Petra: Nabataean Capital of Aretas IV
The rock-cut city ruled by the king whose governor tried to arrest Paul, and the 1993 church papyri
Found 1812 — Johann Ludwig Burckhardt (rediscovery); modern excavations by the Jordanian Department of Antiquities, ACOR (Petra Church, 1992–1998, Zbigniew Fiema), Brown University (Great Temple, Martha Sharp Joukowsky, 1993–2008), Philip Hammond (Temple of the Winged Lions, 1974–2005) and others
Where Petra (Wadi Musa), Ma'an governorate (Jordan)
Dates from c. 300 BCE – 7th century CE; peak under Aretas IV (9 BCE–40 CE) · Nabataean – Byzantine (Edomite hinterland earlier) · Herod's neighbours; Paul in 'Arabia'; the region of Edom/Sela
Now at In situ; papyri in the Jordan Museum, Amman; Petra is a UNESCO site (1985)
How Petra: Nabataean Capital of Aretas IV was found
Burckhardt, disguised as a Muslim pilgrim, walked through the Siq in 1812 and recognised the lost capital. Systematic digging began in the 20th century. In December 1993 ACOR's team clearing the burned Byzantine church found a room with 140 carbonised papyrus scrolls — Greek family and property documents of the 6th century — the largest ancient text find ever made in Jordan. Brown's Great Temple project and German work at the Khazneh's lower tombs (2003) filled in the Nabataean centre.
What it is
A city of rock-cut tombs and temples in a sandstone basin reached through a 1.2-km gorge. Its famous Treasury (al-Khazneh) is probably the tomb of Aretas IV; the Great Temple, the Temple of the Winged Lions and the Qasr al-Bint stand in the colonnaded centre. The Petra Church (5th–6th c.) has fine mosaics, and the papyri from its side room document a Christian community's land, wills and marriages until the 590s.
Why it matters for the Bible
Aretas IV is the one Nabataean king named in the New Testament: his ethnarch guarded Damascus to seize Paul, and his daughter was the wife Herod Antipas divorced for Herodias — the quarrel that led to John the Baptist's death. Paul's 'Arabia' was Aretas's kingdom, and Petra its capital. The site also lies in old Edom, and the church papyri show the region's Christian life two centuries after Constantine. The old claim that Petra is biblical Sela ('rock') is unproven; Sela may be Umm el-Biyara above Petra or another site.
The Hebrew word: SEH-lah
סֶלַע
סֶלַע is pronounced SEH-lah and means rock, cliff — Sela of Edom (2 Kings 14:7); Greek 'Petra' means the same (Strong's H5554).
People this discovery connects to
- Aretas IV — חָרְתַת (cha-reh-TAHT) — Nabataean Haretat; Greek Aretas
- Paul (Sha'ul) — שָׁאוּל (shah-OOL) — asked for
- Herod Antipas — הוֹרְדוֹס (hor-DOHS) — Greek Herodes
Places
- Sela (possible) — סֶלַע (SEH-lah) — rock, crag
- Arabia — עֲרָב (ah-RAHV) — steppe / desert people
Events
Paul's escape from Damascus under Aretas · Paul's years in Arabia · Antipas's war with Aretas after divorcing his daughter
Petra: Nabataean Capital of Aretas IV in Scripture
2 Kings 14:7 First mention of Sela in Scripture.
2 Corinthians 11:32-33 The governor under King Aretas guards Damascus to arrest Paul; Petra was Aretas IV's capital.
Galatians 1:17 Paul 'went away into Arabia' — the Nabataean kingdom whose heart was Petra.
Questions people ask
What is Petra: Nabataean Capital of Aretas IV?
A city of rock-cut tombs and temples in a sandstone basin reached through a 1.2-km gorge. Its famous Treasury (al-Khazneh) is probably the tomb of Aretas IV; the Great Temple, the Temple of the Winged Lions and the Qasr al-Bint stand in the colonnaded centre. The Petra Church (5th–6th c.) has fine mosaics, and the papyri from its side room document a Christian community's land, wills and marriages until the 590s.
When was Petra: Nabataean Capital of Aretas IV discovered?
It was found in 1812 by Johann Ludwig Burckhardt (rediscovery); modern excavations by the Jordanian Department of Antiquities, ACOR (Petra Church, 1992–1998, Zbigniew Fiema), Brown University (Great Temple, Martha Sharp Joukowsky, 1993–2008), Philip Hammond (Temple of the Winged Lions, 1974–2005) and others, at Petra (Wadi Musa), Ma'an governorate.
Where is Petra: Nabataean Capital of Aretas IV today?
In situ; papyri in the Jordan Museum, Amman; Petra is a UNESCO site (1985).
Which Bible verses does Petra: Nabataean Capital of Aretas IV relate to?
2 Kings 14:7, 2 Corinthians 11:32-33, Galatians 1:17.
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Sources
- Wikipedia, 'Petra'
- Fiema, Z. T. et al., The Petra Church (ACOR 2001); Frösén, J. et al., The Petra Papyri I–V (ACOR 2002–2018)
- Joukowsky, M. S., Petra Great Temple I–III (Brown University 1998–2017)
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