Jesus the Prophet

8/3/2019 Jesus the Prophet

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Tyler Evans, 1147

09 February 2009

JESUS AND THE JOHANNINE PROPHET-MESSIAH

The biblical writers had many different ways of describing and referring to Jesus.

This is especially exemplified by the authors of the gospels. Each gospel writer had a

different reason for writing about Jesus and because of this, the individual author

emphasized certain parts of Jesus' ministry more than other parts. Matthew, Mark, Luke

and John all had a different reason for writing about Jesus; and their gospels are

accordingly according to what each author chooses to emphasize in the text that he was

writing. These differences are to be embraced because of the way they give the audience

the whole picture of Jesus rather than one aspect of it. Throughout the gospels the role of

Jesus as a prophet is mentioned and exemplified most often by the miracles and acts that

he performs as well as by what he says. This is seen best in John's portrayal of Jesus.

John's use of Jesus' symbolic actions takes precedence in his gospel. The role that Jesus'

actions have in the gospel of John is clearly focused. The miraculous signs that Jesus

shows the audience serve the purpose of showing the people that he is acting as a prophet

of God; that is God's spokesperson and emissary to his fallen creation. In his gospel,

John is concerned with portraying Jesus as the returning Prophet-Messiah foretold of in

the Old Testament and more clearly defined in Intertestamental literature.

The Old Testament is quite clear on what is expected of prophets. Deuteronomy.

18:15, 18, 22 says,

The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among

your brothers. You must listen to him...I will put my words in his mouth,

and he will tell them everything I command...If what a prophet proclaims

in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a

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message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken

presumptuously.

These verses depict someone to come who will be like Moses and who will instruct Israel

concerning The Law, and who would receive direct communication from God and then

communicate that revelation to the people1. The people were given instructions on how

to identify if someone was only pretending to be a messenger from God. Deuteronomy.

18: 15, 18, 22 emphasizes that the coming prophet will be someone who can verify

through signs that he is truly sent by God. The prophet of God was required by the Law

to perform a sign of verification to show that he was legitimate; otherwise it would be

easy for Israel to be led astray by the teachings of any so called “prophet of God”. These

signs are commonly called “authenticating miracles”. Most miracles can fall under this

heading, but not all miraculous events functioned specifically in this fashion; many were

manifestations of the power of God into humanity such as the 10 plagues of Egypt (Ex

7:14-11:10), or Moses parting the Red Sea in Ex 14: 21-22.

Many miracles were distinctive in that they functioned primarily to show the

audience that the prophet was indeed from God. The sign shows “that he [God] is at

work in [the prophet]...or that what the prophet says will come to pass”2 The signs did not

effect either salvation or destruction, or serve as a symbol of what was to come, they were

simply tangible proof of the prophets credentials.3 The sign of the prophet was instituted

for very specific and important reason. If a prophet came to the people proclaiming

judgment from God on the land and people, there needed to be a short- term method of

1 James Smith, “What the Bible Teaches about the Promised Messiah” (Nashville, TN: Thomas

Nelson Pub. 1993) 67.

2 Morna Hooker, “The Signs of a Prophet” (Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press Int. 1997) 5.

3 Ibid, 6.

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identifying what was true and what was false. The audience needed to either act because

of what the prophet said or put him to death (Dt 18:20-22), so God either gave a sign or

he did not, and the people received their answer.4

Another stipulation placed on the prophet in Deuteronomy 18 is that the prophet

will be sent by God to his people. This portion of text has a two fold fulfillment: a near

fulfillment of the prophecy, as Temper Longman III points out when he says,

“Deuteronomy 18 understood within its ancient context may be perfectly explainable in

terms of the rise of the prophetic movement and the prophets like Samuel, Elijah, Elisha,

Isaiah, and so on”

5

. Longman is correct in saying this of course but this passage also

points to a specific fulfillment in the future where one like Moses will return to instruct

his people, which is the second possible interpretation of Deuteronomy 18: 15,18,22.

