Gerd Theissen and Annette Merz, The Historical Jesus: A Comprehensive Guide

Bibliographical details:
Theissen, G., and A. Merz. (1998). The Historical Jesus: A Comprehensive Guide, trans. J. Bowden. London: SCM Press.

Publisher’s information:
This textbook by Germany’s most interesting New Testament scholar and his assistant is likely to become a standard work on Jesus. After surveying the quest for the historical Jesus, it assesses the sources, non-Christian and Christian, for Jesus. Then it examines the historical, chronological, geographical and social setting of his activity and some of his major characteristics – as charismatic, prophet, healer, poet, and teacher. All this leads on to studies of the passion and resurrection and the beginnings of Christology.

Each section discusses a specific topic in the clearest possible terms, using tables and diagrams where relevant. The main results of scholarly research are given with explanations of how they relate to a wider whole. Subdivisions clarify some of the more complex issues. The main parts of the book end in summaries. Throughout, suggestions are made for further study in the form of projects and problems to be solved. And there are full bibliographies, anglicized for this edition by Robert Morgan.

Gerd Theissen is Professor of New Testament in the University of Heidelberg, where Annette Merz teaches New Testament Studies. Translated from the German by John Bowden.

Table of contents:
Foreword … vii
Frequently Quoted Literature … xxii
Abbreviations … xxvi

1. The Quest of the Historical Jesus … 1
Introduction … 1

1. Five phases of the quest of the historical Jesus … 2
1.1 First phase: the critical impulse towards the question of the historical Jesus: H.S. Reimarus and D.F. Strauss … 2
1.2 Second phase: the optimism of the liberal quest of the historical Jesus … 5
1.3 Third phase: the collapse of the quest of the historical Jesus … 5
1.4 Fourth phase: the ‘new quest’ of the historical Jesus … 7
Excursus: Jewish research into Jesus … 8
1.5 Fifth phase: the ‘third quest’ of the historical Jesus … 10

2. Summary and survey: the quest of the historical Jesus … 12

3. Hermeneutical reflections … 13

4. Tasks … 14
4.1 Five phases of the quest of the historical Jesus … 14

Part One: The Sources and their Evaluation … 17
2. Christian Sources about Jesus … 17
Introduction … 17

1. The significance of extra-canonical Christian literature for the study of Jesus: tendencies and phases of research … 18

2. The Synoptic sources … 24
2.1 The Gospel of Mark … 25
2.2 The Logia source … 27
2.3 The Gospel of Matthew … 29
2.4 The Gospel of Luke … 31

3. Sources close to Gnosticism … 33
3.1 The Gospel of John … 33
3.2 The Gospel of Thomas … 37
3.3 Gnostic dialogue Gospels … 42

4. Gospel fragments with Synoptic and Johannine elements … 43
4.1 Egerton Papyrus 2 (Egerton Gospel) … 44
4.2 The Secret Gospel of Mark … 45
4.3 The Gospel of Peter … 47
4.4 The so-called Oxyrhynchus Papyrus 840 … 50

5. Jewish Christian Gospels … 51

6. Further sources: floating traditions about Jesus … 54
6.1 Sayings of Jesus in the New Testament outside the Gospels … 54
6.2 Later additions to New Testament manuscripts … 55
6.3 Papias and the Apostolic Fathers … 56
6.4 Other ‘agrapha’ and narratives about Jesus … 58

7. Summary survey … 59

8. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 60

9. Tasks … 61
9.1 Extra-canonical sources and the study of Jesus … 61

3. The Non-Christian Sources about Jesus … 63
Introduction … 63

1. Josephus on ‘Jesus who is called the Christ’ … 64
1.1 The mention of Jesus as brother of James (Antt. 20, 200) … 64
1.2 The ‘Testimonium Flavianum’ (Antt. 18, 63f.) … 65

2. The rabbinic sources: Jesus as one who leads the people astray (bSanh 43a) … 74

3. Mara bar Sarapion: a Syrian Stoic on the ‘wise king of the Jews’ … 76

4. Roman writers and statesmen on ‘Christus’, the founder of the Christian sect … 79
4.1 Pliny the Younger (61–c. 120) … 79
4.2 Tacitus (55/56–c. 120) … 81
4.3 Suetonius (70–c. 130) … 83
Appendix: Thallus … 84

