"There, at the Pool of Bethzatha, Jesus healed a man."

[Odessa Dawn]

23. Choose the sentence with the correct punctuation.

There, at the Pool of Bethzatha, Jesus healed a man.
There at the Pool of Bethzatha, Jesus healed a man.
There, at the Pool of Bethzatha Jesus, healed a man.
There at the Pool of Bethzatha Jesus healed a man.

I would choose "There, at the Pool of Bethzatha, Jesus healed a man," but I know of no rule. May I know whether there is a rule?

 

[Tdol]

I think 1 & 2 could work.

 

[emsr2d2]

My preference is for #1. My second favourite is #2. 3 and 4 don't work.

 

[Matthew Wai]

May I know whether there is a rule?

'Bethzatha' and 'Jesus' are names, so a comma is needed between them.
Can it be a rule? Not a teacher.

 

[emsr2d2]

Are you suggesting that a comma should be put between any two names?

 

[Matthew Wai]

I mean two different names referring to two different things/people.
No comma is needed in 'George Herbert Walker Bush', which refers to one person.
Not a teacher.

 

[emsr2d2]

I know no comma is required there but can you give me an example of a sentence demonstrating a rule that two names must be separated by a comma.

 

[Matthew Wai]

'Patrick Jane and Teresa Lisbon are my friends.'
'Patrick, Jane and Teresa Lisbon are my friends.'
Without the comma, the two names 'Patrick' and 'Jane' would refer to one person. Am I right or wrong?
Not a teacher.

 

[emsr2d2]

Yes, you're right. (By the way, I wish Patrick Jane was one of my friends!)

I think we need to make it clear, though, that the comma is needed in the original sentence not because there are two names but because the first clause ends with the word "Bethzatha". Even if that had not been the case, a comma would have been needed.

There at the pool, Jesus healed a man.

The comma is still required but you wouldn't suggest that there is a rule that a common noun and a proper noun must be separated by a comma based on that one example.