What kind of place was nazareth

The Christian Broadcasting Network CBN is a global ministry committed to preparing the nations of the world for the coming of Jesus Christ through mass media. Christian Living. In a season where Bethlehem gets all the Christmas carol shout-outs and Nativity scenes, I thought I'd focus on Nazareth, the place where the Archangel Gabriel first announced the news of Jesus' birth to his mother Mary.

So here are five things you may not know about Jesus' hometown: 1. Nazareth was the original small town. Archaeological research suggests that in Jesus' day, only people lived in Nazareth.

In John , Nathanael asked the famous question, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Unless they were smart enough to figure out the following prophecy Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah would come from Nazareth about years before the village existed.

In the 8th century before Christ's birth, Isaiah prophesied that "a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit" Isaiah The word "branch" in Hebrew is netzer , the same root word from which the name "Nazareth" comes. Some historians have suggested that Nazareth was named as "the town of the branch," meaning "the place where the Branch of David lives.

So we have some very brilliantly inspired biblical writers here. Isaiah's prophecy contains a double entendre that would remain hidden for more than years Most of the Nazarenes were royalty. The area around the Basilica of the Annunciation has been extensively excavated and remains of the first century village can be seen by appointment. On the outskirts of Nazareth lies, undisturbed, Precipice Mountain, where tradition says the people of the city pursued Jesus and where Mary quaked with fear until she saw Him emerge unharmed.

Nazareth, the largest city in the North District of Israel, provides an extraordinary experience of multiculturalism, turning even more exciting on holidays, when the ancient walkways are filled with shimmering colorful lights. All rights reserved. Terms of use. They were observant Jews, so they circumcised their sons, celebrated Passover, did not work on the Sabbath, travelled as pilgrims to Jerusalem, and valued the traditions of Moses and the prophets.

The Nazareth fountain, a link to Jesus, photograph. The only feature in the present-day town of Nazareth that can be linked directly to Jesus is the well. What was ancient Nazareth like?

Questions for Bible study groups What is the strange way you can tell the size of ancient Nazareth? Roughly how many people lived there? What was the large town nearby? How might it have affected Nazareth? Why is Nazareth famous? Bible study resource: ancient Nazareth Nazareth lay in the hills twelve miles southwest of the Sea of Galilee: fertile land. Excavations show just how small it actually was — but every bit of space was used effectively.

It was built on porous rock, so as well as the buildings above the surface there were underground cisterns for water, vats for oil, and silos for grain. There was a single, ancient spring for water. It was a conservative town, clinging to traditional Jewish culture in a world that had been radically affected by Greek thought and culture. It had a population of about , so everyone knew everyone else.