1. A village on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives. This village is sometimes called "Bethany on the Mount of Olives." It is about a mile and a half (2.4 kilometers) east of Jerusalem. Jesus and his disciples sometimes stayed in Bethany when in Judea. For example, they stayed here when they attended temple observances during Passover (Matthew 21:17; Mark 11:11). Jesus was eating at the home of Simon the leper in Bethany when a woman came and anointed his head with costly perfume (Matthew 26:6–13; Mark 14:3–9). → View encyclopedia entry
Bethany was also the home of Mary and Martha and their brother Lazarus. This is where Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1, 18). The village was near Bethphage on an approach to Jerusalem (Mark 11:1; Luke 19:29) that Jesus followed in preparation for his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. In Bethany, Jesus blessed his disciples after the resurrection and parted from them (Luke 24:50). Today the town is called el-Azariyeh (the place of Lazarus).
2. A village on “the other side of the Jordan” (the east side), where John the Baptist baptized (John 1:28). It is often called "Bethany beyond the Jordan."→ View encyclopedia entry