"Jesus the Messiah Returns"
ISBN 1-59196-730-9 at Barnes and Noble .com

  Nazareth was one of the twenty-four priest centers of the Hebrew nation. By the time of Jesus the Messiah every Jewish community had a synagogue as a consequence of the Babylonian captivity. It was to be built so that the people faced Jerusalem when praying and located on the highest hill in town near water if possible. The entrance was toward the east just like the Temple. A special box was provided for the scrolls. There was a "bema" or raised platform where scriptures were read and blessings given. There was a special row for the Elders and Rulers of the Synagogue. The Synagogue was the center for education. The service included prayers, psalm-singing, blessings, readings from the Scriptures, and commentaries on the sacred passages, but there were no sacrifices and no standard liturgy. Nazareth was a relatively isolated village in the time of Jesus with a population less than two hundred. Today Nazareth is home to more than 60,000 Israeli Arabs, and Upper Nazareth is home to thousands of Jews.

One scroll was sufficient to hold the Book of Isaiah which was handed to Jesus to have him read the scripture for that day. The substitution of the book form or codex was not made until the 2 nd century A.D. Jesus knew everyone in the synagogue where he attended as an adult member for 17 years. When he put himself in a class with Elijah and Elisha, two of their greatest Prophets, this was startling and amazing and enraged them. Jesus also declared that this was to be "the acceptable year" or year of Jubilee when the sick, sinful and needy were to be restored to health, holiness, prosperity and authority and dominion over Satan.

Jesus moves to Capernaum

And he came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days. ...Luke 4:31a Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishermen And Jesus said to them, You come after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him. And when he had gone a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the ship mending their nets. And straightway he called them: and they left their father Zebedee in the ship with the hired servants, and went after him. ...Mark 1:16-20

And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship. Now when he had finished, he said to Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. And Simon answering said to him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at your word I will let down the net. And when they had this done, they enclosed a great multitude of fish: and their net broke. And they beckoned to their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.

When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fish which they had taken: And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, Fear not; from now on you shall catch men. And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him. .. Luke 5:1-11

The Sea of Galilee (ring) refers to the ring of mountains that encircle the lake creating a sharp drop. It is also called the Lake of Kinneret ( harp) because of its shape or the Sea of Tiberias after the Capital city and hot springs spa area built by Herod Antipas. Many sick people came to the area for the warm mineral springs believed to have curative powers...Deep blue in color it is located some 60 miles north of Jerusalem at 685 feet below sea level. It is 7 miles wide, 13 miles long, 32 miles in circumference and about 160 feet deep at its deepest point. Except for Tiberias, the western side and most of the northern shore was Jewish. Gentiles inhabited the rest of the area. This included Gadar, where pigs were raised. (Mark. 5:1-13)

Jesus . Being in a boat, his voice carried over the water, amplifying it. Matthew 14:24 says the wind was "contrary." As the winds begins to descend down toward the surface of the water, the Valley of Arbel on the west acts like a wind tunnel to force it across the lake. As it reaches the eastern side, it is unable to ascend the steep mountains that form the Golan Heights and is forced back onto the lake. This causes the water to churn and boil like a cauldron.

The headquarters for Jesus' Galilean ministry was Capernaum, on the north shore of the lake. It was this city, along with Chorazim (located north of Capernaum), upon which Jesus pronounced woes for rejection of His ministry. Bethsaida was the fishing village of Peter, James, and Andrew.

In Matthew 16:2-3, Jesus pointed out the people's knowledge of weather patterns around the sea. In the evening, if the sky is red as the sun lowers, it indicates nice weather the next day. If the sky is red in the morning, it is an indication of stormy weather. Jesus said that if they paid as much attention to what His signs and miracles indicated about Him as they did to the signs predicting weather, they might understand who He was.

 

 

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