The Jewish Gospel of John: Discovering Jesus, King of All Israel

317 Pages·013.674 MB·English

by  Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg

The Jewish Gospel of John

Discovering Jesus, King of All Israel

Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg

Jewish Studies for Christians

Tel Aviv, Israel
The Jewish Gospel of John: Discovering Jesus, King of All Israel
Copyright © 2015 by Eliyahu Lizorkin-Eyzenberg
www.jewishnewtestament.com

General Editor: Lisa Loden. Editorial content and proofreading committee: Dorothy
Healy, Ramon Sanchez, Susan Williams, Kasandra McNeil and Marijke Petri.
Archeological consultant: Joe Diaz. Illustrations and layout: Lyda Estrada. My
Citadel News (lydaestrada.com) Coordinated by Christy Petri (Quesada Segura) of
My Citadel News (mycitadelnews.com)

The publication of this book was made possible in part by a grant from the
foundation Platform for Christian Politics (Plataforma C) - (plataformac.org) as well
as the generosity of seventy other individual donors without whom the publication
and multi-language translations of this book would not be possible. All Scripture
quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News
Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

E li Lizorkin-Eyzenberg
The Jewish Gospel of John: Discovering Jesus, King of All Israel
© 2015 Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO ELI LIZORKIN-EYZENBERG. This book contains
material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any
unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval
system without express written permission from the author
([email protected] or [email protected]).
TO LISA LODEN MY MENTOR AND FRIEND
May your light never go out. (Prov. 31:18)

TO MY YOUNGEST DAUGHTER SHELLY
May you know the King of All Israel. (John
20:31)
Acknowledgements

I want to express my deep gratitude to the following friends,
colleagues, and supporters who were more than generous with their
help and encouragement in preparation of this book. My thanks go out
to the following friends for helping me with this project in a wide
variety of ways:

Marina Lizorkin-Eyzenberg (my wife and the biggest supporter of
this project), Lisa Loden, Christy Petri, Lyda Estrada, Cheryl Durham,
Dorothy Healy, Marijke Petri, Al Mawhinney, Ramon Sanchez, Mark
Nanos, Anders Runesson, Daniel Boyarin, Israel Knohl, Jürgen
Zangenberg, Jo e Diaz, Ron Weinbaum, Richard Harvey, Ishay Rosen-
Zvi, Faydra Shapiro, Susan Williams, Peter Shirokov, Julia Blum, Igal
German, Paula Fredriksen, Steve Mason, Angel Gozman, David
Loden, Rachel Brady and William Rutherford.

I am grateful for their support, feedback and corrections. All
mistakes and shortcomings of this book are mine alone.
Table of Contents

Title page
Credits and Copyrights
Dedication page
Table of Contents
Endorsements

I. Preface viii

II. Prologue xii
III. Disclaimer xx

IV. The Ministry Narrative 2

C hapter 1 – Prologue; the Witness of John the Baptizer; the First Disciples 2
Chapter 2 – The Wedding at Cana; The First Passover; The Cleansing of the Temple
2 4 Chapter 3 – Jesus and Nicodemus; John the Baptizer’s Testimony 32
Chapter 4 – The Samaritan Woman Encounter; Healing Of a Royal Official’s Son 44
Chapter 5 – The Sabbath Healing at the Bethesda Pool; Ensuing Controversy 70 Chapter 6
– The Second Passover; The 5000 Fed; Walking on Water; Bread of Life 90 Chapter 7 –
The Feast of Tabernacles; Jesus Teaches in the Temple; Diverse Reactions 120 Chapter 8
– [Adulterous Woman]; “Light of the World”; Truth, Origin and Identity 140 Chapter 9 –
The Sabbath Healing near the Pool of Siloam; Ensuing Controversy 158 Chapter 10 – The
Good Shepherd; Feast of Dedication; Jesus Retreats to Bethany 168 Chapter 11 – The
Raising of Lazarus; Final Plot against Jesus; Jesus Retreats to Ephraim 180 Chapter 12 –
The Third Passover; The Entry into Jerusalem; The Time Has Come 198

