LECTURE 8
Hansie Wolmarans
Understanding
the New Testament
To
understand the writings of the New Testament, we need to know in what way it
continues the Hebrew Testament; how it came that Christianity separated from
Judaism; what happened in the period between the two testaments (Malachi 420
BCE, to the 1st century CE); and the socio-historical situation in
Palestine during the first century CE.
Continuity
between the Old and New Testaments
The New
Testament writings themselves regard the history of Jesus as a fulfilment of
Old Testament prophecies. However, the continuity between the two testaments is
much more than this. The Hebrew Bible was the sacred scripture used by Jesus,
his followers as well as the New Testament authors. It therefore formed their
religious and national identity (what it meant to be a Jew); it framed the way
they viewed history (that it had a divine origin, and that there would be
something like a judgement at the end of time); it gave them the rules
according to which they lived together with others (especially patriarchy).
Their God-talk was informed primarily by the Hebrew Bible, that is, how they
imagined God to be, how they viewed the relationship between God and Word, and
how we as human beings relate to God. The Hebrew Bible (especially the Greek
translation of it, the Septuagint) is quoted extensively. Finally, many stories
and images from the Hebrew Bible are alluded to.
The Break
between Judaism and Christianity
It should
therefore be evident that Jesus and his followers were Jews in religion and
national identity. Paul never referred to himself as a convert to a new
religion, but always presented himself as a Jew. All of the authors of the New
Testament writings were Jewish. The word ‘Christian’ occurs only three times,
in Acts 11:26; 26:28; and 1 Peter 4:16. Here it does not refer to a member
of a specific religion, but to a person who regarded Jesus as the expected
Jewish Messiah. (The Greek translation of the Hebrew word Mashiach is Christos.)
At the
end of the first century CE, a break between Judaism and Christianity is
clearly visible. It happened for various reasons. Some Gentile converts did not
become Jewish and refused to be circumcised. There was also a growing tendency
in the Jewish synagogues to exclude Jews who regarded Jesus as the Messiah. In
various cities of the Roman Empire, when Jews caused trouble, Christians
received the same punishment (e.g. banishment). Therefore they started to
distance themselves from the Jews and the Roman authorities followed suit. It
should be remembered, however, that until the third century CE the Christian
movement was dominated and led by Jews, not Gentiles.
This is why Early Christianity should be understood within the framework of
Judaism. However, Judaism itself was extensively influenced by the Hellenistic
(Greco-Roman) world. Both Jerusalem and Athens are regarded as the pillars of
Christianity. The Roman Empire did not limit its citizenship to Romans only.
Similarly, Christianity was also inclusive and referred to themselves as the
‘New Israel.’ The New Testament also exhibits influences from Greek culture.
Some Greek writers are mentioned, and some of the lists of virtues we find in
the New Testament, were taken over from the Stoic philosophers.
The
History of Palestine in the Inter-Testamental Period
Alexander
the Great died in 323 BCE and his empire was divided. His successors ruled
until the Roman Empire emerged in 31 BCE. In this period Greek culture reached
its peak in Europe, Africa and Asia. Greek became the dominant language in
large parts of the Roman Empire, and is also the language of the New Testament.
In 167 BCE Antiochus Epiphanes, still in the line of Alexander the Great, ruled
over Palestine. A revolt in Judea took place in 160 BCE (the so-called
Maccabean War). The Jews gained independence. This war is described in 1 and
2 Maccabees, part of the Apocrypha included in many Bibles.
In 63 BCE Judea was incorporated in the emerging Roman Empire. It was ruled by
‘client kings’, that is, Jewish rulers favourable to Rome. One of the most
famous was Herod the Great who ruled from 37 BCE to 4 BCE. His kingdom was
divided amongst his three sons.
Judea finally became a Roman province in 6 BCE, ruled by a praefectus
(e.g. the governor Pontius Pilate, 26-36 CE). In the period between the two
testaments, the majority of Jews, about 4 million, lived in the Diaspora
(‘Dispersion’—regions outside of Palestine). They consisted of the descendants
of those who did not return to Palestine after the exile, as well as more
recent émigrés. Most of them were urbanized, gathered in synagogues, which
became the primary network for the spread of Christianity. Only 1 million lived
in Palestine.
The Socio-Historical
Situation in First Century Palestine
Palestine
in the first century CE was violent and politically unstable. King Herod and
Rome enforced new agricultural policies which led to large estates. The
original owners of small pieces of land became disenfranchised and in this way
a new class of Jewish peasants emerged. To make a living, some of them became
artisans (like carpenters—Joseph, the husband of Mary, was one). Others made a
living as tenant farmers, day labourers, or beggars. A relentless system of
indebtedness kept them poor and exploited. Many of the parables of Jesus
reflect this system of wealthy landowners, versus tenants, and beggars.
Reacting to this change, some of the Jews became social bandits who attacked
the Romans and their Jewish collaborators, robbing them of their wealth. There
were also revolutionaries (sicarii) who armed themselves with knives and
assassinated Roman soldiers. When Herod the Great died in 4 BCE, armed revolts
took place all over Palestine. The Romans suppressed them mercilessly.
Sepphoris, the capital of Galilee, was destroyed and some survivors sold as
slaves. It was rebuilt as a centre of Greco-Roman culture in Galilee.
In 66CE, another revolt took place. In 70 CE, the Roman army led by Titus,
destroyed Jerusalem and its temple (never to be rebuilt). Pharisaism became
dominant. As sacrifices were only allowed in the temple itself, Judaism was no
longer a sacrificial religion. This may also explain why Christians interpreted
the death of Jesus as a once-off sacrifice making atonement to God for the sins
of the world (e.g. the Pauline writings, as well as the book of Hebrews).
Baptism and communion replaced the sacrificial rituals. Paul was a Pharisee.
The New
Testament Writings
Most of
twenty-seven documents of the New Testament were written in the second half of
the first century CE (50-100). The latest books, 1 and 2 Timothy, James, Titus
and 2 Peter, stem from the early second century CE. It is estimated that there
were only about 2000 Christians when Paul wrote his letters, whilst they grew
to about 7500 at the end of the century—a relative small community had an
impressive literary output. The books of the New Testament are classified as
Letters or Epistles (21, of which 13 are attributed to Paul), the four Gospels,
an Apocalypse or end-time revelation, the Revelation of John, and one book of
history, the Acts of the Apostles, which gives an account of the early
Christian movement.
Conclusion
There
exists a clear continuity between the religious traditions of the Old and New
Testaments. The New Testament was also influenced by Greco-Roman religion and
philosophy. Christianity and Judaism parted ways due to disagreements about the
person of
Jesus and other socio-political factors.
Jesus and other socio-political factors.
The inter-testamental period helps us to understand
Hellenistic religious influences, the function of the diaspora image in
the New Testament, the rebellious nature of the Jews, and the socio-political
background at work in the parables of Jesus. Especially forced agrarian reform
caused social change and unrest: urbanization, the class of artisans, tenants,
day labourers, and beggars.
It led to the Jewish War of 66 culminating in the
destruction of the temple in 70CE, the emergence of Pharisaism, and cessation
of sacrifices. The New Testament reflects this socio-historical background and
should be understood against a Christian-Judaism adapted for a Gentile
audience. Its books consist of letters, biographies, a history, and an apocalypse,
produced by small Christian communities in the latter half of the first century
CE.