5. Summary … 85

6. Tasks … 86
6.1 Josephus’ testimony about Jesus according to the Religious Dialogue at the Sasanid Court … 86
6.2 The Old Slavonic Version of the Jewish War as a source for the teaching and death of Jesus and the original form of the Testimonium Flavianum … 87

4. The Evaluation of the Sources: Historical Scepticism and the Study of Jesus … 90
Introduction … 90

1. Thirteen objections by historical sceptics to the historical evaluation of the Jesus tradition and arguments against them … 93

2. Hermeneutical reflections … 118

3. Tasks … 122
3.1 ‘Taking the kingdom by storm’ – an authentic logion of Jesus? … 122
3.2 Is Jesus an invention of the third Christian generation? … 122

Part Two: The Framework of the History of Jesus … 125
5. The Historical and Religious Framework of the Life of Jesus … 125
Introduction … 125

1. Features of ‘common Judaism’ in Hellenistic and Roman times … 126

2. The earlier renewal movements within Judaism in the second century BCE … 130
2.1 The split in the traditional aristocracy at the time of the Hellenistic reform … 130
2.2 The revolt against the Hellenistic reformers and the Seleucid rulers … 132
2.3 The rise of the three traditional religious parties in the Maccabaean period … 133
2.4 The differences between Sadducees, Pharisees and Essenes according to Josephus (in the first century BCE) … 137
2.5 The development in the course of the first century CE and the relationship of Jesus to the old ‘religious parties’ … 139

3. The origin of the later renewal movements within Judaism in the first century CE … 141
3.1 The messianic movements in the ‘Robber War’ of 4 BCE … 141
3.2 The radical theocratic teaching of Judas of Galilee (6 CE) … 142
3.3 The prophetic opposition: the movements of John the Baptist and other prophets … 144

4. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 146

5. Tasks … 148
5.1 Jesus in the framework of the prophets of the first century CE … 148
5.2 The ‘Teacher of Righteousness’ and the ‘Wicked Priest’ … 148

6. The Chronological Framework of the Life of Jesus … 151
Introduction … 151

1. The framework of the history of Jesus (relative chronology) … 152

2. The year of Jesus’ birth … 153

3. Jesus’ public activity … 156

4. The death of Jesus … 157
4.1 The day of Jesus’ death (week and month) … 157
4.2 The year of Jesus’ death … 159

5. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 160

6. Tasks … 161
6.1 The day of Jesus’ death … 161

7. The Geographical and Social Framework of the Life of Jesus … 162
Introduction … 162

1. Jesus’ birthplace: Nazareth … 164

2. The centre of Jesus’ activity: Capernaum … 166

3. Jesus’ travels: Galilee and the surrounding district … 168
3.1 Ethnic and cultural tensions between Jews and Gentiles … 168
3.2 Social and ecological tensions between city and country … 170
3.3 Social and economic tensions between rich and poor … 171
3.4 Social and political tensions between rulers and ruled … 173
3.5 The religious character of Galilee … 176

4. The place of the passion: Jerusalem … 178
4.1 The structural opposition of city and country in the passion narrative … 178
4.2 Places and routes in the passion narrative … 179

5. Hermeneutical reflections … 180

6. Tasks … 181
6.1 Petronius and the resistance against the statue of the emperor … 181
6.2 Jesus and Sepphoris … 182

Task on 5–7: Chronological survey … 183

Part Three: The Activity and Preaching of Jesus … 185
8. Jesus as a Charismatic: Jesus and his Social Relationships … 185
Introduction … 185

1. Phases in the history of research … 188

2. The sources: the apophthegms … 191

3. Jesus and his family … 194
3.1 Jesus as a member of the house of David … 194
3.2 Jesus’ Davidic sonship as a messianic postulate … 195

4. Jesus and his teacher: John the Baptist … 196
4.1 The sources about John the Baptist and their evaluation … 196
4.2 The primitive Christian tradition about Jesus’ baptism … 207
4.3 Jesus and John the Baptist – a comparison … 208
4.4 The development from John the Baptist to Jesus … 211

