Nevertheless, this is exactly the course we will pursue in finding the most cogent explanation for Paul’s enigmatic words.
How Long Was Jesus in the Tomb?
The enigmatic “in the lightening to one of sabbath” derives from the beautiful Hebrew idiom, אור לאחד בשבת (or le’eḥad bashabāt, “light to one of the week”).
Mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven
Matt. 13:11-15; Mark 4:11-12; Luke 8:10 (Huck 91; Aland 123; Crook 145)For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.'” Updated: 12 November 2021
וַיֹּאמֶר לָכֶם נִתַּן לָדַעַת אֶת רָזֵי מַלְכוּת שָׁמַיִם וְלִשְׁאָר בִּמְשָׁלִים כִּי רָאוֹ לֹא רָאוּ וְשָׁמוֹעַ לֹא שָׁמְעוּ וְלֹא הֵבִינוּ
Then Yeshua said to his emissaries: “God has permitted you to experience the mysteries the Kingdom of Heaven had in store. But until now those mysteries were only hinted at through the symbolic language of the prophets, for ‘no eye could see, and no ear could hear, and no heart could understand’ beforehand the full scope of redemption the Kingdom of Heaven would bring.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.
Sign-Seeking Generation
Despite these common features, it is unlikely that the two pericopae were originally adjacent to one another, for whereas Sign-Seeking Generation deals with signs and the enigmatic figure of the Son of Man, Generations That Repented Long Ago describes eschatological events including the resurrection of the dead and the final judgment.
The Hebrew Life of Jesus
With respect to the enigmatic title, “son of man,” four points should be made:
- The expression ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου (ho huios tou anthrōpou, “the son of the man”) was annoying to Greek ears, for we never find this title outside the Gospels and Acts.
From Ezekiel 17:24 and 21:3 to Luke 23:31: A Survey of the Connecting Jewish Tradition
Introduction
Material from Ezekiel 17:24, and more often 21:3 (20:47 in the English Bible) has often been cited as the source of Jesus’ saying in Luke 23:31, “If they do this when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?” Other commentators have questioned this assumption. If the material was borrowed from Ezekiel, however, was it borrowed directly or was it sifted through hundreds of years of usage, only to find its way into the mouth of Jesus?
When addressing these questions, it becomes immediately apparent that despite the numerous interpretations offered, there has been no attempt to gather all the pertinent sources together. Nor has there been any attempt to offer anything resembling a comprehensive analysis of all the relevant material.
LOY Excursus: Mark’s Editorial Style
Revised: 9 November 2022Revised with the assistance of Joshua N.
Choosing the Twelve
Matt. 10:2-4; Mark 3:13-19; Luke 6:12-16; Acts 1:13 (Huck 72; Aland 49; Crook 72, 103)For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.'” Updated: 20 January 2023
וַיְהִי בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם וַיִּקְרָא לְתַלְמִידָיו וַיִּבְחַר מֵהֶם שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה שְׁלִיחִים שִׁמְעוֹן פֶּטְרוֹס וְאַנְדְּרַיי אָחִיו וְיַעֲקֹב וְיוֹחָנָן וּפְלִיפּוֹס וּבַר תַּלְמַי וּמַתַּי וְתוֹמָה וְיַעֲקֹב בֶּן חַלְפִי וְשִׁמְעוֹן הַקַּנַּאי וִיהוּדָה בֶן יַעֲקֹב וִיהוּדָה אִישׁ קְרִיּוֹת שֶׁהָיָה מָסוֹר
And in those days Yeshua called his disciples together and chose twelve of them to be his emissaries to Israel. Their names were Shimon Petros and Andrai (his brother), Yaakov, Yohanan, Pelipos, Talmai’s son, Matai, Tomah, Yaakov Halfi’s son, zealous Shimon, Yehudah Yaakov’s son, and Yehudah from Keriyot, who was a traitor.
Yeshua’s Discourse on Worry
Matt. 6:25-34; Luke 12:22-31
(Huck 35, 157; Aland 67, 201; Crook 49, 236)For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.'”… According to Lindsey, the Miryam and Marta story (Luke 10:38-42) was the narrative introduction of a teaching complex that included not only Yeshua’s Discourse on Worry (Matt. 6:25-34 ∥ Luke 12:22-31), but also the Rich Fool parable (Luke 12:16-21) and the Rich Man and Lazar parable (Luke 16:19-31), which he regarded as twin illustrations…. In support of his reconstruction, Lindsey noted that Jesus stated that Martha was “worried” about many things (Luke 10:41), which corresponds to Jesus’ instruction “Do not worry” in Yeshua’s Discourse on Worry (Matt. 6:25 ∥ Luke 12:22)See Lindsey, JRL, 101.Lindsey also believed that the description of the birds that do not store in barns (Matt. 6:26; cf. … Moreover, Lindsey found his reconstruction to be satisfying because it supplied the identity of the mysterious “one thing is needed” (Luke 10:42), namely, “Seek first the Kingdom of God” (Matt. 6:33 ∥ Luke 12:31).
