Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium

287 Pages·1999·14.1 MB·English

by  Bart D. Ehrman

J E S US
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Jesus
apocalyptic prophet of the new millennium
Bart D. Ehrman
OXFORD
UNIVERSITY PRESS
1999
OXFORD
UNIVERSITY PRESS
Oxford New York
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Copyright © 1999 by Oxford University Press, Inc.
Published by Oxford University Press, Inc.
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Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stoted in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
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without the prior permission of Oxford University Press.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ehrman, Bart D.
Jesus : apocalyptic prophet of the new millennium / Bart D. Ehrman.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-19-512473-1
1. Jesus Christ—Historicity.
2. Jesus Christ—Prophetic office.
3. Millennialism-Palestine-History. I. Title.
BT303.2 .E37 1999
232.9'08-dc21
98-31586
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
To Kelly and Derek
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contents
preface ix
one the end of history as we know it 3
two who was jesus? why it's so hard to know 21
three how did the gospels get to be this way? 41
four looking about a bit:
non-christian sources for the historical jesus 55
five looking about a bit more:
other Christian sources for the historical jesus 65
six moving on to the past:
how can we reconstruct the life of jesus ? 85
seven finding a fit:
jesus in context 103
eight jesus the apocalyptic prophet 125
nine the apocalyptic teachings of jesus 141
ten a place for everything:
jesus' other teachings in their apocalyptic context 163
eleven not in word only:
the associates, deeds, and controversies
of jesus in apocalyptic context 183
twelve the last days of jesus 207
thirteen from apocalyptic prophet to lord of all:
the afterlife of jesus 227
fourteen jesus as the prophet of the new millennium:
then and now 239
notes 247
bibliography 255
index of subjects 259
index of passages 265
index of modern authors 273
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preface
Scholars have written hundreds of books about Jesus (not to mention
the thousands of books written by non-scholars). A good number of
these books, mainly the lesser-known ones, have been written by schol-
ars for scholars to promote scholarship; others have been written by
scholars to popularize scholarly views. The present book is one of the
latter kind. 1 really don't have a lot to say to scholars who have already
spent a good portion of their lives delving into the complex world of
first-century Palestine and the place that Jesus of Nazareth occupied
within it. And frankly, having read scores of the books written by schol-
ars for scholars, I don't think anyone else has much more to say either.
This is a well-beaten and much-trod path.
There does seem, though, to be room for another book for popular
(i.e., general-reading) audiences. It's not that there aren't enough books
about Jesus out there. It's that there aren't enough of the right kind of
book. Very, very few, in fact.
For one thing, most popular treatments are inexcusably dull and/or
idiosyncratic. I've worked hard to make this one neither. You'll have to
decide for yourself whether it's dull. But I would like to say a word about
idiosyncrasy.
It's true that some rather unusual views of Jesus sell well: "Jesus Was a
Marxist!" "Jesus Was a Feminist!" "Jesus Was a Gay Magician!" After
all, if any of these views should be right, it might be worth knowing.
What has struck me over the years, though, is that the view shared
probably by the majority of scholars over the course of this century, at
least in Germany and America, is equally shocking for most nonspe-
ix