The Concept of the Messiah in the Scriptures of Judaism and Christianity

257 Pages·2011·1.222 MB·English

by  Shirley Lucass

LIBRARY OF SECOND TEMPLE STUDIES

78

Formerly the Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha Supplement Series

Editor
Lester L. Grabbe

Editorial Board
Randall D. Chesnutt, Philip R. Davies, Jan Willem van Henten, Judith M. Lieu,
Steven Mason, James R. Mueller, Loren T. Stuckenbruck, James C. VanderKam

Founding Editors
James H. Charlesworth
ii
THE CONCEPT OF THE MESSIAH
IN THE SCRIPTURES OF JUDAISM
AND CHRISTIANITY

Shirley Lucass
Published by T & T Clark International
A Continuum imprint
80 Maiden Lane, New York, NY 10038
The Tower Building, 11 York Road, London SE1 7NX

www.continuumbooks.com

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

© Shirley Lucass, 2011

Shirley Lucass has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be
identified as the Author of this work

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Date
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

eISBN: 9780567540935

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress

Typeset and copy-edited by Forthcoming Publications Ltd. (www.forthpub.com)
CONTENTS

Preface ix
Acknowledgments xiii
Abbreviations xv

INTRODUCTION 1

Chapter 1
THE QUESTION, THE STATE OF THE QUESTION
AND THE APPROACH 4
The Question 4
The State of the Question 5
Recent Approaches to the Question 8
Clearing the Ground 12
A New Approach 15

Chapter 2
JEWISH WRITERS IN DIALOGUE 19
The Jewish Reclamation of Jesus 19
The Person of the Messiah 21
The Role of the Messiah 30
Outcome of the Messiah’s Role 34
Conclusion 35

Chapter 3
KINGSHIP IN THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST 37
Introduction 37
The Person of the King 40
The Role of the King 48
Outcome of the King’s Role 59
Conclusion 65
vi Contents

Chapter 4
KINGSHIP IN THE HEBREW SCRIPTURES:
THE PSALMS 66
Introduction 66
The Person of the King 67
The Role of the King 73
Outcome of the King’s Role 91
Conclusion 93

Chapter 5
KINGSHIP IN THE HEBREW SCRIPTURES:
THE PROPHETS 94
Introduction 94
The Person of the King 95
The Role of the King 106
Outcome of the King’s Role 115
Conclusion 120

Chapter 6
THE ANOINTED IN THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD:
THE HIGH PRIEST 122
Introduction 122
The Person of the High Priest 123
The Role of the High Priest 130
The Outcome of the High Priest’s Role 140
Conclusion 142

Chapter 7
THE ANOINTED IN THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD:
THE SON OF MAN 144
The Son of Man 144
The Person of the Son of Man 146
The Role of the Son of Man 153
The Outcome of the Son of Man’s Role 156
Conclusion 156

Chapter 8
THE MESSIAH IN THE NEW TESTAMENT 158
Introduction 158
The Person of the Messiah 158
The Role of the Messiah 171
Outcome of the Messiah’s Role 182
Conclusion 185
Contents vii
Chapter 9
IMPLICATIONS FOR DIALOGUE 188
The Person of the Anointed 188
The Role of the Messiah 196
The Outcome of the Messiah’s Role 201
Conclusion 208

Bibliography 211

Index of References 221
Index of Authors 234

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viii
PREFACE

As with any work covering such a wide variety of texts over so broad a
sweep of time, from Ancient Egypt through to contemporary Jewish–
Christian dialogue, I have only been able to engage super(cid:2)cially with
contentious issues. It is also not possible to be competent, let alone
expert, in so many different areas. However, only a cursory discussion of
these areas would have enabled me to take forward the line of argument I
offer in the following pages. Furthermore, because of space constraints I
am unable to answer objections, particularly in the case of the (cid:2)nal
chapter, that I can already see may be raised. That does not, however,
mean that these cannot be answered. My thinking on this subject has
developed over the last (cid:2)fteen years, yet only a small sample of my
thoughts can be re(cid:3)ected here. Again, space constraints have not allowed
me to take the argument beyond the (cid:2)rst century into post-70 C.E. Jewish
messianism (although this task has already been undertaken) in order to
demonstrate that sacral kingship does feature as an integral part of this
thinking and emerges not only in the mystical tradition but also right in
the heart of the orthodox liturgy and festivals.
All that I have hoped to demonstrate here is that, although it fell out of
favour with scholarship, sacral kingship “has been walked away from,
not disproven,” and lies at the heart of messianism. It is only through that
lens, that messianism, in all its aspects, can be properly viewed. Once
this is understood from its Near Eastern background, it provides the
key to understanding much else that otherwise appears opaque. It is
universally accepted that the root of the messianic concept is found in
the meshiah Yahweh or Ha-melekh ha-mashiah, and in particular the
Davidic kingship. Furthermore, despite the modi(cid:2)cations of later eras,
the concept of the Anointed king and his enthronement continued to
inform all aspects of messianism, even those in which there is no men-
tion of a Davidic Messiah, and where the Messiah has become a heav-
enly redeemer; the same imagery of kingship and enthronement, and the
same ultimate utopian outcomes are expected. Unfortunately for dia-
logue, the origins of the concept of Messiah and how these origins were
understood at the time of the parting of the two major Jewish groups to
emerge from the (cid:2)rst century is usually ignored. Instead, until the middle

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