Yeshua’s Immersion
— wp:heading {“textAlign”:”center”,”level”:3} –> Matt. 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22
The Names of Jerusalem in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts
— wp:paragraph {“dropCap”:true} –>
There are two main designations for the spiritual center of the Jewish world in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts;In addition, the Gospel of Matthew twice refers to Jerusalem not by name but as ἡ ἁγία πόλις (hē hagia polis, “the holy city”; Matt. 4:5; 27:53).
Withered Fig Tree
Matt. 21:18-20; Mark 11:12-14, 20-21 (Huck 199, 201; Aland 272, 275; Crook 308, 310)For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.'”
Fathers Give Good Gifts Simile
Matt. 7:9-11; Luke 11:11-13 (Huck 38, 148; Aland 70, 187; Crook 53, 212)For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.'” Revised: 6 February 2023
וּמִי בָּכֶם אָדָם שֶׁיִּשְׁאַל בְּנוֹ לֶחֶם וְאֶבֶן יִתֵּן לוֹ אוֹ שֶׁיִּשְׁאַל דָּג וְנָחָשׁ יִתֵּן לוֹ אוֹ שֶׁיִּשְׁאַל בֵּיצָה וְעַקְרָב יִתֵּן לוֹ לְפִיכָךְ אִם אַתֶּם שֶׁרָעִים יְדַעְתֶּם לִיתֵּן מַתָּנוֹת טוֹבוֹת לְיַלְדֵיכֶם עַל אַחַת כַּמָּה וְכַמָּה אֲבִיכֶם שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם שֶׁיִּתֵּן טוֹבוֹת לַשּׁוֹאֲלִים מִמֶּנּוּ
“Now what father is there among you who, when his son asks for bread, would give him a rock instead? Or if he asks for a fish, would give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, would give him a scorpion? Not a single one of you!
Lost Sheep and Lost Coin Similes
Matt. 18:10-14; Luke 15:3-10 (Huck 133, 172; Aland 169, 219, 220; Crook 188, 265, 266)For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.'” Updated: 13 September 2022
וַיִּמְשׁוֹל לָהֶם אֶת הַמָּשָׁל הַזֶּה לֵאמֹר מִי אָדָם בָּכֶם שֶׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ מֵאָה צֹאן וְנִדַּחַת אַחַת מֵהֶן הֲלֹא יַנִּיחַ אֶת הַתִּשְׁעִים וְתִשְׁעָה עַל הֶהָרִים וְיֵלֵךְ וִיבַקֵּשׁ אֶת הָאֹבֶדֶת עַד שֶׁיִּמְצָא אֹתָה וּכְשֶׁהוּא מוֹצֵא אֹתָה שָׂם עַל כְּתֵפוֹ בְּשִׂמְחָה וּבָא לְבֵיתוֹ וְקֹרֵא לְאוֹהֲבָיו וְלִקְרוֹבָיו לוֹמַר לָהֶם שִׂמְחוּ עִמִּי שֶׁמָּצָאתִי אֶת הַשֶּׂה שֶׁלִּי הָאֹבֶדֶת אָמֵן אֲנִי אֹמֵר לָכֶם כָּךְ יֵשׁ שִׂמְחָה בַּשָּׁמַיִם עַל רָשָׁע אֶחָד שֶׁעֹשֶׂה תְּשׁוּבָה מֵעַל תִּשְׁעִים וְתִשְׁעָה צַדִּיקִים שֶׁאֵין לָהֶם צוֹרֶךְ בִּתְשׁוּבָה
וּמִי אִישָׁה שֶׁיֵּשׁ לָה עֲשָׂרָה דִּינָרִים וְהִיא מְאַבֶּדֶת דִּינָר אֶחָד הֲלֹא תַּדְלִיק נֵר וּתְכַבֵּד אֶת הַבַּיִת וּתְבַקֵּשׁ עַד שֶׁתִּמְצָא אֹתוֹ וּכְשֶׁהִיא מֹצֵאת אֹתוֹ קֹרֵאת לְאוֹהֲבוֹתֶיהָ וְלִקְרוֹבוֹתֶיהָ לוֹמַר לָהֶן שְׂמַחְנָה עִמִּי שֶׁמָּצָאתִי אֶת הַדִּינָר שֶׁאִבַּדְתִּי אָמֵן אֲנִי אֹמֵר לָכֶם כָּךְ יֵשׁ שִׂמְחָה לִפְנֵי מַלְאֲכֵי שָׁמַיִם עַל רָשָׁע אֶחָד שֶׁעֹשֶׂה תְּשׁוּבָה
Then Yeshua told them this parable: “Imagine you have a hundred sheep and one of them strays from the flock. Won’t you leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go search for the one that got lost until you’ve found it? And when you’ve finally found it, won’t you carry it home on your shoulders and invite all your nearest and dearest and tell them: ‘Come celebrate with me! I’ve found my missing sheep!’?
A Voice Crying
— wp:heading {“textAlign”:”center”,”level”:3} –> Matt. 3:1-6; Mark 1:1-6; Luke 3:1-7a
Yohanan the Immerser’s Execution
Matt. 14:3-12; Mark 6:17-29; Luke 3:18-20 (Huck 5, 111; Aland 17, 144; Crook 20, 164)For abbreviations and bibliographical references, see “Introduction to ‘The Life of Yeshua: A Suggested Reconstruction.'” Updated: 4 May 2023