5. Jesus and his disciples … 213
5.1 The call narratives in the Gospels … 213
5.2 Analogies to discipleship in the world of the time … 214
5.3 Characteristics of discipleship … 215

6. Jesus and his followers among the people … 217
6.1 Jesus and the crowd … 217
6.2 Jesus and the ‘family of God’ … 218

7. Jesus and the women around him … 219
7.1 Women around Jesus … 221
7.2 The world of women as a sphere which provided images for the preaching of Jesus … 224

8. Jesus and his opponents … 225
8.1 The scribes … 225
8.2 The Pharisees … 227
8.3 The Sadducees … 230
8.4 The Herodians … 233

9. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 235

10. Tasks … 237
10.1 John the Baptist and Jesus: lasting parallels … 237
10.2 John the Baptist and Jesus: incompatible? … 237
10.3 Jesus and his opponents: the Pharisees … 239

9. Jesus as Prophet: Jesus’ Eschatology … 240
Introduction … 240

1. The understanding of Jesus’ eschatology from Ritschl to the present day: six phases of research … 242

2. The metaphor of the kingdom of God as a (first) historical presupposition of the eschatological preaching of Jesus … 246
2.1 The origin of the notion of the kingdom of God … 246
2.2 The theocratic notion of the kingdom of God in the post-exilic period … 247
2.3 The eschatological expectation of the kingdom of God in the exilic/post-exilic period … 247

3. Apocalyptic as a (second) historical presupposition of the eschatological preaching of Jesus … 248
3.1 Prophecy and apocalyptic: a comparison … 248
3.2 Apocalyptic statements about the kingdom of God in the intertestamental period … 249
3.3 Non-apocalyptic sayings about the kingdom of God in the intertestamental period … 250
3.4 The juxtaposition of future and present/timeless statements about the kingdom of God in prayer and liturgy … 251

4. The relationship between present and future in the preaching of Jesus … 252
4.1 The future rule of God … 253
4.2 The present rule of God … 256
4.3 The combination of present and future in the Our Father … 261

5. The relationship between judgment and salvation in the preaching of Jesus … 264
5.1 Jesus’ preaching of judgment … 265
5.2 Jesus’ preaching of salvation … 270
5.3 The unity of the preaching of salvation and judgment, of future and present eschatology … 272

6. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 275

7. Tasks … 279
7.1 The history of research … 279
7.2 Does Jesus’ notion of judgment leave the process of judging behind? … 279

10. Jesus as Healer: The Miracles of Jesus … 281
Introduction … 281

1. Six phases of the discussion of the miracles of Jesus … 285

2. The primitive Christian miracle stories … 291
2.1 Exorcisms … 292
2.2 Therapies … 293
2.3 Norm miracles … 293
2.4 Gift miracles … 294
2.5 Deliverance miracles … 295
2.6 Epiphanies … 295
2.7 Survey and summary … 296

3. The primitive Christian miracle tradition as the effect of the historical Jesus: the multiplicity of testimonies … 297
3.1 Witnesses to the miracle tradition with different interests … 297
3.2 The miracle tradition in different strata of the tradition … 298
3.3 The miracle tradition in various forms and genres … 299
3.4 The primitive Christian miracle tradition as an effect of the historical Jesus and as primitive Christian poetry … 301

4. Jesus as a miracle-worker compared with contemporary miracle-workers … 304
4.1 Theios Aner, the divine man … 304
4.2 Was Jesus a magician? … 305
Excursus: Magical and charismatic miracles … 306
4.3 Rabbinic charismatic miracle-workers … 307
4.4 Jewish sign prophets of the first century CE … 308
4.5 The distinctive character of the miracles of Jesus … 309

5. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 309

6. Tasks … 314
6.1 Belief and unbelief … 314
6.2 Miracle-workers and favourites of God … 314

11. Jesus as Poet: The Parables of Jesus … 316
Introduction … 316

1. Phases in the interpretation of the parables since Jülicher … 318

2. Forms of figurative speech … 324
2.1 The differentiation between parable and allegory: the discovery of the ‘one-point approach’ and its relativization … 324
2.2 Differentiations within the general category of parable: figures of speech, parables (in the sense of similitudes), parables proper (narrative metaphors), and example stories … 327