V. The Passion Narrative 208

Chapter 13 – The Last Passover Meal; Washing of the Feet, Peter’s Denial
208 Chapter 14 – The Last Speech of Jesus (Part I) 218 Chapter 15 – The
L ast Speech of Jesus (Part II) 228
Chapter 16 – The Last Speech of Jesus (Part III) 236
Chapter 17 – The Great High Priestly Prayer of Jesus 244
Chapter 18 – Arrest; Meeting in Annas’ House; Peter’s Denial; Jesus’ Trial before Pilate
250 Chapter 19 – The Trial Continues; Crucifixion, Death, Burial 260 Chapter 20 – The
E mpty Tomb; The Three Resurrection Appearances 270
Chapter 21 – Epilogue: Appearance by the Lake; Peter’s Love; The Beloved Disciple 280

VI. The Call 287

VII. Bibliography and Further Readings 289
Endorsements

“A genuine apologetic is one that is true to the texts and the history, akin to the
speeches of a defense attorney with integrity. Using the best of contemporary
scholarship in first-century Judaic history and contributing much of his own, Dr.
Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg has demonstrated that the Gospel of John is not an anti-
Jewish, but a thoroughly Jewish book.”

Daniel Boyarin, Hermann P. and Sophia Taubman Professor of Talmudic Culture
University of California, Berkeley

“Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg has produced an original and thought-provoking
work. His book is an interesting effort to view this gospel as reflecting north-
Israelite and Samaritan viewpoints. This study brings with it a fresh interpretive
air and new light to a challenging field.”

Israel Knohl, Yehezkel Kaufmann Professor of Biblical studies
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

“Dr. Lizorkin-Eyzenberg places the text of John’s Gospel in its authentic context
by examining the Dead Sea Scrolls, Philo, rabbinic literature, and suggesting
innovative explanations for the nomenclature, ‘the Jews.’ His fresh analysis is
sure to stir meaningful debate. His creative approach will make an enduring
contribution to the discipline of New Testament studies.”

Brad Young, Professor of Biblical Literature in Judeao-Christian Studies
Oral Roberts University

“The Gospel of John is arguably one of the most powerful and also most
problematic texts of the New Testament. The new book by Dr. Eli Lizorkin-
Eyzenberg, The Jewish Gospel of John, challenges us to rethink our routinely
upheld conventions concerning this Gospel’s role in the so-called parting of the
ways between Judaism and Christianity.”

Serge Ruzer, Professor of Comparative Religion and Syriac Christianity
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

“This is a refreshing and creative reading of the Gospel of John, focusing on its
milieu of composition. Whether or not readers agree with the author on
everything, they will undoubtedly be stimulated, even provoked, to think again
The Jewish Gospel of John

about this Gospel and what it means for understanding the Jew Jesus and
his message.”

D avid Neuhaus, S.J., Latin Patriarchal Vicar
Saint James Vicariate for Hebrew Speaking Catholics in Israel

“For some time, research on the Gospels has suffered from stagnation, and
there is a feeling that there is not much new that one can say. In light of this,
Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg’s new commentary on the Gospel of John, with its
original outlook on the identity of the original audience and the issues at stake,
is extremely refreshing.”

Ishay Rosen-Zvi, Associate Professor of Talmudic Culture
Tel-Aviv University

“Dr. Lizorkin-Eyzenberg has given us an exciting and challenging opportunity to
understand John’s Gospel within its Jewish environment. It is a significant
achievement to make accessible, in a popular and readable way, how John sees
Jesus, Messiah and King of Israel, within the Judaism(s) of his day. Drawing
from a wealth of scholarship, the author has produced an excellent study. The
Jewish Gospel of John will give you a greater love for the King of Israel and his
people, and will transform your own understanding of the meaning of this
wonderful Gospel for today.”

Richard Harvey
The Author of Mapping Messianic Jewish Theology

“In this book Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg presents a new and innovative reading
of the Gospel of John, based on the hypothesis that the book is a Jewish/Judean
t ext written to persuade ‘all of Israel’ to join under one Messianic King: Jesus.
The careful reader, both academic and lay, who seeks a historical understanding of
John’s Gospel without having to sacrifice its contemporary religious importance,
will find this book both stimulating and thought-provoking.”

