The site by the Pool of Siloam where Jesus healed a blind man will be excavated and opened to the public, Israeli archaeologists have said.
The Israeli National Parks Authority, the Israeli Antiquities Authority (IAA) and the City of David Foundation disclosed this late December in Jerusalem.
The Bible in the Gospel of John 9:1-7 records that the blind man whose name was not given was healed near the Siloam Pool.
According to the scripture, Jesus spat on the ground and created mud with his saliva. He then used the mud on the eyes of the blind man and asked him to go to the Pool of Siloam to wash them. He was healed after he obeyed the Lord.
John 1: 7 says “And he said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent). He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.” (KJV)
The pool was built about 2,700 years ago during the reign of King Hezekiah as recorded in 2 Kings 20:20.
The exact location of the original pool as it existed during Jesus’ time remained a mystery until 2004.
“Traditionally, the Christian site of the Siloam Pool was the pool and church that were built by the Byzantine empress Eudocia (c. 400-460 A.D.) to commemorate the miracle recounted in the New Testament. However, the exact location of the original pool as it existed during the time of Jesus remained a mystery until June 2004,” the Biblical Archaeology Society, said.
Accessible to visitors and tourists
“The Pool of Siloam in the City of David National Park in Jerusalem is a site of historic, national, and international significance. After many years of expectation, we will soon begin uncovering this important site and make it accessible to the millions of visitors and tourists who visit Jerusalem every year,” Mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Lion, said in a statement.
IAA explains that “due to its importance, the Pool of Siloam was renovated and expanded in the late Second Temple period, some 2,000 years ago.
“It is believed that at this time, the pool served as a ‘mikveh,’ a ritual bath, for the thousands of pilgrims who converged at the Pool of Siloam before ascending via the City of David to the Temple.”
