Pentecost: Podium Unveiled Where Jesus May Have Been Introduced as Messiah by KESHET JOURNEYS for Charisma News
The latest excavations done at the City of David site unearthed an ancient street referred to as “the Pilgrimage Road,” which dates back to Jesus’ time and leads from the Shiloach Pool up to the entrances of the temple. Alongside the ancient street, a podium once used for addressing passers-by was unveiled.
Archaeologists and historians are convinced that the street was used by the millions of pilgrims going up to the temple year after year during the holy days mentioned in the Bible. One of those pilgrims was Jesus Himself.
During Shavuot (Jewish feast), also known as Pentecost, pilgrims from all over would gather in Jerusalem to thank God for the first fruits. A famous account of Shavuot is found in Acts 2:1 (CJB): “The festival of Shavu’ot arrived, and the believers gathered together in one place.”
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According to the Gospels, during this gathering, the Holy Spirit was poured out. The sound of it was heard wide, beyond the house. Peter took the opportunity to explain what was going on, and so he “stood up with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd” (Acts 2:14a, NIV).
In his speech, Peter introduces Jesus as the Messiah, being, as foretold, a descendant of the well-respected King David whose grave is “here with us today” (Acts 2:29b, NCV) in the nearby City of David and, after a fiery speech, the Gospel indicates that about 3,000 people were immersed (Acts 2:41, CJB).
“The close proximity to the burial site of David, the dating and location of the ancient Pilgrimage Road and the fact that baptism of 3,000 could only have taken place in the public mikweh (or mikveh) of the Shiloach Pool, give us very strong indications that Peter and the eleven addressed the crowds from such a podium unearthed right now,” states, Moshe Gabay, licensed tour guide in Israel and director of Keshet Journeys.
