Paper 144 Overview: At Gilboa and in the Decapolis

Paper 144 chronicles the strategic retreat of Jesus and his apostles to Mount Gilboa during September and October of 27 A.D., a pivotal transition period between the preliminary teaching phase and the final proclamation phase of Jesus' earth ministry. This deliberate withdrawal was necessitated by mounting opposition from Jerusalem's religious authorities, Herod's suspicions regarding John the Baptist's continued imprisonment, and escalating tensions between the followers of John and Jesus' disciples. Jesus recognized this juncture as the threshold between his preparatory work and the culminating effort of his incarnate mission.

The sojourn at Gilboa proved remarkably productive, featuring Jesus' comprehensive teachings on prayer, including what would later be known as the Lord's Prayer, and facilitating a three-week conference between Jesus' apostles and John's newly appointed apostles that resolved organizational tensions and established protocols for baptism and kingdom proclamation. The paper concludes with the execution of John the Baptist on January 10, 28 A.D., a watershed moment that prompted Jesus to declare, "The hour has come to proclaim the kingdom openly and with power," thus inaugurating the final and most public phase of his ministry as the group departed for Galilee to begin this intensified proclamation of the kingdom gospel.

In September and October of 27 A.D., Jesus and the twelve apostles established a secluded camp on the slopes of Mount Gilboa, engaging in a period of intentional withdrawal from public ministry. This strategic retreat was prompted by three converging factors: the increasing antagonism from religious authorities in Jerusalem, Herod Antipas's continued imprisonment of John the Baptist coupled with his growing suspicions about a connection between John and Jesus, and the progressively strained relationships between John's disciples and Jesus' apostles as the number of believers in both movements continued to expand. Jesus understood that the preliminary phase of teaching and preaching was approaching its conclusion, and that the final, definitive effort of his earth mission would soon commence.

Jesus deliberately chose this period of seclusion to accomplish multiple objectives: to provide his apostles with intensive training, to allow tensions in both Judea and Galilee to subside temporarily, and to navigate the delicate situation surrounding John the Baptist without causing him further difficulty. He planned to conduct quiet work in the Decapolis region until John was either executed or released, recognizing that John's situation represented a significant inflection point in his own ministry. This tactical withdrawal demonstrates Jesus' astute awareness of the sociopolitical landscape and his careful consideration of how best to advance the kingdom message while respecting the dignity and mission of his forerunner, John the Baptist.

As their time together progressed, the twelve apostles displayed increasing devotion to Jesus, though their commitment largely stemmed from personal loyalty rather than a comprehensive understanding of his multifaceted teachings or the true nature of his bestowal mission. Jesus clearly articulated to his apostles that their retreat served three specific purposes: to deepen their comprehension of and faith in the gospel of the kingdom, to allow the opposition to their work in both Judea and Galilee to temporarily diminish, and to await developments regarding John the Baptist's imprisonment. During this relatively uninterrupted period, Jesus shared unprecedented details about his early life and his transformative experiences on Mount Hermon, though he explicitly instructed them not to divulge these personal revelations until after his return to the Father.

Throughout September, the apostles engaged in rest, fellowship, recounting their experiences since first being called to service, and attempting to harmonize Jesus' teachings thus far. They collectively sensed that this represented their final opportunity for extended respite before the intensification of their public ministry. The apostles exhibited a spectrum of understanding regarding the kingdom: John and Andrew believed it had already arrived; Peter and James maintained it was yet to come; Nathaniel and Thomas confessed perplexity; Matthew, Philip, and Simon Zelotes remained uncertain and confused; the twins appeared blissfully untroubled by the controversy; and Judas Iscariot remained characteristically silent and noncommittal. Jesus frequently sought solitude on the mountain, occasionally accompanied by Peter, James, or John, engaging in deep communion with his Father—activities that, while sometimes described as prayer, might more accurately be characterized as personal communion with the Father following Jesus' baptism and wilderness experience.

The apostles' discussions on prayer and worship throughout September culminated when Thomas requested specific instruction on prayer. Jesus began by acknowledging that John the Baptist had indeed taught his disciples a simple prayer formula, but clarified that such prescribed petitions were intended primarily for teaching the multitudes rather than for personal spiritual expression. Jesus offered a profound philosophical framework for authentic prayer, defining it as "entirely a personal and spontaneous expression of the attitude of the soul toward the spirit" and "the communion of sonship and the expression of fellowship." He emphasized that genuine prayer should lead to cooperative spiritual progress and intelligent worship, ultimately functioning as a means to ascertain the Father's will.

