who is the man that is supposed to have been alive for centuries?

Question

I have heard the story of a man who supposedly has lived since biblical times. My brother in law states that he is mentioned in the bible.

Answer 1

Probably the Legend of the Wandering Jew.

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/w/wandering_jew.html

Wandering Jew
by Jared Shurin
The Wandering Jew, also known as Ahasverus or Buttadaeus, was given the curse of immortality by Jesus Christ. As Christ was carrying his heavy cross from Pilate's hall and towards his place of crucifixion, Ahasverus, then a porter in Pilate's service, struck Christ, and mocked him for walking so slowly. Christ, in turn, told the insolent porter to wait for his return, that is, until the Second Coming. In some versions of the tale, Ahasverus is an officer of the Sanhedrim (an order of Jewish priests); in others, he is merely a shoemaker with a quick temper.

Whatever his origins, all version of his tale agree that the Wandering Jew soon repented of his sins and was baptized Catholic. He grows old in the normal fashion until reaching one hundred whereupon he sheds his skin and rejuvenates to the age of thirty. The Middle Ages abound with sightings of the Wandering Jew, generally telling his story in turn for meager food and lodging, sometimes even undergoing tests of authenticity by local professors and academic figures. Encounters with the Wandering Jew occurred all throughout Europe - during the Middle Ages, there were sightings in Armenia, Poland, Moscow, and virtually every Western European city including London.

Answer 2

Wandering Jew
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Wandering Jew is a figure from Christian folklore, a Jewish man who, according to legend, taunted Jesus on the way to the Crucifixion and was then cursed to walk the earth until the Second Coming. The exact nature of the wanderer's indiscretion varies in different versions of the tale, as do aspects of his character; sometimes he is said to be a shoemaker or other tradesman, sometimes he is the doorman at Pontius Pilate's estate, and presumably a Roman rather than a Jew.

When some interpreters see the "Wandering Jew" as a metaphorical personification of the Jewish diaspora, the subtext that links the two is that the destruction of Jerusalem was in retribution for Jewish responsibility for the Crucifixion. A more allegorical view claims instead that the "Wandering Jew" personifies any individual who has been made to see the error of his or her wickedness, if the mocking of the Passion epitomizes the callousness of mankind toward the suffering of human beings.

A variety of names have been given for the Wandering Jew, including Ahasuerus, Buttadeus, Cartophilus, Isaac Laquedem (a name attributed to him in France, in popular legend as well as in a novel by Dumas, and Juan Espera en Dios (Spanish: "John [who] waits for God"). There also exists a Jewish family line with the surname Wander. They mostly originate from Galicia in Central Europe.

Answer 3

Wandering Jew, maybe.

The Wandering Jew is a figure from Christian folklore, a Jewish man who, according to legend, taunted Jesus on the way to the Crucifixion and was then cursed to walk the earth until the Second Coming. The exact nature of the wanderer's indiscretion varies in different versions of the tale, as do aspects of his character; sometimes he is said to be a shoemaker or other tradesman, sometimes he is the doorman at Pontius Pilate's estate, and presumably a Roman rather than a Jew.

Answer 4

Methuselah or Metushélach (Hebrew מְתוּשֶׁלַח / מְתוּשָׁלַח "Man of the dart", or alternatively "when he dies, it shall be sent" was the oldest person whose age is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. He reportedly reached the age of 969 years. According to the Book of Genesis 5:27: "And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died" (American Standard Version). The name Methuselah has become a general synonym for any living creature of great age.

Answer 5

You must be thinking about Methuselah, a Hebrew patriarch reputed to have lived 969 years. This is over 9 1/2 centuries.

Answer 6

Genesis 9:29 Noah lived for 950 years.

Answer 7

Methusalah is often cited as the longest living man--somewhere in the 969 year mark, but Enoch never died. He was just "no more" according to the Bible. God "took him away." Also, John in the New Testament cites a rumor that he would never die until Jesus came back again, but I think John died.

Answer 8

Babaji

Answer 9

Methuselah.

Answer 10

The Lord Jesus Christ is Alive believe in him and great things will come to you give your heart and soul to him its worth it