Jesus's Path To The Cross: An 8-Day DevotionalMuestra

Photo Credit: © Todd Bolen/BiblePlaces.com

Jesus Predicts the Future

The Mount of Olives (Zech. 14:4; Matt. 21:1) is a portion of the ridge east of Jerusalem separating the city from the Judean wilderness. The Kidron Valley (cf. John 18:1) lies between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives. Because the Mount of Olives is higher than Jerusalem, it blocks the view of Jerusalem’s residents eastward, giving them a tight, protective horizon (cf. Ps.125:2). The slopes facing Jerusalem were cultivated in the first century AD; one grove of olive trees called Gethsemane, meaning “oil press” (Matt. 26:36; Mark 14:32), was a place where Jesus often stopped with his disciples (John 18:2). The extensive olive groves on the Mount of Olives were cut down by Titus to secure timber and clear the ground for his siege against the city in AD70. Remains of many family tombs dating to the time of the NT have also been found on these slopes. Towns on the Mount of Olives included Bethany and Bethphage (Matt. 21:1; Mark 11:1, 12; Luke 19:29; John 12:1). Bethphage was likely on the crest of the mount; Bethany corresponds to the modern village of el-Azariyeh (Arabic for “Lazarus”; cf. John 11:1, 18) on its eastern slope. Remains have been found there of churches built in the Byzantine period to remember Jesus’ visits to these towns.