To illustrate the principle of persistence in prayer, Jesus related the parable of a man seeking bread at midnight for an unexpected visitor, noting that while a neighbor might not respond out of friendship alone, persistent importunity would eventually succeed. He further illuminated divine-human relations through parental metaphors, explaining that just as human parents provide what their children genuinely need rather than what they mistakenly request, the heavenly Father responds to prayers with divine wisdom. Jesus supplemented this with the parable of the persistent widow who eventually obtained justice from an unjust judge, though he carefully clarified that such persistence does not change the just and righteous Father, but rather transforms the petitioner's spiritual receptivity and soul capacity. He concluded by affirming that genuine faith has transformative power, capable of removing insurmountable obstacles to spiritual progress.

Though the apostles had gained appreciable insight into prayer's philosophical dimensions, they still sought a concrete model prayer they could teach to new believers. James Zebedee articulated their practical concern, explaining that while they personally valued Jesus' teaching on prayer, they required a structured format to offer the growing number of disciples who consistently requested guidance on acceptable approaches to addressing the Father. Responding to this pragmatic need, Jesus presented what he had previously taught his siblings in Nazareth, beginning with the invocation "Our Father who is in heaven" and continuing with petitions for the hallowing of God's name, the coming of his kingdom, daily sustenance, spiritual refreshment, forgiveness, deliverance from evil, and progressive perfection.

Jesus identified five essential characteristics of effective prayer: it must transcend self-interest, arise from genuine faith, emerge from sincere hearts, reflect intellectual integrity according to one's light, and demonstrate trust through submission to the Father's wisdom. He consistently advocated private rather than public prayer, instructing the twelve to seek solitude in nature or seclusion in their rooms when communing with the Father. Jesus himself exemplified this preference for privacy in prayer, typically praying for his disciples rather than for himself and often engaging in worship that more closely resembled understanding communion with his Paradise Father than formal petition. Later adherents expanded this prayer with additional phrases, including "In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ" and "For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forevermore."

In the days following Jesus' formal discourse on prayer, the apostles continued to seek clarification through numerous questions, which Jesus patiently addressed. He explained that earnest repetition of petitions, when representing the sincere expression of a child of God uttered in faith, invariably expands the soul's capacity for spiritual receptivity, even when the specific request might seem ill-advised or impossible to fulfill directly. He emphasized that divine sonship is fundamentally a gift rather than an earned status, drawing a parallel to how earth children come into being through their parents' will, not through their own efforts to earn their position in the family. This recognition should lead believers to receive the kingdom of heaven with childlike humility while simultaneously striving for the progressive character development that constitutes righteousness.

Jesus described how prayer had elevated his own consciousness to supercommunion with the Supreme Rulers of the universe and could similarly lead mortals to authentic worship. He characterized prayer as a technique for detachment from material existence and approach to spiritualized self-realization, serving as an effective antidote to harmful introspection—particularly when one prays for others, as Jesus himself consistently demonstrated. He offered several illuminating metaphors: prayer as the breath of spirit life amid material civilization, worship as salvation for pleasure-seeking generations, prayer as recharging spiritual batteries, and worship as tuning in to universal broadcasts from the Father. In essence, prayer represents the sincere longing of a child for its spirit Father, a psychologic process of exchanging human will for divine will, and an integral component of the divine plan for transforming what is into what ought to be.

Throughout the remainder of Jesus' earth sojourn, he occasionally presented additional prayer forms to the apostles, though always as illustrative examples rather than as formulas for public instruction. He explicitly directed that these "parable prayers" should not be taught to the multitudes, maintaining that they served primarily as demonstrations of prayer's versatility and scope. Many of these exemplary prayers originated from other inhabited planets across the universe, though Jesus never disclosed this extraterrestrial provenance to the twelve, preserving this as part of the esoteric knowledge reserved for his closest disciples.

These diverse prayers employed varied forms of divine address—"Our Father in whom consist the universe realms," "Our creative Parent, who is in the center of the universe," "Our perfect and righteous heavenly Father," "Our Father who is in the mystery," "Glorious Father and Mother, in one parent combined," "Our all-faithful Source and all-powerful Center," and "Our Father who dwells in the secret places of the universe." Each prayer articulated distinct aspects of the creature-Creator relationship, petitioning for divine attributes such as spiritual illumination, transformative influence, progressive guidance, and ultimate perfection. While the apostles could not incorporate these prayers into their public ministry, they derived substantial personal benefit from these revelations, which profoundly enriched their individual religious experiences and spiritual understanding.

In early October, a chance marketplace encounter between Philip and several of John the Baptist's apostles catalyzed a significant three-week conference at the Gilboa camp between the two apostolic groups. John had recently appointed twelve of his leaders as apostles, following Jesus' precedent at the urging of Abner, his chief supporter. Jesus participated during the first week of this joint council but deliberately abstained during the final two weeks, having established a clear pattern of non-intervention in organizational matters. On the three occasions when he addressed the combined group, he spoke specifically on sympathy, cooperation, and tolerance, providing principled guidance while refusing to adjudicate their administrative differences.

