Religious Site
Pool of Bethesda
POOL of buh-THEZ-duh · Modern Church of St. Anne, Jerusalem, Israel · Also called Bethesda · 31.7814° N, 35.2358° E
The Pool of Bethesda, near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem, is the setting of John 5, where Jesus heals a paralyzed man who had waited by the water for 38 years.
Archaeology
Excavations exposed a large twin-pool complex, Byzantine and Crusader church remains, and a Hadrianic-era pagan healing sanctuary layered atop the site. Before these excavations, some scholars had doubted the pool's existence altogether since it was known only from John's Gospel; the finds are generally accepted as confirming a real five-porticoed pool complex matching John 5:2's description.
On a modern map
Further reading
Reflect
At Bethesda, Jesus asked a man ill for thirty-eight years, 'Do you want to be healed?' — what would your honest answer be about your own stuck places?
Capstone Bible is a free interactive study app — a map of every place in this library, a zoomable timeline of biblical and church history, the Bible text with every name in it linked to its article, reading plans and personal notes.
Open Capstone Bible