Anders Runesson, Professor of New Testament
University of Oslo

vii
Preface

This book represents my personal journey as a Jew who follows Jesus
through one of the most important and beloved accounts of Jesus’ life – the
Gospel of John. It has been said that some divide the world into men and
women, while others into rich and poor, still others into black and white, and
so on, but it could also be said, jokingly of course, that the world is really
divided into those who love the Gospel of Mark and those who love the Gospel
o f John.
I have always found the contents of the fourth Gospel in particular, most
challenging and most gripping. Having said that, please allow me to confess
that this Gospel has literally bothered me for over 20 years until finally I was
able to find a way through this challenge. As you know, the word “gospel”
means “good news” and I just could not see how this Gospel was anything but
b ad news for us Jews.
You see, throughout Christian history, the Gospel of John has stood among
the most favorite books of the Bible, alongside perhaps only Psalms, Isaiah and
the book of Romans. This Gospel has also been a source of much discussion.
One of the main reasons for the ongoing discussion is its “anti-Jewish” rhetoric.

It is possible that as you read this book you will find yourself on the side of
those who “stand with Israel” and, like the God-fearers of old, you may feel
attraction to all things Jewish. The last thing you may be thinking right now is
that this beloved Gospel may be read as anti-Jewish. You may even wonder
how I could think so. Please, allow me to explain.

In John, as in other parts of the Bible, Jesus has some very hard things to
say. The problem here is that the harsh words do not seem to be addressed to a
Jewish sub-group, but rather to all “the Jews.” After all, harsh rhetoric is also
present in the so-called “most Jewish” of all the four Gospels, the Gospel of
Matthew (Matt. 23) and is consistent with the standards of speech of the
Israelite prophets. Just begin reading Isaiah or Amos (among many others) and
y ou will easily see my point.
In Matthew, as well as in Mark and Luke, in most cases it can be clearly
seen that Jesus argued with Jewish subgroups, such as Scribes and Pharisees,
but not with all “the Jews.” It is peculiar that only in the Gospel of John is the
un-nuanced “the Jews” (in most English translations) used repeatedly, referring
to the opponents of Jesus who were often seeking to kill him. (5:18; 7:1-10;
8:1-22, 8:40; 10:29-33; 11:8; 18:14; 18:28) Probably the best example of this
is found in John 8:44. There, John’s Jesus said to “the Jews:” “You belong to
your father, the devil.” Bearing in mind the biblical language of the concept of
“the Children of God” being connected with the people of Israel (Deut. 14:1),
is it any wonder that many people,

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The Jewish Gospel of John

like myself, are puzzled and bothered by what John’s Jesus allegedly said to
t he Jews?!
As a Jew who follows Jesus, and this may be a predicament unique to people
like myself, I simply could not live with my favorite Gospel being an anti-
Jewish Christian document. I was acutely and constantly conscious of this
problem. I saw this aspect more often than others (Christian non-Jews) would.
Call it a psychological problem, if you must. You may ask: “If this was so
painful, why did you stay with this Gospel for so many years?” That would be
a fair question.

The first part of my answer makes me feel a little bit like Tevye the Milkman
from the classic film “Fiddler on the Roof” (if you have not seen it, shame on
you, you must! ☺), when he reflected that perhaps those who heard him speak
about the importance and variety of Jewish traditions, could ask the question:
“Where did these traditions come from?” Tevye imagined a confident answer:
“I don’t know.” So, part of the answer is that something (or someone) continued
to draw me to this particular narrative of Jesus’ life. Why did I stay with this
conflicting narrative of Jesus’ life so long without resolution? I don’t really
know, but as you can imagine I do have a hunch and I have a suspicion that you
d o too.
There is one other major issue that kept a flicker of hope burning for many
years. You see, other than reading the abundance of what seem to be anti-
Jewish statements, this Gospel also boasts a large number of pro-Jewish

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The Jewish Gospel of John