Jerusalem for a final time, leading to his trial, crucifixion and resurrection.  This decision to "go up" to Jerusalem seems driven by the death of John the Baptist and increasing opposition from the religious leaders.  Shortly before Jesus begins this final trip, the synoptic gospels describe the "Transfiguration", in which Jesus is visited by Moses and Elijah and is spectacularly transformed for a brief time.

Here is a map of the region, given from a Wikipedia page original source attributed to "Andrew c."

The final visit of Jesus to Jerusalem occurs during the Jewish feast of Passover, during which time Jesus is sacrificed on the cross, mirroring the Passover Lamb of the Jewish Exodus.  The Gospel of John records one other Passover visit (John 2: 13) and a third occurrence of the Passover when Jesus is apparently in Galilee (John 6:4). If three Passover Feasts occurred in the ministry of Jesus then his ministry was at least two years, possibly three.

John also includes at least one trip through Samaria (John 4) while the synoptic gospels include travels east of the Sea of Galilee, in the Decapolis area. John also records trips to Jerusalem for feasts other than the Passover. (The travels of Jesus to Jerusalem are summarized here.)  All in all, a three-year period for the ministry of Jesus is widely accepted.

Further resources:
More on the geography of New Testament times can be found here or here. Wikipedia has an interesting and extensive article on the chronology of Jesus and another on a timeline of Christianity.

Tomorrow we return to Jesus's Galilean ministry, as covered in Luke 7.