Yeshua’s Immersion

Matt. 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22

(Huck 6; Aland 18; Crook 21)^[184]

Updated: 3 April 2025

וַיְהִי בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם וַיָּבֹא יֵשׁוּעַ [מִנָּצְרַת הַגָּלִיל] הַיַּרְדֵּנָה אֶל יוֹחָנָן לִטְבּוֹל לְפָנָיו וַיִּטְבֹּל יֵשׁוּעַ וַיַּעַל מִן הַמַּיִם וְהִנֵּה נִפְתְּחוּ הַשָּׁמַיִם וְרוּחַ אֱלֹהִים כַּיּוֹנָה צָלְחָה עָלָיו וְהִנֵּה בַּת קוֹל מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם אוֹמֶרֶת בְּנִי אַתָּה יְדִידִי בְּךָ רָצְתָה נַפְשִׁי

Back in the days prior to the Immerser’s execution, Yeshua [from Natzerat of the Galil] came to the Yarden to be purified under Yohanan’s supervision. So Yeshua immersed himself, but as he emerged from the water, the heavens parted and God’s Spirit swooped onto him like a dove, and a voice from heaven declared, “You are my beloved son, as Isaac was to Abraham; I accept you as a redeeming sacrifice.”^[185]

Reconstruction

To view the reconstructed text of Yeshua’s Immersion, click on the link below:

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• ^[1] See Yohanan the Immerser’s Execution, under the subheading “Story Placement.” ↩
• ^[2] See Burnett Hillman Streeter, “The Original Extent of Q,” in Studies in the Synoptic Problem (ed. W. Sanday; Oxford: Clarendon, 1911), 184-208, esp. 187; Meier, Marginal, 2:103; Luz, 1:140. ↩
• ^[3] See Harnack, 314; Streeter, 188; Creed, 55; Marshall, 150; Meier, Marginal, 2:103, 184 n. 9; Wolter, 1:175. ↩
• ^[4] Bultmann (251), on the other hand, remained unconvinced by these arguments. Cf. Knox, 2:4. ↩
• ^[5] Cadbury (Style, 132) compared Luke’s account of Jesus’ baptism with the near-Classical Greek style of the prologue to Luke’s Gospel (Luke 1:1-4), which the author of Luke obviously composed. Cf. Leander E. Keck, “The Spirit and the Dove,” New Testament Studies 17 (1970-71): 41-67, esp. 58-59. ↩
• ^[6] See A Voice Crying, under the subheading “Conjectured Stages of Transmission.” ↩
• ^[7] See Yohanan the Immerser Demands Repentance, under the subheading “Conjectured Stages of Transmission.” ↩
• ^[8] See Yohanan the Immerser’s Exhortations, under the subheading “Conjectured Stages of Transmission.” ↩
• ^[9] See Yohanan the Immerser’s Eschatological Discourse, under the subheading “Conjectured Stages of Transmission.” ↩
• ^[10] See Yohanan the Immerser’s Execution, under the subheading “Conjectured Stages of Transmission.” ↩
• ^[11] See LOY Excursus: Criteria for Distinguishing Type 1 from Type 2 Double Tradition Pericopae, where we found that 57% of Matthew’s wording of Yeshua’s Testing is identical to Luke’s, and 52% of Luke’s wording of Yeshua’s Testing is identical to Matthew’s. High levels of verbal identity are consistent with, but do not prove, both authors’ reliance on Anth. for a DT pericope. ↩
• ^[12] Cf. G. O. Williams, “The Baptism in Luke’s Gospel,” Journal of Theological Studies 45 (1944): 31-38, esp. 32, where he similarly concludes that the author of Luke was paraphrasing his source. ↩
• ^[13] Although καί is omitted in Codex Vaticanus, the coordinating conjunction is accepted in critical editions because of its solid support in other textual witnesses. ↩
• ^[14] On reconstructing ἐν τῷ + infinitive with -בְּ + q^eṭilāh noun, see Four Soils parable, Comment to L27. ↩
• ^[15] The use of ἅπας (hapas, “all”) in Luke 3:21 also is probably indicative of Lukan redaction (cf. Plummer, Luke, 98). The adjective ἅπας occurs far more often in Luke (11xx: Luke 3:21; 4:6, 40; 5:26; 8:37; 9:15; 19:37, 48; 20:6; 21:15; 23:1) than in Matthew (3xx: Matt. 6:32; 24:39; 28:11) or Mark (4xx: Mark 1:27; 8:25; 11:32; [16:15]). Note, too, that in neither Matthew nor Mark do we find instances where ἅπας modifies the noun λαός, but in Luke this occurs 3xx (Luke 3:21; 19:48; 20:6). Matthew and Luke never agree on the use of ἅπας. See Lindsey, GCSG, 1:51-52. ↩
• ^[16] We cannot agree with Plummer, therefore, that Luke’s use of the aorist infinitive was intended to drive a wedge between the timing of Jesus’ baptism and that of the rest of the people. As Plummer (Luke, 98; cf. Marshall, 152) would have it, “After all the people had been baptized,” whereas we would say Luke’s intention was, “Back when all the people were immersed.” ↩
• ^[17] See Allen, Matt., 27; A Voice Crying, Comment to L15. ↩
• ^[18] In LXX ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις occurs as the translation of בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם in Gen. 6:4; Deut. 17:9; 19:17; 26:3; Judg. 17:6; 18:1 (2xx); 19:1; 20:27, 28; 21:25; 1 Kgdms. 3:1; 28:1; 4 Kgdms. 10:32; 15:37; 20:1; 2 Chr. 32:24; 2 Esd. 16:17; 23:23; Zech. 8:6; Jer. 27[50]:20; 38[31]:29; Ezek. 38:17; Dan. 10:2. ↩
• ^[19] See A. B. Bruce, 85; Bundy, 54 §6. ↩
• ^[20] See Allen, Matt., 27; John P. Meier, “John the Baptist in Matthew’s Gospel,” Journal of Biblical Literature 99.3 (1980): 383-405, esp. 391. ↩
• ^[21] On the author of Matthew’s use of narrative τότε, see Randall Buth, “Edayin/Tote—Anatomy of a Semitism in Jewish Greek,” Maarav 5-6 (1990): 33-48; idem, “Matthew’s Aramaic Glue”; idem, “Distinguishing Hebrew from Aramaic in Semitized Greek Texts, with an Application for the Gospels and Pseudepigrapha” (JS2, 247-319, esp. 296-302). ↩
• ^[22] On the author of Matthew’s use of historical presents, see LOY Excursus: Mark’s Editorial Style, under the subheading “Mark’s Freedom and Creativity.” ↩
• ^[23] On παραγίνεσθαι as a marker of Matthean redaction, see A Voice Crying, Comment to L15. ↩
• ^[24] On the author of Matthew’s redactional generation of parallels between John the Baptist and Jesus, see A Voice Crying, Comment to L37-38. ↩
• ^[25] In Hebrew personal names do not take the definite article. ↩
• ^[26] See Guelich, 31. ↩
• ^[27] In Mark 6:1 we read of Jesus’ experience in the synagogue of his “hometown” (πατρίς), but the author of Mark does not give the town’s name (Luke’s parallel identifies the town as Nazareth [Luke 4:16]). Four times in Mark the title Ναζαρηνός (Nazarēnos, “Nazarene”) is applied to Jesus (Mark 1:24; 10:47; 14:67; 16:6). ↩
• ^[28] The Gospel of Matthew has the spelling Ναζαρέτ once, in a pericope not taken from Anth. (Matt. 2:23). The spelling Ναζαρά occurs in Matt. 4:13, a verse composed by the author of Matthew. In Matt. 21:11 (Entering Yerushalayim) we find the spelling Ναζαρέθ, but this reference to Nazareth finds no support in the Gospels of Mark or Luke. ↩
• ^[29] Strange claimed that Ecclesiastes Rabbah 2:8 mentions Nazareth and its priestly character. See James F. Strange, “Nazareth,” ABD, 4:1050-1051. However, Strange’s claims go far beyond the evidence. Ecclesiastes Rabbah 2:8 §2 (ed. Hirshman, 138) tells the story of how Emperor Hadrian challenged the veracity of the verse that states that Israel is a land “in which you will not lack anything” (Deut. 8:9). To test this verse the emperor challenged Rabbi Yehoshua ben Hananyah to bring him three exotic delicacies from within the borders of Israel: peppers, pheasants and silk. Rabbi Yehoshua succeeded in doing so, with the peppers coming מן נצחנא (min nitzḥānā’, “from Nitzhana”). Since the locality Nitzhana is otherwise unknown, some scholars (Edersheim, 1:146 n. 1, cited Neubauer, La Géographie du Talmud, 190 n. 5, for this opinion) have supposed that this name is a corruption for Nazareth (נצרת), but this hypothesis has no textual support and is purely conjectural. There is nothing in Ecclesiastes Rabbah 2:8 §2 to suggest a priestly connection with Nazareth or, for that matter, with Nitzhana. ↩
• ^[30] On the Hebrew inscription, see Michael Avi-Yonah, “A List of Priestly Courses from Caesarea,” Israel Exploration Journal 12.2 (1962): 137-139; idem, “The Caesarea Inscription of the Twenty-Four Priestly Courses,” in The Teacher’s Yoke: Studies in Memory of Henry Trantham (ed. E. Jerry Vardman and James Leo Garrett; Waco, Tex.: Baylor University Press, 1964), 46-57. ↩
• ^[31] See Gustaf Dalman, Sacred Sites and Ways: Studies in the Topography of the Gospels (trans. Paul P. Levertoff; New York: Macmillan, 1935), 59. ↩
• ^[32] See A Voice Crying, Comment to L30. ↩
• ^[33] On the possibility that John the Baptist’s ministry extended to the north of the Sea of Galilee, see A Voice Crying, Comment to L30. ↩
• ^[34] We have not been able to identify any examples of ט-ב-ל in the nif‘al stem in rabbinic literature, and neither does Jastrow (517) record ט-ב-ל in the nif‘al stem. There is one example of ט-ב-ל in the nif‘al stem in the Hebrew Bible (Josh. 3:15), but when rabbinic sources paraphrased this verse they put ט-ב-ל in the hif‘il stem (t. Sot. 8:3). ↩
• ^[35] See R. Steven Notley, “John’s Baptism of Repentance,” under the subheading “Styles of Immersion.” ↩
• ^[36] On the purity ramifications of John’s baptism, see A Voice Crying, Comment to L35. ↩
• ^[37] Since John the Baptist was probably closer to the Essenes than to any other first-century Jewish sect, it is likely that, like the Essenes, he adhered to a stricter standard of ritual purity than was commonly practiced in his day. ↩
• ^[38] On John the Baptist’s title, see Yohanan the Immerser’s Question, Comment to L21. ↩
• ^[39] On the eschatological premise of John the Baptist’s immersion, see A Voice Crying, Comment to L36. ↩
• ^[40] Matthew’s ὑπ᾿ αὐτοῦ in L11 looks like a concession to Mark’s ὑπὸ Ἰωάνου. ↩
• ^[41] Lindsey (LHNS, 11 §4) noted that the definite article in connection with John’s name is conspicuously absent in Luke 3, except in Luke 3:15-16, 20, verses the author of Luke edited. ↩
• ^[42] See Allen, Matt., 27-28; Bundy, 55 §6; Knox, 2:4; Beare, 41 §6. ↩
• ^[43] On Matthean terminology in Matt. 3:14-15, see Kilpatrick, 50; Davies-Allison, 1:323; Meier, Marginal, 2:102; Luz, 1:140 n. 1. ↩
• ^[44] Cf., e.g., the redactional reference to “the works of Christ” in Yohanan the Immerser’s Question, L7 (Matt. 11:2). ↩
• ^[45] On the subordination of John the Baptist to Jesus as a Matthean theme, see Meier, “John the Baptist in Matthew’s Gospel,” 391. ↩
• ^[46] See Allen, Matt., 28. ↩
• ^[47] See Bundy, 57 §6. ↩
• ^[48] See Fredriksen, From Jesus, 41. ↩
• ^[49] Note that Moule cited Matt. 17:24-27 as perhaps “the most striking instance of good Greek” in the Gospel of Matthew. See C. F. D. Moule, The Birth of the New Testament (New York: Harper & Row, 1962), 217. ↩
• ^[50] On John’s question as an expression of hope rather than doubt, see Yohanan the Immerser’s Question, Comment to L7. ↩
• ^[51] In LXX διακωλύειν occurs only in Jdt. 4:7; 12:7. ↩
• ^[52] On reconstructing ἀποκριθεὶς...εἶπεν with וַיַּעַן...וַיֹּאמֶר, see Call of Levi, Comment to L58. ↩
• ^[53] On Matt. 27:25 as the product of Matthean composition, see David Flusser, “Matthew’s ‘Verus Israel’” (JOC, 561-574, esp. 566 n. 12); idem, Jesus, 201 n. 21. See also R. Steven Notley, “Anti-Jewish Tendencies in the Synoptic Gospels,” under the subheading “A Matthean Malediction”; Tomson, If This Be, 283-284. ↩
• ^[54] See our discussion in The Kingdom of Heaven Is Increasing, Comment to L6. ↩
• ^[55] See the examples cited in LSJ, 1461. In LXX most instances of πρέπειν occur in books not contained in MT. See Hatch-Redpath, 2:1201. Of the three instance of πρέπειν that do occur in books included in MT (Ps. 32[33]:1; 64[65]:2; Ps. 92[93]:5), none occur as a neuter participle in combination with εἶναι. ↩
• ^[56] Note Matthew’s unique Scripture fulfillment formulae: τότε ἐπληρώθη τὸ ῥηθὲν διά + personal name + τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος (“then was fulfilled the thing spoken through + personal name + the prophet, saying”; Matt. 2:17; 27:9) and ἵνα/ὅπως πληρωθῇ τὸ ῥηθὲν διά + personal name + τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος (“so that might be fulfilled the thing spoken through + personal name + the prophet, saying”; Matt. 4:14; 8:17; 12:17; cf. Matt. 2:23; 13:35; 21:4). ↩
• ^[57] On genitives absolute in the Gospel of Luke as indicative of redactional activity, see LOY Excursus: The Genitive Absolute in the Synoptic Gospels, under the subheading “The Genitive Absolute in Luke.” ↩
• ^[58] For this insight we are indebted to Richard E. DeMaris, “Possession, Good and Bad—Ritual, Effects and Side-Effects: The Baptism of Jesus and Mark 1.9-11 From a Cross-Cultural Perspective,” Journal for the Study of the New Testament 80 (2000): 3-30, esp. 10. On the distinction the author of Luke maintained between immersion in water and the giving of the Holy Spirit, see Schuyler Brown, “‘Water-Baptism’ and ‘Spirit-Baptism’ in Luke-Acts,” Anglican Theological Review 59.2 (1977): 135-151, esp. 141-145. ↩
• ^[59] See A. B. Bruce, 484; Bundy, 54 §6; Wolter, 1:176. ↩
• ^[60] See the entry for Mark 1:10 in LOY Excursus: Catalog of Markan Stereotypes and Possible Markan Pick-ups. ↩
• ^[61] See the discussion in Robert L. Lindsey, “Introduction to A Hebrew Translation of the Gospel of Mark,” under the subheading “Sources of the Markan Stereotypes: Jesus’ Baptism.” ↩
• ^[62] Edwards (Luke, 118) has also noted the similarities between the stories of Peter’s vision and Jesus’ baptism. ↩
• ^[63] See Hatch-Redpath, 1:70-72. ↩
• ^[64] See Dos Santos, 155. ↩
• ^[65] See LHNS, 13 §6. ↩
• ^[66] See Moule, 71-72. ↩
• ^[67] See Allen, Matt., 29; Nigel Turner, Grammatical Insights into the New Testament (Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1965), 29. ↩
• ^[68] Cf. Marshall, 152. ↩
• ^[69] See Ivor Buse, “The Markan Account of the Baptism of Jesus and Isaiah LXIII,” Journal of Theological Studies 7.1 (1956): 74-75; Robert Horton Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel With Special Reference to the Messianic Hope (Leiden: Brill, 1967), 28-29; Joel Marcus, The Way of the Lord: Christological Exegesis of the Old Testament in the Gospel of Mark (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1992), 49-50. Lindsey, too, entertained the possibility that the author of Mark referred to the Hebrew text of Isa. 63:19. See Lindsey, “Introduction to A Hebrew Translation of the Gospel of Mark,” under the subheading “Sources of the Markan Stereotypes: Jesus’ Baptism.” ↩
• ^[70] We do not know whether an Isaiah targum existed at the time the author of Mark wrote his Gospel, or, if it did, whether he was aware of its existence. The only extant targum of Isaiah, Yonatan, does not refer to the heavens’ opening, but to the heavens’ inclining toward Israel:

