{"id":66319,"date":"2026-01-25T07:00:39","date_gmt":"2026-01-25T12:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblicalarchaeology.org\/?p=66319"},"modified":"2026-01-26T08:48:29","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T13:48:29","slug":"3-pilgrimage-paths-from-galilee-to-jerusalem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblicalarchaeology.org\/daily\/biblical-topics\/new-testament\/3-pilgrimage-paths-from-galilee-to-jerusalem\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Pilgrimage Paths from Galilee to Jerusalem"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This map shows pilgrimage routes from Galilee to Jerusalem. In the first century C.E., many Jews traveled to the Jerusalem Temple to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Booths.<\/p><\/div>\n

To celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Passover<\/a>), the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), and the Feast of Booths (Sukkot), many Jews traveled to the Jerusalem Temple<\/a> during the first century C.E. This was sometimes a long journey. Even for those living in Galilee, it could take up to a week<\/p>\n

Jeffrey P. Garc\u00eda of Nyack College explores pilgrimage routes connecting Galilee and Jerusalem in his article \u201cJesus and His Pilgrimage Practices,\u201d<\/a> published in the Summer 2021 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review<\/em>. The Gospels record several pilgrimages taken by Jesus and his disciples. Using these accounts, Garc\u00eda reconstructs three major routes between Galilee and Judea: an eastern, central, and western path.<\/p>\n

Three Pilgrimage Paths from Galilee to Jerusalem<\/h4>\n
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  1. The central\u2014and shortest\u2014route goes through Samaria. Pilgrims would have passed the cities of Sepphoris, Nazareth, Tirzah, Shechem, Shiloh, and Bethel. Although this route would have taken only three days by foot, many Jews chose to avoid it. They preferred longer routes that were historically safer. The Jewish historian Josephus records a violent quarrel between some Galilean Jews and Samaritans, while the Galileans were traveling through Samaria (Antiquities<\/em>). Passing through this volatile region carried real risks. Yet, Garc\u00eda observes that sometimes Jesus and his disciples did indeed travel this path (John 4).<\/li>\n
  2. Skirting Samaria, the eastern route crosses the Jordan River, passes through the region of Perea, and then crosses back over the Jordan River near Jericho. It would have taken pilgrims five to seven days to traverse it. Cities along this path include Beth Shean, Pella, Sukkoth, and Jericho<\/a>, as well as smaller villages like Bethpage, and Bethany. Because of the Jewish communities in Perea, this region was safer\u2014and more hospitable\u2014than Samaria for Galilean pilgrims<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  3. The third major route that Garc\u00eda outlines is situated closer to the Mediterranean Sea. This western route also avoids Samaria, but this time in favor of the coastal plain. It was the longest way for Galilean pilgrims to reach Jerusalem. Pilgrims going this way would have passed Megiddo, Aphek, Lod, and either Emmaus or Beth Horon.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    These pilgrimage paths shed light on social tensions and religious practices in the first century. Sometimes Jews took longer routes to avoid dangerous regions\u2014as they took seriously the biblical command to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Passover), the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), and the Feast of Booths (Sukkot) in Jerusalem (Deuteronomy 16:16).<\/p>\n

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