Andrew and Abner alternated presiding over these joint deliberations as the twenty-four men worked to resolve their differences and establish collaborative protocols. When approached with their problems, Jesus consistently redirected them to their own decision-making capacity, stating: "I am concerned only with your personal and purely religious problems. I am the representative of the Father to the individual, not to the group." The conference yielded several significant agreements: the adoption of Jesus' prayer as the official prayer for both movements, the continuation of parallel ministries while John lived with quarterly joint meetings, and a resolution regarding baptism whereby John's apostles would perform the ritual while Jesus' apostles would provide instruction to new disciples. This remarkable exercise in cooperation represented the apostles' first substantial experience in coordinating divergent efforts, reconciling differing interpretations, organizing group undertakings, and establishing protocols for religious practices.

Throughout November and December, Jesus and the twenty-four apostles engaged in quiet but effective ministry in the predominantly Greek cities of the Decapolis, focusing particularly on Scythopolis, Gerasa, Abila, and Gadara. This period marked the culmination of the preliminary phase of incorporating John's work and organization into the broader movement. The adoption of water baptism by Jesus' followers exemplified how emergent religious movements often compromise with established practices from preceding faiths they seek to preserve—the price Jesus' followers paid to maintain fellowship with John's adherents, who surrendered nearly everything except water baptism in joining Jesus' movement.

During this Decapolis mission, Jesus minimized public teaching, concentrating instead on instructing the twenty-four apostles with special attention to John's twelve. The two apostolic groups worked synergistically in pairs—one from each group—with John's representative performing baptism while Jesus' apostle provided spiritual instruction to new believers. This collaborative approach proved remarkably effective in winning souls among both gentiles and disaffected Jews in the region. Over time, John's apostles developed greater understanding regarding Jesus' non-intervention in John's imprisonment, though they remained perplexed by Jesus' refusal to perform miraculous signs demonstrating his divine authority. Abner, the chief of John's apostles, eventually became a devoted believer in Jesus and later led seventy teachers commissioned by the Master to proclaim the gospel.

In late December, the entire company relocated to establish a camp near the Jordan River in the vicinity of Pella, where both Jewish and gentile seekers gathered to hear the gospel message. During one of Jesus' afternoon teaching sessions, close associates of John the Baptist arrived bearing what would be the final message Jesus would receive from the imprisoned prophet. After eighteen months of incarceration, John sent a poignant inquiry to Jesus: "Are you truly the Deliverer, or shall we look for another?" This question reflected not personal doubt but concern for his followers, who struggled to reconcile Jesus' apparent inaction regarding John's imprisonment with their expectations of messianic intervention.

Jesus responded with remarkable sensitivity, instructing John's messengers: "Go back and tell John that he is not forgotten. Tell him what you have seen and heard, that the poor have good tidings preached to them." Addressing the multitude, Jesus provided contextual understanding, explaining that John's question arose not from personal uncertainty but from his desire to reassure his disciples. Jesus offered an unparalleled tribute to John, describing him as "much more than a prophet" and declaring, "Among those born of women there has not arisen a greater than John the Baptist." His words profoundly affected many in the crowd, who subsequently submitted to John's baptism as a public profession of entrance into the kingdom. The messengers returned to John with both Jesus' affirmation and Abner's encouraging report, substantially strengthening John's faith during his final days.

On January 10, 28 A.D., John the Baptist was executed by order of Herod Antipas, bringing his prophetic ministry to a martyr's end. The following day, several of John's devoted disciples journeyed to Machaerus, secured his body from Herod's authorities, and transported it to Sebaste, Abner's hometown, for proper burial. On January 12, these same disciples traveled to the camp near Pella to inform Jesus and the apostles of John's execution, bringing definitive closure to the uncertain status that had influenced their ministry strategy for months.

Upon receiving this momentous news, Jesus immediately dismissed the assembled multitude and gathered the twenty-four apostles for a private council. With decisive clarity, he announced: "John is dead. Herod has beheaded him. There shall be delay no longer. The hour has come to proclaim the kingdom openly and with power. Tomorrow we go into Galilee." This pronouncement marked a fundamental turning point in Jesus' ministry, signaling the transition from the preparatory phase to the open proclamation of the kingdom. The following morning, January 13, Jesus and the apostles, accompanied by approximately twenty-five disciples, departed for Capernaum, establishing their headquarters at Zebedee's house. This decisive relocation initiated the next significant phase of Jesus' public ministry—the open proclamation of the kingdom throughout Galilee.