  We are Thy people that were of old: not unto the Gentiles hast Thou given the doctrine of Thy law, neither is Thy name invoked upon them; not unto them hast Thou inclined [אַרכֵינתָא] the heavens and revealed Thyself; the mountains quaked before Thee. (Targum Pseudo-Yonatan to Isa. 63:19)

  Translation according to C. W. H. Pauli, The Chaldee Paraphrase on the Prophet Isaiah (London: London Society’s House, 1871).

  It is possible, however, that the author of Mark was familiar with a different targumic tradition that translated Isa. 63:19 in a more literal fashion than that represented in Targum Yonatan. ↩

• ^[71] Note that the phrase ἐσχίσθη ὁ οὐρανὸς (“the heaven was ripped open”) occurs in Joseph and Asenath 14:3 with no apparent allusion to Isa. 63:19. ↩
• ^[72] See France, Mark, 74. ↩
• ^[73] Notice that the καὶ ἐγένετο/ἐγένετο δὲ (+/- time phrase) + infinitive as main verb construction is typical of the author of Luke’s writing style. See Randall Buth and Brian Kvasnica, “Critical Notes on the VTS” (JS1, 259-317, esp. 268-273). The Lukan καὶ ἐγένετο/ἐγένετο δὲ (+/- time phrase) + infinitive as main verb construction is to be distinguished from the Hebraic καὶ ἐγένετο/ἐγένετο δὲ + time phrase + finite verb construction, which is characteristic of translation Greek. See Buth, “Distinguishing Hebrew from Aramaic in Semitized Greek Texts,” 263-270, 310-314. ↩
• ^[74] See Hatch-Redpath, 1:105-106. ↩
• ^[75] See Dos Santos, 173. ↩
• ^[76] See Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel, 29. ↩
• ^[77] Cf. Marshall, 152. ↩
• ^[78] See A Voice Crying, Comment to L35. ↩
• ^[79] See Flusser, Jesus, 40; Notley, “John’s Baptism of Repentance,” under the subheading “Outer Physical Purity and Inner Spiritual Purity.” ↩
• ^[80] Note the similarity between the terms Paul used—"washed," "sanctified," "justified"—and those in the passage we quoted from the Rule of the Community (1QS III, 3-9), on which, see David Flusser, “The Dead Sea Sect and Pre-Pauline Christianity” (JOC, 23-74, esp. 53). In 1 Cor. 12:3 Paul equates the Spirit of God with the Holy Spirit. ↩
• ^[81] An example of the Holy Spirit’s association with ritual purity is found in the following statement:

  ר′ פִינְחָס בֶּן יָאִיר או′ דרִיזוּת מְבִיאָה לִידי נְקִיּוּת נְקִיּוּת לִידֵי [פְרִישׁוּת פְּרִישׁוּת לִידֵי] טַהֲרָה טַהֲרָהּ לִידֵי קְדּוּשׁה וּקְדּוּשָׁה לִידֵי עֲנָוָוה עֲנָוָה לִידֵי יִרְאות חֵטְא [יִרְאוּת חֵטְא] חֲסִידוּת חֲסִידוּת לִידֵי רוּחַ הַקּוֹדֶשׁ רוּחַ הַקּוֹדֶשׁ לִידֵי תְחַיַּית הַמֵּיתִים תְּחַיַית מֵיתִים בָּאָה ליְדֵי אֵלִיָהוּ זָכוּר לָטוב

  Rabbi Pinhas ben Yair says, “Carefulness brings on innocence, innocence brings on abstinence, abstinence brings on purity, purity brings on holiness, holiness brings on humility, humility brings on fear of sin, fear of sin brings on piety, piety brings on the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit brings on the resurrection of the dead. The resurrection of the dead comes by Elijah of blessed memory.” (m. Sot. 9:15)

  Another example is found in the way the Holy Spirit is contrasted with ritual impurity in the following story:

  כי תועבת ה′ כל עושה אלה...כשהיה רבי אליעזר מגיע לפסוק זה היה אומר חבל עלינו ומה מי שמדבק בטומאה רוח טומאה שורה עליו המדבק בשכינה דין הוא שתשרה עליו רוח הקודש ומי גרם עונותיכם היו מבדילים ביניכם ובין אלהיכם

  For everyone who does these things [i.e., practicing magical arts—DNB and JNT] is an abomination to the LORD [Deut. 18:12]. ...Whenever Rabbi Eliezer would come to this verse he would say, “Alas for us! For if one who clings to impurity has a spirit of impurity rest on him, then it is only right that one who clings to the divine presence should have the Holy Spirit rest on him. But what causes [it to be otherwise—DNB and JNT]? Your sins are causing a separation between you and your God [Isa. 59:2].” (Sifre Deut. §173 [ed. Finkelstein, 220])

  ↩

• ^[82] Cf., e.g., Dale C. Allison, “The Baptism of Jesus and a New Dead Sea Scroll,” Biblical Archaeology Review 18.2 (1992): 58-60; Marcus, 1:165; France, Matt., 122. ↩
• ^[83] See Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Prophets (2 vols.; New York: Harper & Row, 1962; repr. Peabody, Mass.: Prince, 1999), 1:158. ↩
• ^[84] On the concept of four world empires that would rule Israel prior to the final redemption, see Joseph Ward Swain, “The Theory of the Four Monarchies: Opposition History Under the Roman Empire,” Classical Philology 35.1 (1940): 1-21; David Flusser, “The Four Empires in the Fourth Sibyl and in the Book of Daniel” (JOC, 317-344). ↩
• ^[85] See Serge Ruzer, “The Programmatic Opening of Jesus’ Biography as a Reflection of Contemporaneous Jewish Messianic Ideas,” under the subheading “The Spirit’s Descent as a Dove at Jesus’ Baptism.” ↩
• ^[86] On Isaiah 61 as a central text for Jesus’ self-awareness, see Peter J. Tomson, “The Core of Jesus’ Evangel: ΕΥΑΓΓΕΛΙΣΑΣΘΑΙ ΠΤΩΧΟΙΣ (Isa 61),” in The Scriptures in the Gospels (ed. C. M. Tuckett; Leuven: Peeters, 1997), 647-658; Yohanan the Immerser’s Question, Comment to L38-43. ↩
• ^[87] On the association of the Holy Spirit with prophecy, see Ludwig Blau, “Holy Spirit,” JE, 6:447-450, esp. 449; Aaron Singer, “Holy Spirit,” in Contemporary Jewish Religious Thought (ed. Arthur A. Cohen and Paul Mendes-Flohr; New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1987), 409-415, esp. 410. ↩
• ^[88] On the replacement of the terms “Spirit of God” and “Spirit of the LORD” with “Holy Spirit,” see Blau, “Holy Spirit,” 447, under the subheading “The Divine Spirit.” ↩
• ^[89] Prophets speak by the Spirit of God in Num. 24:2; 1 Sam. 10:10; 19:20, 23; 2 Chr. 15:1; 24:20. ↩
• ^[90] Prophets speak by the Spirit of the LORD in 1 Sam. 10:6; 2 Sam. 23:2; 1 Kgs. 22:24; Ezek. 11:5; Mic. 3:8; 2 Chr. 18:23; 20:14. ↩
• ^[91] Examples in which the prophets are said to have spoken by the Holy Spirit include 1QS VIII, 16; 2 Pet. 1:21; Sifre Deut. §176 (ed. Finkelstein, 221); Seder Olam §30 (ed. Guggenheimer, 259). ↩
• ^[92] See Hatch-Redpath, 1:375-376. ↩
• ^[93] The only instances of σωματικός in LXX occur in 4 Maccabees (4 Macc. 1:32; 3:1), which is a Greek composition. ↩
• ^[94] As Dalman (203 n. 1) noted, as a translator Delitzsch “had to copy the idiom of the [Greek—DNB and JNT] Synoptic texts...but in a professing Hebrew original they [i.e., obvious Grecisms—DNB and JNT] are intolerable.” ↩
• ^[95] See Jeremias, Theology, 52; Keck, “The Spirit and the Dove,” 63. ↩
• ^[96] In LXX most instances of καταβαίνειν occur as the translation of יָרַד (see Hatch-Redpath, 2:727-728), and the LXX translators rendered most instances of יָרַד with καταβαίνειν (see Dos Santos, 85). ↩
• ^[97] The table below shows each of the instances of ὡσεί in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke and their parallels (if any) in the other Synoptic Gospels:

