Jerusalem

In the first century, Jerusalem was the religious and cultural heart of Judaism, the political flashpoint of Roman-occupied Judea, and the pivotal stage for events that shaped both Jewish and Christian history.

People, Places, and Things

Jerusalem

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People, Places, and Things

Theophilus

Theophilus, likely a wealthy patron or high-ranking believer, is the person to whom Luke dedicates his Gospel and Acts, addressing him as “most excellent” and aiming to provide a well-ordered account to strengthen his faith.

The Ceremony of Circumcion

Jewish boys were circumcised on the eighth day as a commanded sign of God’s covenant with Abraham, marking their entry into the covenant community through a sacred ceremony where the child was named and blessed.

Caesar Augustus

In Luke’s Gospel, Caesar Augustus, Rome’s first emperor and bringer of the Pax Romana, is mentioned in connection with the census that brings Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem, highlighting how the emperor’s decree unknowingly fulfills God’s plan and contrasting Augustus’s claim to peace with the true peace brought by Jesus.

Judea

Judea is the central setting of God’s redemptive story in the Bible, serving as the heart of Jewish worship, prophecy, and history, and the place where key events of Jesus’ life, ministry, death, and resurrection unfolded.

Herodias

Herodias—granddaughter of Herod the Great, mother of Salome, and later wife of Herod Antipas—used dynastic marriage to pursue rank in the early 1st century AD, provoked John the Baptist’s condemnation and death, and ultimately followed Antipas into exile in AD 39.

Levi

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus’ call of Levi the tax collector reveals His radical mission to welcome society’s outcasts, transforming even the most despised into disciples through mercy and table fellowship.