the Apostle. His calling, Mat 4:21; Mark 1:19-20; Luke 5:10; sent with the twelve, Mat 10:2; Mark 3:17; rebuked for his vengeful spirit, Luk 9: 51-56; Jesus rejects his selfish request, Mat 20: 20-24; Tue 10:35-41; heals and preaches in the temple, Acts 3:1-4:22.
Juan
Source: Evangelical Bible Dictionary
John (Gr. Ií‡ánn’s, “grace of God”; probably from Heb. Yôjânân or Yehôjânân “Yahweh is kind”; variant Gr. is Ií‡nás, Jonah). 1. John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus Christ and son of Zacharias -priest of the “class of Abijah”- and Elizabeth (Luk 1:5). While Zacharias was fulfilling his priestly duties of burning incense in the temple, Gabriel informed him of the birth of a son and instructed him to call his name John and raise him as a Nazirite. The angel foretold that the child would be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb, and that he would go forth in the spirit and power of Elijah to “prepare for the Lord a willing people” (vs 8-17). Recalling his own advanced age as well as his wife’s, Zechariah expressed doubt about the angel’s words, and was thus left speechless (vs 18-22). In due time the boy was born to him, and 8 days later he was circumcised. Neighbors and relatives assumed that the child would be named Zacharias, but Elizabeth, following the angel’s instructions (v 13), insisted on the name John. When Zacarías was consulted by signs, she 668 wrote on a tablet that the name should be Juan; at that moment he regained his speech. These strange events astonished the people of the region, so that they wondered what kind of child would be born (vs 57-66). His father, filled with the Holy Spirit, prophesied that his son would be called “the prophet of the Most High” and that he would go “before the presence of the Lord, to prepare his ways” (vs 67-79). He was a cousin of Jesus and about 6 months older than him (Luk 1:36), so he probably began his ministry about 6 months before Christ, more or less 30 years into his life. It was the age at which the Jews considered that man had reached his full maturity and, therefore, could accept the responsibilities of public life (cf 3:23). Apparently, Juan was a man of rough appearance and character. He did not hesitate to speak clearly when necessary (Mat 3:7-12; Luk 3:7-9). He was austere; He would even seem to have almost antisocial habits (Mat 11:19; Luk 7:33): he ate very simple foods, -such as locusts* and “wild honey”-, his clothes were woven from camel hair and he wore a leather belt (Mat 3:4; Mark 1:6; cf Matt 11:8 ). He grew up in the desert, where he lived until the beginning of his ministry. The Bible offers no information regarding John’s life and early education, other than to say that “the child grew, and was strengthened in spirit; and he was in desert places until the day of his manifestation to Israel” (Luk 1:80). It would seem that all of his preaching took place in the “Judean wilderness” (Matt 3:1), a region of barren hills between the Dead Sea and the highest mountains of central Palestine (fig 161). Luke asserts that he labored in the “country by the Jordan,” and that his preaching in the wilderness was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy (Luk 3:3, 4). One reason for preaching near the Jordan was no doubt the river’s presence for baptisms (cf. Joh 3:23). The power of his message is demonstrated by multitudes coming out from the cities and countryside to hear him and be baptized by him (Matt 3:5, 6; Mark 1:4, 5; Luk 3:7). Not only did his word bear fruit among the Jews of Judea, but the effects of his message spread to regions beyond Palestine (Acts 18:25; 19:3). The climax and beginning of the decline of John’s ministry came on the day of Jesus’ baptism (John 1:33). When asked by the Lord, John objected, stating that he himself needed to be baptized by Christ, but Jesus urged him to perform the ceremony, “because in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt 3:13-15). After the baptism, John saw the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descending on Jesus, and heard a voice from heaven testifying that he was the Son of God (Mat 3:16, 17; Mar 1:9-11; Luk 3: 21, 22; John 1:30-34). “The next day” John pointed Christ as the Lamb of God to those around him (John 1:29). Later, when he repeated his statement, 2 of his disciples who had heard his words began to follow Jesus (vs 36-42), a symbol of the change that would take place in the crowds that would abandon John to follow the new one. Master (3:26). At no time was the greatness of John greater than when some of his disciples came to him with the message that all men followed Jesus. His response showed the most complete self-sacrifice and surrender to God: “Man cannot receive anything, unless it be given him from heaven… He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3: 2). Some months, or perhaps a year or more after the baptism of Jesus, Herod Antipas put him in prison, because he had bravely rebuked him for deserting his wife and marrying his niece Herodias, who was the wife of his half-brother Herod Philip (Matt 14 :3, 4; Luke 3:19, 20). Some time after his imprisonment John sent 2 of his disciples to Jesus to ask if he was the Messiah or not. Jesus asked them to tell John what they had seen and heard: how the sick were healed, the dead were raised, and the