Maps of Ephesus

The Roman Empire

The Communitities of the Gospels
Historians' approximations of the areas in which each of the four New Testament gospels were used.

The Jewish Diaspora
By the end of the first century BCE, Rome had taken over the eastern Mediterranean and the Jewish population was spread through many cities of the east. In the third and fourth centuries CE there were substantial Jewish settlements in most major eastern cities and many western provinces as well.

Click on the Map below to view the area in a larger scale.


The old ruins of the city of Ephesus remain near the current village of Selcuk, western Turkey. In its time, Ephesus was the most important Greek city in Ionian Asia Minor, and became the leading maritime seaport in the region. Long ago both Eastern and Western civilizations came to Asia Minor by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and the Aegean and Mediterranean seas.

Nearby is the Taurus mountain range that runs 350 miles nearly alongside the Mediterranean coast. In the south of the range lies the Anatolian plateau with its numerous mountains and beautiful lakes.

As the legend goes, the city was founded by the Amazons, female warriors of the time, and it has been inhabited since the end of the Bronze Age. In 334 B.C. Alexander the Great took the city from Persian rule, and they entered a time of peace for the next fifty years.


After Alexander the Great's death, Lysimachus, who became the ruler, not only redeveloped the city, harbor, and defense, but also moved it one and a half miles to the southwest. In order to force the people to move, he blocked up the sewage system, making the houses uninhabitable. But it was this move that helped develop is standing as a great seaport.

Ephesus' wealth was obvious and seen in the streets and structures. The people enjoyed a high standard of living and an advanced way of life.

St. Paul lived in Ephesus for three years wherein he preached his famous sermons for God.
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More Maps

Maps and Images are from:

PBS-Frontline
New Testament Maps & Artifacts
about.com