Jewish Scholarship on the Resurrection of Jesus

Mishkin

• Publisher: Pickwick Publications
• Year: 2017
• eBook ISBN: 9781532601361
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Studies

The Jewish study of Jesus has made enormous strides within the last two hundred years. Virtually every aspect of the life of Jesus and related themes have been analyzed and discussed. Jesus has been "reclaimed" as a fellow Jew by many, although what this actually means remains a matter for discussion. Ironically, the one event in the life of Jesus that has received significantly less attention is the one that the New Testament proclaims as the most important of all: his resurrection from the dead. This book is the first attempt to document Jewish views of the resurrection of Jesus in history and modern scholarship.

Chapter One

Introduction

The Jewish study of Jesus has been an evolving venture. Many aspects of the New Testament and the life of Jesus have been analyzed and discussed. But, there is one issue that has remained largely untouched in the conversation. Paradoxically, it is the very event that the New Testament proclaims as the most important of all, his resurrection from the dead. Paul could not have put the matter more clearly: “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins” (1 Cor 15:17). This book will explore various aspects of the Jewish response to the resurrection of Jesus.

[1.1] Historical Overview

The first people to believe that Jesus rose from the dead were, of course, Jews. The remainder of the Jewish community perhaps had various ideas about what actually happened, although it is not clear from the earliest sources. The response of the non-believing Jewish community is documented by authors who either believed in the resurrection (whether Jews or Gentiles) or who were pagans. For this reason, the usefulness of these sources remains a matter of discussion.1 The first reference appears in the Gospel of Matthew (28:12–15), and says that the Jewish leaders devised the story that the disciples stole the body. Brief allusions to this passage are found in the Gospel of Peter (8.29ff) and Justin Martyr’s Dialogue with Trypho (Dial. 108).

The second-century pagan writer Celsus wrote against Christian claims and incorporated arguments stemming from a particular Jewish man. This is preserved in Origen’s Contra Celsum, written about a century later. According to Celsus’s Jew (as he is known), arguments against the resurrection include its similarity to pagan Greek myths, the unreliability of the witnesses which include a “hysterical female,” and the fact that the resurrected Jesus appeared to a limited number of people.2 This was the first source to not comment on the empty tomb. At around the same time, Tertullian responded to a theory that said a gardener removed the body of Jesus because he did not want visitors to the grave trampling on his lettuce.3 Some have suggested this idea might have had Jewish origins,4 and as will be seen immediately below, Tertullian’s writing very likely influenced later Jewish literature.

One of the earliest comments from a specifically Jewish source appears in the Talmud. Because of censorship over the centuries, references to Jesus in the Talmud were deleted or disguised. Exactly which references were originally referring to him is not always clear. But, there are a few passages that are commonly accepted as referring to Jesus. One such passage appears in tractate Gittin. At the end of Gittin 56b, there is mention of Onkelos who wishes to convert to Judaism. In order to understand Judaism and the fate of those who speak or act against it, Onkelos raises three people from the dead and asks them questions. First, he raises Titus by “magic arts.” Then, at the beginning of Gittin 57a, he raises Balaam “by incantation.” He then raises “the sinners of Israel,” also by incantation.5 This term (“the sinners of Israel”) is commonly understood to have been a reference to Jesus before being changed as a result of censorship. It is used by the Soncino Talmud, as cited here. The footnote in this edition simply says “Jesus.”6 The text of the Steinsaltz edition of the Talmud in modern Hebrew is more explicit. It says ישו הנוצרי (Yeshu ha Notzri, Jesus the one from Nazareth). In the notes it explains that this was the original reading of this verse and that “sinners of Israel” was added later because of censorship.7 More recently, Burton L. Visotzky also acknowledged that this passage is one of the few definite references to Jesus in the Talmud.8 It says that Jesus was raised by Onkelos for a specific time and purpose,9 yet the point is to demonstrate that he did not ultimately rise from the dead as is the Christian claim. According to one contemporary commentator this was meant to send a strong message to his followers, telling them that “they better give up any hope for an afterlife for themselves: as with their hero, there is no afterlife reserved for them; they will be punished in Gehinnom forever.”10 Because this appears in the Talmud, this passage is arguably the most authoritative Jewish opinion on the resurrection of Jesus.

Another early and specifically Jewish source is the Toledot Yeshu (the Generations of, or the Life of, Jesus). It is a counter version of the story of Jesus and fragments of it appear in various forms throughout the middle ages. Perhaps the only point of scholarly agreement is on how mysterious the document is regarding its authorship and dating. The oldest extant copy is an Aramaic source from the tenth century, and some have argued that it originates as early as the third century.11 The Encyclopedia Judaica suggests that the Talmud offers hints of this story (Sotah47a, Sanhedrin 43a, 67a, 107b), although later Jewish apologists would claim these passages refer to a Jesus that lived two hundred years earlier.12

The storyline takes various turns in the different versions, but there are some general points of agreement. The mother of “Yeshu” (Jesus) was Miriam, a woman of questionable character. The father was a bad man who left before the child was born. Jesus is credited with supernatural powers. His death is also a subject of consideration. According to Aramaic fragments from the Cairo Geniza, Jesus was brought before Rabbi Joshua ben Perachiah and then was crucified on a cabbage stalk. Jesus then remembered what is written in Deuteronomy 21:23, which says that bodies that are hanged should be buried and not remain on the tree. He then tells his followers that if they do not see him the next day it is because he ascended into heaven. He died on the cross and was taken to Rabbi Judah the gardener (rather than remaining on the cross which would have brought a curse upon the land, according to the Deuteronomy passage). His followers came the next day and assumed he had risen to heaven. In order to disprove this, Judah the gardener removed him from the grave where he was placed. The body was then presented to Pilate and the disciples.13 Scholars14 have recognized similarities between this and Tertullian’s reference, and have assumed that his writings had some influence on later versions of the Toledot Yeshu. There are also some obvious differences. Tertullian’s version spoke of lettuce and not cabbage, and this represented the place of burial rather than the means of execution. This spawned quite a bit of literature over the centuries in the Christian, Moslem and pagan worlds.15 To whatever extent the Toledot Yeshu was i...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Acknowledgments
• Abbreviations
• Chapter 1: Introduction
• Chapter 2: Previous Studies
• Chapter 3: Preliminary Issues
• Chapter 4: Jewish Views of the Resurrection of Jesus
• Chapter 5: Conclusions
• Bibliography