BETHSAIDA . A place on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, whither Christ went after feeding the five thousand ( Mark 6:45 , cf. Luke 9:10 ), and where He healed a blind man ( Mark 8:22 ); the home of Philip, Andrew, and Peter ( John 1:44; John 12:21 ). It was denounced by Christ for unbelief ( Matthew 11:21 , Luke 10:13 ). The town was advanced by Philip the tetrarch from a village to the dignity of a city, and named Julias, in honour of Cæsar’s daughter. The situation is disputed, and, indeed, authorities differ as to whether or not there were two places of the same name, one east, one west of the Jordan. Et-Tell , on the northern shore of the sea, east of the Jordan, is generally identified with Bethsaida Julias: those who consider that the narrative of the crossings of the Lake ( Mark 6:45 ) requires another site west of the Jordan, seek it usually at ’Ain et-Tabigha near Khan Minyeh. The latest writers, however, seem inclined to regard the hypothetical second Bethsaida as unnecessary (see Sanday, Sacred Sites of the Gospels , p. 41), and to regard et-Tell as the scene of all the incidents recorded about the town. R. A. S. Macalister.
Bethsaida. [Bethsa'ida] This name signifies 'house of fish.' 1. BETHSAIDA OF GALILEE, a town from whence came Philip, Andrew, and Peter, John 1:44; John 12:21; and against which the Lord pronounced a 'woe' because it had not repented at His mighty works. Matt. 11:21; Luke 10:13. After the Lord had fed the 5,000 on the east of Jordan He sent His disciples to Bethsaida on the western shore. Mark 6:45. It was near the shore on the west of the Sea of Galilee, in the same locality as Capernaum and Chorazin: there are ruins in the district, but its exact situation cannot be identified. 2. BETHSAIDA JULIAS, a town near the N.E. corner of the same lake. A blind man was cured there, Mark 8:22; and near to it the 5,000 were fed, Luke 9:10-17: also related in Matt. 14:13-21; Mark 6:31-44; John 6:1-14. It was called 'Julias,' because Philip the tetrarch enlarged the town, giving it the above name in honour of Julia, daughter of Augustus. It is identified by some with et Tell, 32 54' N, 35 37' E. A few rude houses and heaps of stones are all that mark the spot. (The context of the above passages shows that the events recorded could not have taken place at or near the Bethsaida on the west of the lake.)
Beth sai’da - House of provision: house of hunting