  Matt. 3:16 TT (cf. Mark 1:10 [ὡς]; Luke 3:22 [ὡς]) Matt. 9:36 Mk-Mt (cf. Mark 6:34 [ὡς]) Matt. 14:21 TT = Luke 9:14 (cf. Mark 6:44 [--]) Mark 9:26 TT (cf. Matt. 17:18 [--]; Luke 9:42 [--]) Luke 3:23 U Luke 9:14 (first) TT = Matt. 14:21 (cf. Mark 6:44 [--]) Luke 9:14 (second) TT (cf. Matt. 14:19 [--]; Mark 6:40 [--]) Luke 9:28 TT (cf. Matt. 17:1 [--]; Mark 9:2 [--]) Luke 22:41 TT (cf. Matt. 26:39 [--]; Mark 14:35 [--]) Luke 22:44 TT (cf. Matt. 26:[--]; Mark 14:[--]) Luke 22:59 TT (cf. Matt. 26:73 [--]; Mark 14:70 [--]) Luke 23:44 TT (cf. Matt. 27:45 [--]; Mark 15:33 [--]) Luke 24:11 TT (cf. Matt. 28:[--]; Mark 16:11 [--]) Key: TT = pericope has parallels in all three Synoptic Gospels; Mk-Mt = Markan-Matthean pericope; U = verse unique to a particular Gospel; [--] = no corresponding word and/or verse

  ↩

• ^[98] See Hatch-Redpath, 2:1126-1127. ↩
• ^[99] See Dos Santos, 79. ↩
• ^[100] Our reasons for suspecting the presence of an allusion to Ps. 55:7 in Yeshua’s Immersion will become apparent as our discussion proceeds. ↩
• ^[101] See Plummer, Luke, 99; Jeremias, Theology, 52; Young, JJT, 20. ↩
• ^[102] Scholars who reject the possibility that “like a dove” in the baptism narrative originally referred to the Spirit’s movement often do so on the grounds that, according to Mark, Jesus “saw the heavens ripping and the Spirit coming down like a dove.” As Guelich (32) argued, “Jesus ‘sees’ (εἶδεν) the heavens and the Spirit, a construction implying a visual form of the Spirit. Jesus could hardly have ‘seen’ an invisible Spirit descending ‘as a dove.’” Therefore, Guelich reasoned, the Spirit must have been visible (cf. Davies-Allison, 1:333; France, Mark, 78; Nolland, Matt., 155). But is this really a cogent argument? First, Mark’s grammar does not require εἶδεν (“he saw”) to apply to the Spirit. Since the nominative and accusative forms of πνεῦμα (“spirit”) and καταβαῖνον ("coming down") are identical, an equally valid translation of Mark 1:10 would be, “And immediately coming up from the water he saw the heavens ripping. And the Spirit was coming down into him like a dove.” (We concede, however, that in Matt. 3:16 and John 1:32, 33 πνεῦμα and καταβαῖνον are accusative.) Second, since spirits are invisible, speaking of any invisible spirit’s appearance is nonsensical. In any case, arguments based on εἶδεν (“he saw”) in Mark 1:10 carry little weight with us since we regard εἶδεν in Mark 1:10 as a Markan addition to the pre-synoptic tradition (see above, Comment to L26). ↩
• ^[103] Fitzmyer (1:484) was evidently unaware of this tradition when he claimed that “Gen 1:2 does not speak of a ‘dove,’ and no rabbinical literature ever interpreted it so.” ↩
• ^[104] See Edward P. Dixon, “Descending Spirit and Descending Gods: A ‘Greek’ Interpretation of the Spirit’s ‘Descent as a Dove’ in Mark 1:10,” Journal of Biblical Literature 128.4 (2009): 759-780, esp. 763. ↩
• ^[105] See Dixon, “Descending Spirit and Descending Gods,” 763. ↩
• ^[106] Abrahams (1:50) cited Wilhelm Bacher (Die Agada der Tanaiten [2 vols.; 2d ed.; Strassburg: K. J. Trübner, 1884-1890], 1:423) as holding the opinion that the baraita in b. Hag. 16a contains anachronistic details. ↩
• ^[107] On the different versions of Ben Zoma’s meditation on Gen. 1:2, see Deborah F. Middleton, “Whence the Feet?” Journal of Jewish Studies 36.1 (1985): 61-71. ↩
• ^[108] The innovation in Ben Zoma’s mystical speculation was not the use of avian imagery to describe the Spirit’s movement since this comparison was already inherent in Gen. 1:2. Ben Zoma’s innovation was rather his supposition that the space between the upper and lower waters was barely measurable. ↩
• ^[109] See Abrahams, 1:50. Middleton ("Whence the Feet?" 65-66) discussed two reasons why comparing the Spirit of God to an eagle might have been distasteful to Jewish interpreters of Scripture. First, the eagle is classed among the impure birds forbidden for Israelite consumption (Lev. 11:13; Deut. 14:12). The strong association of the Holy Spirit with purity might have made Jewish interpreters reluctant to compare God’s Spirit to impure foul. Second, the eagle was a symbol of the Roman Empire. Jewish interpreters might therefore have avoided comparing God’s Spirit to a symbol of Roman imperialism. Of these two reasons, the second is more convincing since purity concerns did not prevent biblical writers from using eagle imagery to describe God’s redemptive activity (Exod. 19:4; Deut. 32:10-11). Avoidance of eagle imagery due to the eagle’s association with the Roman Empire, on the other hand, is understandable, especially in times of political unrest, such as the last decades of the Second Temple period (when Jesus was active) or in the period leading up to the Bar Kochva revolt (when Ben Zoma was active). One need only recall the incident of the eagle that King Herod installed in the Temple (Jos., Ant. 17:151ff.) to realize how strongly the eagle was associated with Roman imperialism in the late Second Temple period. ↩
• ^[110] See Shmuel Safrai, “Pilgrimage to Jerusalem after the Destruction of the Second Temple,” in Chapters in the History of Jerusalem in the Second Temple Period (ed. Aaron Oppenheimer et al.; Jerusalem: Yad Yitzhak ben Zvi, 1981), 376-393 (in Hebrew). ↩
• ^[111] On the evidence that, on a limited scale, sacrifices continued on the Temple Mount even after the destruction of the Temple, see Alexander Guttmann, “The End of the Jewish Sacrificial Cult,” Hebrew Union College Annual 38 (1967): 137-148. ↩
• ^[112] See Shmuel Safrai, “The Holy Congregation in Jerusalem,” Scripta Hierosolymitana 23 (1972): 62-78. ↩
• ^[113] On the term “Temple Mount,” see David Goldblatt, “The Temple Mount: The Afterlife of a Biblical Phrase,” in Le-David Maskil: A Birthday Tribute for David Noel Freedman (ed. Richard Elliott Friedman and William H. C. Propp; Winona Lake, Ind.; Eisenbrauns, 2004), 91-101. ↩
• ^[114] The folkloric concept that doves can fly continuously without needing to rest is probably based on the dove’s well-known endurance, on which, see H. B. Tristram, The Natural History of the Bible (9th ed.; London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1898), 215. ↩
• ^[115] Gero complained that “The common explanation that ὡς περιστερά refers to the Spirit’s mode of descent, i.e. that it has an adverbial rather than an adjectival force seems to skirt the issue and does not answer the basic question of why a dove, rather than some other bird, should be mentioned in the [baptism—DNB and JNT] narrative.” See Stephen Gero, “The Spirit as a Dove at the Baptism of Jesus,” Novum Testamentum 18.1 (1976): 17-35, esp. 17. Our solution avoids this pitfall. ↩
• ^[116] On reconstructing ἔρχεσθαι with בָּא, see Demands of Discipleship, Comment to L8. ↩
• ^[117] Examples of בָּא in conjunction with the Spirit’s (or a spirit’s) coming to a person are restricted to two examples in the Book of Ezekiel:

