Monday, April 2, 2012

B is for Bethany



Bethany
βηθανια

Bethany was a small village approximately two (2) miles from Jerusalem. Bethany was situated on the southeast slope of the Mount of Olives on what is known as the Jericho Road. Its meaning is not certain. It means either “house of dates” or “house of misery.”

Bethany was the home of Simon the Leper (Mark 14:3) and Mary, Martha, and Lazarus (John 11:18.) Jesus usually spent the night in Bethany when He traveled to Jerusalem (Matthew 21:17; Mark 11:11) The New Testament records for us the fact that Jesus was received into and entertained in the home of Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42.)

It was at Bethany that Jesus performed the miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead. While dining in the home of Simon the Leper Jesus was anointed with costly oil by Mary (Matthew 26:6-13.)

The ascension of Jesus into heaven is usually located at or near Bethany based on Luke 24:50:

“Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands, He blessed them.”

Acts 1:6-12 seems to suggest the ascension took place on the Mount of Olives.  Of course geographically this could possibly include Bethany.  It is possible that the traditional site of the Mount of Olives is the correct location.

Today, Bethany is called el-Azariyeh. This is a corrupted version of “Lazarus.” Tourists are shown a tomb that is thought to be where Lazarus had been buried and from where Jesus called him out of the dead. Tourists are shown a “ruin” that is supposedly the very house of Mary and Martha.

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The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, ed. G. W. Bromiley, p. 463

12 comments:

RHYTHM AND RHYME said...

This was a lovely B post Gregg.


Many years ago I saw a TV programme about a place in the UK called Glastonbury.....you may have heard of it as it has a yearly festival world renown.
Well the presenter said that in the days when Jesus was a boy he and his uncle Joseph of Arramethia
(hope I spelt it right) visited Glastonbury coming along the channel nearby. It is also rumoured that The Virgin Mary is buried beneath Glastonbury Tor.
I thought it interesting as we at the time lived not far away.

Yvonne.

Persis said...

Very interesting post, Gregg. Looking forward to your A-Z's.

Larri said...

House of Dates or House of Misery...such a contrast in translations! ☺

Have you visited Bethany and seen the ruins? Alas, I have not traveled there. Excellent 'B' word for the Challenge. Happy Monday, Gregg! ☺

Petra said...

Excellent B post, Gregg. Always learning something new here.

Darlene said...

It is always so interesting to learn about the origin of names, especially in the Bible. Great post.

Pat Hatt said...

Never knew any of that, very informative.

nutschell said...

Perfect post for the Lenten Season:)
Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

k~ said...

This will be fun to see the various historical aspects unfold alphabetically. :-) Nicely done.

http://bloggitwrite-a-z.blogspot.com/2012/04/b-babys-breath.html

Patty said...

What an uplifting place you have made online.

Arlee Bird said...

I think I prefer House of Dates.


Lee
Places I Remember
Wrote By Rote
An A to Z Co-host blog

Hold my hand: a social worker's blog said...

I will forward this post to my friend Bethany :-)

Great post, Gregg.

Doris

Betty Alark said...

Some names just seem to touch you more than others -Bethany has always touched me!