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Steve Wells ~

SW: "Oh, so John the Baptist just got the wrong impression. I see. He thought that when he was asked Are you Elijah they meant Are you Elijah? But, of course, they didnt."

When they asked, "Are you Elijah?" they probably had a literal picture in their minds; they /did/ mean exactly what they asked: "Are you Elijah?" -- defining Elijah as the prophet who had been last seen in a whirlwind and chariot of fire. "Are you Elijah?" was Question #1, and "Welcome back; where did you park the chariot?" was, pending a "Yes" to Question #1, the next question.

So when John says "No," he's addressing not only their question but also the assumption underlying it (that John literally is Elisha the Tishbite). Had they asked, "Have you come in the role of the forerunner of the Messiah, conforming to Elijah's personality, role, and location then he might have answered, "Yes." But that's not what they asked nor what they meant to ask.

Yours in Christ,

Waterrock