  וַתָּבֹא בִי רוּחַ כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר אֵלַי וַתַּעֲמִדֵנִי עַל־רַגְלָי וָאֶשְׁמַע אֵת מִדַּבֵּר אֵלָי

  And the Spirit [or, a spirit] came into me when he spoke to me, and it made me stand on my feet, and I heard what he was saying to me. (Ezek. 2:2)

  καὶ ἦλθεν ἐπ᾿ ἐμὲ πνεῦμα καὶ ἀνέλαβέν με καὶ ἐξῆρέν με καὶ ἔστησέν με ἐπὶ τοὺς πόδας μου, καὶ ἤκουον αὐτοῦ λαλοῦντος πρός με

  And a spirit came upon me and took me up and removed me and stood me on my feet, and I was hearing him speaking to me. (Ezek. 2:2)

  וַתָּבֹא־בִי רוּחַ וַתַּעֲמִדֵנִי עַל־רַגְלָי וַיְדַבֵּר אֹתִי וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי בֹּא הִסָּגֵר בְּתוֹךְ בֵּיתֶךָ

  And the Spirit [or, a spirit] came into me and made me stand on my feet, and he spoke to me and he said to me, “Go in and shut yourself within your house.” (Ezek. 3:24)

  καὶ ἦλθεν ἐπ᾿ ἐμὲ πνεῦμα καὶ ἔστησέν με ἐπὶ πόδας μου, καὶ ἐλάλησεν πρός με καὶ εἶπέν μοι Εἴσελθε καὶ ἐγκλείσθητι ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ οἴκου σου

  And a spirit came upon me and stood me on my feet, and he spoke to me and said to me, “Enter and be shut within your house.” (Ezek. 3:24)

  ↩

• ^[118] Additional examples of צָלַח used for the Spirit’s rushing upon an individual are found in Judg. 14:6, 19; 15:14; 1 Sam. 10:6; 11:6; 16:13; 18:10. ↩
• ^[119] See Wolter, 1:177. ↩
• ^[120] Pace Davies-Allison (1:334), who describe the Lukan-Matthean agreement as coincidental. ↩
• ^[121] See Cadbury, Style, 204. ↩
• ^[122] See A Voice Crying, Comment to L41. ↩
• ^[123] See Ludwig Blau, “Bat Ḳol,” JE, 2:588-592, esp. 588; Abrahams, 1:47-50. ↩
• ^[124] See Edersheim, 1:285-286; Plummer, Luke, 100; Davies-Allison, 1:335-336; Guelich, 1:33; Hagner, 1:58; Bovon, 1:129. We commend Keck (“The Spirit and the Dove,” 61), Marshall (154) and Keener (133-134) for rejecting this false contrast between the voice of God and the bat kol, which, as Edersheim’s and Plummer’s comments amply prove, was born of anti-Jewish prejudice. Rovner rejects the identification of the heavenly voice with the bat kol in Yeshua’s Immersion on entirely different grounds. See Jay Rovner, “Hillel and the Bat Qol: A Toseftan Discourse on Prophecy in the Second Temple and Tannaitic Periods,” Oqimta: Studies in Talmudic and Rabbinic Literature 2 (2014): 165-205, esp. 165-166 n. 2. ↩
• ^[125] See Blau, “Bat Ḳol,” 588. ↩
• ^[126] Although the Vienna MS reads הראשונים (“the first ones”), other textual witnesses read האחרונים (“the last ones”), which is surely correct. ↩
• ^[127] On t. Sot. 13:3, see Rovner, “Hillel and the Bat Qol,” 165-205. ↩
• ^[128] A fine example of post-biblical Hebrew idioms creeping into a work attempting to imitate Biblical Hebrew is found in a baraita in b. Kid. 66a, on which, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction’ Addendum: Linguistic Features of the Baraita in b. Kid. 66a.” ↩
• ^[129] See Rovner, “Hillel and the Bat Qol,” 165 n. 2. ↩
• ^[130] On reconstructing participial forms of λέγειν with לֵאמֹר, see Return of the Twelve, Comment to L8. ↩
• ^[131] Examples of וְהִנֵּה + subject + participle in a vav-consecutive context include:

  וַיִּשָּׂא עֵינָיו וַיַּרְא וְהִנֵּה שְׁלֹשָׁה אֲנָשִׁים נִצָּבִים עָלָיו

  And he glanced up and saw, and behold, three men are standing over him. (Gen. 18:2)

  וַיְהִי הוּא טֶרֶם כִּלָּה לְדַבֵּר וְהִנֵּה רִבְקָה יֹצֵאת

  And he had not yet stopped speaking, and behold, Rebekah is coming out.... (Gen. 24:15)

  וַיִּשָּׂא עֵינָיו וַיַּרְא וְהִנֵּה גְמַלִּים בָּאִים

  And he glanced up and looked, and behold, camels are coming. (Gen. 24:63)

  וַיַּרְא וְהִנֵּה יִצְחָק מְצַחֵק אֵת רִבְקָה אִשְׁתּוֹ

  And he looked, and behold, Isaac is caressing Rebekah his wife. (Gen. 26:8)

  וַיַּרְא וְהִנֵּה בְאֵר בַּשָּׂדֶה וְהִנֵּה־שָׁם שְׁלֹשָׁה עֶדְרֵי־צֹאן רֹבְצִים עָלֶיהָ

  And he looked, and behold, a well in the field. And behold, there are three flocks of sheep there lying down next to it.... (Gen. 29:2)

  וַיֹּאמֶר לָהֶם הֲשָׁלוֹם לוֹ וַיֹּאמְרוּ שָׁלוֹם וְהִנֵּה רָחֵל בִּתּוֹ בָּאָה עִם הַצֹּאן

  And he said to them, “Is he well?” And they said, “He is well. And behold, Rachel his daughter is coming out with the flock!” (Gen. 29:6)

  Many additional examples could be adduced (e.g., Gen. 33:1; 37:25; 41:5-6; Exod. 2:6, 13; 3:2; 4:6; 14:10), but those we have cited above are sufficient to establish the point. ↩

