Digging Up the Bible: Galilee Boat

DIGGING UP THE BIBLE
Important Archeological Finds that help Us Understand Scripture
pdf
Dr. Paul Manuel—2017
 

Galilee Boat
(1^st century AD)

Remains of the Galilee Boat lay for centuries at the sea bottom until a drought in 1986 lowered the water level and exposed the ship on the western shore. It is 27 feet long and 7.5 feet wide, currently residing in The Yigal Allon Museum at Kibbutz Ginosar.

 

 

While there is no evidence this is one of the fishing vessels Jesus used during his ministry, it was probably very much like them:

He got into the boat and his disciples followed him. (Matt 8:23)

Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. (Matt 9: 1)

Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it. (Matt 13:2)

Jesus...withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. (Matt 14:13)

Jesus...got into the boat and went to the vicinity of Magadan. (Matt 15:39)

The common means of catching fish was to use nets:

Simon...and...Andrew...were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. (Matt 4:18)

Cf. The kingdom of heaven is like a net that...caught all kinds of fish. (Matt 13:47)

They were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.... The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore (John 21:6,8)

This type of boat had a flat bottom, which allowed it to get close to the shore to unload cargo (fish) and people. The flat bottom also served as a platform for public speaking:

They pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. (Luke 5:11)

Such large crowds gathered around IJesusi that he got into a boat and sat in it. (Malt 13:2)

The antique boat had rigging for a sail, enabling it to take advantage of the wind for propulsion rather than depending solely on manpower to row toward its destination:

He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. (Mark 6:48)

They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is across the lake from Galilee. (Luke 8:26)

Significance for Biblical Studies: The Galilee Boat is physical evidence of the water craft common in Jesus' day. It shows a means of transportation as well as a source of occupation for those who lived in that northern region of Israel.

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