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| The Birth of John the Baptist as told in the Book of Luke in comparison to Mandaean Literature |
| RESEARCH DONE BY AJAE |
| COPYRIGHT 2000 |
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| Introduction Names of Zechariah and Elizabeth His parent were older and had no children His birth was the result of a heavenly interception The Vision and Angel Gabriel His name will be John the Baptist’s birth is threatened John the Baptist is taken away |
| His name will be |
| In the Bible God selected the name given to the child of Zechariah and Elizabeth: |
| “…and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.” (Luke 11-13) |
| This same idea can be seen in the Mandaean text where Enishba announces the name of the baby as given by Life (God): |
| “Tell us now, what name shall we give him? Shall we give him for name, 'Yaqif of Wisdom' that he may teach the Book in Jerusalem? Or shall we give him the name 'Zatan the Pillar' so that the Jews may swear by him and commit no deceit." When Enishbai hear this she cried out and she said: "Of all these names which you name will I not give him one: but the name Yahya-Yohana will I give him (the name) which Life's self has given unto him." |
| Why was the name John or Yahya Yohana so important that God himself declared this the name of the Baptist? There are generally four theories on the name John. The first is the name is from the Hebrew, the second is the name in Greek Ioannes is from the Babylonian god Oannes, the third is that Enosh sounded like Oannes and the fourth is the Mandaean name Yahya as being the true name. Lets look at the names in more detail. |