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The Pool of Siloam, also known as the Pool of Shiloah “Forasmuch as this people refuseth the waters of Shiloah that go softly, and rejoice in Rezin and Remaliah’s son;”, (Isaiah 8:6), has a rich and storied history involving an ancient king of Judah, a famous sermon, and one of Christ’s great miracles. The word Siloam means “Sent” “and said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.”, (John 9:7). Several rabbinic traditions identified the Pool of Siloam as the Messiah’s Pool. It was the sole source of fresh water within the walls of ancient Jerusalem.
The Pool of Siloam was constructed by King Hezekiah in the 8th century BC “And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made a pool, and a conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?”, (2 Kings 20:20) to supply water to Jerusalem, even in the event of a siege. The pool was supplied by a tunnel Hezekiah excavated through nearly 2,000 feet of solid rock from the Gihon Spring, also known as the Virgin’s Spring. The spring, which produced a water flow approximately twice a day, was situated on the eastern side of Jerusalem, outside the wall and on a slope descending to the Kidron Valley. Hezekiah’s Tunnel directed the water from Gihon to the pool, situated in the southeastern part of the city in the Tyropoeon Valley. The original Pool of Siloam was around 53 feet long, 18 feet wide, and 19 feet deep, constructed of partly hewn rock and partly masonry.
Jerusalem and the Pool of Siloam were destroyed by t
The Babylonians around 600 BC. Seventy years later, Nehemiah rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem, and part of the task was to restore the Pool of Siloam: “[Shallun son of Kol-Hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah] also restored the wall of the Pool of Siloam, by the King’s Garden, as far as the steps going down from the City of David” «But the gate of the fountain restored Shallun the son of Col-hozeh, the ruler of part of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof, and the wall of the pool of Siloah by the king’s garden, and unto the stairs that go down from the city of David. », (Nehemiah 3:15).
During the reign of Herod the Great, enhancements were made to the Pool of Siloam. The pool itself was expanded, and a large arcade (a set of arches) was constructed around the pool. Another arcade divided the pool, likely to establish separate sections for men and women. At that time, the impoverished and sick individuals would frequently visit the Pool of Siloam to bathe.
However, it is during the era of Christ that the Pool of Siloam discovers its genuine significance. Because the pool was close to the temple, its water was utilized for a special ritual during the Feast of Tabernacles. Each morning throughout that festive occasion, a priest would take a golden vessel to the Pool of Siloam, fill it with water from the pool, and return to the altar amidst the cheers of the people. Then, as the crowd recited the Hallel (Psalms 113—118), that priest poured out the water on the west side of the altar, and another priest poured a libation of wine on the east side of the altar. This practice was likely to symbolize Isaiah 12:3, “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”
Nonetheless, on the eighth and final day of the festival, the ceremony was not repeated. And that is precisely when Jesus chose to make a surprising declaration: “On the last and greatest day of the festival, JJesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them” (John 7:37-38). On the one day of the feast when no water was poured, Jesus stood up and filled the gap. The “water” He offers (the Holy Spirit, verse 39) is better than the waters of Siloam. In offering the water of life, Jesus identified Himself with the rock in the wilderness that gave water to the Hebrews, “and did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.” (see 1 Corinthians 10:4).
In John 9, Jesus meets a man born blind. To show that He is indeed the “light of the world,” “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” (John 9:5), Jesus heals the man. But it is interesting how Jesus chose to heal him: “He spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. ‘Go,’ he told him, ‘wash in the Pool of Siloam’ (this word means ‘Sent’). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing” (John 9:6-7). So, the blind man was sent to a pool called “Sent” by the One who was Himself sent by God into the world (John 3:17; John 10:36).
The site of the original Pool of Siloam has been excavated, and there is still a pool there, but it is hardly the splendid place that it once was. Still, we have the biblical record of the Pool of Siloam, a place that was used by kings and priests and by the Messiah Himself. The One sent by God to be our Savior used the Pool of “Sent” to prove that He is the Light of the world.
Explore the world and receive the living water available only through Him. The offer to drink of Him remains open: “Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life” «And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. », (Revelation 22:17).
