Ô Zacharie, Nous t'annonçons la bonne nouvelle d'un fils. Son nom sera Yahya [Jean]. Nous ne lui avons pas donné auparavant d'homonyme.
En fait, le nom « Jean » est utilise 27 fois dans l’ancien testament
En fait Jean etait un nom tres commun.One of the priest-king of the Hasmonean Dynasty was John Hyrcanus, well attested to in many historical and classical sources. Josephus talks about a John the Essene who served as a general of the rebel force in Timna (Jewish War, 2.125). 1 Maccabees 2:1 tells us of "Mattathias son of John son of Simeon". Mattathias also has a son called John (1 Maccebees 2:2). John's brother, Judas, led the Jews in rebellion against Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Simon also has a son named John (1 Maccebees 16:19). All these Johns lived before John the Baptist.