Jesus Quest
The Third Search
for the Jew of Nazareth
Second Edition
Ben Witherington III
InterVarsity Press
Downers Grove, Illinois
Second edition © 1997 by Ben Witherington III. First edition © 1995 by Ben Witherington III.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from InterVarsity Press, P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515.
InterVarsity Press® is the book-publishing division of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship®, a student movement active on campus at hundreds of universities, colleges and schools of nursing in the United Sates of America, and a member movement of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. For information about local and regional activities, write Public Relations Dept., InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, 6400 Schroder Rd., P.O. Box 7895, Madison, WI 53707–7895.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.
Cover photograph: Giraudon/Art Resource, N.Y. John Metropolitos, Christ Redeemer.
ISBN 0-8308-1544-9 (pbk.)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Witherington, Ben, 1951–
The Jesus quest: the third search for the Jew of Nazareth/Ben Witherington III.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8308-1861-8 (cloth: alk. paper)
ISBN 0-8308-1544-9 (pbk.)
1. Jesus Christ—Biography—History and criticism. 2. Bible. N.T. Gospels—Criticism, interpretation, etc.—History—20th century. 3. Jesus Christ—Historicity. I. Title
BT 301.9.W58 1995
232.9′08—dc20
95–43648
CIP
This study is dedicated to two scholars
who have labored long and hard
in the vineyard of Jesus and Gospel studies
and equally hard in the service of God
and God’s people—
Raymond E. Brown and John P. Meier.
May their tribe increase.
Chapter 1/ GALILEE & THE GALILEAN
Chapter 2/ JESUS THE TALKING HEAD
The Jesus of the Jesus Seminar
Chapter 3/ JESUS THE ITINERANT CYNIC PHILOSOPHER
The Works of John Dominic Crossan, Burton Mack and F. Gerald Downing
Chapter 4/ JESUS, MAN OF THE SPIRIT
The Works of Marcus Borg, Geza Vermes and Graham H. Twelftree
Chapter 5/ JESUS THE ESCHATOLOGICAL PROPHET
The Works of E. P. Sanders and Maurice Casey
Chapter 6/ JESUS THE PROPHET OF SOCIAL CHANGE
The Works of Gerd Theissen, Richard A. Horsley and R. David Kaylor
Chapter 7/ JESUS THE SAGE: THE WISDOM OF GOD
The Works of Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza and Ben Witherington
Chapter 8/ JESUS: MARGINAL JEW OR JEWISH MESSIAH?
The Works of John P. Meier, Peter Stuhlmacher, James D. G. Dunn, Marinus de Jonge, Markus Bockmuehl and N. T. Wright
Synopsis, Conclusions, Conjectures
Epilogue/ THE DEATH OF THE MESSIAH
The Work of Raymond E. Brown
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About The Jesus Quest: The Third Search for the Jew of NazarethIn The Jesus Quest, Ben Witherington offers the first comprehensive determination and assessment of what scholars are really saying about Jesus. In addition to the controversial views of John Dominic Crossan, Marcus Borg and Burton Mack, he presents and interacts with the work of important scholars such as Geza Vermes, E. P. Sanders, Gerd Theissen, Richard Horsley, John P. Meier, N. T. Wright and Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza. Witherington also outlines his own understanding of Jesus as sage. Here is an indispensable survey and assessment of the most significant religious scholarly debate of the 1990s from the pen of a Third Quest participant. It was voted one of Christianity Today’s 1996 Books of the Year. |
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