“Where in the world are we? Who are these people?”
Ever felt that way reading the Bible? Even if you know the Old Testament well, stepping into the New Testament can feel like entering a whole new world: Pharisees and Sadducees, Romans ruling the land, the Sanhedrin, synagogues everywhere. The geography even seems different—what’s the Decapolis? And Samaritans? They weren’t in the Old Testament, were they?
Let’s take a quick tour of the main territories of Israel in Jesus’ time. This is more than just geography—it’s the backdrop for Jesus’ life and ministry. I’ve included amap from the Holman Bible Atlas—showing first-century territories of Israel. We’ll focus only on areas that directly interacted with Jesus and His disciples.
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Idumea
Our journey begins in the south, in Idumea—west and southwest of the Dead Sea in an area known as the Negev. The Idumeans descended from the Edomites, tracing their lineage back to Esau, Jacob’s brother and Isaac’s son. “Idumea” is the Greek form of “Edom.” Before Judah’s exile to Babylon, the Edomites had migrated west from their homeland which was east of the Dead Sea, to the area west of it.
By Jesus’ time, the population was largely Jewish due to forced conversions under John Hyrcanus, a Hasmonean ruler of Isreal and high priest (135–105 BC). This independent Jewish state ended in 63 BC when Pompey the Great brought Israel under Roman control.
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Idumea is significant in the New Testament as the ancestral homeland of Herod the Great. Around 125 BC the people of Idumea were forcibly converted to Judaism. Due to Herod’s ancestry, the lack of being in the line of David, and the question of a genuine faith, the Jewish people did not see Herod as fully Jewish and thus not fully qualified to be their king. Yet even with this he was better by half than Romans. He also ruled with an iron fist and Rome’s backing making revolt near impossible. While Jesus was in Judea and Jerusalem quite often, it does not appear He ever visited Idumea.
Judea
Judea was both a Roman province and its central district. The Romans divided larger territories into provinces, but provinces could be further subdivided into smaller regions, districts, or toparchies (administrative sub-units). In the days of Jesus, the province of Judea consisted of three districts: Judea (central), Samaria (north), and Idumea (south).
The district of Judea was the heart of Israel in both political and religious terms. Jerusalem and the Temple, the Garden of Gethsemane, and nearby Bethany (home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha)—were in Judea, as was Bethlehem. Don’t confuse Judea with the Old Testament kingdom of Judah. While they covered similar territory, they were very different political entities.
Geographically, Idumea bordered Judea to the south, the Mediterranean Sea to the west, and the Dead Sea to the east, along with the Jordan River until about 25 miles south of the Sea of Galilee. To the northeast lay the Decapolis. What is hard to see from most maps is that within the province of Judea, the northern district of Samaria does not go all the way to the Jordan River in the east.
All Jews were expected to come to Jerusalem at least once in their lifetime, and many traveled there multiple times a year for major festivals like Passover. In AD 6 Roman political and military headquarters were relocated from Jerusalem to Caesarea Maritima (on the Mediterranean coast) in the district of Samaria.
Perea
Perea ran along the eastern shore of the Jordan River. John the Baptist carried out part of his ministry here, baptizing converts in the Jordan. Though Jesus had limited direct contact with Perea, John’s ministry gives it lasting significance.
Samaria
Samaria, north of Judea, stretched toward the Mediterranean coast. Phoenicia lay to the northwest, Galilee to the northeast, and the Decapolis touched the eastern border.
The region’s capital city, also called Samaria, was the former capital of the northern kingdom of Israel until its destruction by Assyria in 722 BC. Samaria was the homeland of the Samaritans, a group often mentioned in the Gospels and Acts, usually in the context of hostility.
The tension between Jews and Samaritans had deep roots. The Samaritans were a mixed ethnic group—descendants of Israelites who remained in the land after the Assyrian conquest, intermarried with foreign settlers, and developed their own distinct religious traditions. They opposed the returning exiles who rebuilt Jerusalem’s walls and temple. Jews opposed them, destroying the Samaritan temple on Mount Gerizim.
Against this backdrop, Jesus’ Parable of the Good Samaritan would have been deeply surprising to His Jewish audience—casting a traditional enemy as the hero.
One other notable city was Caesarea Maritima, a major Mediterranean port. In AD 6 Roman political and military headquarters were relocated from Jerusalem to Caesarea Maritima in the district of Samaria. After Paul’s arrest in Jerusalem in ca. AD 60, he was taken here and spent two years under guard while being questioned by Felix.
Galilee
Galilee, in the north, was where Jesus grew up and carried out much of His ministry. It included key towns: Nazareth (His hometown), Cana (site of the turning of water into wine), Capernaum (His ministry base), and Bethsaida (the birthplace of the apostles Peter, Andrew, and Philip).
The Sea of Galilee was where Jesus called fishermen to follow Him, calmed storms, and walked on water. The Sermon on the Mount also took place here. Galilee extended north past the west side of Lake Huleh.
Decapolis
From the Greek δέκα (déka, “ten”) and πόλις (pólis, “city”), the Decapolis referred to a group of ten Hellenistic cities mostly east and southeast of the Sea of Galilee. Founded or rebuilt by Greeks after the conquest of Alexander the Great, they came under Roman administration but retained a degree of self-governance.
Strongly influenced by Greek culture, they often clashed with Jewish regions over pagan temples, theaters, and Greco-Roman customs. While not a main focus of Jesus’ ministry, He did visit the area. In Mark chapter 5, after healing a demon-possessed man, Jesus sent him to proclaim what God had done, and he did so “in the Decapolis” (Mk 5:20). Matthew notes that large crowds followed Jesus from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan (Matt 4:25).
The Tetrarchy of Herod Philip I
At the death of Herod the Great, his son Philip I inherited the area northeast of the Sea of Galilee. This was not a true province, but a cluster of territories or districts put under Herod Philip I’s rule as a tetrarch or client king. Meaning Philip ruled the area as a king but under the authority and wishes of the Roman emperor. Luke lists the tetrarchy of Philip in listing the political leaders as John the Baptist was starting his ministry (Luke 3:1).
The client kingdom was made up of Gaulonitis—this region hugged the northeast side of the Sea of Galilee. Batanea and Trachonitis were slightly farther northeast and east. Lastly, Iturea was to the far northeast.
This overview is only a glimpse of the land where Jesus and His disciples walked. The purpose of this article is foundational. Having a very basic understanding of the territories of Israel in the first century will help as we cover future issues. This is but one step in a process of gaining a greater understanding of the world we step into as we read the New Testament. I’m hoping it inspires you to do more exploration of these areas. In a coming article, we’ll look at the rulers who governed these regions.
Until the next time we see you here at CultivatingFaith.org, God Bless! #CultivatingFaithOrg