The Last Olivet Signal

by David W. New
via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 2, June 1995

The scripture records that Jesus ascended from the Mount of Olives, a sabbath day’s journey from Jerusalem (Acts 1:9-12):

“And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men [angels] stood by them in white apparel, which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a ‘sabbath day’s journey.’”

The detail with which Luke presents the above account clearly indicates the importance of Jesus' ascension in his Gospel story. The ascension marks the end of one phase of the Gospel and the beginning of another. Jesus’ personal ministry on earth is now at an end, and the ministry of Jesus through the church is about to begin. Exactly, why did Luke tell us Jesus ascended from the Mount of Olives? Why was that important for us to know? Why didn’t Jesus ascend from Galilee or from the Temple in Jerusalem?

The Scriptures do not directly tell us why Jesus ascended from the Mount of Olives, but several facts about this site can provide a very strong inference. In the Bible, geographic sites can sometimes have a spiritual meaning that conveys a message beyond mere locality.

• “Is there no balm in Gilead?” (Jeremiah 8:22);
• “But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city” (Luke 10:12);
• “And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16),

to name a few examples.

The Mount of Olives, as a site, has a meaning to the Jews, which, in my opinion, reveals the reason why the ascension occurred there.

The Jewish calendar was extremely important in the religious life of the nation. The entire religious cycle of Jewish worship is based upon beginning the calendar on the correct day. The Lord, on the eve of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt, instituted the Passover Feast to remind them what God had done. The Passover celebration began the nation's religious calendar of worship. Every Jew in the world was expected to regulate his worship of God around the cycle that began on Passover.

“This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you” (Exodus 12:2).

Accordingly, the Jewish calendar is based on a series of monthly cycles. The Feasts of the New Moon, Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, and others were based on when each month began.

The appearance of the new moon was the key. The Sanhedrin had the sole authority to decide when the new moon appeared. A special court of three was tasked with testing the witnesses who would testify that they had seen the new moon. There was the constant danger that false testimony would be given to deliberately throw off the calendar. The Jews in Babylon and Palestine in the days of Simon III (140-163 A.D.) were seriously split over the calendar's timing, and a permanent division was barely avoided by diplomacy. Once the court of three made its determination, a fire signal went out to inform the Jewish people everywhere about the new month. The fire signals started on the Mount of Olives.

“In ancient times, before astronomical calculations were made mathematically exact, the people of Judea watched the skies. As soon as it [the new moon] was spotted by witnesses, great bonfires were lit on the hilltops to speed the news. Burning torches signaled from mountain to mountain, beginning with Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives and on as far as the Babylonian frontier. In the Holy Land, the Sanhedrin (highest legislative and judicial council) fixed the dates of holidays and the festivals, and fast messengers relayed the information as far as Babylonia,” [The Junior Jewish Encyclopedia. Edited by Naomi Ben-Asher and Hayim Leaf (New York: Shengold Publishers, Inc, 1970), page 72].

During the days of Rabbi Judah I (163-193 A.D.), the fire signals were discontinued, and fast messengers were used because of false signals. The Samaritans, in an effort to throw off the Jews and to cause them to fall into error, would send out false fire signals. [The Jewish Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, Project and Managing Editor, Isidore Singer, Ph. D., (New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company, 1912) page 500].

Another important fact about the Mount of Olives concerns its role as a burial site. The Mount of Olives in Israel is roughly the equivalent of America’s Arlington National Cemetery. The Mount of Olives is the largest and most important Jewish cemetery in the world. Long before the days of Jesus, the Jews believed the resurrection would occur here. They believed that the Mount of Olives would be the site where the Lord would defend Israel at the end of time, based on their interpretation of Zechariah 14:4. They also believed the Messiah would enter Jerusalem via the Mount of Olives. It was from the Mount of Olives that the Glory of the Lord left Israel (Ezekiel 11:23). And it would be here that the Glory of the Lord would return. Interestingly, Jesus made His triumphant entry into Jerusalem via the Mount of Olives (Mark 11:1-11). Like Lafayette, who, when he left America for the last time, took enough American soil with him so he could be buried on it in France, so the Jews take soil from the Mount of Olives in order to share in the benefits of being raised from its ground. [Legends of Jerusalem, The Sacred Land, Vol. II by Zev Vilnay, (Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society of America, 1973) pages 285-298]. (General source for several sentences above.)

Acts 1:8 now has a richer meaning once we understand the importance of where Jesus spoke these words, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” Clearly, the ascension occurred here because this was the historic place where God signals His people to worship. Jews were now expected to regulate their spiritual life by Jesus of Nazareth; He was the beginning of their “religious calendar”.

He was the Passover Lamb who fulfilled all the requirements found in Exodus 12. He was a “male” lamb, “without blemish”, who knew no sin (Exodus 12:5). Christ is our Passover Lamb (I Corinthians 5: 7). Jesus Christ fulfills all the Feasts of Israel. He is our “religious cycle.” The message of the two angels is clear: “Why stand ye gazing up into heaven?” Prepare to send out the signal to the whole world! And there is no danger of false witnesses here because the apostles were eyewitnesses from the beginning (Acts 1:21-22). There is no danger of a false signal being sent because only one man arose from the Mount of Olives, the God-Man Jesus Christ (Acts 2:33-36). The ascension of Jesus Christ from the Mount of Olives was the Lord’s last signal to the Israel of God (Acts 4:12). If anyone wants to worship God in spirit and in truth, they must now do so through Jesus Christ. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 4:24; 14:6). Clearly, the strong messianic association by the Jews with the Mount of Olives is another reason why Jesus ascended from that location.

Understanding the Jewish background of the New Testament greatly increases your knowledge and enjoyment of the Scripture.