ELIZABETH (BIBLICAL PERSON)

'Elizabeth', also spelled 'Elisabeth' or Elisheva (Hebrew 'אֱלִישֶׁבַע' / 'אֱלִישָׁבַע' "My God is an oath", Standard Hebrew '' / '', Tiberian Hebrew '' / '') (Arabic: 'إشاع') was the mother of John the Baptist and the wife of Zacharias, according to the New Testament and the Quran.

Contents

Relation to Mary

In the Bible

Sainthood

Notes and references

Relation to Mary

In Elizabeth is described as a relative of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Greek word used is , which can refer to various forms of kinship.^[1] According to the Catholic Encyclopedia their relation is given by St. Hippolytus, according to whom they are cousins; the mother of Elizabeth, Sobe and the mother of Mary, Saint Anne are sisters ^[2]. The mother of Mary is also known from another source, the infancy Gospel of James.
Some translations of this verse states their relations as relative
^[3]
[4]
, kinswoman
^[5]
or 'of your family'
^[6]
, others such as the King James, states that they are cousins
^[7]

In the Bible

According to the Gospel of Luke, Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron the priest (). She and her husband Zechariah were "righteous before God, living blamelessly" (), but childless. Zechariah was visited by the angel Gabriel, who told him his wife would have a son who "will be great in the sight of the Lord" ().
The pregnant Elizabeth was visited by her relative (), who was pregnant with Jesus:
: When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leapt in her womb.
: And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry:
: "Blessed are you amongst women and blessed is the fruit of your womb." ()
Elizabeth is not mentioned in the New Testament outside of the Gospel of Luke. Some modern sceptical scholars argue that she is a fictional character and that Luke invented the notion that Jesus and John the Baptist were related. However, their critics have pointed out such a claim is impossible to prove and that it would be ludicrous to dismiss a character like Elizabeth solely on the basis that she is mentioned in only one of the four Biblical gospels. There are several female characters who are mentioned in only one of the gospels - including Mary, the wife of Cleopas, Saint Joanna and the female disciple, Susanna. Some theologians have suggested that Elizabeth is included in Luke's nativity account because his version of events deliberately focuses more upon the personal experience of the Virgin Mary during her pregnancy than Matthew's account (the two other gospels, Mark and John, do not include an account of Jesus's birth and instead start their narratives at the beginning of his ministry.) Elizabeth is also mentioned in several books of the Apocrypha, most prominently in the Protevangelion of James, in which the birth of her son and the subsequent murder of her husband are chronicled.

Sainthood

Elizabeth is revered as a saint in the Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican traditions. She is also commemorated as a matriarch in the Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod on September 5, the same day her husband Zechariah is commemorated as a prophet.

Notes and references

1.
2. Catholic Encyclopedia [1]
3. Good News Bible, (Today's English Version) American Bible Society
4. World English Bible
5. American Standard Version, 1901
6. Bible in Basic English
7. King James