page_title: Ministry of Jesus
section_title: Later Perean ministry
hierarchical_section_title: Ministry of Jesus / Judea and Perea to Jerusalem / Later Perean ministry
caption_attribution_description: Mosaic in Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo. It represents Lazarus' resurrection. Christ is represented un a hellenistic style, as a young man, with no beard.
context_page_description: In the Christian gospels, the ministry of Jesus begins with his baptism in the countryside of Roman Judea and Transjordan, near the river Jordan by John the Baptist, and ends in Jerusalem, following the Last Supper with his disciples. The Gospel of Luke states that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry. A chronology of Jesus typically has the date of the start of his ministry estimated at around AD 27–29 and the end in the range AD 30–36.
  Jesus' early Galilean ministry begins when after his baptism, he goes back to Galilee from his temptation in the Judaean Desert. In this early period he preaches around Galilee and recruits his first disciples who begin to travel with him and eventually form the core of the early Church as it is believed that the Apostles dispersed from Jerusalem to found the apostolic sees. The major Galilean ministry which begins in Matthew 8 includes the commissioning of the Twelve Apostles, and covers most of the ministry of Jesus in Galilee. The final Galilean ministry begins after the death of John the Baptist as Jesus prepares to go to Jerusalem.
context_section_description: Following the proclamation by Peter, the account of the Transfiguration of Jesus is the next major event and appears in Matthew 17:1–9, Mark 9:2–8 and Luke 9:28–36. Jesus takes Peter and two other apostles with him and goes up to a mountain, which is not named. Once on the mountain, Matthew 17:2 states that Jesus "was transfigured before them; his face shining as the sun, and his garments became white as the light." At that point, the prophets Elijah and Moses appear and Jesus begins to talk to them. Luke is specific in describing Jesus in a state of glory, with Luke 9:32 referring to "they saw his glory". A bright cloud appears around them, and a voice from the cloud states: "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him".
  The Transfiguration not only supports the identity of Jesus as the Son of God, (as in his Baptism), but the statement "listen to him" identifies him as the messenger and mouth-piece of God. The significance is enhanced by the presence of Elijah and Moses, for it indicates to the apostles that Jesus is the voice of God, and, instead of Elijah or Moses, he should be listened to, by virtue of his filial relationship with God. 2 Peter 1:16–18 echoes the same message: at the Transfiguration, God assigns to Jesus a special "honor and glory" and it is the turning point at which God exalts Jesus above all other powers in creation.
  Many of the episodes in the Later Judean ministry are from the Gospel of Luke but, in general, these sequence of episodes in Luke do not provide enough geographical information to determine Perea, though scholars generally assume that the route Jesus followed from Galilee to Jerusalem passed through Perea. However, the Gospel of John does state that he returned to the area where he was baptized, and John 10:40–42 states that "many people believed in him beyond the Jordan", saying "all things whatsoever John spake of this man were true". The area where Jesus was baptised is inferred as the vicinity of the Perea area, given the activities of the Baptist in Bethabara and Ænon in John John 1:28 and John 3:23.
  This period of ministry includes the Discourse on the Church, in which Jesus anticipates a future community of followers and explains the role of his apostles in leading it. It includes the parables of The Lost Sheep and The Unforgiving Servant in Matthew 18, which also refer to the Kingdom of Heaven. The general theme of the discourse is the anticipation of a future community of followers, and the role of his apostles in leading it.
  Addressing his apostles in Matthew 18:18, Jesus states: "Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven". The discourse emphasizes the importance of humility and self-sacrifice as the high virtues within the anticipated community. It teaches that in the Kingdom of God, it is personal humility that matters, not social prominence and clout.
  At the end of this period, the Gospel of John includes the Raising of Lazarus episode in John 11:1–46, in which Jesus brings Lazarus of Bethany back to life four days after his burial. In the Gospel of John, the raising of Lazarus is the climax of the "seven signs" which gradually confirm the identity of Jesus as the Son of God and the expected Messiah. It is also a pivotal episode which starts the chain of events that leads to the crowds seeking Jesus on his Triumphal entry into Jerusalem—leading to the decision of Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin to plan to kill Jesus (Crucifixion of Jesus).
caption: A sixth-century mosaic of the Raising of Lazarus, church of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna, Italy.
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