By STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR
Published: 00:18 BST, 29 August 2026 | Updated: 00:26 BST, 29 August 2026
Archaeologists have spent a decade peeling back layers of ruins on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, searching for a 'lost' city where the Bible says Jesus performed miracles.
Now, the excavation team say they have finally found Bethsaida, the ancient city where Jesus is said to have restored a blind man's sight and fed thousands, and was home to three apostles – Peter, Andrew and Philip.
A Roman bathhouse and hundreds of fishing weights at el-Araj in northern Israel are said to match an ancient account of Bethsaida's transformation from a Jewish fishing village into a city.
Inside a ruined church dating back to the late fifth century, a mosaic invokes Peter, linking the building directly to Jesus' disciple.
Beneath the church, a first-century house wall may also support an ancient pilgrim's account that it was built over Peter and Andrew's home.
Dr Steven Notley, the excavation's academic director, told the Daily Mail he 'absolutely' believes the team has uncovered the lost biblical city that was home to the apostle Peter.
'Everything we bring out of the ground affirms and strengthens that identification,' he said.
'Nothing that we have found would challenge it at all.'
Archaeologists have uncovered stone walls they believe were part of the birthplace of Jesus' apostles
The lost city, according to the Bible, is where Jesus performed a miracle that fed 5,000 people
For Notley, the ruins at el-Araj are bringing into view the setting of Gospel accounts in which Jesus restored a blind man's sight and fed thousands with five loaves and two fish.
'I think Jesus was there on multiple occasions,' Notley said. 'I think we probably have a number of miracles.'
In Mark 8:22–26, people bring a blind man to Jesus at Bethsaida. Jesus leads him outside the village before restoring his sight.
