rhutchin

I am not sure what the geographical error is in this instance as nothing is explained other than that, “...when they had crossed over they came to Gennesaret" and of this Nineham says 'could scarcely be called 'crossing' the lake." No other explanation is given.

For reference, here is what the Bible says.

Mark
5:1 And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes.
21 And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea.
6:1 And he went out from thence, and came into his own country;
2 And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?
3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.
4 But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.
5 And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
45 And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida,…
53 And when they had passed over, they came into the land of Gennesaret, and drew to the shore.

Let’s deal with the geography.
5:1 And they came over unto the other side of the sea [of Galilee], into the country of the Gadarenes. [This puts then on the western side of the Sea of Galilee.]

21 And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side,…and he was nigh unto the sea. [Jesus crosses back over to the eastern side of the Sea (the Israel side).]

6:1 And he went out from thence, and came into his own country;… [Given what follows, this was likely Nazareth where Jesus grew up. He would have traveled south and west from the Sea of Galilee to get there.]

45 And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida,… [They would have been at the south end of the Sea of Galilee. They would be crossing the Sea of Galilee to the northwest end. Mark then recounts events as they cross the Sea with the storm and Jesus walking on the water to reach them.]

53 And when they had passed over, they came into the land of Gennesaret, and drew to the shore. [This refers to the completion of the trip begun in v45. Bethsaida would, then, have been in the land of Gennesaret or perhaps, because of the storm, they ended up there instead of Bethsaida. They are in the same general northern part of the Sea, regardless.]

So we have Jesus starting at the western side of the Sea of Galilee (5:1), crossing over to the eastern side (5:21), going south and west to Nazareth (6:1), and then returning to cross back from the southeast end of the sea to the northwest end of the sea (6:45;53).

For those in the US, who know the territory, this would be like crossing from the western side of the Chesapeake Bay to the eastern side (e.g., to go to Annapolis), then traveling down to Richmond, VA and then coming back to the Bay and taking a boat from the southeastern end of the Bay to the northwest end of the Bay.

I don’t see a geographical problem here. If there is a problem, can someone explain it?

aa5874

There are many problems.

First of all, the event in Mark 5 about the drowning of the 2000 pigs on the request of the demons is implausible, most likely total fiction.

Secondly, the feeding of 5000 men in Mark 6 is also most likely to be total fiction.

Now, there is a problem in Mark 6 with respect to the geographical location of the DESERT PLACE, accessible by ship, where the supposed feeding of the 5000 occurred.

The author of gMark appears to be unfamiliar with the sea of Galilee or simply wrote fiction

Even if it is assumed that Jesus was in Nazareth in Mark 6.1, Nazareth is irrelevant by the time you reach Mark 6.31.

And further Nazareth is about 20 miles from the Sea of Galilee.

This is the author of Mark on the DESERT PLACE at the sea of Galilee.

Mark 6.31-35 Now immediately after the awesome incredible miracle, the feeding of 5000, Jesus tells his disciple to leave the DESERT PLACE and go to Bethsaida..

Mr 6:45 - If you claim that there is no problem, please point out the DESERT PLACE on the Sea of Galilee where Jesus and the disciples had a ship.

rhutchin

The issue here is the alleged geographical problem.

The issue here is the alleged geographical problem.

Desert place means that it was neither populated nor farm land. It was a desolate area. Thus, the people were to be sent away into nearby villages to get food.

The issue here is still the alleged geographical problem.

Iskander

Congratulations

rhutchin

Yeah, an allegation which no one seems to be able to support from the text so it is, therefore, without merit.

aa5874

I am dealing with the alledged geographical problem. You are the one who completely ignored Mark 6.31-35.

You went from Mark 6.1 straight to Mark 6.45 without mentioning that the supposed Jesus and the disciples left an unknown location by ship to go to a DESERT or a DESERTED place.



So, tell me where is the precise GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION of the DESERT PLACE or the DESERTED PLACE as described in Mark 6.31-35?

You must NOW understand that the very [U]GEORAPHICAL LOCATION of the supposed awesome incredible miracle is identical to the very DESERT or DESERTED PLACE.

You really have no idea where Jesus and the disciples were when the awesome incredible feeding miracle occurred.

You simply imagined and fabricated your geographical location for the Desert or DESERTED place when you claimed "they would have been on the south end of the Sea of Galilee".

You have real geographical problems.

You are trying to locate a DESERT or DESERTED place where a miracle did NOT HAPPEN.

rhutchin

OK. They landed on the shore in an unpopulated area that was described as desolate (or a desert). Why is that a problem? It has nothing to do with the alleged geographical problem; at least, you have not explained how it is.

Can you even describe a geographical problem with the text?

None of this rambling makes any sense to me. Anyone else know what the point here is?

aa5874

OF COURSE, there is a problem. You invented a solution. You made a false claim. You claimed Jesus and the disciples " would have been at the south end of the Sea of Galilee." in order to ERRONEOUSLY show or establish that there was no geographical problem.

All I have pointed is that is you who have fabricated or invented a solution from your imagination. You really have no idea where the stupendous incredible feeding of the 5000 occurred or the location of the DESERT or DESERTED place.

rhutchin

I invented a solution to a problem that does not exist. That's cute.

Jesus would have been coming from Nazareth (according to 6:1 - "His own country"). If not the Nazareth area, then what do you propose? Nazareth is west of the Sea of Galilee. A straight line from Nazareth to the Sea of Galilee puts you at the Southwest side of the sea. Do you read the maps of the area different than me on this point? Perhaps, you can explain how this is erroneous and a false claim. What do you propose as an alternative?

We have a general idea. They read that they were heading toward Bethsaida and that they ended up in the land of Gennesaret. This is in the north to northeast section of the sea. Isn't that what the map of the area tells us? So, where is the fabrication?? You haven't even tried to explain your way out of this and are reduced to arguing nonsense.

Iskander

Not a desert and not a deserted place, but a secluded place to rest.

Mark 6:31
31And He *said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” (For there were many people coming and going, and aMark 3:20they did not even have time to eat.) Mark 6:31 (NASB)
30The apostles returned to Jesus from their ministry tour and told him all they had done and taught. 31Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat.