The Book of Revelation’s Structure

April 9, 2024April 9, 2024 / josephrgreene / 1 Comment

In the midst of an earthquake and eclipse in the Northeast United States, I was preparing to teach the book of Revelation for a New Testament Survey course. My preparations put these unusual phenomenon in their proper perspective. For one, John’s Apocalypse describes world-wide, end of time, events. Despite what residents of the Northeast U.S. might think, we are not the center of the world or history – especially salvation history. Most Christians today live in the global South and Revelation doesn’t even mention the United States. Second, the book of Revelation is cyclical, so the signs of the end-times will be things that have happened before and will follow patterns of intensification. The tribulations, disasters, and signs that it describes are drawn from Old Testament imagery. Revelation looks forward AND backwards to encourage people in the present to persevere in their faith. We often get lost in the strange details of Revelation and miss out on the stabilizing sovereignty of God featured in the book’s storyline. For this reason, an overall structural outline of Revelation is both needed and helpful.

In my opinion, Craig Koester has developed one of the best graphic outlines of Revelation’s cyclical structure (Revelation and the End of All Things, Eerdmans, 2018, pg 42–43). Scholars can’t seem to agree on an outline that accounts for all of Revelation’s quirks, twists, and turns, but Koester’s graphic accounts for several features of Revelation. Koester explains, “An outline of the book looks like a spiral, with each loop consisting of a series of visions: seven messages to the churches (Rev. 1–3), seven seals (Rev. 4–7), seven trumpets (Rev. 8–11), unnumbered visions (Rev. 12–15), seven plagues (Rev. 15–19), and more unnumbered visions (Rev. 19–22). Visions celebrating the triumph of God occur at the end of each cycle (4:1–11; 7:1–17; 11:15–19; 15:1–4; 19:1–10; 21:1–22:5). Those who read Revelation as a whole encounter visions that alternately threaten and assure them. With increasing intensity the visions at the bottom of the spiral threaten the readers’ sense of security by confronting them with horsemen that represent conquest, violence, hardship, and death; by portents in heaven, earth, and sea; and by seemingly insuperable adversaries who oppose those who worship God and Christ. Nevertheless, each time the clamor of conflict becomes unbearable, readers are transported into the presence of God, the Lamb, and the heavenly chorus. These visions appear at the top of the spiral. Threatening visions and assuring visions function differently, but they serve the same end, which is that readers might continue to trust in God and remain faithful to God.”

I have interwoven Koester’s explanation onto his spiral graphic to show how it works as a general outline. Too often in Revelation, we “can’t see the forest for the trees.” All of the strange details and symbols draw our focus away from the big picture. Therefore, keeping a big picture (or graph in this case) in view can help us follow the main themes and story line. Most of Revelation’s content, themes, and literary structure fit into this outline (although no outline is perfect). Many scholars note Revelation’s visions have patterns of sevens (a number that symbolizes universality or completion) that overlap and repeat earlier material while still advancing towards a finale. Each cycle spirals down into tribulation on the earth followed by a glimpse into heaven to show the sovereign God/Christ moving events towards victory. This patterned presentation, when coupled with frequent Old Testament allusions and symbols, doesn’t just look forward; it looks back to the history of God’s people oppressed and tempted by evil powers. Babylon pursued and persecuted the Israelites of old, and a new Babylon (Rome in John’s day) seeks to destroy and tempt God’s people. The sovereign Lord reigns over all of history; this includes the history of the suffering saints addressed in Revelation’s first three chapters. Yes, there will be eclipses, earthquakes, diseases, and war. God’s people will be persecuted. These patterns were present in Israel’s day, in John’s day, and in our day. However, all these patterns will one day culminate in the final judgment and redemption when Christ returns. Believers don’t know when that day will be; but it is sooner than it was when Revelation was written. The sovereign God of the universe, and the Lamb who was slain for our redemption, directs history. Even when the world is in great upheaval, God’s people have a secure place in Christ. For this reason, Revelation’s call to persevere in the faith is timeless and bigger than the events of our day. At the end of Revelation, Jesus reminds us: “Behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” (Rev 22:7).

An updated table arranging the New Testament books according to the date of composition.

February 9, 2024February 23, 2024 / josephrgreene / 1 Comment

This blog’s all-time most read post (found here ) contains a table arranging the New Testament (NT) books according to the date they were written. As I have been preparing a NT survey course, I felt the need to slightly update the chart. One such update concerns the Epistle of James. In my first chart, I underestimated the number of conservative scholars who consider James to be the first NT book written. For instance, Carson & Moo’s Introduction to the NT, Dan McCartney’s BECNT commentary, as well as Blomberg & Kamell’s ZECNT commentary suggest that James was written in the mid to late 40s.

The other changes are adjustments to the dates (and therefore their order in the table) that reflect a broader survey in my own reading. Below, I also reproduce the introduction to my original 2018 post.

_______________________________________________________________

Our modern New Testaments are not arranged chronologically, which sometimes causes misunderstandings. While the Gospels discuss the events of Jesus’ life (the crucifixion took place in 30 or 33 A.D.), the earliest Gospel probably was written down about 60. The Apostle Paul wrote many of his letters before the Gospels. This historical perspective is helpful when assessing arguments over material that some scholars may deem a “later theological development” in the early church. For example the “kenotic hymn” of Philippians 2 exhibits a very high view of Christ, despite Paul most likely writing Philippians before the Gospel writers completed their writings. Note the exalted status afforded to Christ:

Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Philippians 2:5-8 (NAU)

Some scholars believe these verses were a pre-existing hymn that Paul incorporated into his letter. If this theory is correct, then the high view of Christ can be traced to an even earlier time. Arguments, therefore, that assume a high view of Christ (i.e. his divinity) always reflects a later church development contain an invalid presupposition.

The table below arranges the NT books by their likely date of composition. Most NT books are difficult to date with precision, which is why discussions about dating can often be lengthy and still not definitive. The dating of the various writings depends on views of authorship, so I have included two columns of dates. The books are listed chronologically, according to their more conservative dating, but the right hand column provides dates from a more skeptical view. Of course, these dates are further debated within their respective “conservative” and “skeptical” camps, but I have tried to give the most common views from my own subjective survey of the data. For the most part, I have disregarded the “outliers” of either camp. I hope readers find the following table helpful.

Earlier, more conservative dating	NT Book (Listed by date of Composition)	Later, more skeptical dating
45-60	James	70-100
48-Late 50s	Galatians	50s
Early 50s	1 Thessalonians	Early 50s
Early 50s	2 Thessalonians	Early 50s (later if forged)
Mid 50s	1 Corinthians	Mid 50s
Mid 50s	2 Corinthians	Mid 50s
Approximately 57	Romans	Approximately 57
Early 60s	Philemon	60s
Early 60s	Philippians	60s
Early 60s	Colossians	Early 60s (70-90 if forged)
Early 60s	Ephesians	70-90
Early 60s	1 Timothy	90-110
Early 60s	1 Peter	70-100
60s	Gospel of Mark	Late 60s-70s
Mid 60s	Titus	90-110
Mid 60s	2 Timothy	90-110
Mid 60s	2 Peter	90-110
Late 60s	Hebrews	60-95
Late 60s	Gospel of Matthew	80-100
Late 60s-80	Gospel of Luke	80-100
Late 60s-80s	Acts	85-130
60-80	Jude	80-110
80-90	Gospel of John	Approximately 100
Early 90s	1 John	100-125
Early 90s	2 John	100-125
Early 90s	3 John	100-125
Late 60s or mid 90s	Revelation	100-125

Wisdom Smarts. Ecclesiastes 1:12-18

October 27, 2023October 27, 2023 / josephrgreene / Leave a comment

If ignorance is bliss, wisdom can sometimes be painful. Often wisdom smarts, it hurts, it makes us say, “I wish you hadn’t told me that.” It is like a confused father trying to figure out why the sink won’t drain, only for his son to announce: “I put marbles in it!” Despite finding the answer, the father thinks, “I wish you hadn’t told me that.” Knowledge often brings grief with it. As we continue our journey through the book of Ecclesiastes the writer of Ecclesiastes observes that adding wisdom usually adds pain. The writer makes this observation in the context of observing and testing out the things of life to see what benefit they have apart from God.

Last post I began this series in the book of Ecclesiastes. For those not familiar with this Old Testament book, it is found right after the book of Proverbs. (Click here for a helpful video overview from the Bible project). Ecclesiastes addresses the human condition with all its limitations and frustrations. Despite Ecclesiastes being a part of the wisdom tradition, the writer expresses the frustration that finding wisdom often means finding sorrow. Today’s post covers Ecclesiastes 1:12-18:

12 I the Preacher have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. 14 I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.15 What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is lacking cannot be counted. 16 I said in my heart, “I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.” 17 And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a striving after wind.18 For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.
Ecclesiastes 1:12-18 (ESV)

In verse 13 the writer tells us about his “life experiment” of observing and testing out the things of life to see what benefit they have apart from God: “I set my mind to seek and explore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven.” In the rest of the book, the writer reports on his findings from this life experiment. He explains what he learned through the wisdom of observation and experimentation concerning life on earth apart from God. His general conclusion, which is repeated throughout the book is in v. 14: “I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind.” Without God the things of this life are “vanity” (Hevel in Hebrew) and understanding that vanity is the path of wisdom. Hevel/vanity does not refer to “conceit” but to the fleeting quality of life. The things of life are fleeting like vapor or smoke. Previously (1:9) the writer observed that there was nothing really new under the sun. In these verses the writer observes some things about wisdom itself–the very wisdom he is using to observe and experiment on life. He notes in verse 16: “I said to myself, ‘Behold, I have magnified and increased wisdom more than all who were over Jerusalem before me; and my mind has observed a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.‘” The writer got all the wisdom he could. A modern quip is that some drink deeply at the fount of knowledge, but others just gargle. Well, the writer of Ecclesiastes drank deeply.

As a part of the wisdom literature, one would expect Ecclesiastes to say that achieving such wisdom was wonderful. Instead, the writer’s assessment of having attained great wisdom: “I set my mind to know wisdom and to know madness and folly; I realized that this also is striving after wind.” Apart from God, all the wisdom in the world is futile. The writer suggests 3 reasons why.

1) You may know something, but not be able to do anything about it. This problem is alluded to in verse 15: “What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted.” You may know how to count money, but what good does it do, if you don’t have any money to count? You may know all about diseases so you can live longer through prevention, but all that wisdom can not stop the eventuality of death itself. Living wisely is to be preferred, but apart from God all that learning and wisdom ends when you do. Ecclesiastes acknowledges the disconnect between knowing something and actually being able to do something significant with that knowledge. Often times wisdom gives you enough understanding to realize that there are some things you can’t do anything about. This truth is expressed in the famous “serenity prayer”: God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, the courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

2)The second reason that wisdom apart from God is futile: true wisdom will teach you that the more you know–the more you don’t know. After being in school of one kind or another for almost 25 years I understand now, better than ever before, that there is so much I don’t know. There is a wisdom in understanding human smallness, and how the world is so much bigger than what our little minds can get around. These limitations should not keep us from trying to figure things out, rather we should realize that just because our minds can’t understand something doesn’t mean it is not true. In fact the more we understand the world, the more we see all the things that are beyond our capacity to know. Even the most wise people in the world are totally ignorant in some things. You can be an expert in nuclear physics but still be clueless about how people work. Without God, this human limitation makes wisdom seem like chasing after wind. I’ll always not know more than I do know. However, when God is involved, not being able to understand everything is reassuring–the world is bigger and more wonderful than my little mind. Without God, the limitation of human knowledge is frustratingly futile.

3) The final reason that the writer gives for the vanity of wisdom is found in verse 18: “Because in much wisdom there is much grief, and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain.” Adding understanding adds pain. As the writer of Ecclesiastes observed life, he discovered the other side of the modern proverb, “Ignorance is bliss.” That proverb is somewhat misleading because that blissful ignorance often is temporary. Despite our ignorance, the reality is still there and eventually it will have to be dealt with. I may be happily driving along ignorant of the fact that my car is slowly leaking oil, but that bliss won’t last too long. The increasing pain from the increasing mechanic’s bill will correspond to my increased wisdom of car care. Then, once I have the wisdom, I now have the responsibility to use that knowledge and check and change the oil. All that responsibility can be a painful choir, so one way or another adding understanding adds pain.

Even in God’s economy, when you increase in wisdom, you increase the pains of responsibility. Those pains can be a blessing when done for love of God and love of people. Conversely those pains can be the weight of a neglected responsibility bearing down upon you. The more privileges and resources we have, the more responsibility we have to use those things wisely. With that blessing of wisdom (or any other thing) is the “grief” of being responsible for that blessing. In Luke 12:48, Jesus said, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.” Every person is responsible for what they have. If you have great wisdom, you have a great responsibility- a greater “pain”. James 3:1 points out that those with knowledge will be held accountable for that knowledge: “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.”

The added pain of wisdom can be either a negative or a positive. The pain can be on the path to destruction, or the pain may be a “growing pain”. Apart from God, even growing pains ultimately die off, which is why wisdom is described as vanity and chasing after the wind. With God, the added pain of added wisdom can be an avenue of growth. One example of “growing pains” is when we increase understanding of a certain person or situation. That knowledge can increase our own pain. When you enter a hurting person’s world with a real desire to understand them and their situation, you will feel their hurts. You will bear their burdens. As Christians, we have that mandate to bear one another’s burdens, which will increase our own pain.

Of course it is easier to keep people at an arm’s length. Although we won’t understand them or their situation as well, we won’t get hurt either. We know that increased understanding increases our own pain, so we selfishly choose the pain free path – which brings stagnation. As Christians we must accept that increasing wisdom increases pain, but that is the path our Savior took. We are called to this path of pain/wisdom because we are not just working towards a vain understanding and growth that is bound to the earth, but we are striving towards an eternal wisdom that God makes possible. In so doing, we become more like the one who is eternally wise, the one who bore our sorrows and our afflictions and our pains, Jesus Christ.

With God, the increased pain of gaining wisdom is the path of growth and transformation. Without God, the increased pain of wisdom is futility. Like the writer of Ecclesiastes, do we discern that apart from God even wisdom is futile. The more we understand, the more we come face to face with the futility and absurdity of life without God. But don’t let that pain destroy you, let it compel you to seek out God who is the only one who can redeem the futility of life and wisdom. The writer of Ecclesiastes is so painfully blunt because the wisdom of life is a painful truth that we must deal with. But the good news is that the pains of increased wisdom can be growing pains- good pains when God is involved.

Sermons in Ecclesiastes: 1:1-11

October 1, 2023 / josephrgreene / 1 Comment

Since my pastoral work dominates my time these days, I thought I would depart from the academic content for a time and move into the more practical/devotional. Over the next several posts, I will share a sermon series in the book of Ecclesiastes. For those not familiar with this Old Testament book, it is found right after the book of Proverbs. (Click here for a helpful video overview from the Bible project). As you read along in the biblical text, you will encounter some provocative reading because Ecclesiastes addresses the human condition with all its limitations and frustrations. In light of the recent Covid 19 crisis, the war in Ukraine, and natural disasters, the truths of Ecclesiastes really hit home. Much of life is out of control; life is precarious. In addressing the futility and toil of humanity, Ecclesiastes doesn’t do so with easy platitudes and fluffy religion. Instead of explaining away the frustrations of life, Ecclesiastes states the human condition and shakes us up so that we will live wisely and not just live in a comfortable stupor.

The book of Ecclesiastes holds a special place in my heart because God used it to shake up my life. When I was in college and sailing along in life, the words of this book shook me up, and continued to whisper to me, until I totally reassessed my life.

The book of Ecclesiastes is a part of the “wisdom literature” of the Old Testament. The Wisdom books also include Proverbs and Job. They look at life from a human perspective and how life plays out in this fallen world; they guide readers towards attaining a deep wisdom for living. Much of the wisdom literature is traditionally attributed to King Solomon because of his legacy as being the wisest king of Israel. Ecclesiastes is no different, and verse 1 seems to allude to Solomon: “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.” Despite the tradition, the book is technically anonymous since there were many kings who were a “son of David”. Moreover, verse 1 and the last few verses of the book also talk about “the preacher” in the third person. We hear 2 voices in the book, the preacher (maybe Solomon or another person)– who is a critic of simplistic religious formulations, and the author – who interprets the preachers word so that we are pushed toward God and not fatalism.

Read and contemplate Ecclesiastes 1:1-11.

The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity. 3 What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? 4 A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever. 5 The sun rises, and the sun goes down, and hastens to the place where it rises. 6 The wind blows to the south and goes around to the north; around and around goes the wind, and on its circuits the wind returns. 7 All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they flow again. 8 All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. 9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. 10 Is there a thing of which it is said, “See, this is new”? It has been already in the ages before us. 11 There is no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of later things yet to be among those who come after.
(ESV)

“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” This same saying is found in chapter 12 verse 8. It both marks off the teaching of the preacher and proclaims his main message or conclusion. The author then applies that conclusion to urge his listeners to live in the now and seek God. This is good guidance for us in these troubled times when the futility of life presses all around us.

“Vanity” here is not “vain” as in someone who is always looking in the mirror or that person who is so vain that they think this song is about them. “Vanity” here (hevel) can also be translated “Futility”. “Vanity” is one of the key words in this book, so it is important to understand what the writer means. The writer clarifies his meaning through a metaphor he often uses with the word “vanity”: “All is vanity and chasing after the wind.” Chasing after the wind is an absurd mental picture isn’t it? Chasing after the wind/mist/smoke is just chasing air, which you can’t catch it. Wind is just air moving and, in case you haven’t noticed, you already have air in your hand. A dog chasing after its own tail paints a similar picture of foolishness. Why does the dog want to catch its tail, and if it does, what does that change? The tail was attached to its body all along.

In the beginning and the end of Ecclesiastes, the speaker speaks this refrain that emphasizes the precarious nature of life. As we go through the book we will see how the author observed many things about life and came to the conclusion that many of the things that we think are so important are fleeting, that life itself can be futile, and humans are rather small in the grand scope of time. Understanding these things is the path to wisdom.

The 1^st observation that the writer makes about life (found in verses 3-11) is that history repeats itself. Life on this earth is the same old, same old, year after year. Verse 5 notes that the Sun rises every morning and sets every evening. The wind blows, then blows some more. Verse 7 adds that the rivers flow into the sea, but the sea never gets filled up, and yet the rivers just keep flowing. Whether we like it or not the earth keeps turning and turning.

In verse 8 the writer moves on to humanity. Just like the earth is the same old same old, so it is with humanity. We are not satisfied when we see something; we want to see more. Our ears are never filled; we always want to hear more. That is what human life on earth is like and always will be.

Things in life, just keep going with no foreseeable end. There is a wearisome repetition to life that reaches towards fulfillment and satisfaction but never seems to arrive. We think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, but when we get to the other side, we realize that this is nothing new or different. Verses 9-10 add, “What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there a thing of which it is said, ‘See, this is new?’ It has been already in the ages before us.”

This passage of scripture is so relevant to our current cultural climate. We are a people foolishly obsessed with newness and novelty. We always are striving to get the newest and latest thing. If something is new, we assume it must be better. Yet all the fads and trends that are hailed as new, come and go. Just when they are almost forgotten, they come back around again hailing themselves as new. Think of bell-bottom pants or the mullet hair cut as examples. Verse 11 states it well, “There is no remembrance of earlier things; And also of the later things which will occur, There will be for them no remembrance Among those who will come later still.”

When you read history books it is amazing to see the parallels between what happened in the Roman empire and what is happening in America today. History repeats itself because people don’t remember. We think the challenges and issues of our world are so different than at any other time in history, but they are not. Pandemics are not new. There was the Spanish flu of 1918 and the bubonic plagues of the middle ages. The same basic challenges of life existed long ago and will exist again. Every new generation arrogantly thinks they are somehow different, or better, or more challenged, but the continual march of history tends to trample those pretenses. A recognition of this fact leads to wisdom. This is what the writer of Ecclesiastes is driving at in this section of our scripture. Instead of arrogantly thinking that you are the only one to have ever had this problem or solution, instead of thinking that you or the group you are in is somehow extraordinary – Ecclesiastes says, “Not really. In the grand scope of history, it is all rather ordinary.” My son had a t-shirt that summed this up well– “You are unique, just like everyone else.”

Many read Ecclesiastes and think, “Man this book is a bummer. All this talk about life being vain. This section about the same old same old. I just want to curl up into a fetal position and not do anything.” If that your impression of Ecclesiastes, you have missed the point. This scripture is not intended to arrest your development and your life – but deepen your life and make it wiser.

What is the wisdom that we need to incorporate into life, and how do we go about doing that? 1) Newness is not the answer. It is futility to live your life waiting for the next new thing or person to come and change your life, because there is nothing new. Very few things will make much difference in the grand scheme of your life. God- he is eternal, and He is the only one who can make any real eternal difference at all. The only new life available is the new life that God offers through Jesus Christ. Romans 6:4 promises, “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.” Anything other than God passes like a morning vapor.

Some may object and say, “Well things are a lot different now than in Solomon’s day. We have airplanes and television. We have been to outer space, we have all sorts of medicines to cure illness. All of those things have changed life as we know it.” Have they though? Have they solved the deep problems of humanity? This indictment on nothing new does not mean that every little thing is exactly the same, it simply means in the grand scope of time, any new thing is really just a copy of something that has already been around. It means that any improvements are mere window dressing and don’t go to the heart of the matter. We have invented a vaccine for polio, we landed on the moon, we can talk to someone across the globe over the computer, but our short lives still end. Our memories and our accomplishments are forgotten; so has anything really changed that much? We still have the issues of life, relationships, death and eternity. There is nothing new that will solve these issues.

Certainly there are things in life that make a difference for the better or for worse, but when held up against the backdrop of eternity, it shows its own futility. So stop searching for something or someone of this earth to come and transform your life; that thinking is vanity. We think the grass is so much greener and newer on the other side of the fence. So what do we do? Husbands cheat on their wives thinking they just need something new and find out it didn’t solve the inner issue; it changed life for the worse. People purchase the new car or gadget thinking it will change their lives just like the commercials say – but it doesn’t. People spend their lives thinking if only I could do this, or if only I could have that, if only this happened, then I would have a meaningful life. The book of Ecclesiastes slaps such notions aside the head and bellows, “No, there is nothing new under the sun that will give you a life of meaning; it is futility.” What we need is something above the sun, the creator of the sun, of life, of meaning, truth, and real wisdom.

Make the choice today – Stop looking for something under the sun for the answers to life – that is futility. Go to the maker of the sun, the maker of meaning, the maker of all things new. Through Jesus Christ, God will make things new for you – He is the only one able to do that. Will we live in this wisdom that is found only in God, or will we spend our lives vainly seeking out some new answer, which is not really new at all?

The Spirit in John. Part 2 – The Spirit of Truth

July 7, 2023 / josephrgreene / Leave a comment

In the last post, “The Spirit in John’s Gospel. Part 1,” I discussed how John presented the Holy Spirit, paying close attention to his unique use of the term παρακλητος (sometimes semi-transliterated in English texts as “paraclete”). In today’s post I will examine the Fourth Gospel’s use of the term “The Spirit of truth”. Because John equates παρακλητος with the “Spirit of truth” (John 14:16–17; 15:26; 16:7, 13), one must look at both terms for a full accounting of John’s theology of the Spirit (so go read the previous post if you haven’t) .

Background to the term, “Spirit of truth” in the First-century: “Spirit of truth” appears in several Second Temple texts (Jubilees 25:14; Joseph & Aseneth. 19:11; Testament of Judah 20:1–5; 1QS 3:6–19; 4:18–25). At Qumran, a spirit of truth and a spirit of deceit are at odds within a person (1QS 3:17–19, also T. Jud. 20:1–5). However, this person-centered spirit of truth is not the only sense of the phrase in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The spirit of truth in Qumran carries a different nuance in 1QS 4:18–25. In this passage, the “spirit of truth” parallels the “spirit of holiness” as a cleansing agent in the last days (1QS 4:18–25), overriding the spirit of injustice within a person. In this one scroll then (1 QS), two concepts of “spirit of truth” coexist.[1] While both “spirit of truth”s may ultimately be from God (like all ruah), one is centered in people but the other comes directly from God. In this latter case, Qumran is similar to OT antecedents; the Spirit of truth is the Spirit from God who brings truth (or holiness).[2]

The divine sense for Spirit of truth is found in Joseph & Aseneth 19:11, wherein Joseph kisses Aseneth and gives her the “spirit of life.” He kisses her a second time and gives the “spirit of wisdom,” and then a third kiss gives her the “spirit of truth.” All three kisses seem to indicate giving the Spirit that brings life, wisdom, and truth. Although Joseph is imparting this spirit, it is the Spirit of the Hebrew God as Aseneth converts to Judaism.

John’s Use of the term “Spirit of truth”: From these extra-biblical writings, the “spirit of truth” seems to be a phrase with some flexibility, which makes it difficult to determine dependence. The Fourth Evangelist does not have the anthropologic sense in mind since he clearly links the Spirit of truth with the Paraclete (John 14:16–17; 15:26; 16:7, 13), who is himself identified as the Holy Spirit (John 14:26). The Spirit of truth in John holds the divine sense—the Spirit from God that brings truth.[3] This sense was not necessarily borrowed from Qumran or other texts, but was probably a part of common Jewish religious terminology and language.

By using the phrase “Spirit of truth,” John employs familiar terminology that advances and coheres with his previous presentation of the Spirit. In John’s, “of truth” probably functions as an objective genitive, “the spirit that conveys truth.”[4] In the first half of John’s Gospel, the Spirit is already portrayed as one who manifests the truth of the heavenly realm. As discussed in the previous post, eschatological worship will be “in Spirit and truth” (John 4:24) so that through the Spirit, worship will match the coming heavenly reality. This heavenly reality is itself “truth” that Jesus and the Spirit make available (John 1:17; 8:32; 14:6; 16:13). The Spirit also reveals (makes the truth known) Jesus’ identity to John the Baptist (John 1:33) and reveals the “words of God” to and through Jesus (John 3:34; 6:63).[5] Those who receive these words testify that “God is true” (John 3:33). The portrayal of the Spirit as the “Spirit of truth” builds off these previous concepts, but also leads into John’s more specific treatment of the Spirit/Paraclete in the Farewell Discourse (John 13:31-17:26) .

In the Farewell Discourse, one of the primary functions of the Spirit/Paraclete is to reveal and guide the disciples concerning truth (John 14:26; 15:26; 16:13–15), enabling them to testify to the truth/Jesus (Jesus is said to be the truth in the immediate pretext of 14:6).[6] In this sense, the “Spirit of truth” is similar to Jubilees 25:14, wherein the Spirit of truth is the Spirit of prophecy. The Fourth Evangelist goes further, in that revelation from God is but one gift from the Spirit. The Spirit brings spiritual rebirth (John 3:3–8) and renewed, eternal life (John 4:14; 6:63; 7:38). The Spirit also manifests the true heavenly presence (John 14:16–17). All of the above are Johannine examples of the Spirit manifesting heavenly truths on earth—these truths are more than revealed words.

Johannine pneumatology, therefore, cohesively presents the Spirit as the one who realizes heavenly realities to Jesus’ followers, followers who receive a “pneumatic assimilation to the heavenly realm.”[7] The realization of the heavenly realm on earth accords with eschatological hopes but with shifting imagery and varying terminology. The first half of John’s Gospel uses more cultic imagery to depict Jesus as the realization of the heavenly temple with the Spirit flowing from this messianic center. The second half of John’s Gospel employs more personal imagery and the Spirit’s effect on the post-ascension community. The Spirit (as another paraclete, John 14:16) will continue to manifest Christ’s presence and bring Truth to the disciples. Both halves of the Gospel depict the Spirit’s role in realizing these blessings (whichever image or term is used) to those who believe in Jesus. The various terms for the Holy Spirit: Spirit, Spirit of truth, and παρακλητος all contribute to John’s overall presentation of the Holy Spirit.

End Notes

[1] The various meanings for “spirit” in the same Qumran text parallel John Levison’s findings (The Spirit in First Century Judaism [AGJU 29; Leiden: Brill, 1997], 238–244) for Philo, Josephus, and Pseudo-Philo. In the first century, authors seem comfortable using “spirit” with multiple meanings. As Levison notes, this fact helps explain the Fourth Evangelist’s unannounced shift to Paraclete terminology in the Farewell Discourse. The different presentations of the Spirit cause more difficulty for modern scholars than ancient readers who were accustomed to the flexible use of the term.

[2] While the phrase “spirit of truth” does not appear in the OT, all the elements exist for the Spirit of God to bring the truth of God. For instance, Ps 31:5 and Isa 65:6 refer to “God of truth,” and 2 Sam 7:28 states, “Your words are truth” (see also Ps 43:3; Dan 10:21).The eschatological vision of Zech 8:3 states that Jerusalem will be called “the city of truth.” The truth as a quality of God would naturally be brought by his Spirit. This idea would be similar to the “spirit of wisdom” (Exod 28:3; Deut 34:9), the Spirit who brings wisdom from God. Similarly, Isa 11:2 states, “The Spirit of Yahweh will rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of Yahweh.” All these qualities are brought by the Spirit of God. It is not a stretch for “truth” to be added to these qualities, a development reflected in Jos. Asen. 19:11, the DSS, and John’s Gospel. This divine Spirit of truth concept is shared by John and these other writings because they share a common religious milieu. See James Charlesworth, “A Critical Comparison of the Dualism in 1QS iii,13–iv,26 and the ‘Dualism’ Contained in the Fourth Gospel,” NTS 15 (1969): 389–418, who argues that John may have borrowed some terminology from Qumran but not its theology.

[3] Craig Keener, The Gospel of John. 2 vols. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 2003. 2:969–971.

[4] Andreas Köstenberger, A Theology of John’s Gospel and Letters. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009., 395, n. 216; Barclay Newman, “Translating ‘In Spirit and Truth’ and ‘The Spirit of Truth’ in the Gospel of John,” in A Translators Handbook on the Gospel of John. ed. Barclay Newman and Eugene Nida; New York: UBS, 1980. 655.

[5] The revelatory function of the Spirit and word in John is closely connected to the heavenly origin of the Spirit and the word he reveals. This point draws in Porsch’s emphasis on the Spirit’s revelatory function. Felix Porsch, Pneuma und Wort: Ein exegetischer Beitragzur Pneumatologie des Johannesevangeliums. FTS 16; Frankfurt: Knecht, 1974. 404–407.

