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Machaerus: The setting for John the Baptist’s story
By Ahmad Bani Mustafa, Jordan News
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AMMAN — Jordan, as a holy land, provides the setting of several
stories mentioned in the Bible or by ancient historians, one of them is the
well-known story of John the Baptist’s imprisonment and execution at Machaerus.اضافة اعلان
There are more than 100 biblical places in Jordan that were cited in the Bible’s testaments.
Jordan is home to many sites from the Bible, including the Baptism Site and Mount Nebo . (Photo: Jordan News)
Machaerus is one of the five main pilgrimage sites in Jordan that were designated by the Vatican following the visit of Pope John Paul II in 2000.
The other four sites are Mount Nebo, Mar Elias, Bethany (the Baptism Site of Jesus at the Jordan), and the Church of the Lady of the Mountain.
According to an inscription found at the site, Machaerus was built by the Hasmonean King Alexander Jannaeus 90 BC.
The main purpose of the fortress was to watch the movements of the Nabataeans, who were a strong regional power posing a threat to his kingdom. The Nabataeans were known for exporting bitumen or asphalt to Egyptians who used it in the process of mummification.
The castle also played a role in protecting Jannaeus’s kingdom from the eastern desert.
Machaerus, a prominent site mentioned multiple times in the Bible, is a lesser-visited religious site in Jordan. (Photos: Shutterstock)
Machaerus, 73km southwest of Amman, is perched atop a hill that is 750m above sea level and overlooking the Dead Sea.
The castle was destroyed by the Roman General Gabinius in 57 BC, but was rebuilt by the Roman-appointed King of Judea Herod the Great in 30 BC.
For Herod, Machaerus was important not only for being a strategic castle, but also for its proximity to the hot springs near the Dead Sea, where he received treatment for an illness he suffered.
However, Machaerus really gained fame during the rule the Tetrarch Herod Antipas around 32 AD, when he imprisoned John the Baptist in Machaerus’ dungeons.
According to Historian Josephus Flavius, John the Baptist was captured and then beheaded because he condemned the marriage of Antipas to his half-brother’s wife Herodias.
Machaerus, a prominent site mentioned multiple times in the Bible, is a lesser-visited religious site in Jordan. (Photos: Shutterstock)
Upon the request of Herodias and her daughter Salome, who were told by Antipas to ask for whatever they wanted, Antipas gave the order to kill John and bring him his head on a platter.
Before marrying Herodias, Antipas divorced his first wife Phasaelis, the daughter of the Nabataean King Aretas III, setting the context for a war in which Herod Antipas was defeated and then exiled to Gaul.
In some versions, the head of John was sent to Damascus, somewhere near the current Umayyad Mosque.
For Muslims, a similar story is told about Yahya, who was born Zakaria, after living a long life with no children.
Yahya was a descendant of Al-Imran, an Israelite family to which Mary the mother of Jesus belonged.
Machaerus is usually visited as part of the trip from Madaba to Petra as it is located on the King’s Highway that connects the north of Jordan to the south.
The site provides a great panoramic view of the Dead Sea, the Jordan River, and the West Bank.
Read more travel
There are more than 100 biblical places in Jordan that were cited in the Bible’s testaments.
Jordan is home to many sites from the Bible, including the Baptism Site and Mount Nebo . (Photo: Jordan News)
Machaerus is one of the five main pilgrimage sites in Jordan that were designated by the Vatican following the visit of Pope John Paul II in 2000.
The other four sites are Mount Nebo, Mar Elias, Bethany (the Baptism Site of Jesus at the Jordan), and the Church of the Lady of the Mountain.
According to an inscription found at the site, Machaerus was built by the Hasmonean King Alexander Jannaeus 90 BC.
The main purpose of the fortress was to watch the movements of the Nabataeans, who were a strong regional power posing a threat to his kingdom. The Nabataeans were known for exporting bitumen or asphalt to Egyptians who used it in the process of mummification.
The castle also played a role in protecting Jannaeus’s kingdom from the eastern desert.
Machaerus, a prominent site mentioned multiple times in the Bible, is a lesser-visited religious site in Jordan. (Photos: Shutterstock)
Machaerus, 73km southwest of Amman, is perched atop a hill that is 750m above sea level and overlooking the Dead Sea.
The castle was destroyed by the Roman General Gabinius in 57 BC, but was rebuilt by the Roman-appointed King of Judea Herod the Great in 30 BC.
For Herod, Machaerus was important not only for being a strategic castle, but also for its proximity to the hot springs near the Dead Sea, where he received treatment for an illness he suffered.
However, Machaerus really gained fame during the rule the Tetrarch Herod Antipas around 32 AD, when he imprisoned John the Baptist in Machaerus’ dungeons.
According to Historian Josephus Flavius, John the Baptist was captured and then beheaded because he condemned the marriage of Antipas to his half-brother’s wife Herodias.
Machaerus, a prominent site mentioned multiple times in the Bible, is a lesser-visited religious site in Jordan. (Photos: Shutterstock)
Upon the request of Herodias and her daughter Salome, who were told by Antipas to ask for whatever they wanted, Antipas gave the order to kill John and bring him his head on a platter.
Before marrying Herodias, Antipas divorced his first wife Phasaelis, the daughter of the Nabataean King Aretas III, setting the context for a war in which Herod Antipas was defeated and then exiled to Gaul.
In some versions, the head of John was sent to Damascus, somewhere near the current Umayyad Mosque.
For Muslims, a similar story is told about Yahya, who was born Zakaria, after living a long life with no children.
Yahya was a descendant of Al-Imran, an Israelite family to which Mary the mother of Jesus belonged.
Machaerus is usually visited as part of the trip from Madaba to Petra as it is located on the King’s Highway that connects the north of Jordan to the south.
The site provides a great panoramic view of the Dead Sea, the Jordan River, and the West Bank.
Read more travel