• ^[132] See Harnack, 310-314; Streeter, 130, 143; Lindsey, JRL, 40; Young, JJT, 17-19. ↩
• ^[133] See George E. Rice, “Luke 3:22-38 in Codex Bezae: The Messianic King,” Andrews University Seminary Studies 17.2 (1979): 203-208. ↩
• ^[134] See Metzger, 136; Nolland, Luke, 1:162; Wolter, 1:177. ↩
• ^[135] See Walther Zimmerli and Joachim Jeremias, “παῖς θεοῦ,” TDNT, 5:654-717, esp. 701-702; Jeremias, Theology, 53-55; Flusser, Jesus, 40-41. ↩
• ^[136] See Zimmerli and Jeremias, “παῖς θεοῦ,” 701-702; Jeremias, Theology, 53-55. For a critique of this view, see I. Howard Marshall, “Son of God or Servant of Yahweh?—A Reconsideration of Mark 1. 11,” New Testament Studies 15 (1968-1969): 326-336. ↩
• ^[137] See Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel, 30; Meier, Marginal, 103, 184 n. 9. ↩
• ^[138] See Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel, 29; Bovon, 1:129; Collins, 150; Wolter, 1:177. ↩
• ^[139] See Taylor, 162; Mann, 201; Meier, Marginal, 106; Marcus, 1:165-166. ↩
• ^[140] In a single chapter of Avot de-Rabbi Natan we find Isa. 42:1 and Ps. 2:8 applied to the Messiah:

  משיח נקרא עבד שנאמר הן עבדי אתמך בו...משיח נקרא בחור שנאמר בחירי רצתה נפשי...משיח נאמר לו שאל שנאמר שאל ממני ואתנה גוים נחלתך

  The Messiah is called “servant,” as it is said, Behold my servant, whom I uphold [Isa. 42:1].... The Messiah is called “chosen,” as it is said, my chosen in whom my soul is pleased [Isa. 42:1].... To the Messiah it was said, “Ask!” as it is said, Ask of me and I will give you Gentiles as your inheritance [Ps. 2:8]. (Avot de-Rabbi Natan, Version B, §43 [ed. Schechter, 121-122])

  Although Avot de-Rabbi Natan organizes the material differently, it is possible that it drew on an earlier source that collected verses that were understood to pertain to the Messiah. Even in its present arrangement, the citation of Ps. 2:8 and Isa. 42:1, each with a messianic interpretation, in the same chapter of Avot-de Rabbi Natan is significant. It indicates that Psalm 2 and Isaiah 42 were regarded as linked by a common messianic theme.

  A more explicit linking of Ps. 2:7 and Isa. 42:1 is found in the Midrash on Psalms:

  אספרה אל חק ה′ אמר אלי בני אתה. מסופרין הן בחוקה של תורה, ובחוקה של נביאים, ובחוקה של כתובים, כתוב בחוקה של תורה בני בכורי ישראל, וכתיב בחוקה של נביאים הנה ישכיל עבדי, וכתיב בתריה הן עבדי אתמך בו [בחירי רצתה נפשי], וכתיב בחוקה של כתובים נאם ה′ לאדוני שב לימיני, וכתיב ה′ אמר אלי בני אתה [וכתוב אחר אומר וארו עם ענני שמיא כבר אנש אתה הוא. ה′ אמר אלי בני אתה] אמר ר′ יודן כל הנחמות הללו בחוקו של מלך מלכי המלכים הן לעשותן למלך המשיח, וכל כך למה, לפי שהוא עוסק בתורה: דבר אחר בני אתה אין אומר בן לי, אלא בני אתה, כעבד שרבו עושה לו קורת רוח, ואומר מחבב את לי כבני:‏

  I will declare the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my son” [Ps. 2:7]. They are declared [to be sons—DNB and JNT] in an edict of the Torah, and in an edict of the Prophets, and in an edict of the Writings. It is written in an edict of the Torah: My firstborn son is Israel [Exod. 4:22]. And it is written in an edict of the Prophets: Behold, my servant will act wisely [Isa. 52:13]. And it is also written: Behold my servant, I will uphold him, my chosen one my soul accepts [Isa. 42:1]. And it is written in an edict of the Writings: The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand” [Ps. 110:1]. And it is written: The Lord said to me, “You are my son” [Ps. 2:7]. And another writing says, And behold! With the clouds of heaven one like a son of man came [Dan. 7:13].

  You are my son [Ps. 2:7]. Rabbi Yudan said, “All these consolations in the decree of the king of the kings of the kings will be done for the anointed king [i.e., the Messiah—DNB and JNT]. And why all this? Because he is occupied with Torah.”

  Another interpretation: You are my son [Ps. 2:7]. It does not say, “I have a son,” but “You are my son,” like a servant whose master does him a favor and says, “You are beloved to me like a son.” (Midrash Tehillim 2:9 [ed. Buber, 28])

  This midrash on Ps. 2:7 is complex and polemical in nature. The first section, which links Ps. 2:7 and Isa. 42:1 with other verses, actually challenges their standard messianic interpretation. The sages argue that while it might seem that the figure spoken of as a servant in Isaiah and described as God’s son in the Psalms is an individual, the figure is actually a corporate personality who represents all Israel. This point is made by bookending the “messianic” verses with verses that use corporate imagery. Exodus 4:22 refers to all Israel as God’s firstborn son. Daniel 7:13 uses the image of one "like a son of man" to represent the saints of Israel (Dan. 7:18, 27).

  How all the verses were understood to belong together is not stated explicitly, but there is a clear interplay between the concepts of “son of God” and “servant of God.” In Exod. 4:22 God tells Pharaoh that Israel is his firstborn son. In the next verse Israel’s sonship is the grounds for the demand that they be sent into the wilderness in order to serve him (וְיַעַבְדֵנִי [v^eya‘avdēni, “and he will serve me”]), the verb being formed from the same root as the noun עֶבֶד (‘eved, “servant”), which occurs in the verses from Isaiah.

  Isaiah 52:13 speaks of the exaltation and glorification of God’s servant, while Isa. 42:1 speaks of God’s pleasure in his servant and endowing his servant with his Spirit. These verses could be understood as describing a single individual, perhaps the Messiah, or, as this midrash contends, they could describe Israel as a whole.

  The connection between Psalm 110 and Psalm 2 is the fact that in all of Scripture only these two Psalms contain the term ילדתיך (Ps. 2:7; 110:3), which in both cases the sages interpret as meaning “I have begotten you” (the pointing of MT requires that ילדתיך in Ps. 110:3 be interpreted differently). A connection is then made between the figure described in Psalm 110 and Psalm 2 and the one "like a son of man" in the vision of Daniel 7. Like the figure described in the Psalms, who is enthroned and given sovereignty over the Gentiles, the son of man figure is invested with power and a kingdom over the nations. But whereas the figure in the Psalms might be understood to be an individual (i.e., the Messiah), the one like a son of man represents corporate Israel.

  In the second section Rabbi Yudan argues that the verses in Isaiah and the Psalms are messianic, but that the benefits that accrue to the Messiah do so only on the basis of his commitment to the Torah. His interpretation may be based on the commandment in Deuteronomy that the king must make his own copy of the Torah and study it (Deut. 17:18-19).

  In the third section the opinion is expressed that the declaration “You are my son” in Ps. 2:7 must not be taken literally. It is a term of endearment or affection, nothing more. Nevertheless, the interplay between “son” and “servant” dominates, as it did in the opening section.