3. Parables as narratives … 329
3.1 The relationship between metaphor and narrative in the parable … 329
3.2 The beginnings of the parables … 330
3.3 The narrative structure of the parables … 331
3.4 The conclusion of the parable (application) … 334
3.5 Classifying the parables by literary criticism … 334
Excursus: The authenticity of the parables of Jesus … 337
3.6 The parable of the labourers in the vineyard (Matt. 20.1-16) within the framework of the rabbinic parables of recompense: an example … 339

4. Summary account and hermeneutical reflections … 343

5. Tasks … 345
5.1 Forms of figurative speech … 345
5.2 The generous employer (Matt. 20.1-6): merit versus grace? … 346

12. Jesus as Teacher: The Ethics of Jesus … 347
Introduction … 347

1. Phases in the history of research … 349

2. Jesus as teacher (rabbi) … 354
2.1 Jesus’ education … 355
2.2 The holy scriptures in Jesus’ teaching … 357

3. Jesus’ ethic between intensification of the Torah and relaxation of the Torah … 359
3.1 The Torah in Judaism … 359
3.2 Basic statements on the Torah in the Jesus tradition: ambivalence towards the Torah … 360
3.3 Intensification of norms in the Jesus tradition … 361
3.4 Relaxation of norms in the Jesus tradition … 364
3.5 The relationship between intensification of norms and relaxation of norms in the ethic of Jesus … 370

4. The ethic of Jesus between motivations from wisdom and eschatology … 372
4.1 Wisdom and eschatology in Judaism … 373
4.2 Wisdom motives in the ethic of Jesus … 374
4.3 Eschatological motives in the ethic of Jesus … 376
4.4 The relationship between wisdom and eschatological motives in the ethic of Jesus and the significance of the Torah … 379

5. The commandment to love as the centre of Jesus’ ethic … 381
5.1 The twofold commandment to love: a survey of the textual evidence and the tendencies in the Synoptic Gospels … 381
5.2 Jewish traditions on the twofold commandment to love … 384
5.3 The primitive Christian twofold commandment in the framework of Jewish traditions … 387
5.4 The extension of the concept of the neighbour to the alien in the parable of the good Samaritan … 389
5.5 The extension of love of neighbour in the commandment to love one’s enemy … 390
5.6 The extension of love of neighbour in Jesus’ encounter with the outcasts … 393

6. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 394

7. Tasks … 400
7.1 Jesus’ education … 400
7.2 Jesus’ ethic as a protest against Jewish legalism? … 401
7.3 Religion and concern for one’s daily bread … 402
7.4 Jesus’ ethic and the Essenes … 402

Part Four: Passion and Easter … 405
13. Jesus as the Founder of a Cult: The Last Supper and the Primitive Christian Eucharist … 405
Introduction … 405

1. A history of research into the eucharist … 407

2. Texts about the eucharist and types of eucharist in primitive Christianity … 414
2.1 The Synoptic and Pauline words of institution … 414
2.2 Primitive Christian types of eucharist in addition to the Pauline-Synoptic type … 417
2.3 Survey of eucharistic types and texts … 419
2.4 The reconstruction of the earliest eucharistic words … 420

3. Jesus’ last supper in the context of the Passover … 423
3.1 Jesus’ last supper – a Passover meal? … 424
3.2 Criticism of the interpretation of the last supper as a Passover meal … 426

4. Jesus’ last supper in the context of his expectation of his death … 427
4.1 The flight of the disciples … 428
4.2 The violent fate of the prophets … 429
4.3 The parable of the wicked husbandmen (Mark 12.1-9 par.) … 429
4.4 Mark 14.25: An expression of an eschatological imminent expectation or a prophecy of the death of Jesus? … 430

5. Jesus’ last supper in the context of his conflict with the temple … 431
5.1 The cleansing of the temple as a symbolic action criticizing the cult … 432
5.2 The last supper as a symbolic action founding a cult … 433

6. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 436

7. Tasks … 437
7.1 Forms of meals in earliest Christianity: conditions for taking part in the eucharist … 437
7.2 Jesus as critic of the cult? … 439

14. Jesus as Martyr: The Passion of Jesus … 440
Introduction … 440

1. Phases and approaches in the history of research … 444

2. The bias in the sources … 449
2.1 The Romans in the sources … 449
2.2 The Jerusalem local aristocracy in the sources … 450
2.3 The people (ochlos; laos) in the sources … 451
2.4 The picture of Jesus in the sources … 451
2.5 The picture of the disciples in the sources … 454

3. The role of the Romans in the proceedings against Jesus … 455
3.1 Formal legal aspects … 455
3.2 The substantive reason for the Roman proceedings against Jesus … 458
3.3 The basis in Jesus’ activity … 459

4. The role of the Jerusalem local aristocracy in the proceedings against Jesus … 460
4.1 Formal legal aspects: the law relating to trials in the Mishnah … 460
4.2 The substantive basis for the Sanhedrin proceedings … 462
4.3 The basis in the activity of Jesus … 464

5. The role of the people in the proceedings against Jesus … 465
5.1 A formal-legal aspect: the Passover amnesty … 465
5.2 Substantive reasons for the attitude of the people … 466
5.3 The basis in the historical Jesus … 466

6. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 466

7. Tasks … 469
7.1 Important sources outside Christianity on the legal situation … 469
7.2 The question of ‘guilt for the death of Jesus’ … 471
7.3 The Letter of Pilate: a second-century source on the passion … 472

15. The Risen Jesus: Easter and its Interpretations … 474
Introduction … 474

1. Six phases in discussion of the Easter faith … 475

2. The sources of the Easter faith and their evaluation … 482
2.1 The genres and forms of the Easter texts … 482
2.2 Formula and narrative tradition – parallels and differences in content … 486
2.3 The formula tradition of the appearances: I Cor. 15.3-8 … 487
2.4 The narrative tradition … 490
2.5 The Easter narratives of the Gospels: historical evaluation … 495

3. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 503

4. Tasks … 508
4.1 Location in the history of research … 508
4.2 The earliest account of the resurrection of Jesus (Gospel of Peter 8.28–11.49) … 509

16. The Historical Jesus and the Beginnings of Christology … 512
Introduction … 512

1. Three phases of research into New Testament christology … 514

2. Jesus the charismatic: implicit christology in the historical Jesus … 523
2.1 The ‘amen’ formula … 523
2.2 Jesus’ emphatic ‘I’ in the antitheses and the sayings about his having come … 524
2.3 The use of the metaphor of father … 526
2.4 The forgiveness of sins … 527
2.5 The causal attribution of the miracles … 528
2.6 The assessment of John the Baptist … 529

3. Jesus as Messiah: evoked christology in the historical Jesus … 531
3.1 The two Old Testament roots of messianic expectation … 531
3.2 The plurality of messianic expectations in New Testament times … 533
3.3 Jesus and the messianic expectations of his time … 537

4. Jesus as Son of Man: an explicit christology in the historical Jesus? … 541
4.1 The two linguistic traditions behind the Son of Man sayings: everyday language or visionary language … 542
4.2 The Son of Man sayings in the Jesus tradition: the evidence … 545
4.3 The historical Jesus and the term Son of Man … 548

5. The transformation of the picture of Jesus by the cross and Easter … 553
5.1 From the Messiah to the Son of God … 554
5.2 From the Son of Man to the new man … 556
5.3 From discipleship of Jesus to worship of the Kyrios … 557

6. Summary and hermeneutical reflections … 560

7. Tasks … 564
7.1 The title Messiah: PsSol 17 … 564
7.2 The title Son of Man: IV Ezra 13 … 565
7.3 The title Son of God: 4Q 246 … 565

Retrospect: A Short Life of Jesus … 569
Solutions … 573

Index of Biblical References … 613
Index of Names and Subjects … 634

You may also be interested to read the review by James M. Robinson, published in the Review of Biblical Literature.

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