Helen Bond

Repent, get yourself ready and just hold true because it's going to come soon.

That's a neat trick.

Yeah.

And I mean, when you think about the first century, there's no NHS, there's no doctors, particularly in rural areas.

There's maybe one or two sort of wise women who can do things with herbs, but

But basically, you're pretty much left on your own.

So there would have been loads of people needing some kind of healing.

And I mean, Jesus isn't the only one doing this.

People are going to the God Asclepius.

They're believing that he can heal them.

There's Jewish holy men too, and sort of, you know, wise people who are thought to have skills.

But yeah,

But yeah, I mean, it does seem, although we may be slightly skeptical about these miracles, it does seem in his time that people did believe that Jesus had these powers.

So Galilee at this time is not under Roman occupation.

It's ruled over by Herod Antipas, who's a Jewish king or Tetrarch, technically.

He's one of the sons of Herod the Great, you know, the one who supposedly massacred all the children.

But...

Roman presence is very much felt.

It's the Romans who've put Herod on the throne.

And as soon as Jesus goes south to Jerusalem, Jerusalem is under direct Roman rule.