Jericho was situated ten miles northwest of where the Jordan River enters the Dead
Sea and four miles from the river, at an elevation of one thousand feet below sea level.
A major ford of the Jordan accommodates travel from Trans Jordan through the river to
the west. This route connects the Trans Jordanian Highway and the Medeba Plain in
Moab to the International Coastal Highway along the Mediterranean Sea. Jericho
also controlled the northern road in the Jordan Valley that led to the important trade
city of Beth-shan.
Jericho is situated on a narrow plain on the western side of the Jordan Valley. Behind
the city, the land rises sharply into a mountainous wilderness.
Excavations at Jericho date the earliest settlements to the Mesolithic Age (8,500 B.C.),
making it one of the oldest cities of the world.
The name Jericho probably derives from the Hebrew word yerah, meaning moon or
month or new moon. Early inhabitants of the area probably worshiped the moon god,
whom they believed controlled the cycles of the moon and therefore the agricultural
seasons.
A perennial spring supplies abundant water (more than one thousand gallons an
hour), making Jericho a productive tropical oasis. It was called "the city of palm trees"
(DEUTERONOMY 34:3), an indication of the extraordinary production of dates.
Although Jericho was an important city, it encompassed a relatively small area of only
ten acres. Its tell stands seventy feet high.
During the Hellenistic and Hasmonean periods, a new Jericho, sometimes called
"Herodian Jericho," appeared a mile west in the Wadi Qelt. Intended to be a royal
center for the Hasmonean kings of Judah in the first century B.C, it later became the
eastern capital and winter residence of Herod the Great. The city flourished from 105
B.C. Until it was taken by the Romans in A.D. 70.

Historical and Biblical Importance

When the Israelites entered the Land, the whole nation was camped just two miles
away at Gilgal on the flat plain beside the Jordan River. From there, they could look
up at the seemingly impregnable walls of the city. The people of Jericho could also
observe the camp of the Israelites. The residents of Jericho had heard of the Israelites’
miraculous departure from Egypt forty years before. They would have been very
impressed with this extraordinary event, since Egypt’s power had dominated them for
many years. They were also very much aware of Moses’ victories over the formidable
Sihon and Og, kings of the Amorites across the river
(JOSHUA 2:9-11).
On God’s command, the people, priests, and warriors marched around the city of
Jericho once each day for six days and seven times on the seventh day. The priests
carried the ark of the covenant, signifying the presence and power of God who
would give the victory. With a shout from the people and the blowing of rams’ horns
by the priests, the walls fell and the city was taken.
After Jericho fell, Joshua pronounced a curse on any who would rebuild the city, a
prediction that was fulfilled in the days of Ahab (JOSHUA 6:26; 1 KINGS 16:34).
Jericho lay within the territory allotted to Benjamin. This located the city in the relatively
"neutral" area between the dominant tribes of Judah and Ephraim.
In the time of the Judges, Eglon, king of Moab, joined by the Ammonites and
Amalekites, oppressed Israel from "the city of palms" (Jericho) until Ehud, the left-
handed Benjamite killed him (JUDGES 3:12-30).
When David sought to confirm good relations with the new Ammonite king, the
Ammonites insulted his messengers by shaving off half of the Israelites’ beards and
cutting off half of their garments. David ordered the men to remain in Jericho until their
beards grew again. Jericho was on the route between the Ammonite capital at Rabba-
ammon and Jerusalem (2 SAMUEL 10:1-5).
Accompanied by his designated successor Elisha, Elijah passed through Jericho and
crossed the Jordan to the Plains of Moab, where God swept him up into heaven in a
chariot. Like Joshua and the Israelites nearly five hundred years before, they did not
use the ford of the Jordan. Instead, they crossed dry shod. When Elisha returned to the
river alone, he faced his first test of faith. Would the authority and power that God
delegated to Elijah be available to him also? In desperation and dependence he cried
out, "Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?" (2 KINGS 2:14). This important transition
from the ministry of Elijah to the ministry of Elisha took place within sight of Jericho, on
the Plains of Moab, beneath Mt. Nebo, a place fraught with historical and
theological significance (1 KINGS 2:4-22). It would also become the place where,
some nine hundred years later, a prophet would come out of the wilderness above
Jericho, calling his countrymen to "repent and be baptized" and announcing that "the
kingdom is at hand."
Israel’s last king, Zedekiah, fled to Jericho in an unsuccessful attempt to flee the
Babylonians who were laying siege to Jerusalem. Apparently, the king was planning
to escape eastward through Moab. When the Babylonians caught him, they killed all
his sons, put out his eyes, and took him in chains to Babylon
(2 KINGS 25:1-7; JEREMIAH 52:1-11).
The main road that led westward from Herodian Jericho up the steep-walled Wadi
Qelt was notoriously dangerous. Bandits found it easy to hide in the ravines and
behind rocks, from where they could quickly attack lone travelers. It is likely that the
incident Jesus used in His message about the "Good Samaritan" took place on this
road, just west of Jericho, and that the inn to which the Samaritan took the Jewish
victim was located in the safety of Herodian Jericho.
The fact that in Jesus’ time there were actually two Jerichos may be reflected in the
differences in the accounts of healing two blind men (MATTHEW 20:29-34; MARK
10:46-52; LUKE 18:35-43). Although two blind men were involved, the more
aggressive Bartimaeus was more prominent. In Matthew’s and Mark’s accounts, Jesus
and His disciples are said to be leaving Jericho when they encountered Bartimaeus.
Luke’s account describes the incident as happening when they were approaching
Jericho. There are two possible explanations for this seeming contradiction. First, as
Jesus was entering Jericho, the men pled with Him. However, they were not healed
until He was leaving. A second possibility is that Jesus healed them after He left the
old Jericho and as He was approaching Herodian Jericho.
Zaccheus held the office of a regional collector of taxes for the Roman government. It
is understandable that he would reside in Jericho, given its climate, resources,
strategic location, and the wealth of the area which could be taxed. Apparently, he
was aware of the preaching of John the Baptist who had ministered at the Jordan River
within sight of Jericho. This contact may have accounted for his desire to see Jesus
and also for his immediate expression of repentance and his willingness to make
restitution in the exact terms John had preached.
As Jesus was leaving Herodian Jericho to travel with His disciples and others to the
Passover in Jerusalem, He stopped to teach the parable of the minas. It is possible that
His reference to the "certain nobleman" was occasioned by the sight of a palace they
were passing near Herodian Jericho. Archelaeus, son of Herod the Great, who had
built this residence, had traveled to Rome when his father died in 4 B.C. To receive
from Caesar the vassal kingdom of Judea and Samaria. When he returned, he had
dealt harshly with his enemies.
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