Bethany (biblical village)

Bethany, also Bethany (Hebrew בית עניה, German house of figs, or house of the poor), is the name of two different places of Palestine in the New Testament.

Biblical tradition

Home of Lazarus

Bethany southeast of Jerusalem, on the east side of the Mount of Olives, about 15 stadia ( about 2.7 km) from Jerusalem, according to Jn 11,18 EU the origin of the siblings Mary, Martha and Lazarus. According to Jerome, a church was built here in ancient times over the grave of Lazarus. In Bethany also the house of Simon the leper was (Mt 26.6 EU). In the Middle Ages it was founded by Queen Melisende and her sister Ioveta Abbey Bethany. The place probably corresponds to today's Al Eizariya (Al- Izzariya / אלעיזריה ) in the West Bank (Palestine), about 2.4 km to the east of Jerusalem ⊙ 31.76414166666735.280983333333.

Place of John's baptism

Another place of the same name by John was 1.28 EU east of the Jordan. There is baptized John the Baptist and have borne witness for Jesus Christ. After Jn 10,40 EU, Jesus has also slowed down later for a long time there. Since Origen Bethany was identified with Bethabara, a Jordan ford near the baptism site of Jesus. Modern Bible atlases featuring this place east of the Jordan River with a question mark in the maps

Rudolf Bultmann summarizes the situation: " The attempts to identify ... a Bethany east of the Jordan, have not led to a safe result." Siegfried Schulz presents succinctly: "A located east of the Jordan Bethany is unknown."