Was John the Baptist Elijah‪?‬

Why did some of the Jewish leaders ask John the Baptist if he was Elijah?

And why did some think that Jesus may have been Elijah?

And why are there nearly 30 references to Elijah, this most enigmatic of prophets, in the Gospels?

 

Elijah was the first of a long line of prophets that the Lord sent to the People of Israel and John the Baptist was the last.

However, these two men are more inter-linked than simply being the first and last of the ‘prophets’.

 

What do we know about these two men?

And why and how were their lives intertwined?