Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible (1898) & Schaff's Bible Dictionary
BETH'-AB'ARA (house of the ford), a place beyond Jordan. John 1:28. Some of the best manuscripts read Bethany same as Beth-abara; possibly at Beth-nimrah, or Nimrin; or, as Conder thinks, at 'Abarah; a leading ford of the Jordan on the road to Gilead.