Did Jesus Gain Powerful Friends in Capernaum?
Ad 27 and 28
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| Capernaum and Vicinity |
Here's a typical "New Testament map" of the vicinity of Capernaum. Like many Bible maps, it shows the obscure, out-of-the-way Jewish places mentioned in the New Testament, while leaving out the major Greek population centers forgotten by history.
Just to the north of this map is Caesarea Philippi, the capital city of Herod Philip's domain, whose western border was the northern reach of the Jordan River. Very near to the fishing village of Bethsaida was the Greek-speaking city of Julias, built by Herod Philip to curry favor with the Roman emperor.
To the south of Magdala was the city of Tiberias, built by Herod Antipas on the shore of the lake, also to curry favor with the Roman emperor. He ruled Galilee, whose north-eastern border was alongside the domain of his brother Philip. And not far from the small towns of Cana and Nazareth lay the thriving Greek-speaking city of Sepphoris.
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| One Concept of Capernaum's Harbor |
The "Royal" on a Horse
Capernaum and Cana figure large in the first tale of a man helped by Jesus. This story found in John's gospel calls him a "royal" (basilikos) whose son lay dying in Capernaum (John 4:46-54). He makes a desperate dash to Cana, where he has heard of a man named Jesus who had the power to heal. There is little doubt that he would have used a horse or chariot, for the distance was well over 20 miles by road.
The historian Josephus used the word basilikos to refer to anyone related to or employed by a king or kingly official. Many Bible translations call this man a "royal official" while the King James Version uses the word "Nobleman." One Bible commentator calls him one of "Herod's flunkies."
While the term could refer to a relative or official of the Roman emperor, the context more or less demands that the man must be related in some way to the Herods. (If he were a Roman Royal, what would he be doing in the Roman backwater of Capernaum? Serving out a period of exile?)
I'm going with the more accepted view that he was a royal official. He was likely a Herodian relative provided with a position of importance in Capernaum, perhaps the equivalent of the town mayor. During the summer months, his relative Herod Antipas would be living just ten miles down the beach in Tiberias.
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Another Concept of Capernaum's Harbor
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He responded, "Lord, come down before my child dies!" Jesus said to him, "Go, your son lives." When the man got back to Capernaum, he found that his son recovered at the very moment that Jesus spoke.
This happened in the summer of AD 27, during the first year of Jesus' ministry. Would not this man remember this moment for the rest of his life? Surely, if he had any power at all in Capernaum, he would have been protective of Jesus, who had become one of the newest residents of the town.
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| The Ruins of Capernaum |
The Roman Centurion in Capernaum
The second tale takes place around late spring of AD 28. A Roman with the military rank of Centurion (=leader of a hundred) had a valued servant who had fallen and was in great pain. His request of Jesus for healing of his servant was backed up by Jewish elders, who told Jesus that the man loved the Jewish people and had paid for the synagogue to be constructed (Matt 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10).
The man said there was no need for Jesus to come to his house, only to say the word and his servant would be healed. Perhaps he had heard of Jesus' power from the royal official in the same town. Jesus marveled at his faith and said to him, "Go, it shall be done for you as you have believed."
Surely this Centurion was a well-established resident of Capernaum, in view of his relationship with the Jewish elders and the synagogue. This must mean that there was a Roman Garrison posted in Capernaum, perhaps not a full hundred men, but at least enough to guard the district's borders in peacetime. And if Jesus needed protection from a band of assassins, I suspect this centurion would be ready to serve.
Below is an aerial photo of the synagogue this centurion sponsored, in the midst of the ruins of central Capernaum. So much Biblical action takes place while Jesus is in transit in Capernaum, that the ruins we see here could hardly have contained it. This must be just the downtown area, with more space beyond it for finer homes and longer streets. And, somewhere, a Roman Garrison.
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| The Synagogue in Capernaum |
Jairus, Ruler of the Synagogue
The third tale tells of a ruler of the synagogue in Capernaum, whose 12-year-old daughter had just died and the mourners had already begun the death rituals. The story is in all three synoptic gospels, interrupted mid-tale with the healing of a woman who had been ill for twelve years (Matthew 9:18-19, 23-26; Mark 5:22-24, 35-43; Luke 8:41-42, 49-56).
Jesus had just returned by boat from the other side of the lake, where he had cast out a legion of demons from a wild man in a cemetery. Jairus threw himself at Jesus' feet and implored him to come to his house and lay hands on his daughter so that she would live. Jesus went with him and dismissed the wailing mourners outside.
He allowed no one inside with him except the parents, plus Peter, James, and John. He took the child by the hand and said, "Little girl, I say to you, get up!" She got up and began to walk, and Jesus told them to give her something to eat.
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| Synagogue Interior |
This took place in the fall of AD 28. Already in the spring of that year, the chief priests and Pharisees in Jerusalem had begun conspiring to find a way to destroy Jesus. They began sending Pharisees into Capernaum to challenge Jesus and try to catch him in his words, for the chief priests had no power to arrest him outside of the environs of Jerusalem.
My suspicion is that they got no cooperation in their conspiracy from the elders in Capernaum nor from the rulers of the synagogue there. Jesus had at least three friends in this town whose influence was substantial and whose instincts would be to protect him.
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Downtown Capernaum
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