gospel was preached to the poor (Mat 11:2-6; Luk 7:18-23). After the messengers departed, Jesus delivered a wonderful eulogy of his forerunner: John was not hesitant or indecisive, like a reed moved in the direction the wind is blowing; he was not a man of palatial dress and manners, but a prophet, and much more than a prophet, who was given the task of announcing the coming of the Messiah (Mat 11: 7-18; Luk 7: 24-35) . See Herod 3. Perhaps 6 months after this incident John was beheaded. His death was due to the intrigues of Herodias, who hated John for having rebuked Herod’s actions in relation to her (Mar 6:19). On the occasion of the ruler’s birthday, when he was attending some important guests, Salome, the daughter of Herodias and Philip, danced before them. Her performance pleased Herod so much that she offered him anything he asked for, up to half of his kingdom. Salomé consulted with her mother, who told her to ask for Juan’s head. This upset Herod, because she respected and feared him. 669 However, he considered that he could not fail to fulfill his promise; so he ordered the prophet to be beheaded. The order was fulfilled and the Baptist’s head was presented on a platter (Mat 14:3, 6-11; Mar 6:19-28). John’s body was buried by his disciples (Mat 14:12; Mar 6:29). When Herod later heard about Jesus and his wonderful works, he thought he was John risen from the dead (Mat 14:1, 2; Mar 6:14, 16; Luk 9:7). According to Josephus, John’s imprisonment and death occurred in the fortress of Machaeros (Maquero), at Perca, east of the Dead Sea. 292. Place on the Jordan River where, according to tradition, John the Baptist baptized his converts. The Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered as early as 1947, and excavations at Qumran revealed several close parallels between the customs and teachings of the Qumran sect and those of John the Baptist. Like John, the members of the Qumran community, probably Essenes, lived in the desert of Judah and denied themselves most of the comforts of life. They believed in separation from the world and a life of self-denial to “prepare the way of the Lord” citing, as John did, Isa 40:3 (1 QS viii.13-16; cf Mat 3:3). They practiced ritual washings in ponds, rivers and the sea, and the novices seem to have undergone a kind of baptism. His beliefs, reflected in his books, and his expectations of the Messiah and other teachings also show parallels with John’s. These resemblances have suggested that prior to his public ministry John may have been a member of the Qumran community and as such shared many of their convictions and ideals, but had separated from them and their world when God called him to the public work that would prepare the way for the ministry of Jesus. Bib.: FJ-AJ xviii.5.2; WH Brownlee, The Scrolls and the New Testament (New York: Harper, 1957), pp 33-35. 2. John the Beloved, brother of James and one of the sons of Zebedee and apparently of Salome* (Mat 4:21; 27:56; cf Mar 15:40; 16:1; Joh 19:25; Act 12:1 , two). The fact that James is mentioned 1st when the names of the 2 disciples appear together implies that John was the younger of the two. Zebedee and his 2 sons were fishermen, and perhaps reasonably prosperous (Mar 1:19, 20). It seems that John enters the Gospel narrative in Joh 1:35-40 as an anonymous disciple, among the crowd listening to John the Baptist by the Jordan. In that case, he and Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, were the first disciples of John the Baptist to follow Jesus. Apparently John went with Jesus to Galilee a few days later and attended the wedding in Canaa (2:1-11). John was with Jesus on and off during the following year, the period of his ministry in Judea, but he also spent some of his time fishing; but when Jesus began his ministry in Galilee, he invited John and his brother, as well as Peter and Andrew, to be permanent disciples (Luk 5: 1-11). Some months later, he was counted among the 12 chosen to be apostles (Mat 10: 2). From then on, he was intimately associated with Jesus in his labors. With Peter and James he was a member of the inner circle of Christ. He witnessed the resurrection of Jairus’ daughter (Mar 5:37), was present at the transfiguration (9:2) and also in Gethsemane (14:33). He displayed an impetuous spirit on several occasions, such as when he rebuked some who were working in Christ’s name but were not formal disciples of Jesus (Luk 9:49), and when he proposed calling down fire from heaven to consume the inhabitants of a village Samaritan woman who did not want to receive the Lord (vs 52-561). He revealed selfishness by petitioning with his brother for places of honor alongside Jesus in his future kingdom, but he also demonstrated zeal and loyalty by declaring himself ready to face death with his Master (Mat 20:20-24; Mark 10: 35-41). During his relationship with Jesus, John seems to have given himself fully to the softening and subduing influence of the Saviour, and his character was transformed as a result. Apparently, he entered into a much deeper and richer fellowship with the Master than the other apostles (John 21:20). At the Last Supper he took a place next to Christ (13:23). When Jesus was arrested in Gethsemane, he followed him to the high priest’s palace – where he seems to have been known – and later to Calvary (18:15; 19:26). In…