[6]D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John. Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1991. 500.

[7] David Edward Aune, The Cultic Setting of Realized Eschatology in Early Christianity. NovTSup; Leiden: Brill, 1972, 105.

The Spirit in John’s Gospel. Part 1 -παρακλητος

May 29, 2023 / josephrgreene / 1 Comment

Studies in Johannine pneumatology gravitate toward the second half of John’s Gospel (a.k.a. “the Book of Glory”). The reason for this focus is that along with the much debated Greek term παρακλητος, John’s presentation of the Spirit becomes more detailed and explicit in the second half of the Gospel. More particularly, the Spirit passages (except John 20:22) are concentrated in the Farewell Discourse.

While the Farewell Discourse contains the clearest descriptions of the Spirit, these passages should not be read in isolation from previous material. “The Book of Signs” (roughly chapters 1-12) develops the Spirit concept (the Spirit marks what is of the heavenly realm and reveals Jesus’ identity) and anticipates the giving of the Spirit (John 1:34; 7:39). These previous concepts feed into the Spirit/Paraclete concept of the Farewell Discourse. Scholars who attempt to understand Johannine pneumatology apart from the Book of Signs, or by simply focusing on the meaning of παρακλητος, neglect the narrative flow of the Fourth Gospel.[1] Such neglect compromises the Fourth Evangelist’s own agenda and presentation. Because the Evangelist explicitly equates παρακλητος with the Holy Spirit (John 14:26), one should assume that the Evangelist wants his readers to understand the Spirit/Paraclete in light of the previous Spirit passages.[2] The presentation of the Spirit certainly undergoes a shift, and understanding that shift elucidates the Evangelist’s agenda.

The Book of Signs presents the Spirit as identifying that which is of the realm of God.[3] The Spirit remains on Jesus (John 1:33) without measure (John 3:34) thus marking Jesus’ messianic identity and heavenly origin. Simultaneously, the narrative looks forward to Jesus giving the Spirit (John 1:33) to anyone who thirsts (John 4:10; 7:37) as a realization of eschatological promises. The Spirit is centered upon Jesus and will flow from him. This forward-looking perspective views Jesus’ glorification as the climatic eschatological hour (John 12:23–27). When the Book of Glory shifts to the hour of Jesus’ glorification, the Spirit theme turns toward Jesus giving the Spirit and what reception of the Spirit means for the disciples. While specific Spirit passages will be analyzed later, some preliminary observations in the Book of Glory show these concerns.

Jesus’ giving of the Spirit depends upon his looming departure (John 14:26; 15:26; 16:7), so that the eschatological blessings come through tribulation (see John 16:20–24, where the pain/joy of the eschaton is compared to a mother in labor). This triumph-through-tribulation perspective prepares the disciples to view Jesus’ looming death as the inauguration of the eschatological age with its attendant blessings (John 14:12; 15:11, 16; 16:15, 33; 17:2). The Book of Glory portrays these blessings (including the Spirit) in very personal/familial terms.[4] This portrayal is a natural development of centering all eschatological hopes/fulfillment on the person of Jesus. As God’s one and only son, Jesus uniquely manifests the Father’s presence (John 1:18; 10:30; 12:45; 14:9). Jesus also establishes a familial relationship between his followers and the Father, a blessing emphasized in the Farewell Discourse (John 14:2, 21, 23; 15:15; 16:15, 26–27; 17:20–26). The establishment of a renewed familial relationship between God and his people was an eschatological hope (Lev 26:11–13; Isa 65:22–25; Jer 31:33–34; Ezek 37:23–28; Zech 2:10–12).

The shift toward personal imagery is evident in the Spirit theme as John shifts from depicting the Spirit as “living water” to depicting the Spirit as “another Paraclete” whom the disciples know, “because he abides with you and will be in you” (John 14:16–17). Moreover, the Spirit continues the personal connection between the disciples on earth and the departed Jesus and the Father above (John 14:16–17, 26; 16:14–15). As Brown argues, the promised Spirit will be Jesus’ personal presence with the disciples while Jesus is with the Father.[5] The shift to personal/familial imagery coheres with the Son manifesting the true presence of the Father.[6] Jesus embodied the heavenly presence of God that earthly temples accessed. As the Son, Jesus realizes God’s presence from the familial connection (founded in the eternal heavenly realm) more than the cultic (John 3:35; 5:20–24; 8:36; 10:11–17; 14:13; 17:1).[7]

In biblical and second Temple literature, the Spirit manifested God’s presence. While the Spirit became associated with God’s presence in the Temple, the Spirit primarily manifested God’s presence among the people. God was also believed to pour out his Spirit in an expanded and intensive way in the eschaton. For John, therefore, the Spirit was an apt candidate to continue the divine presence that the Son inaugurated.[9]

In the Book of Glory, the Spirit carries overlapping temple concepts, but temple imagery has been eclipsed. Through John’s pneumatology there is a “contrast between the cultic worship of the temple, which the author is claiming to be merely human, and the eschatological worship of the Endzeit, which has its origin in God.”[10] That contrast is highlighted by a shift from cultic language to personal language as God himself is manifested in the Son and the Spirit. The Farewell Discourse does not depict eschatological water flowing from the temple, but the Son sending the Spirit to make the heavenly realities of the Father known (including God’s manifest presence).[11] Since Jesus is the true embodiment of the heavenly presence (the fulfillment of the temple), the Spirit must continue to make Jesus’ personal presence known in order for the fulfillment to abide in the post-ascension community.

Included in the Spirit’s role of continuing to manifest the heavenly presence to Jesus’ disciples is the Spirit performing many of the functions that Jesus performed. These functions include: teaching and reminding the disciples what Jesus said (John 14:26), testifying about Jesus (John 15:26), guiding the disciples into truth (John 16:13), and glorifying the sender (John 16:14).[12] The Spirit also serves an important witnessing function amidst persecution so that the disciples, like Jesus, are empowered to witness to the truth (John 15:18–27).[13] With all the similarities between the Spirit and Jesus, the Evangelist aptly describes the Spirit as “another Paraclete.”

Although contextually understanding John’s presentation of the Spirit is primary, the meaning of the term παρακλητος must be integrated into this understanding. John chooses to employ the term παρακλητος to help define the Spirit’s role in the messianic community, even if the term has not helped such definition in the later scholarly community. The term παρακλητος, as John employs it, does not match a secular Greek or translated Hebrew title.[14] Most attempts to identify a specific background and/or a “primary” meaning of παρακλητος do not satisfactorily account for Johannine usage.[15] While παρακλητος may appear in judicial contexts in rabbinic and classical literature, Grayston has demonstrated that παρακλητος is used in other contexts with a general meaning of supporter or sponsor.[16] The παρακλητος certainly functions in forensic contexts in witness for Jesus (John 15:26), in help for the disciples amidst persecution (John 16:7–11), and in the trial motif in general (John 16:8).[17] Yet, as Grayston has shown, the forensic role does not account for much extra-biblical usage nor does it account for John’s emphasis on the Spirit’s role of manifesting Jesus’ presence.[18]

One of the reasons that the extra-biblical usage of παρακλητος does not fully match John’s usage is that John bases the Spirit as παρακλητος on Jesus as παρακλητος.[19] While John’s Gospel does not explicitly call Jesus “παρακλητος,” it implies that Jesus is the first παρακλητος since the Spirit is “another παρακλητος” (1 John 2:1 identifies Jesus as the community’s παρακλητος with the Father). As the Son of God, Jesus made the presence of God available and “sponsored” those who believed in him to become “children of God” (John 1:12). In many respects, Jesus is a patron or broker making available heavenly realities to his followers (a function previously filled by the temple).[20] As mentioned above, the Spirit assumes these functions after Jesus’ departure. John’s depiction of the Paraclete depends upon his depiction of Christ.[21] The Spirit/Paraclete is presented in very personal terms because he is manifesting Jesus’ personal presence.[22] For this reason, Jesus can refer to the Spirit’s coming as “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18).[23] The Spirit/Paraclete teaches, testifies, guides into truth, and glorifies the Son because Jesus did these things and the Spirit continues the work. In John, as in other NT writings, the early Christian concept of the Holy Spirit is conditioned by belief in Jesus.[24] Nonetheless, the Spirit/Paraclete is distinct from Jesus. The Spirit is not the messianic center, but the efflux of that heavenly center. The Spirit remains on Jesus to mark his heavenly origin and messianic identity (John 1:33), and the Spirit will abide in the disciples to identify them as part of the messianic household (John 14:17).

What then, does the Evangelist’s use of παρακλητος add to his presentation? It provides a term that emphasizes the support and brokerage whereby Jesus the Son, then the Spirit, make access to the realm of God possible. Such patronage is necessary (John 3:3, “You must be born from the Spirit/above.”) to enter the kingdom of God. Whereas the Son ushers in the eschatological kingdom, the Spirit’s role continues the kingdom realities in the community. Both provide the needed support for entry into the household of God as well as expanding God’s kingdom in the world. Although παρακλητος probably carried some nuances lost to modern scholars, the extant evidence calls for understanding the term in a general sense of support or brokerage.[25] This sense includes judicial support and intercession, but also accounts for support for the disciples amidst persecution, as well as manifesting the presence of the Father and Son.[26]

In the next blog post, I will relate John’s use of the term “Spirit of Truth” to his overall pneumatology and to the term παρακλητος.

End notes

[1] This tendency is often influenced by other assumptions. A history of religions approach (or response to that approach using similar interpretive categories) influenced Betz into finding the interpretive key in extra-biblical literature. Otto Betz, Der Paraklet: Fursprecher im haretischen Spatjudentum, im Johannes-Evangelium und in neu gefundenen gnostischen Schriften (Leiden: Brill, 1963). Hans Windisch’s disjunctive treatment arises from his source critical assumptions, Hans Windisch, The Spirit-Paraclete in the Fourth Gospel (trans. J. W. Cox; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1968).

[2] D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John (PNTC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1991), 481.

[3] Tricia Brown, Spirit in the Writings of John (JSNTSup 253; New York: T & T Clark, 2003), 21–22; Marie E. Isaacs, The Concept of the Spirit: A Study of Pneuma in Hellenistic Judaism and its Bearing on the New Testament (HeyMon 1; London: Heythrop College, 1976), 99–100.

[4] Burge, Anointed Community, 137–143; Raymond E. Brown, The Gospel according to John (vol. 2; AB 29A; New York: Doubleday, 1966), 2:1140.

[5] Ibid., 1139–1141.

[6] Coloe shows the prominence of the familial aspects of the Farewell Discourse, even if she overemphasizes that aspect at points. Mary Coloe, Dwelling in the Household of God: Johannine Ecclesiology and Spirituality (Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical Press, 2007), 193–201. See also James McCaffrey, The House with Many Rooms: The Temple Theme of Jn. 14, 2–3 (Rome: Editrice Pontificio Instituto Biblico, 1988), 246.

[7] T. Brown (Spirit in John, 260–265) concludes that Jesus, as God’s son, is the sole broker of the Father’s presence. For this reason, the Spirit, as second broker, primarily brokers Jesus’ presence while manifesting the Father’s presence.

[9] For how the Johannine Spirit fulfills eschatological expectations and represents the divine indwelling presence see, James M. Hamilton, God’s Indwelling Presence (Nashville: B&H, 2006).

[10] Isaacs, Concept of the Spirit, 100.

[11] Note John 16:14–15, “He will glorify me, for he will take of mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are mine, that is why I said that he takes of mine and will disclose it to you.”

[12] See Figure 7 in Burge (Anointed Community, 141).for a listing of similarities between Christ and the Paraclete. See also Brown, John, 2:1141.

[13] Ibid., John, 2:698–701.

[14] Raymond Brown, “The Paraclete in the Fourth Gospel,” NTS 13 (1967): 114.

[15] Ibid., 115–120; Köstenberger, Theology, 712. Bultmann’s theory that the Paraclete is borrowed from the Gnostic “helper” has long been refuted as using sources too late to be relevant. Rudolf Bultmann, The Gospel of John (trans. G. R. Beasley-Murray; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1971), 566–572. Betz identification of the Paraclete with Michael, the angelic intercessor of Qumran, not only lacks lexical links but is too narrow a background to account for John’s usage. Otto Betz, Der Paraklet: Fursprecher im haretischen Spatjudentum, im Johannes-Evangelium und in neu gefundenen gnostischen Schriften (Leiden: Brill, 1963). Likewise, Johnston’s response to Betz that John was countering the Qumranic concept suffers the same narrowness. George Johnston, The Spirit-Paraclete in the Gospel of John (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1970). M. Eugene Boring, “The Influence of Christian Prophecy on the Johannine Portrayal of the Paraclete and Jesus,” NTS 25 (1978): 113–123 speculates the Paraclete was originally an angel that John transformed into the Spirit of prophecy. Regardless of its problems with evidence, this theory is also too narrow to account for John’s particular use. Davies’ attempt to locate the meaning of παρακλητος in the LXX is admirable, but his methodology of looking at groupings of ideas where παρακλητος is the central theme is dubious. In addition, Davies’ conclusion that the primary meaning of παρακλητος is “comforter” does not square with some Johannine usage (most notably John 16:8). J. G. Davies, “The Primary Meaning of PARAKLHTOS,” JTS NS 4 (1953): 35–38.

[16] One of the more thorough treatments of παρακλητος in the primary sources from fourth century B. C. to A. D. third century is found in Kenneth Grayston, “The Meaning of Paraklētos,” JSNT 13 (1981): 67–82. Through looking at every occurrence of παρακλητος, Grayston demonstrates that the term has a general meaning that need not have a forensic nuance. In agreement with Grayston: Margaret Davies, Rhetoric and Reference in the Fourth Gospel (JSNTSup 69; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1992), 145.

[17] Craig S. Keener, The Gospel of John (2 vols.; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 2003), 2:955–971; Burge, Anointed Community, 41 see the forensic sense as second only to Christology in determining Johannine usage. Others arguing for the “advocate” meaning : C. H. Dodd, The Interpretation of the Fourth Gospel (Cambridge: University Press, 1958), 414; Antony Billington, “The Paraclete and Mission in the Fourth Gospel,” in Mission and Meaning: Essays Presented to Peter Cotterell (eds. Antony Billington, Tony Lane, and Max Turner; Carlisle, U.K.: Paternoster, 1995), 90–115.

[18] Herman Ridderbos, The Gospel of John (trans. John Vriend; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997), 500–501, points out that the Paraclete as “advocate” is an especially ill-fitting meaning for John 14. Similarly, Tricia Brown (Spirit in John, 217–228) demonstrates the weaknesses of the forensic understanding and how the idea of brokerage better accounts for all the occurrences of the Spirit/Paraclete. I mostly agree with her assessment.

[19] Brown, John, 2:1140.

[20] This point agrees and combines T. Brown’s (Spirit in John, 260–265) and Grayston’s (“Paraklētos,” 67) conclusions.

[21] Burge, Anointed Community, 30.

[22] B. Vawter, “John’s Doctrine of the Spirit: A Summary of His Eschatology,” in A Companion to John: Readings in Johannine Theology (ed. Michael J. Taylor; New York: Alba, 1977), 178.

[23] Köstenberger, Theology, 714.

[24] Isaacs, Concept of the Spirit, 124.

[25] T. Brown, Spirit in John, 217–228. Ridderbos (John, 503) says of παρακλητος, “the dominant idea is of someone who offers assistance in a situation in which help is needed.”

[26] Although I have simply transliterated the term because all English equivalents fall short, “helping presence” probably best sums up the above analysis (Köstenberger prefers this term in Theology, 710). The “helping” sums up the support or patronage aspect of the term while “presence” sums up the Johannine emphasis on the Spirit as realizing the Son and Father’s presence. “Helping presence” is vague and still needs qualification, but it allows the context to provide that qualification.

The Book of Acts: God-directed Mission

February 16, 2023 / josephrgreene / Leave a comment

The next few posts will introduce some major themes in the “Acts of the Apostles”. This title appears in several ancient manuscripts of the New Testament, but as Darrell Bock (2007, 7) suggests, the main character of Acts is not the apostles as much as the Triune God, who “enables, directs, protects, and orchestrates. Nothing shows this as much as the story of Paul, who comes to faith by Jesus’ direct intervention and is protected as he travels to Rome, despite shipwreck.” The Spirit empowers the apostles and early church to be witnesses for Christ’s salvation from Jerusalem to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The extension of God’s kingdom throughout the earth fulfills God’s long standing promises to “pour out his Spirit on all flesh” (Acts 2:17; Joel 2:28-32) and to call the Gentiles to himself (Acts 13:47; Isa 49:6. Acts 15:14-18; Amos 9:11). The “way” of Christ is not a new religion, but a continuation of God’s promised plan to redeem the world. Spirit inspired testimony to Christ goes throughout the known world – from servants to governors, from Jews to Samaritans to even the Gentiles in Rome.

God uses persecution to advance the Gospel.

Even persecution can be used by the sovereign God to advance the gospel. The early chapters of Acts report the tremendous growth of the church in and around Jerusalem. Initially, Jesus’ commission for the apostles to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8) goes unfulfilled. God sovereignly used the Jewish leaders’ hostility towards the church to spread the Christian witness to new areas. By killing and persecuting Christians, the Jewish leaders hoped to crush the Christian movement. But what they meant for harm, God used to spread the gospel.

The stoning of Stephen began the first widespread persecution, which caused Christians to flee Jerusalem and “scatter throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria” (Acts 8:1). Ironically, this persecution was led by a zealous young Jew named Saul, who would later spread the Christian movement even farther. Lenski (1961, 311-315) notes, “The persecution aimed to destroy the infant church; in the providence of God it did the very opposite. It started a great number of new congregations especially in all of Palestine, each becoming a living center from which the gospel radiated into new territory even as Jesus had traced its course by adding after Jerusalem ‘all Judea and Samaria’ . . . These were ordinary Christians; they did not set themselves up as preachers but told people why they had to leave Jerusalem and thus testified to their faith in Christ Jesus. They fulfilled the duty that is to this day incumbent on every Christian. In 11:19 Luke indicates how far this dispersion reached: to Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch.”

Jesus’ commission to witness to “Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth” was now being fulfilled. As if to show that God was fully in control, even the one who led the persecution—Saul, ends up becoming an apostle to the Gentiles. By the end of the book of Acts, Saul the persecutor has become Paul the persecuted. Saul led a persecution that spread Christianity to Judea and Samaria, and now Paul was himself being persecuted so that he would bring the gospel to Rome and the ends of the earth. God’s utilizing even persecution to further his purposes provides another reason for seeing the Triune God as the main actor in the book of Acts.

End Notes

Bock, Darrell. Acts. BECNT; Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007.

Lenski, R. The Interpretation of the Acts of the Apostles. Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1961.

Parsons, M. Acts. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008.

Miracles in the Four Gospels : A Discussion and helpful reference table.

December 6, 2022December 7, 2022 / josephrgreene / Leave a comment

Jesus’ teaching (often through parables) and miracles are primary features of the Gospels. A biblically informed definition of a miracle would consider a miracle as “an event which runs counter to the observed processes of nature” (EDT, 779). Certainly prophecy or special knowledge could fit into this definition, but most treat those phenomena in their own category.

Miracles in the Bible are evidence of God’s direct intervention in the world. Just as miracles are displays of God’s power in the space and time of this world, faith in the God who works those miracles calls for a lived-out response in a believer’s life. Neither biblical faith nor biblical miracles are just “religious” concepts or theories of the mind; they are observable holy disruptions in a fallen word on its way to redemption. For this reason, when God intervenes to redeem people of faith, his power and presence produce miracles. The miracles surrounding the exodus from Egypt exemplify this pattern. While the plagues and parting of the sea were incredible displays of God’s power, they were performed in the context of God fulfilling his redemptive promises to his people.

In keeping with the OT pattern, the arrival of God’s Kingdom in the person and work of Christ was predictably accompanied by miracles. Jesus’ miracles proclaimed in actions the same message proclaimed in his words: “The Kingdom of God is at hand.” Moreover, the miracles demonstrated Jesus’ identity as the promised Messiah who would usher in this new age of redemption. The resurrection of Jesus was the pinnacle of all miracles and the firstfruits of the new age of redemption and resurrection.

In the NT Jesus is not the only person to work miracles. Every Gospel contains a passage about Jesus giving his followers authority and power to perform miracles (Matt 6:7, 12-13; Mark10:1; Luke 9:1-2, 6; John 14:12). Not surprisingly, the apostles perform miracles in the book of Acts (3:1-11; 5:12-16; 19:11-12), and Paul mentions miracles taking place in the early churches apart from an apostle’s presence (1 Cor 12:6-10, 28-31; Gal 3:5; ).

Why do the Gospel writers incorporate miracles into their writings? While each writer employs miracles for their own distinct purposes, some general observations can be made. 1) Because Jesus actually performed miracles, any biography about him would include this remarkable aspect of his life. 2) As mentioned above, miracles accompany turning points in God’s redemptive plan: “Thus the Synoptists regarded Jesus’ miracles. . . as one mode of God’s assertion of his royal power, so that while the kingdom in its fullness still lies in the future, it has already become a reality in Jesus; words and works” (DJG, 550). This idea is captured in Jesus’ dispute with the Pharisees over the source of Jesus’ power. Jesus says, “But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” (Luke 11:20; Matt 12:28). God’s kingdom brings God’s power to do miracles. 3) Just as the miracles identify the advent of God’s kingdom, the miracles identify Jesus as the anointed Messianic king. As demons are cast out, they proclaim Jesus’ identity as the Holy One (or Son) of God (Mark 1:21-27; Luke 4:31-36; Matt 8:28-34). When Jesus walks on water, the disciples worship him and say, “Truly you are the Son of God” (Matt 14:33). In a similar way, the miraculous signs of John’s Gospel point to Jesus’ glorious identity (John 2:11; 5:36). 4) Because miracles identify Jesus as the Messiah, it is no surprise that miracles are closely associated with faith in Jesus. In John, miraculous signs are usually meant to bring about faith, but in the Synoptics faith often precedes miracles (Matt13:58; Mark 5:34; Luke 17:19). What exactly is meant by faith/belief varies according to the author and the context. The blind man in John 9 believes that Jesus is the Son of Man and worships him (John 9:35-38), whereas the father in Mark 9:21-27 struggles with believing that Jesus is able to heal his son. At the very least, the Gospels present miracles as both confirming and encouraging faith in Jesus.

Table of Miracles

In the table below miraculous healings are in regular font, exorcisms employ italic font, and miracles over nature/materials are underlined. These different fonts are not meant to suggest that the Gospel writers thought in these different categories (especially concerning healings and exorcisms), but to show how the Gospel writers employed these miracles. Although the resurrection of Christ should be considered the pinnacle of all miracles, it is not included in this chart because it deserves its own separate treatment. Likewise, the appearance of angels around the birth narratives could be considered miraculous, but like appearances of the risen Jesus, they are not included below.

Miracles in the Gospels
Description	Matthew	Mark	Luke	John
Turning water into wine at Cana				2:1-11 *sign
General statement of healing all types of sicknesses in Galilee	4:23-24	1:39 “preaching and casting out demons”
Cana: Healing son (not present) of royal official				4:46-54 *sign
Exorcism in Capernaum (Confess Jesus as Holy one of God)		1:21-27	4:31-36
Healing Peter’s Mother-in-law and many others	8:14-17	1:29-34	4:38-41
Removal/cleansing of leprosy-then more fame *	8:2-4	1:40-45	5:12-15
Healing the servant of a Centurion with great faith	8:5-13 (servant not present)		7:1-10 (servant & centurion not present)
Miraculous catch of fish			5:1-11
Paralytic healed & forgiven	9:1-8	2:1-12 (lowered through roof.)	5:17-26 (lowered through roof.)
Healing invalid at Bethesda on Sabbath				5:1-17 *sign
Heals withered hand on Sabbath *	12:9-14	3:1-6	6:6-11
General statement: exorcised spirits confess Jesus as Son of God.		3:10-12
Raising a dead man at Nain			7:11-17
The women who followed Jesus were cured of sickness or demons			8:1-3
Calming the storm on the sea of Galilee	8:23-27	4:37-41	8:22-25
Legion of demons cast into swine.	8:28-34 (Confess Jesus as Son of Most High God)	5:1-20 (Confess Jesus as Son of Most High God)	8:26-39 (Confess Jesus as Son of God)
Raising synagogue ruler’s dead daughter and healing a woman’s blood flow on the way	9:18-26	5:21-43	8:40-56
2 blind men healed	9:27-31
Disciples given authority to heal and cast out demons	10:1	6:7, 12-13	9:1-2, 6
Casting out demon from mute man – Pharisees blaspheme	9:32-34 12:22-24		11:14-15
Feeding five thousand	14:15-21	6:35-44	9:12-17	6:5-13 *sign
Jesus Walks on Water	14:25-33 (Peter joins him)	6:48-52		6:19-21
General statements of curing many	9:35 14:34-36; 15:29-31	6:53-56	6:17-19	6:2; 20:30
Healing man born blind on Sabbath, interrogated by Jewish leaders				Ch 9 *sign
Casting demon from daughter (not present) of Gentile	15:21-28	7:24-30
Healing of deaf man with speech difficulty		7:31-37
Feeding the four thousand	15:32-38	8:1-9
Healing blind man at Bethsaida		8:22-26
Casting demon out of son who convulses	17:14-20	9:14-29	9:37-43
Temple tax in fish’s mouth	17:24-27
Healing a sick by spirit & hunched over woman on Sabbath			13:10-17
Healing man of dropsy on Sabbath			14:1-6
Raising Lazarus				11:1-45 *sign
10 lepers healed; Samaritan returns to thank			17:11-19
Blind healed at Jericho	20:29-34 (2 blind men)	10:46-52 (Bartimaeus)	18:35-43 (unnamed)
Healing many in Temple courts	21:14
Fig tree withered	21:18-22	11:12-14, 20-25
Healing the servant’s ear after Peter cut it off			22:50-51
Miraculous catch				21:1-11

The above table reveals some patterns. 1) All the Gospels contain general statements about Jesus performing other miracles. One should assume, therefore, that the Gospel writers only chose a select few miracles in their presentation of Jesus. 2) Each Gospel describes at least one miracle that is not mentioned in the other Gospels. 3) Assuming Mark was written first, one notices that when Matthew and Luke contain Mark’s miracles, they seem to follow Mark’s ordering of the miracles. The two occasions (marked with a *) that Matthew or Luke have a different ordering of the same miracle, they never agree against Mark. Instead Mark and one of the other Gospels match sequences. 4) John contains by far the fewest miracles. Of the eight miracles listed, only two appear in the other Gospels—Jesus’ feeding the five thousand and walking on water. That being said, all the other miracles (other than the water made into wine) in John are similar in type to the miracles described in the Synoptic (healings, walking on water, miraculous catch of fish).

An overview of the miracles also gives insight into the distinctive presentation of each Gospel writer. For instance, in the Gospel of Mark “(t)he virtual absence of miracle stories after Jesus arrives in Jerusalem allows full rein to the hints of the theme of Jesus’ self-giving expressed in the earlier miracle stories. Jesus the powerful miracle worker chooses to offer himself, powerless, into the hands of the authorities in order to die ‘for many’ (10:45). . . . Some of Jesus’ commands to his disciples to remain silent indicate that his true identity cannot be fully understood apart from his passion and death (1:11, 34; 3:12); the powerful miracle worker without the suffering Jesus is an incomplete and misunderstood Messiah.” (NDBT, 777)

Luke presents Jesus’ ministry of preaching and healing as a product of his Spirit anointing (Luke 4:14-21). In fulfillment of Isaiah, the Spirit anoints and empowers Jesus to bring a restoration that includes healing the blind and release those held captive by all manner of oppression (including sickness). Jesus’ working of miracles is evidence that he has been empowered by God to advance his kingdom (Luke 11:20). When Luke writes Acts, he states that this same Spirit will empower Jesus’ followers to expand Christ’s kingdom (Acts 1:8). After Pentecost, miracles accompany the apostles as they proclaim the gospel of Christ’s kingdom.

How particular miracles function in each Gospel will be discussed more fully later. Taking a broad view of miracles shows that they are a prevalent feature of Jesus’ ministry. The Gospel writers weave miracles into their presentations to say something about Jesus’ identity, his kingdom, and the faith of those Jesus encounters.

END NOTES

*DJG: Green, Joel and Scot McKnight, eds. Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity, 1992.

*EDT: Elwell, Walter, ed. Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. 2^nd ed. Grand Rapids:

Baker, 2001.

* NDBT: Alexander, T. Desmond, et. al. New Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity, 2000.

An Introduction to Parables and their Interpretation.

August 28, 2022 / josephrgreene / Leave a comment

Parables make up about one third of Jesus’ teaching in the Synoptic Gospels. In order to properly understand the Synoptic Gospels, therefore, one must be familiar with the definition, function, and forms of parables.

Because parables vary in their form and usage, it is difficult to construct an accurate but usable definition. Blomberg (1997, 257) gives the very basic definition: “A parable is a brief metaphorical narrative.” This definition covers the broad usage of parables, but it is so general that further description is needed. A parable consists of a fictional picture or story and a corresponding reality that is better understood through that picture or story. For instance, in Matt 13:31-32 Jesus tells the following parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” The picture or story element is the man who plants a tiny mustard seed that grows into a tree large enough for nesting birds. The reality element, which is better understood through this story, is the kingdom of heaven. Often one has to examine the context of the parable to narrow down what particular meaning the correspondence conveys. In this parable, the smallness of the mustard seed corresponds to the relatively small effect the Kingdom of Heaven seems to have in the present age. However, the kingdom will eventually grow bigger and more influential than anything else in the world (field). Through the picture, Jesus’ hearers gain a deeper understanding of how the Kingdom of Heaven manifests itself.

While parables occur in the broader ancient Hebrew and Greek literature, Jesus seems to have used parables to a greater extent than any of his predecessors. Parables rarely appear in the Old Testament (OT), but Nathan’s rebuke of King David (2 Sam 12:1-10) is the OT parable most similar to Jesus’ parables. Other OT parables are found in: 2 Sam 14:5-20; Isa 5:1-7; Ezek 17:1-10; 19:1-9, 10-14.

Parables prominently feature in the Synoptics, but not in any other New Testament (NT) book (other than two uses of the word “parable” in Heb 9:9; 11:9). Some consider the “Good Shepherd” and “True Vine” passages (John 10:1-18; 15:1-8) as parables, but John seems to employ these as “I am” sayings and not as parables. Regardless, John presents Jesus’ teaching very differently than the Synoptics by not explicitly including parables.

Some parables occur in all three Synoptics, while others appear in only one. The Gospel writers arrange parables in different ways, often grouping them thematically. Sometimes it is difficult to discern if the Gospel writers are reporting the same parable (Matt 25:14-30 & Luke 19:11-27). Perhaps Jesus told variations of a given parable in different places, and the Gospel writers were reflecting those different renditions. Below is a table of parables in the Synoptics, but the reader should understand that such catalogues of parables differ slightly because scholars differ on the exact qualifications of a parable.

Parable Title	Matthew	Mark	Luke
Parables of the groom, cloth, wineskins	Matt 9:14-17	Mark 2:18-22	Luke 5:33-39
Blind leading the blind; pupil leading teacher	(Matt 15:14)		Luke 6:39-40
2 houses built on 2 different types of ground	Matt 7:24-27		Luke 6:46-49
A forgiving money lender			Luke 7:40-50
House divided; binding the strong man	Matt 12:24-29	Mark 3:22-27	(Luke 11:15-22) Not binding a strong man, but being stronger.
Parable of the sower/soils receiving seed/word of God	Matt 13:1-23	Mark 4:1-20	Luke 8:4-15
A lamp is not hidden	Matt 5:15	Mark 4:21-23	Luke 8:16-18; 11:33
The children and the marketplace	Matt 11:16–19		Luke 7:31–35
Kingdom is like: weeds sown in a field	Matt 13:24-30, 36-43
Kingdom is like: seeds’ sudden growth		Mark 4:26-29
A friend at midnight			Luke 11:5-8
Kingdom is like: mustard seed	Matt 13:31-32	Mark 4:30-32	Luke 13:18-19
Kingdom is like: leaven	Matt 13:33-35		Luke 13:20-21
Kingdom is like: hidden treasure	Matt 13:44
Kingdom is like: merchant finding a valuable pearl	Matt 13:45-46
Kingdom is like: a dragnet	Matt 13:47-50
Disciple as head of household	Matt 13:52
Defiled by what comes out, not what enters	Matt 15:10-20	Mark 7:14-23
Kingdom is like: a king forgiving a slave, but that slave not forgiving	Matt 18:23-35
Good Samaritan-loving neighbor			Luke 10:30-37
Folly of building storehouses			Luke 12:13-21
Giving the Fig tree another chance			Luke 13:6-9
Guests taking the more humble seat			Luke 14:7-11
The tower builder and the warring king			Luke 14:28-33
The lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son.	Matt 18:12-14; (just lost sheep)		Luke 15
The shrewd manager			Luke 16:1-13
The rich man and Lazarus			Luke 16:19-31
A slave just doing what he is supposed to			Luke 17:7-10
The unrighteous judge and the persistent window.			Luke 18:1-8
The praying Pharisee and humble tax-collector.			Luke 18:9-14
Kingdom is like: a landowner hiring workers for vineyard	Matt 20:1-16
Two sons in a vineyard	Matt 21:28-32
Wicked Vine growers	Matt 21:33-45	Mark 12:1-12	Luke 20:9-19
Kingdom is like: a wedding feast	Matt 22:1-14		Luke 14:16-24(same parable?)
Fig Tree predicts summer	Matt 24:32-33	Mark 13:28-29	Luke 21:29-31
Servants alert for their master’s return	Matt 24:45f?	Mark 13:33-37	Luke 12:35-48??
Kingdom is like: 10 virgins waiting for the groom.	Matt 25:1-13
A master goes away and tasks servants to use his money until he returns	Matt 25:14-30		Luke 19:11-27 (same parable?)

The two most prevalent themes in the parables are the Kingdom of God (the nature of its coming) and citizenship in that kingdom (discipleship). K. Snodgrass (DJG, 599-600) categorizes parables according to what kingdom reality they describe: 1) The kingdom as present. Some parables answer questions concerning how God’s kingdom is present in Jesus’ work and ministry. The parable of the strong man (Matt 12:25-28) means Jesus is plundering Satan’s current domain on earth, and the parable of the leaven (Luke 13:20-21) explains how the kingdom seems to be small at the present time.

2) Kingdom as future. Other parables focus on aspects of the kingdom that are still future. The parables that picture a reckoning or judgment (Matt 22:1-14; 25:14-30) fall into this category, as they encourage faithfulness in preparation for a final day of judgment.

3) Discipleship. Other parables explain what following the heavenly King entails. Being a citizen of Christ’s kingdom requires counting the cost like a warring king (Luke 14:28-32), being like a shrewd manager in the use of earthy wealth for heavenly purposes (Luke l6:1-13), and praying with a humble, tax-collector-like, spirit (Luke 18:9-14).

Guidelines for Interpreting Parables.

The interpretation of parables has had a tangled history. Within a couple centuries of being written down by the Gospel writers, parables began to be interpreted allegorically by the church fathers. Saint Augustine famously attached allegorical meaning to every detail of the parable of the Good Samaritan. The Samaritan represented Christ, the robbers represented the devil, the inn represented the church (which didn’t even exist at the time Jesus spoke the parable), the beaten man represented Adam, and so on. While not all church fathers interpreted the parables allegorically, it was the dominant interpretive method of their day, and it continued to be until after the reformation. In the 1900s the allegorical interpretation was discredited and almost entirely thrown out. It was replaced with an assumption that parables originally contained no allegory and were simple comparisons with only one main point. In contemporary scholarship more balanced literary views have developed that acknowledge that parables may not be allegories, but they can contain allegorical elements. What, then, are some guidelines in interpreting parables?

A. Because parables contain a story/picture part and a reality part, first identify the familiar picture element(s) and the reality or truth being explained. For example in the parable of the forgiving money lender in Luke 7:40-50 the picture/story element is the money lender who forgave one debtor 50 denarii and another debtor 500 denarii. The reality or truth part being explained concerns the relationship between forgiveness and love. While much more needs to be understood about the parable, it is essential to first clarify what part is the story/picture and what is the truth/reality being explained.

B. Remember the fictional story/picture part of the parable should be interpreted as a fictional composition. As Robert Stein (1994, 137-8) explains, “The picture itself does not describe an actual historical event. It is a fictional creation that came into being out of the mind of its author. . . . We must not confuse a life-like parable, which is a fictional creation, with a biblical narrative referring to a historical event.” The questions we should ask of a parable, therefore, are not about the details of the story, but what spiritual truth the author is trying to highlight with this story. In the example of the forgiving money lender, we should not be asking how the debtors incurred their debt—the creator of the parable did not include that information because it did not help make his point. Usually the details of the story don’t have their own meaning; they simply fill out and support the main picture. The author didn’t intend every detail of the parable to carry its own allegorical meaning totally unknown to the original audience.

C. Search the context for any explanation or interpretation provided by the author. In the above parable of the forgiving money lender, the parable is embedded in a narrative that contains dialogue. Both the narrative and the dialogue point to the spiritual reality that the parable explains. After telling the parable, Jesus compares the Pharisee’s lack of hospitality to the sinful woman’s lavish and loving treatment of Jesus. Jesus then proclaims, “Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little” (Luke 7:47). This material after the parable (the context) repeats and applies the spiritual truth that a person’s reception of Jesus (love) flows from the forgiveness received. It is in the context that the spiritual truth/reality part of the parable becomes clear. Some parables’ contexts are not quite so helpful, but context usually gives important clues to the author’s intention.

In addition to the above guidelines, the Lexham Bible Dictionary provides the following six basic principles for understanding Jesus’ parables.

1. Understand the social, historical, and cultural context of the parable. For example, in the parable of the Persistent Widow (Luke 18:1–8), it helps to know that in the first-century widows often experienced significant hardship and oppression.

2. Determine the number of points the parable is intended to teach. This may be linked to the number of main characters in the parable (Blomberg, Interpreting the Parables, 174).

3. Consider to whom the parable is directed. Is the audience being addressed the disciples, the Jewish leaders, or the crowds? The identity of the audience will help indicate the message that the parable was intended to communicate.

4. Realize that repetition in parables is for the purpose of stressing a major point.

5. Identify stock symbolism being employed. For example, God is commonly pictured throughout the Bible (and in parables) as a father, king, judge, shepherd, etc.

6. Note the conclusion of the parable. The last person, deed, or saying often conveys the significance of the parable.

By applying the above guidelines, one should be able to identify the author’s main point(s), which are closely attached to the spiritual reality the parable pictures.

The Parable of the Sower as a Challenge to the Purpose and Interpretation of Parables.

The parable of the sower (Matt 13:1-23; Mark 4:1-20; Luke 8:4-15) challenges many of the concepts presented above. For one, it suggests that parables were meant to obscure understanding and not increase it. Secondly, Jesus assigns meaning to several of the elements of the parable (like an allegory). It is helpful, therefore, to examine more closely this parable about parables.

With some variation in details, the parable of the soils appears in all three Synoptic Gospels. The main points and context of the parable are mostly consistent in each of the Gospel’s retelling, but for expediency we will examine only Matthew’s version (13:1-23). Jesus tells the parable to a large crowd (13:2). Verses 3-9 describe Jesus’ words to the crowd: “Then he told them many things in parables, saying, ‘A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop– a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear.’” Using the guidelines above, we first attempt to identify the story part and the reality part of the parable. Up to this point we seem to have the story part, the sowing of seed on various types of soil to various results, but the reality part is unclear. There is no introduction like “the Kingdom of Heaven is like.” Similar to Jesus’ original audience, we are not certain what spiritual reality this story is supposed to help us understand. From Jesus’ religious background, a few clues can be found; seed for sowing was associated with God’s word (Isa 55:10-11; John 4:36-38; 1 Cor 3:6-8) and bearing fruit was a metaphor for godly prosperity (Psa 92:12-14; Isa 5:2; Ezek 17:5-10; John 15:1-8; Rom 7:4). Even with these connections, the main point of the parable remains unclear. We look to the context hoping to find explanation.

In this case, the context does not disappoint; it contains Jesus’ full explanation and interpretation of the parable. Jesus later explains the meaning of the parable privately to the disciples: “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matt 13:18-23) Seldom are the parables given such a clear and thorough explanation. The story of the sower helps the listeners understand the spiritual reality of the word of God producing varied results among those who hear it.

Jesus’ detailed interpretation raises questions about interpreting parables. The guidelines above state that details of parable should not be given individual allegorical interpretations, but Jesus seems to do just that in his interpretation. Each place the seed lands is given an allegorical meaning that corresponds to different people’s reception of “the message about the kingdom.” This parable shows that although most parables are not simply allegories, they can have allegorical elements. While allegorical interpretation of parables is to be avoided, one must still acknowledge that parables may contain allegorical elements. The meaning of these elements should come from the author or from common metaphors of the author’s culture—not from the interpreter’s imagination or context (as was often the case in the medieval church).

In between Jesus’ telling and explanation of the parable, the Gospel writers introduce another element to this parable. While this parable helps listeners understand the spiritual reality of the word of God producing varied results among those who hear it, the parable also says something about how parables themselves produce varied results among hearers. After Jesus tells the parable, the disciples ask why Jesus teaches in parables, implying that this parable is unclear. Jesus’ reply suggests that parables are meant to obscure understanding instead of increase it—a concept that seems counterintuitive. After all, most parables use familiar elements to paint a picture comparison of an unfamiliar spiritual truth. In response to the disciples question about the purpose of parables, Jesus answers, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak to them in parables: ‘Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.’ In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.” (Matt 13:11-16). Jesus explains that the disciples are blessed by having a fuller knowledge of the Kingdom of Heaven than others. This knowledge relates to what they already have—a close relationship with Jesus. By virtue of this relationship, the disciples will receive Jesus’ full interpretation of the parable; they truly see and hear. Truly hearing corresponds to the good soil of the parable, which is why the disciples are blessed; they will produce much fruit.

On the other hand, many will not receive this parable or any message about the Kingdom of Heaven. These people are not only like the soils that aren’t productive, they are like those spoken of by the prophet Isaiah: “ever hearing but never understanding . . . this people’s heart has become calloused.” By quoting Isaiah 6:9-10, Jesus explains that the rejection of his message fulfills prophecy. Matthew often shows how Jesus’ ministry fulfills prophecy, but the other Synoptic writers include a quotation from Isaiah 6 as well. Many in his Jewish audience, especially the religious leaders, are following the pattern of their forefathers in Isaiah’s day. They hear the prophetic message of God, but with hard hearts they refuse to receive it. Those who reject Jesus’ message will continue rejecting and misunderstanding the word of God.

Parables provide a good illustration of Isaiah’s words and the situation among Jesus’ hearers. Because parables contain a picture/story part that explains a spiritual reality, they can obscure understanding for those who refuse to receive the spiritual reality. Many of the Jewish religious leaders physically heard the parables/message of the kingdom, but they did not receive it and failed to understand it. Especially with the parable of the sower, the story part of the parable part was clear enough, but the only ones who received a full explanation of the spiritual reality part were those who sought more understanding from Jesus (“whoever has will be given more”).

Parables, therefore, clarify spiritual realities for those who have good receptive hearts towards Christ (good soil), but they obscure spiritual realities for those who have rejected Jesus and his message. The parable of the sower is a parable about parables and Jesus’ overall kingdom message. This parable not only explains why Jesus’ message was rejected by some of his own people, it also encourages Jesus’ followers to continue to seek Jesus and receive his word with the soil of a good heart. Jesus’ word will bear a great crop through those who receive him and his kingdom message. “He who has ears, let him hear.”

END NOTES

* Barry, John, ed. Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham: Lexham Press, 2016.

*Blomberg, Craig. Interpreting the Parables. Downers Grover: InterVarsity, 1990.

*______. Jesus and the Gospels. Nashville: B&H, 1997.

*DJG: Green, Joel and Scot McKnight, eds. Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity, 1992.

*EDT: Elwell, Walter, ed. Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. 2^nd ed. Grand Rapids:

Baker, 2001.

* NDBT: Alexander, T. Desmond, et. al. New Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity, 2000.

*Stein, Robert. A Basic Guide for Interpreting the Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1994.

The Holy Spirit Brings Restoration in the End-Times Renewal

August 1, 2022 / josephrgreene / Leave a comment

Discussions of the End-Times often center on Jesus’ return. But what role does the Spirit play in the End-Times? Beginning in the Hebrew Scriptures and continuing through the Second Temple period, the Spirit is depicted as the means by which God accomplishes his historical and eschatological plan.[1] That eschatological plan includes an expansion of the Spirit’s work upon the earth as well as the Spirit’s inner work that transforms the hearts of the covenant people.[2] The Spirit’s renewing work would prepare God’s people to experience His presence.

In his sermon at Pentecost, Peter cites the pouring out of the Spirit as evidence that the “last days” have begun (Acts 2). The New Testament writers believed that they were in the “last days” (end times) and these previous promises were being fulfilled. The Spirit would indwell and empower the church to expand God’s kingdom to the ends of the earth until Jesus’ return. This post will point out some first-century expectations concerning the Spirit in the End-Times.

Pouring out the Spirit: Eschatological Expansion

The Old Testament (OT) often portrays the Spirit of God as working in leaders and prophets to establish, deliver, judge, guide, and restore the people of God.[3] Not surprisingly then, the Spirit is also depicted as active among God’s people in the eschatological restoration.[4] The eschatological work of the Spirit increases in scope and intensity. This increase is described as a “pouring out” of the Spirit in many OT passages (Isa 32:15; 44:3; Ezek 36:25–27; 37:14; 39:28–29; Zech 12:9–10) and exemplified by Joel 2:28–31:

It will come about after this that I will pour out my Spirit on all mankind and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on the male and female servants I will pour out my Spirit in those days. I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, blood, fire and columns of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and awesome day of Yahweh comes.
Joel 2:28–31

By twice using the verb שפך (pour out) and the threefold repetition of spiritual gifts in the following lines, Joel expresses a fullness of amount as well as fullness in scope.^[5] The Spirit will not only be upon leaders and prophets, but upon all of God’s people. The day of the Lord, with its theophanic imagery, brings a renewal of the covenant presence (Joel 2:27, “Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am Yahweh your God”) and an expansion of Yahweh’s Spirit among his people. The promise of Yahweh’s restored covenant presence “in the midst of Israel” is closely connected to the Spirit in many prophetic texts (Isa 4:4–6; 59:19–21; Ezek 36:24–28; Hag 2:5–9). These Hebrew texts create an eschatological expectation for an outpouring of Yahweh’s Spirit in conjunction with a renewal of Yahweh’s covenant presence. The pouring out of the Spirit will broaden both the scope and intensity of Yahweh’s blessings.

Many scholars note an eschatological trajectory to the canon that depicts Yahweh’s presence/glory expanding to the ends of the earth. The Spirit would usher in the promised presence of God among his people as “all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord” (Num 14:21) in the eschatological age (Isa 6:3; Hab 2:14).[6]

These expectations inform the background to many of the pneumatological promises in the New Testament. Peter quotes the above passage from Joel in his Acts 2 sermon, and claims that this promise is being fulfilled. In the remaining chapters of Acts, the Spirit is poured out into new people groups and expanding throughout the Roman empire. John’s Gospel shows a similar fulfillment in a slightly different way. John the Baptist introduces the promise that Jesus would baptize in the Spirit (John 1:33), and that promise is fulfilled literarily when Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit on his disciples (John 20:21). This impartation of the Holy Spirit is given in the context of Jesus sending his disciples into the world on a mission of redemption and revelation in continuity with Jesus’ own mission.[7] In addition, the disciples serve a representative function for the later, broader messianic community and the blessings/responsibilities (including the indwelling Spirit) of the first disciples are assumed for later disciples.[8] Jesus gives the Spirit to his disciples when the eschatological “hour” (John 4:21–23; 5:25–28; 13:1; 17:1) arrives, thus expanding God’s glory. The expansion of God’s glory through his disciples and beyond is spoken of in John 17:20–22, which states, “Not for these alone do I ask, but also for those who believe in me through their word; so that they may all be one, even as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as we are one.” The sharing of glory that denotes the unified presence of God radiates to future disciples, who will witnesses to the world.

The Spirit’s work of renewing God’s people and expanding God’s glory presence is a crucial part of End-Times fulfillment. While modern Christians often think of the “End-Times” strictly in terms of Jesus’ final return, the New Testament seems to include the entire church age in the “last days”. In these last days, the Spirit’s role is to prepare God’s people, and the whole world, for the Lord’s full and final intervention.

End Notes

[1] Willem VanGemeren and Andrew Abernethy, “The Spirit and the Future: A Canonical Approach,” in Presence, Power and Promise: The Role of the Spirit of God in the Old Testament (ed. David Firth and Paul Wegner; Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2011), 333.

[2] Robin Routledge, “The Spirit and the Future in the Old Testament: Restoration and Renewal,” in Presence, Power and Promise: The Role of the Spirit of God in the Old Testament (ed. David Firth and Paul Wegner; Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2011), 348–349.

[3] Wilf Hildebrandt, An Old Testament Theology of the Spirit of God (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1995), 67–150.

[4] Peter R. Ackroyd, Exile and Restoration: A Study of Hebrew Thought of the Sixth Century B.C. (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1968), 177, contends that the prophets Zechariah and Haggai (shortsightedly) considered the post-exilic time as this restoration. The work of the eschatological Spirit was therefore crucial in their depiction of the restoration of the temple in Zech 4:6 and Hag 2:4–5. While I disagree with Ackroyd’s assessment of the prophet’s intentions, the larger point of the Spirit’s work in the promised restoration is still relevant. The Spirit of God transcends the temple and is therefore involved in its restoration.

[5] G. A. Mikre-Selassie points out that Joel often uses repetition to emphasize fullness in “Repetition and Synonyms in the Translation of Joel—With Special Reference to the Amharic Language,” BT 36 (1985): 230–237. See also Douglas Stuart, Hosea–Jonah (WBC 31; Waco: Word, 1987), 260.

[6] G. K. Beale, The Temple and the Church’s Mission (NSBT 17; Downers Grove: Intervarsity, 2004), 25, argues that the temple was designed to foreshadow the eschatological reality of God’s presence spreading throughout the cosmos. See also James Hamilton, God’s Glory in Salvation through Judgment: A Biblical Theology (Wheaton: Crossway, 2010), 343. For a biblical tracking of the “all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord” theme, see ibid., 268–269.

[7] Andreas Köstenberger, A Theology of John’s Gospel and Letters (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009), 539–546.

[8] Ibid., 886–894.

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