Evidence for this long term interpretations occurs later on in Dt. 34:10-12 which

says, “Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses...no one has ever shown the

mighty power or performed the awesome deeds that Moses did in the sight of all Israel”.

Moses was said to have spoken to God face to face, while all other prophets experienced

God's revelation to them through dreams and visions.6 This denotes a special relationship

with God that no other prophet in the Old Testament tradition had, and gives great

significance to how we see John depicting Jesus in his gospel when he is depicted as

having a more than average (among prophets) relationship with God (Jn 10:30).

As we move on from the Pentateuch and into the prophetic interpretations of the

4 Ken Guenter, “ Reading the Prophets” Introduction to Prophets class notes, Fall 2007, 7.

5 Temper Longman III, “The Messiah: Exploration in the Law and the Writings” , in The Messiah in

the Old and New Testaments ed. Stanley E. Porter (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Pub. Co. 2007), 28.

6 Smith, Promised Messiah, 68.

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Law the authors of the Old Testament reveal an expectation of this prophet which is

echoed several times throughout scripture. Such as in Jeremiah 1:7, 9 which appears to

have echoed this prophecy of Moses and perhaps Jeremiah saw himself as a prophet who

would fulfill this prophecy of the prophet like Moses. M.E. Boismard has noted an

interesting parallel between Deuteronomy. 18:18 and Jeremiah 1:7, 9. The parallel is

certainly intentional,

Dt. 18:18 and I will put my words in his mouth and he will say everything that Iwill command him to say.

Jer 1:9 look how I will put my words in your mouth.

Jer 1:7 and everything which I will command, you will say.

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Other parallels run deeper with Jeremiah's comparison to Moses in Jer 1:6 which remarks

“I cannot speak, as I am young” and in Ex. 4:10 Moses tells God, “I am not a man of

words...because by mouth is heavy and my tongue is heavy.” These statements are clearly

window into how Jeremiah perceives his role, he saw himself functioning as a type of

Moses. Again, in Jeremiah.36:28 when Jeremiah writes another scroll after the first one

is burned by the king. This is an echo of Ex 34:1 when Moses is told to rewrite the Ten

Commandments after he smashed the first pair of stone tablets. Boismard remarks that

Jeremiah clearly sees himself as accomplishing the prophecy of Dt. 18:18.8 This affirms

that there is an expectation of God to once again bring a prophet like Moses to his people

once again, and while the similarities between Moses and Jeremiah can be seen, Jeremiah

is not shown to have the same type of intimate relationship with Yahweh as Moses.

We also see this type of echoing of the prophecy in the servant songs of Isaiah.

7 Marie-Emile Boismard, “Moses or Jesus: An Essay in Johannine Christology, trans. B.T. Viviano

(Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1993) 1.

8 Ibid, 2.

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Aage Bentzen notes a striking similarity to Moses in these passages. In Is 49:5-6; 8-12

the Servant is often compared to Moses or Joshua. Bentzen surmises that the picture we

get of the servant of Yahweh in the servant songs is the role of the “new Moses” or a

“Moses Redivius”9. The picture of Moses from the Law paints a figure of one who is

willing to die instead of Israel (Ex 32:31ff), the great intercessor of the people (Dt 9).

From Deuteronomy 1:37; 3:26 and 4:21 emerges the picture of one who vicariously

suffers with the people and on some level, for the people.10

These different roles are reflected within the servant songs and are clearly

depicted in Moses' life. The writer of the servant songs is first and foremost concerned

with the Mosaic tradition.11 He does not quote—he does not need to—because his

audience is familiar with Moses and it interprets what the modern readers miss. The

impression that we get from these passages is that the Old Testament expectation of what

the prophet of Deuteronomy 18:18 was of a type of Moses that would bring new teaching

and would bring the restoration of Israel to its fullest extent. The prophets seemed to

have (to a certain extent) expected a prophet who would be one as great as Moses (Dt.

