Monday, September 30, 2024

Excerpt from James F. McGrath, "John of History, Baptist of Faith" (2024)

  

In Islamic authors, the story is about the bubbling blood of John the Baptist rather than Zechariah. In Christian tradition, the story pertains to Zechariah the father of John, while in Judaism, much the same story is told about the Zechariah in 2 Chronicles. If the story was originally about John the Baptist, it may be that the author/editor of the Protoevangelium was the first to turn it into a story about John’s father, as a way of concluding his infancy story now focused on Mary and Jesus. From there it passed in turn into Judaism, per Kalmin’s hypothesis. In Ethiopic versions, the punishment is carried out by Titus, while other strands of the tradition tend to make it Nebuchadnezzar. In the Mandaean Book of John, the destruction of Jerusalem is also mentioned, although not clearly associated with the murder of John (never mentioned in Mandaean sources to my knowledge) or with the persecution of his movement (although see 23:19; 35:133-34 where there may at least be hints of the latter as the reason). (James F. McGrath, John of History, Baptist of Faith: The Quest for the Historical Baptizer [Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2024], 192 n. 90)

 

 

 

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