Among the many Jews who arrived in Lod after the destruction of Jerusalem was Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkenos. This wise man transformed the Jewish community in Lod into an organized and disciplined community with public institutions, which brought great renown to the city.

Until the age of 22, Rabbi Eliezer was an uneducated simple farmer. He then became the gifted student of Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai in Jerusalem. After three years of studying in poverty, he became a great and famous scholar. Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai considered him his favorite student.  He was together with Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi and Rabbi Akiva, who were also sages of Lod. They were among the greatest members of the Sanhedrin and among those who assisted the Nassi of the Sanhedrin in leading the nation, accompanying him on his travels.

After the destruction of the Temple, Rabbi Eliezer fled from Jerusalem to Yavne and settled there. There, a dispute arose between him and the sages of Yavne.  After all the Rabbis efforts to convince him to retract his teaching were in vain, the sages saw this as an opening for further disputes in Israel, and therefore excommunicated him and forbade him from ruling on matters of Jewish law. Following his excommunication, Rabbi Eliezer went to Lod.

According to another opinion, Rabbi Eliezer became the sage of the city and the spiritual leader of the Jewish community there. Until the time of Rabbi Eliezer, the Jewish community in the city was scattered and without a leader. However, during his time, everyone obeyed him and followed his words.

In his city of Lod, his power and influence were great even after his excommunication, and his halachic rulings were obeyed despite the prohibition of the sages (apparently because he tended to be lenient). It is known that “in the place of Rabbi Eliezer (in Lod), they would cut down trees to make charcoal for iron on the Sabbath.” According to another researcher, they desecrated the Sabbath for this purpose with the permission of Rabbi Eliezer. They also used to be lenient in Lod during the time of Rabbi Eliezer regarding the laws of family purity.

Thus, we see that despite the explicit and well-known excommunication by the Sages in Yavne, the people of Lod continued to act according to the opinion of Rabbi Eliezer, and contrary to the opinion of the other Sages. For this reason, and in order not to publicize the disregard of the people of Lod for the laws of family purity, because they protected the honor of the families in Israel, the sages did not mention the name of the city of Lod explicitly but alluded to it with various code names. Another reason for concealing the name of the city was the conflict between two factions (“hegemony”) in the city, and the sages did not want to publicize the civil war. Elsewhere, the sages concealed its name and called it “Luz,” because of the fear of the kingdom that prohibited the observance of mitzvot. In the same story, the sages did not want the authorities to understand the content of the discussion, which dealt with the commandments in Lod.

When Rabbi Eliezer was the city’s spiritual leader, he established a yeshiva called “Motva” or “Metivta Rabba. (the Great Academy)” Rabbi Eliezer's study hall was built between the “ris.” A ris is a stadium or arena for horse racing. There was a large stone there intended for Rabbi Eliezer to sit on. Once, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi entered, began kissing the stone, and said, “This stone is like Mount Sinai, and the one who sat on it is like the Ark of the Covenant.”

Rabbi Eliezer was very successful in the Rabbinic Court and in the study hall he established in Lod, and was highly regarded by the sages. Regarding the verse, “Justice, justice shall you pursue,” the sages expounded: “Follow the sages to the study hall - follow Rabbi Eliezer to Lod.” They also said, “Follow the wise to the yeshiva—follow Rabbi Eliezer to Lod.” They also said, “Follow a good court—follow Rabbi Eliezer to Lod.” They also said, “The most outstanding member of the court is in Lod.”

The court of Lod dealt with capital cases. For example, according to the court's decision, they stoned a man named Stada, who was leading the people astray from the path of G-d. Rabbi Eliezer was known for his modesty and good character, and was one of the richest men in Lod. Rabbi Eliezer had slaves and a maidservant in his home.

Rabbi Eliezer traveled extensively. Sources recount that he was in Jerusalem, Yavne, Lod, Ovelin, Bnei Brak, Hulata, Tiberias, Tzipori, Caesarea, and even as far as Rome.