34:10-12).12

The prophets and the Law give a very blurred vision of in what role/fashion the

Messiah will appear. Some passages expect a Messianic King (2 Sam 7; Ps 2; Jer 33:17

Num 24:16-24), other passages seem to foretell of a Messianic High Priest (Ps 110:4,

9

Aage Bentzen, “ King and Messiah” (London Eng.: Lutterworth Press, 1955) 66.

10 Ibid.

11 G..A.F. Knight, “ Isaiah 40-55” (Edinburgh: Handsel, 1984)12; quoted in Dale C. Allison Jr., “The

New Moses: A Matthean Typology” (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1993) 92.

12 The prophets also point to the Messiah as being much more than merely a prophet. But the role of

prophet is essential to the Messiah being able to verify that he is indeed the Messiah.

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Num 25), and as has been mentioned some passages depict a Messiah who will be

prophet like Moses (Dt 18:18, Dt 34:10-12). Even within this pattern the prophet like

Moses is sometimes expected to merely accompany the Messiah along with Elijah (Mal

3:23).13 Longman remarks that “The Old Testament did not provide the first century CE

with a clear blueprint for the Messiah.”14 This is a case where a clear picture of the

common interpretation of Jesus’ day can be gained by studying what the Intertestamental

literature has to say concerning the coming Messiah and from such literature the reader

gains a picture of four classifications of what the Messiah would appear as: king, priest,

prophet and heavenly Messiah.

15

During the Intertestamental time between Malachi and John the Baptist; there was

much speculation amongst the general population about when and how the Messiah

would present himself. The concept of the Messiah coming as a prophet was not as

acknowledged by the general public, but there is still good evidence that it was a common

notion among Intertestamental writers. Sirach 48:10 speaks of one who will be “ready at

the appointed time, it is written, to calm the wrath of God before it breaks out in fury. To

turn the heart of the father to the son, and to restore the tribes of Judah” 16. This passage is

based on Malachi 4:5 where the Lord's messenger is identified as the prophet Elijah17.

13 Although, I hope to show how John offers a reinterpretation of this O.T. belief since Jesus showed

that Elijah had already come through John the Baptist in Matt 17:9-13 Mk. 9:9-13, Lk 1:17. The

argument of how to reconcile what Jesus says in light of what John the Baptist says in Jn 1:21 does not

fall into the scope of this essay.

14 Longman III, The Messiah, 30.

15 John J. Collins, “The Scepter and the Star: The Messiahs of the Dead Sea Scrolls and Other

Ancient Literature” (New York, NY: Doubleday Press, 1995) 12.

16 R.A.F. Mackenzie, “Sirach” (Wilmington, DE: Michael Glazier, Inc. 1983.) 182.

17 Hooker, Signs, 8.

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The prophet/Messiah identified in 1 Macc 14:41 which says, “...the Jews and priest were

well pleased that Simon should be their governor and high priest for ever, until there

should arise a faithful prophet”18. This is a clear reference to a time when a prophet (who

also seems to be a high priest) will arise and take the place of (the presumably) lesser

high priest.19 From these two references, it is interesting to note that each one

presupposes that a coming prophet was expected. And was to be an integral part of the

salvation of Israel from their oppressors.

There is also evidence of an expected eschatological prophet within the Qumran

community. Many texts anticipate the coming of a prophet like Moses

20

, including 1 QS

9:11 which identifies the coming prophet with the “Messiahs of Aaron and Moses”. Over

this text especially is much speculation as to whether it is indeed speaking to a common

belief within the Qumran community. Collins suggests that this passage was not written

before the historical “Teacher of Righteousness” was present and the context of the

manuscript suggests that the person being written about in 1 QS 9:11 was already present

in the midst of the community.21 Allison suggests that this is an incorrect interpretation

since it is obvious the pre-Qumran group expected a righteous teacher according to an

eschatological interpretation of Dt. 18:18 and that subsequence to that “prophecy” of the

community, one did arise who lead them to their present community.22 Allison goes on to

18 Oxford University Press, “The Apocrypha: Authorized Version” (Great Britain: Oxford University

Press) 254.


20 George W.E. Nicklesburg, “ Ancient Judaism and Christian Origin: Diversity, Continuity, and

Transformation” (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003) 128.

21 Collins, Scepter, 113.

22 Allison, New Moses, 84 n196.

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say that there is “a certain resemblance between the Teacher of Righteousness and Moses,

the former, leader of a desert community that had experienced a new exodus, was a

teacher and interpreter of the law. He was “raised up” (CD 1:6) just as Dt. 18:15, 18 says

and 4Q175 foretells”23. It is interesting to note that 1QpHab.II:2-3 refers to the Teacher as

the “mouth of God” just as Moses was in Num 12:6-8. these references to a coming

teacher of righteousness who seems to reflect the role that Moses had among the people,

points to an interpretation of Deuteronomy 34:10 and, by association, could have

implications for how Deuteronomy 18 was being interpreted by the Qumran community

at the time.

The strongest case for the belief in an eschatological prophet like Moses can be

built form CD 6:11 which makes reference to “one who will teach righteousness in the

end of days.”24 This text gives a clear indication that at the end of time, an eschatological

prophet was to come that would instruct the people in righteousness and would

(presumably) restore Israel. Miller cites several authors that support this and remarks that

throughout Intertestamental literature “it is commonly suggested that there developed a

widespread expectation based on this passage [Dt 18:15-19] of an eschatological Mosaic

prophet who was to be associated with God's final deliverance of his people.”25 The

evidence for a widespread concept of a coming eschatological prophet is by no means

overwhelming26, but there is no doubt that the interpretation of Dt. 18:18 with

23 Ibid.

24 James H. Charlesworth [et.al], “The Dead Sea Scrolls: Damascus Document, War Scroll and

Related Documents” ( Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1995 ) 35.

25 David Miller, “Luke's Conception of Prophets Considered in the Context of Second Temple

Literature” (Ph.D. Thesis, McMaster University, 2004)53. However, following this Miller notes that

the view is not widely attested in rabbinical literature.

26 I would attribute this silence to the fact that most Israelites would have simply assumed

that the coming Messiah would reflect Moses and would be a great prophet.

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eschatological/Messianic connotations is not unheard of and as we will see, is attested by

the gospel of John in his correct interpretation of how the eschatological prophet will

appear.

This information is critical to our understanding that John had of the coming

Messiah as he wrote his gospel. Understanding the traditions of interpretation that John

is faced with is essential to our understanding of how to read his gospel account of Jesus.

It is apparent from this evidence that in one way or another, a prophet was expected to

accompany or be the coming Messiah. The concept of Jesus as Messiah and prophet is

essential to John's Christology

27

and therefore it must be properly understood so that the

gospel of John will be read in the proper interpretive light. John is concerned with

presenting that Jesus has met the standard by which the prophet must adhere to. He is

sent by God, He performs signs and wonders and his signs are all confirmed to be true,

thereby establishing that he is a prophet and that his message must be listened to and

obeyed.

Language affirming that Jesus is sent by God often presented by John; Jesus

spoke of “the Father who sends”28, “him who sends”29, “the One who sends”30, and being

sent “from God”31 along with other references indicating that he is identified with his

father (John 10:30)32. John emphasizes this aspect of the Jesus' ministry in order to fulfill

27 Boismard, Moses or Jesus, 1.

28

Jn 5:23, 24, 37; 6:57;8:16,18;12:49;17:25

29 Jn 5:24, 30; 6:38,39; 7:16, 28,29; 8:26,42; 9:4;16:5

30 Jn 12:44,45; 13:20; 15:21

31 Jn 3:2; 8:4; 9:16,33

32 List taken from Guenter, “ Reading the Prophets” Fall 2007, 13.

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what was said in Deuteronomy 18:18 and 34:10 about God sending one who is like

Moses. The frequency of passages that refer to Jesus being sent by the Father cannot be

ignored; they are too numerous to merely dismiss and they must be taken into account

when considering how John wants his reader to see how the manner in which Jesus

comes to earth (i.e. being sent from God) affirms his authority to teach the things he

teaches.