  Although the combination of Ps. 2:7 with Isa. 42:1 in Midrash Tehillim is late, the polemical context in which it occurs suggests that the sages are dealing with a much older tradition that combined these verses with reference to the Messiah in a positive manner. Undoubtedly, this interpretation fell into disfavor when the sages began to encounter Christians who made messianic claims about Jesus, but this does not prove that the combination of Ps. 2:7 with Isa. 42:1 was of Christian origin. Both the early Christians and the rabbinic sages may have been drawing on a tradition with roots that reached deep into the Second Temple period. ↩

• ^[141] Dalman (276-280) argued that Ps. 2:7 and Isa. 42:1 could be joined together only because Greek-speaking Christians understood παῖς in Isa. 42:1 to mean “child” rather than “servant.” This misunderstanding allowed the Greek-speaking Christians to link Isa. 42:1 with Ps. 2:7, which speaks of God’s “son.” However, the rabbinic traditions that link Ps. 2:7 with Isa. 42:1 refute Dalman’s argument. The rabbinic sages were certainly not misled into drawing these two verses together by the Greek noun παῖς! ↩
• ^[142] On the similarity of Jesus’ temptation to aggadic retellings of the story of the testing of Abraham and Isaac, see David N. Bivin, “Abraham’s Temptation, Forerunner of Jesus’ Temptation.” ↩
• ^[143] See Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel, 31; Meier, Marginal, 2:188 n. 25. ↩
• ^[144] See Allen, Matt., 29; Meier, Marginal, 2:188 n. 25. ↩
• ^[145] See Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel, 31. ↩
• ^[146] On Hanina ben Dosa and his similarities to Jesus, see Geza Vermes, “Hanina ben Dosa” (Parts 1 and 2), Journal of Jewish Studies 23.1 (1972): 28-50 and 24.1 (1973): 51-64; Shmuel Safrai, “Jesus and the Hasidim.” ↩
• ^[147] As we have seen (see Comment to L41-44), the allusion to Ps. 2:7 in the words of the heavenly voice addressed to Jesus at his baptism was recognized by early Christians since at least the time of Justin Martyr (mid-second century C.E.). ↩
• ^[148] Pace Davies-Allison, 1:339. ↩
• ^[149] For a discussion on the relationship of 2 Peter’s version of the words of the heavenly voice to the heavenly voices recorded in the Synoptic Gospels, see Richard J. Bauckham, Jude, 2 Peter (WBC 50; Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1996), 205-210. ↩
• ^[150] See Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel, 30. ↩
• ^[151] See Allen, Matt., 29-30; Marcus, The Way of the Lord, 51-53; Collins, 150. ↩
• ^[152] See C. H. Turner, “A Textual Commentary on Mark I,” Journal of Theological Studies 28 (1927): 145-158, esp. 152; Taylor, 162; Geza Vermes, “Redemption and Genesis XXII: The Binding of Isaac and the Sacrifice of Jesus,” in his Scripture and Tradition in Judaism: Haggadic Studies (2d ed.; Leiden: Brill, 1973), 193-227, esp. 222. ↩
• ^[153] See Marshall, “Son of God or Servant of Yahweh?” 333-334; Bauckham, Jude, 2 Peter, 207-208. It must be acknowledged, however, that in some ancient Syriac and Arabic sources ἀγαπητός in the words of the heavenly voice is rendered ḥabībī (“my beloved”), cognate of חֲבִיב (ḥ^aviv; Targum Ps. 2:7) and מְחַבֵּב (m^eḥabēv; Midrash Tehillim 2:9 [ed. Buber, 28]). On the ancient Syriac and Arabic versions of the words of the heavenly voice, see Shlomo Pines, “Gospel Quotations and Cognate Topics in ‘Abd Al-Jabbār’s Tathbīt in Relation to Early Christian and Judaeo-Christian Readings and Traditions,” in The Collected Works of Shlomo Pines (5 vols.; Jerusalem: Magnes, 1979-1997), 4:389-472, esp. 404-406. ↩
• ^[154] See Marcus, The Way of the Lord, 51-53; Collins, 150 n. 95. ↩
• ^[155] See Dos Santos, 24. ↩
• ^[156] See Krister Stendahl, The School of St. Matthew and its Use of the Old Testament (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1968), 110; Gundry, The Use of the Old Testament in St. Matthew’s Gospel, 30; Marshall, “Son of God or Servant of Yahweh?” 333; Guelich, 1:34; Luz, 1:144. ↩
• ^[157] See Swete, 10; Taylor, 162; Turner, “A Textual Commentary on Mark I,” 152; Vermes, “Redemption and Genesis XXII,” 222. ↩
• ^[158] We regard the attempts to identify Akedah (Binding of Isaac) motifs other than the reference to Jesus as God’s beloved son in the account of Jesus’ baptism to be largely unsuccessful. For such attempts, see Robert J. Daly, “The Soteriological Significance of the Sacrifice of Isaac,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 39.1 (1977): 45-75, esp. 68-71; William R. Stenger, “The Baptism of Jesus and the Binding of Isaac: An Analysis of Mark 1:9-11,” in The Answers Lie Below: Essays in Honor of Lawrence Edmund Toombs (ed. Henry O. Thompson; Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1984), 331-347; idem, “The Baptism of Jesus: A Story Modeled on the Binding of Isaac,” Bible Review 1.3 (1985): 36-46. ↩
• ^[159] Despite frequent assertions to the contrary, ἀγαπητός never means “only” or “only child.” See John A. Lee, A History of New Testament Lexicography (New York: Peter Lang, 2003), 193-211. ↩
• ^[160] We must note, however, that Gen. 22:2 is not the only instance in which the LXX translators rendered יָחִיד (“only”) with ἀγαπητός. They did the same in Gen. 22:12, 16; Judg. 11:34; Jer. 6:26; Amos 8:10; Zech. 12:10. Meier (Marginal, 2:188 n. 26) observed that in each of these instances the verse describes a child that has recently died or is facing imminent death. Did this common trait have something to do with the LXX translators’ decision to render יָחִיד with ἀγαπητός? Elsewhere the LXX translators rendered יָחִיד more literally as μονογενής (monogenēs, “only”; Ps. 21[22]:21; 24[25]:16; 34[35]:17). ↩
• ^[161] Such a textual variant is easily understandable since it involves misreading a ד for a ח (or vice versa). The distinction between the two letters is a single downstroke of the pen. Moreover, both readings, יְחִידְךָ (“your only one”) and יְדִידְךָ (“your beloved one”), make sense, but are also somewhat awkward in the context of Gen. 22:2. “Only” is awkward because Abraham, in fact, had two sons, Ishmael and Isaac. Nevertheless, “only” is justifiable because both Ishmael and Isaac were the only sons of their respective mothers. “Beloved” makes sense because Abraham did, of course, love Isaac. On the other hand, “your beloved son whom you love” is somewhat redundant, although less so in Hebrew than in Greek or English. ↩
• ^[162] No witnesses to Gen. 22:2 have survived among the biblical MSS from Qumran. ↩
• ^[163] See James C. VanderKam, Jubilees: A Commentary (2 vols.; Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2018), 1:568-569. ↩
• ^[164] See James C. VanderKam, Textual and Historical Studies in the Book of Jubilees (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1977), 113-116; idem, The Aqedah, Jubilees, and PseudoJubilees,” in The Quest for Context and Meaning: Studies in Biblical Intertextuality in honor of James A. Sanders (ed. Craig A. Evans and Shemaryahu Talmon; Leiden: Brill, 1997), 241-261, esp. 256. ↩
• ^[165] Flusser and Safrai adduced arguments in favor of identifying the “beloved” who was sanctified from the womb as Abraham. See David Flusser and Shmuel Safrai, “Who Sanctified the Beloved in the Womb,” Immanuel (1980): 46-55, esp. 53-54. ↩
• ^[166] Rashi, commenting on b. Shab. 137b, identified the “beloved” who was sanctified from the womb as Isaac, citing Gen. 22:2 as a prooftext. ↩
• ^[167] In post-biblical Jewish sources, however, Abraham is called יָדִיד. See Ginzberg, 1:168 n. 4. ↩
• ^[168] See Jastrow, 564. ↩
• ^[169] See Vermes, “Redemption and Genesis XXII,” 223-224. ↩
• ^[170] See Gen. Rab. 56:4 (ed. Theodor-Albeck, 2:599). ↩
• ^[171] There is another connection between the words of the heavenly voice at Jesus’ baptism and the pronouncements of John the Baptist in the Fourth Gospel. Having identified Jesus as the “lamb of God” (John 1:29), and having described the dove-like descent of the Spirit upon Jesus (John 1:32), John the Baptist declares Jesus to be the “Son of God” or, according to some MSS, the “Chosen one of God” (John 1:34). Whichever variant is original, John’s declaration betrays further knowledge of the heavenly voice: “Son of God” would be an interpretation of “You are my son” and a recognition of the allusion to Ps. 2:7; “Chosen of God” would be a recognition of the allusion to Isa. 42:1. On the textual variants in John 1:34, see Brown, 1:57. ↩
• ^[172] Text according to R. H. Charles, ed., The Greek Versions of the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (Oxford: Clarendon, 1908), 62-63. Charles placed the words ἐν τῷ ὕδατι (en tō hūdati, “in the water”) in brackets because he attributed them to a Christian redactor who alluded to the baptism of Jesus, but it is more likely that the entire passage was composed under the influence of the Gospel baptism accounts. See M. de Jonge, “Christian Influence in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs,” Novum Testamentum 4.3 (1960): 182-235, esp. 204, 207; Nolland, Luke, 1:160. ↩
• ^[173] See Flusser, Jesus, 41. ↩
• ^[174] See Hatch-Redpath, 1:569. ↩
• ^[175] See Shlomo Pines, The Jewish Christians of the Early Centuries of Christianity According to a New Source (Jerusalem: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 1966), 63. ↩
• ^[176] See Franz Delitzsch, The Prophecies of Isaiah (2 vols.; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1890), 2:166. ↩
• ^[177] We should note in this context a Jewish tradition according to which a bat kol reassured Abraham that Isaac’s sacrifice had indeed been accepted:

