Upper Room
Tradition says that this is the room where Jesus had his Last Supper with his disciples before going to the cross (Luke 22:8-10). It is believed to be the same room where the Apostles gathered to pray after the resurrection (Acts 1:13). In this room, the disciples where together and in one accord when the promised Holy Spirit descended upon them and was seen as tongues of fire resting upon them (Acts 2). From this place the disciples went out into the streets of Jerusalem to declare the Gospel on the Day of Pentecost and three thousand people were baptized, becoming followers of Jesus Christ.
The Byzantine tomb of David is located in a chamber below the Upper Room. The Book of First Kings, chapter 2 and verse 10 tells us that David was buried within his city, which was just south of the Temple Mount. But the Byzantines didn't know where David's Jerusalem was and misled by the name Zion, which had shifted to this western hill, they assumed his grave was here.
The Upper Room that people visit today on Mt. Zion is completely different from a room of 2000 years ago. The present design is Franciscan from the 14th century. A Muslim mihrab was added in the 16th century after a Turkish sultan ordered the "infidels" out. The Israeli government has controlled the area since 1948.
Learn more about the possible sites of the Upper Room
|
|