Year: 2009
Type: article
Abstract: This article examines the referent of the term οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι in the Gospel of John. The debate is whether the term refers exclusively to the religious authorities, to a religious party, to the religious authorities and common people, or simply to the Jews in general. This article makes three contributions to the debate. First, Second Temple Judaism already knew of the term οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι as a broad reference to the adherents of the Judaean religion transcending the earlier ethnic-geographic sense, and John had this particular religious group in mind. Second, οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι is a composite group with the chief priests rather than the Pharisees as its leaders. Third, within οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, John portrays a shift in hostility from a religious-theological conflict with the Pharisees in the middle of Jesus’ ministry, towards a religious-political conflict with the chief priests later in Jesus’ ministry.
Source: Tyndale Bulletin
DOI: 10.53751/001c.29275
Author: Cornelis Bennema
Language: English
Subfield: Religious studies
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W3209186340