  ויבא אברהם לספוד לשרה ולבכתה. ומהיכן בא, ר′ יהודה בר′ סימון אמ′ מהר המוריה בא. והיה אברהם מהרהר בלבו ואמ′ שמא חס ושלום נמצא בו פסול ולא נתקבל קרבני ממני, יצתה בת קול ואמרה לו לך אכול בשמחה לחמך

  And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her [Gen. 23:2]. And where did Abraham come from? Rabbi Yehudah said in the name of Rabbi Simon, “He came from Mount Moriah. Abraham was having anxious thoughts in his heart and he said, 'Perhaps—Heaven forbid!—a disqualifying blemish was found in him [i.e., Isaac—DNB and JNT] and my sacrifice has not been accepted from me.' The sound of a voice went out and said to him, Go! Eat your bread in happiness [Eccl. 9:7]." (Lev. Rab. 20:1 [ed. Margulies, 1:449])

  ↩

• ^[178] On possible connections between Isaac and the Servant of the LORD in ancient Jewish sources, see Vermes, “Redemption and Genesis XXII,” 202-203. ↩
• ^[179]

  Yeshua’s Immersion
  Luke’s Version		Anthology’s Wording (Reconstructed)
  ἐγένετο δὲ ἐν τῷ βαπτισθῆναι ἅπαντα τὸν λαὸν καὶ Ἰησοῦ βαπτισθέντος καὶ προσευχομένου ἀνεῳχθῆναι τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ καταβῆναι τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον σωματικῷ εἴδει ὡς περιστερὰν ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν καὶ φωνὴν ἐξ οὐρανοῦ γενέσθαι σὺ εἶ ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός ἐν σοὶ εὐδόκησα		καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις ἦλθεν Ἰησοῦς [ἀπὸ Ναζαρὲτ τῆς Γαλιλαίας] ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰορδάνην πρὸς Ἰωάννην τοῦ βαπτισθῆναι βαπτισθεὶς δὲ Ἰησοῦς ἀνέβη ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατος καὶ ἰδοὺ ἠνεῴχθησαν οἱ οὐρανοί καὶ πνεῦμα θεοῦ ὡς περιστερὰν ἦλθεν ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν καὶ ἰδοὺ φωνὴ ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν λέγουσα σὺ εἶ ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός [μου] ἐν σοὶ εὐδόκησα
  Total Words:	43	Total Words:	52 [57]
  Total Words Identical to Anth.:	20	Total Words Taken Over in Luke:	20
  Percentage Identical to Anth.:	46.51%	Percentage of Anth. Represented in Luke:	36.36 [35.09]%

  ↩

• ^[180]

  Yeshua’s Immersion
  Mark’s Version		Anthology’s Wording (Reconstructed)
  ἐγένετο ἐν ἐκείναις ταῖς ἡμέραις ἦλθεν Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ Ναζαρὲτ τῆς Γαλιλαίας καὶ ἐβαπτίσθη εἰς τὸν Ἰορδάνην ὑπὸ Ἰωάνου καὶ εὐθὺς ἀναβαίνων ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατος εἶδεν σχιζομένους τοὺς οὐρανοὺς καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα ὡς περιστερὰν καταβαῖνον εἰς αὐτόν καὶ φωνὴ ἐγένετο ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν σὺ εἶ ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός ἐν σοὶ εὐδόκησα		καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις ἦλθεν Ἰησοῦς [ἀπὸ Ναζαρὲτ τῆς Γαλιλαίας] ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰορδάνην πρὸς Ἰωάννην τοῦ βαπτισθῆναι βαπτισθεὶς δὲ Ἰησοῦς ἀνέβη ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατος καὶ ἰδοὺ ἠνεῴχθησαν οἱ οὐρανοί καὶ πνεῦμα θεοῦ ὡς περιστερὰν ἦλθεν ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν καὶ ἰδοὺ φωνὴ ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν λέγουσα σὺ εἶ ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός [μου] ἐν σοὶ εὐδόκησα
  Total Words:	52	Total Words:	52 [57]
  Total Words Identical to Anth.:	32 [36]	Total Words Taken Over in Mark:	32 [36]
  Percentage Identical to Anth.:	61.54 [69.23]%	Percentage of Anth. Represented in Mark:	61.54 [63.16]%

  ↩

• ^[181] Cf. Marshall, 150, where he concludes that Mark’s account of Jesus’ baptism must have been remarkably similar to Q’s. ↩
• ^[182]

  Yeshua’s Immersion
  Matthew’s Version		Anthology’s Wording (Reconstructed)
  τότε παραγείνεται ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλειλαίας ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰορδάνην πρὸς τὸν Ἰωάνην τοῦ βαπτισθῆναι ὑπ᾿ αὐτοῦ ὁ δὲ διεκώλυεν αὐτὸν λέγων ἐγὼ χρείαν ἔχω ὑπὸ σοῦ βαπτισθῆναι καὶ σὺ ἔρχῃ πρός με ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτῷ ἄφες ἄρτι οὕτω γὰρ πρέπον ἐστὶν ἡμῖν πληρῶσαι πᾶσαν δικαιοσύνην τότε ἀφίησιν αὐτόν βαπτισθεὶς δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εὐθὺς ἀνέβη ἀπὸ τοῦ ὕδατος καὶ ἰδοὺ ἠνεῴχθησαν οἱ οὐρανοί καὶ εἶδεν πνεῦμα θεοῦ καταβαῖνον ὡσεὶ περιστερὰν ἐρχόμενον ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν καὶ ἰδοὺ φωνὴ ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν λέγουσα οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός ἐν ᾧ εὐδόκησα		καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις ἦλθεν Ἰησοῦς [ἀπὸ Ναζαρὲτ τῆς Γαλιλαίας] ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰορδάνην πρὸς Ἰωάννην τοῦ βαπτισθῆναι βαπτισθεὶς δὲ Ἰησοῦς ἀνέβη ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατος καὶ ἰδοὺ ἠνεῴχθησαν οἱ οὐρανοί καὶ πνεῦμα θεοῦ ὡς περιστερὰν ἦλθεν ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν καὶ ἰδοὺ φωνὴ ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν λέγουσα σὺ εἶ ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός [μου] ἐν σοὶ εὐδόκησα
  Total Words:	93	Total Words:	52 [57]
  Total Words Identical to Anth.:	39 [42]	Total Words Taken Over in Matt:	39 [42]
  Percentage Identical to Anth.:	41.94 [45.16]%	Percentage of Anth. Represented in Matt.:	75.00 [73.68]%

  ↩

• ^[183] See the discussion in Meier, Marginal, 2:113-115. ↩
• ^[184] For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.’” ↩
• ^[185] This translation is a dynamic rendition of our reconstruction of the conjectured Hebrew source that stands behind the Greek of the Synoptic Gospels. It is not a translation of the Greek text of a canonical source. ↩