http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/...&subContrassID=14&sbSubContrassID=0&listSrc=Y
Puech decoded part of the inscription, which
Zias says is about 1.2 meters long and 10
centimeters high. "This is the tomb of
Zacharia, martyr, a very pious priest, father
of John," it said. According to the New
Testament, Zacharia the priest was the father
of John the Baptist. Judging by the design and
style of the letters, and the spacing between
them, Puech determined that the inscription was
written in the 4th century C.E., in other
words, about 300 years after the structure was
built, which testifies to the fact that the
place was a Christian holy site at the time. In
addition he discovered, in the upper lefthand
corner, the Greek word "psycho," meaning soul,
referring to the tomb. He also identified the
name Simeon, but it is not known in what
connection the name was written.
The reason why the inscription became eroded
over the years, to the point where even Avigad
didn't notice it, is related to the erroneous
identification of the site with the tomb of
Absalom, son of David. Avigad wrote, "It was a
popular custom for a passerby to take a stone
in his hand and throw it at the monument of the
prodigal son, and sometimes they would add
curses and spit." Zias says that not only Jews,
but Christians and Muslims as well, used to
come to the place and throw stones at the tomb.
As proof, he displays a woodcut by a European
artist from 1677: "Here one sees people in
European dress throwing stones at the tomb of
Absalom, who took his father's mistresses to
the rooftops of Jerusalem in order to enjoy
their company, and also decided that he was the
king of Israel. In a photo from 1890, the site
is seen surrounded by rocks thrown by pilgrims,
and this is one of the reasons why the
inscription became blurred and couldn't be
seen."
I put this here Because I can not post a new thread,
Plus it is speaking of John the baptise's. which was part of the Priesthood
YHWH say's he walk in all the commandments and statutes.
