-THE LIFE OF CHRIST - Political Divisions of the Land at the Time of Christ

-The following was presented by Don Deffenbaugh at the Bible School of the Ozarks:

-“At the time of our Lord’s earthly sojourn the land was divided into six distinct political regions

   which figure into his life.

-Judea, the Judah of the Old Testament, was the most important because it was always regarded
     as the heart and center of the Hebrew Nation.  In it is Jerusalem.  In the days of Jesus it
     was the headquarters of the Jewish faith.  Here was the temple.

-Samaria was just north of Judea and at the time of Christ was the home of the Samaritans, the

people whose origin went back to the fall of Israel in 722 B.C. (2 Kings 17:24).  The

Samaritans were a distinct religious group and bitter feelings existed between the Jews

and the Samaritans.  The Jews considered them to be half-breeds.

-Galilee was in the northern part of the Western Highlands and was a mountainous country.  The

Galileans were a mountain people, hospitable and teachable, and somewhat separated

from others of their race.  Jesus spent his boyhood and young manhood here, and about

half of the months of his earthly ministry were given to these people.

-Perea was east of the Jordan opposite the territory of the Samaritans.  Although this river was

all that separated them from the western side, the people here were different as they had

been affected by Gentile influences.  They were not hostile to their fellow Jews on the

western side as they allowed them to pass through their region to avoid going through the

territory of the hated Samaritans.

-Decapolis is the region north of Perea and east of the Sea of Galilee, though it extended across

the Jordan into Samaria and Galilee.  The word Decapolis means ‘ten cities’.  It was a

      confederation of ten Greek cities banded together for mutual protection.  The inhabitants

      were Gentiles.  The Lord’s biographers tell of a number of visits made by Jesus into this

      region.

-Northeast Palestine is the region northeast of the Sea of Galilee.  It went by different names at

different times.  Several small districts (Gaulonitis, Auranitis, Trachonitis, Iturea and

Batanea) were included in this region.  Some Jews lived here near the sea.  Jesus visited

this region at least once.”