Location, location, location is the mantra in the real estate world, but did you know that this mantra is also a big deal in the world of the Bible? No, I’m not trying to sell you biblical real estate (I’m sure someone already does that), I’m trying to get you to focus on location. We all have locations that we love, whether it’s our home or our favorite vacation spot, but locations also have history tied to them. Las Vegas, Pearl Harbor, or Ground Zero, all three of these places come with their own set of images that are drawn from events that happened there. The same is true for biblical places.
For example, think about the Wilderness. It is a place of barrenness but it is also highly significant in the Biblical narrative. The Wilderness is where the Israelites wandered for 40 years. It was the location of some of David’s hiding places when he was running from Saul (1 Sam.23:14-26:3) and it’s also the location where Jesus was tempted while He was fasting for 40 days (Matt.4:1-4). Specific cities are also ripe with history. Take Jericho as an example. It is the place Joshua sent spies before the Israelites began the conquest (Josh.2:1-24). Its walls were rebuilt after the return from Babylon (Ezra 2:34). Both the healing of blind Bartimaeus (Matt.20:29-34) and the story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10) took place there. The Jordan River is not a city, but it is an important location in its own right: the Israelites crossed it (Josh.3:1-17), both Elijah and Elisha parted it (2 Kgs.2:6-14), but most people remember this as the place where Jesus was baptized (Matt.3:13-17).
Biblical writers name dropped locations all the time, just like we do today in places that are familiar to us. Sometimes, in order to do good Bible study, we need to take a minute and look up a location from the Biblical text that we are reading for the day – a Bible dictionary or Bible atlas will help. You will be pleasantly surprised how your perspective of a particular location changes when you uncover its history.
For example, think about the Wilderness. It is a place of barrenness but it is also highly significant in the Biblical narrative. The Wilderness is where the Israelites wandered for 40 years. It was the location of some of David’s hiding places when he was running from Saul (1 Sam.23:14-26:3) and it’s also the location where Jesus was tempted while He was fasting for 40 days (Matt.4:1-4). Specific cities are also ripe with history. Take Jericho as an example. It is the place Joshua sent spies before the Israelites began the conquest (Josh.2:1-24). Its walls were rebuilt after the return from Babylon (Ezra 2:34). Both the healing of blind Bartimaeus (Matt.20:29-34) and the story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10) took place there. The Jordan River is not a city, but it is an important location in its own right: the Israelites crossed it (Josh.3:1-17), both Elijah and Elisha parted it (2 Kgs.2:6-14), but most people remember this as the place where Jesus was baptized (Matt.3:13-17).
Biblical writers name dropped locations all the time, just like we do today in places that are familiar to us. Sometimes, in order to do good Bible study, we need to take a minute and look up a location from the Biblical text that we are reading for the day – a Bible dictionary or Bible atlas will help. You will be pleasantly surprised how your perspective of a particular location changes when you uncover its history.
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