Jerusalem, 2
The Natural Setting
Jerusalem sits on a limestone plateau in the Judean hill country, approximately 2,500 feet above sea level. The city's site is defined by two main ridges running roughly north to south, separated by a central valley. The western ridge is broader and higher, while the eastern ridge, narrower and lower, contains the most ancient parts of the city. Deep valleys on three sides — the Kidron to the east, the Hinnom to the south and west — provided natural defenses that made the site attractive for settlement from the earliest times.
The central valley, which the first-century historian Josephus called the Valley of the Cheesemongers (later identified with the Tyropoeon Valley), divided the city into its two main hills. Over the centuries, this valley has been significantly filled in by accumulated debris, making it far less prominent today than in biblical times.
The Hills of Jerusalem
Josephus, writing in the first century AD, described Jerusalem as built upon several distinct hills. The southwestern hill, the highest and most prominent, he called the Upper City or Upper Market Place, also known as the Citadel of King David. This area later became the wealthy residential quarter during the Second Temple period. The southeastern hill, which Josephus called Akra or the Lower City, was the site of the original Jebusite fortress that David captured (2 Samuel 5:6-9). Its semicircular shape gave it a distinctive appearance when viewed from the Upper City.
The Temple Hill, east of the Akra, was where Solomon built the first temple (1 Kings 6:1). Josephus noted that the Hasmonean rulers in the second century BC cut down the summit of the Akra to make the temple more visible, demonstrating the temple's supreme importance in Jewish life. North of the temple lay a fourth area called Bezetha, which grew as Jerusalem expanded during the first century AD and was eventually enclosed by Herod Agrippa's "third wall" (Acts 12:1).
Water Supply and the Gihon Spring
Water was always Jerusalem's most critical resource. The Gihon Spring, on the eastern slope of the southeastern hill above the Kidron Valley, was the city's primary water source in ancient times. This spring was the reason the original settlement was located on the lower eastern ridge rather than the more defensible western hill. The name Gihon means "gushing," referring to its intermittent flow.
King Hezekiah's famous tunnel, carved through 1,750 feet of solid rock to bring Gihon's waters inside the city walls ahead of the Assyrian siege in 701 BC (2 Kings 20:20; 2 Chronicles 32:30), remains one of the most impressive engineering achievements of the ancient world. The Siloam Inscription, discovered inside the tunnel in 1880, records the moment when the two teams of tunnelers, working from opposite ends, met in the middle.
The Temple Mount
The Temple Mount, a massive platform on the eastern ridge, is the most significant site in Jerusalem's topography. Tradition identifies it with Mount Moriah, where Abraham was prepared to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22:2; 2 Chronicles 3:1). David purchased the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite on this site (2 Samuel 24:18-25), and Solomon built the first temple there.
Herod the Great dramatically expanded the Temple Mount platform in the late first century BC, creating a vast plaza supported by massive retaining walls. The Western Wall, still standing today, is part of Herod's retaining structure. Jesus walked in the temple courts on this platform, drove out the money changers (John 2:13-16), taught the crowds (Matthew 21:23), and prophesied the temple's destruction (Mark 13:1-2).
The Valleys of Judgment and Memory
The valleys surrounding Jerusalem carry deep theological significance. The Kidron Valley, separating the city from the Mount of Olives, was crossed by David as he fled from Absalom (2 Samuel 15:23) and by Jesus on the night of his arrest (John 18:1). The Valley of Hinnom (Ge-Hinnom, from which the word Gehenna derives) was the site of child sacrifice under kings Ahaz and Manasseh (2 Chronicles 28:3; 33:6). Jeremiah prophesied judgment there (Jeremiah 7:31-32), and by Jesus' time, Gehenna had become the standard image for the place of final punishment (Matthew 5:22; 10:28).
The Mount of Olives, rising east of the Kidron Valley, provided a panoramic view of the city. It was from this vantage point that Jesus wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) and from its summit that he ascended into heaven (Acts 1:9-12). Zechariah prophesied that the Lord would stand on the Mount of Olives at the end of days (Zechariah 14:4).
Biblical Context
Jerusalem appears in Scripture from the time of Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18, identified with Salem) through the final chapters of Revelation, where the New Jerusalem descends from heaven (Revelation 21:2). Key passages involving Jerusalem's topography include 2 Samuel 5 (David's conquest), 1 Kings 6-8 (Solomon's temple), 2 Kings 20:20 (Hezekiah's tunnel), Nehemiah 3 (wall rebuilding), and the Gospel accounts of Jesus' final week.
Theological Significance
Jerusalem's physical geography reinforces its theological role as the place where God chose to dwell among his people. The temple on the eastern ridge symbolized God's presence, while the surrounding valleys illustrated themes of judgment and deliverance. Jesus' movement through Jerusalem's topography during his final days — entering from the Mount of Olives, teaching in the temple, being crucified outside the walls — fulfilled prophetic patterns laid down across the Old Testament.
Historical Background
Archaeological excavations since the 19th century have confirmed many features of Jerusalem's ancient topography. Kathleen Kenyon's excavations (1961-67) identified Jebusite and Davidic-era fortifications on the southeastern hill. Hezekiah's tunnel has been explored and dated. The massive Herodian stones of the Temple Mount retaining walls, some weighing over 500 tons, remain visible. The Siloam Pool, where Jesus sent the blind man to wash (John 9:7), was rediscovered in 2004. Josephus's descriptions, once questioned, have been repeatedly validated by archaeological findings.