The Historical Jesus of the Gospels

Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Abbreviations
Acknowledgements
Preface
Introduction
SECTION I - DISPARATE VIEWS ABOUT JESUS
CHAPTER 1 - The Development of Jesus Scholarship
	Earlier Modern “Historical Jesus” Studies
	An Example: Adolf von Harnack’s Civilized Jesus
	The Apocalyptic Jesus of Weiss and Schweitzer
	Bultmann
	Jesus the Revolutionary?
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 2 - Jesus the Cynic Sage?
	The Noneschatological Jesus Seminar
	Crossan’s “Peasant Cynic”
	A More Extreme Example
	Pagan Origins Again
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 3 - Jesus and Judaism
	Some Third Quest Views
	Jesus as Charismatic Healer, Prophet and Sage
	Jesus as Jewish Charismatic Healer
	Jesus and Eschatology
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 4 - Other Gospels?
	Constantine’s Canon?
	Apocryphal Gospels and Acts
	Gnostic Gospels
	Still Later Gospels
	“Q” as a Lost Gospel?
	More Dependable “Noncanonical” Sources
	Why We Must Look Elsewhere
	Conclusion
SECTION II - THE CHARACTER OF THE GOSPELS
CHAPTER 5 - The Gospels as Biographies
	Premeditated Literary Works
	Suggestions about Gospel Genre
	Biographies
	Greco-Roman Biography and History
	Different from Modern Biography
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 6 - Luke-Acts as History
	Luke-Acts as History
	Apologetic Historiography
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 7 - Ancient Historiography as History
	Concerns for Historical Information
	Limited Analogies with Josephus
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 8 - Ancient Historiography as Rhetoric
	Modern Versus Ancient Historiography
	Ancient Expectations
	Historians and Rhetoric
	Gospels Distorted by Rhetoric?
	Historical Perspectives, Tendenz, and Purpose
	Ancient History as Non-history?
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 9 - The Gospels’ Written Sources
	Using Sources
	Ancient Historical Writers’ Use of Sources
	Luke’s Relation to Earlier Sources
	Gospel Sources
	Expanding and Condensing Sources
	Redaction Criticism
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 10 - The Gospels’ Oral Sources
	Orality
	Oral Traditions Besides Written Sources
	Sayings Traditions
	Memorization in Antiquity
	Memory Studies More Generally
	Skilled Memory in Antiquity
	Disciples and Teachers
	Early Christian Creativity?
	Traditional Form Criticism
	Form-critical Criteria
	Narratives about Jesus
	Conclusion
SECTION III - WHAT WE LEARN ABOUT JESUS FROM THE BEST SOURCES
	Jesus’ Story in the Gospels
CHAPTER 11 - John the Baptist
	John in Josephus
	John’s Mission in the Wilderness
	Announcing the Coming One?
	John’s Doubts, Jesus’ Praise (Matt 11:2-11//Lk 7:19-28)
	Jesus’ Repudiation of John?
	John’s Execution
	Jesus’ Baptism by John
	John as the Source of Baptism for the Jesus Movement
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 12 - Jesus the Galilean Jew
	Jesus from Jewish Galilee
	Life in Galilee
	Virtually Certain Information about Jesus
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 13 - Jesus the Teacher
	Jesus as a Sage
	Jesus and Sages’ Style
	The Teller of Jewish Parables
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 14 - Kingdom Discipleship
	Preaching the Kingdom
	Son of Man
	Radical Demands of Discipleship
	Eschatological Inversion
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 15 - Jesus’ Jewish Ethics
	Jesus on Possessions
	The Love Command (Mk 12:29-31)
	Divorce
	Korban Teaching
	Beatitudes
	Some Other Sayings Supported by the Jewish Environment Criterion
	Purity Practices
CHAPTER 16 - Conflicts with Other Teachers
	Doubting Conflict with Pharisees
	Authenticity of the Conflict Accounts
	Coherence of the Conflict Tradition
	Differing Interpretations of the Sabbath
	Conflicts about the Sabbath
	Why Conflicts with Pharisees?
	Impure Purists
	Killing the Prophets
	Jesus the Wounded Prophet
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 17 - Jesus the Prophet
	Sign-prophets
	Jesus as Healer and Exorcist
	Prophetic Acts
	Judgment on Israel
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 18 - Jesus as Messiah?
	Jesus’ Self-Identity
	Early Belief in Jesus as Messiah
	“King of the Jews” and the Disciples’ Perspective
	Qualifying “Messiahship”: The Triumphal Entry
	Why a Messianic Secret?
	Views of Messiahship in Antiquity
	Conclusion: Jesus as a King
CHAPTER 19 - More Than an Earthly Messiah?
	The Eschatological Judge in “Q”
	David’s Lord in Mk 12:35-37
	Jesus’ Special Relation to God
	Who Did Jesus’ Movement Think He Was?
	Exalted Figures in Early Jewish Thought
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 20 - Confronting and Provoking the Elite
	The Parable of Tenants
	Did Jesus Foreknow His Death?
	Provoking Martyrdom
	Jesus and Politics
	The Last Supper
	The Sacrificial Purpose for Jesus’ Death
	Martyrdom and Atonement in Early Judaism
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 21 - Jesus’ Arrest and Execution
	Historical Tradition in the Passion Narratives
	Genre of Passion Narratives
	The Historical Foundation for the Passion Narratives
	The Abandonment of Jesus’ Disciples
	The Betrayers
	The High Priests and Jerusalem’s Elite
	Annas and Caiaphas in the Passion Narrative
	Historical Tradition in the Trial Narrative?
	The Plausibility of Pilate’s Role
	Jesus’ Scourging
	Jesus’ Execution
	Jesus’ Burial
	Conclusion
CHAPTER 22 - The Resurrection
	The Traditions
	Pagan Origins for the Christian Resurrection Doctrine?
	Jewish Teaching about Resurrection
	Historical Support for the Resurrection Tradition?
	Conclusion
APPENDIX 1 - Zealots and Revolutionaries
APPENDIX 2 - Mack’s Case for a Wisdom Q
APPENDIX 3 - Jewish Biographical Conventions
APPENDIX 4 - Jesus’ Sayings about the End
APPENDIX 5 - John and the Synoptics on Passover Chronology
APPENDIX 6 - Roman Participation in Jesus’ Arrest?
APPENDIX 7 - Capital Authority
APPENDIX 8 - What Really Happened at the Tomb?
APPENDIX 9 - Some Postresurrection Teachings
Notes
Bibliography of Sources Cited
Index of Authors and Modern Names
Index of Subjects
Index of Scripture References
Index of Ancient Sources