Further to this proof of his Messiahship Jesus performed signs. Jesus' signs

served 2 functions. First, signs were done to show the people who Jesus was and to show

who he was representing. For example, the account of Jesus walking on water in Jn 6:16-

24 does not seem to function as a fulfillment of any sign previously said in the gospel,

and yet, it shows the divine power that Jesus has over creation. This is also shown in the

feeding of the five thousand and the healing of the blind man who after his healing says

to the Pharisees and Scribes, “it is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a man

born blind. If this man were not from God, he would not be able to do anything” (Jn

9:32). The sign in John's narrative authenticates Jesus as a prophet and shows the

audience who Jesus is representing.33

Second, the signs were done to verify that what he said was true. “A 'sign' is a

wonder which contradicts the laws of nature. But only God can contradict the laws of

nature. Therefore when a man performs 'signs', it is not he who is acting, but God who

acts in him.”34 This is profoundly truer for Jesus, who was acting on behalf of the Father

but he himself was God. Signs were done to show the people that Jesus' words of

33 Granted that the miracles of Jesus serve many other functions for John in the narrative, but first

and foremost John uses them to show how Jesus is representing his Father who sent him.

34 Boismard, Moses or Jesus, 57.

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prophecy must be heeded because he was from God35. Jesus was regarded as a prophet

not merely because he spoke like one, but because he had the signs and actions to back up

what he said.36

Lastly, it is important to note that the signs that Jesus performed were all

confirmed later in Jesus' ministry. For Example, John 2:12-25 contains the story of the

clearing of the temple by Jesus where, after he has cleared it, says “Destroy this temple,

and I will raise it again in three days” and then John notes later that “the temple he had

spoken of was the temple of his body”. This passage functions as yet another sign

offered by Jesus to authenticate the fact that he had been sent by God to his people. This

sign would be seen to have come true at the death and resurrection of Christ. Just as in

the tradition of the Old Testament prophets, the signs needed to be confirmed so that the

prophet could be verified by the people as a true prophet from God. No confirmation,

then the prophet would be killed. Jesus called those who did not believe to believe him

because of the witness of the miraculous signs he had done. John uses the miracles of

Jesus to show that Jesus' calling and message are authentically from the Father.37 Hooker

remarks that it is only “when the signs are seen as manifestations of Jesus' glory that they

are properly understood”38 and in turn, when Jesus’ signs are seen to glorify and affirm

the one who sent him. What Hooker says here is of course true, but it is also critical to

note that Jesus' signs serve to verify him as God's prophet to the people of God. This

35 As per Deuteronomy 18:18 and the concept of being sent emphasized in that passage and in the

gospel of John.


37 Guenter, Reading the Prophets, Fall 2007, 15.


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must remain the primary purpose of the signs as we read the gospel of John.

Jesus met the Old Testament standard of what it was to be a prophet of God and

John emphasizes this repeatedly in his book. The word John uses is the word semeion.

This word corresponds to the word found in Dt 13:1-5 (which consists of another set of

regulations for prophets and how to identify them as being from God) . This word occurs

17 times in the book of John, 16 times in the first 12 chapters (book of signs) and once in

chapter 20:30,31 which is the thesis of the book (and refers back to the book of

Signs).“Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are

not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the

Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” It is clear

that John pairs the signs with Jesus being the Messiah of the Jews and their verifiying

power. John does this in order to reinterpret what he saw as a common misconception of

who the Messiah would be and what his role would constitute. John was combining

Jesus' prophetic role and his Messianic role.39

This brings us to our discussion of whether Jesus can be counted as the “Second

Moses” or the “Moses Redivius” as mentioned by Bentzen40. John 6:14 says, “After the

people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus did, they began to say, 'surely this is the

prophet who is to come into the world'”. When the people refer to “The Prophet” they

are referring to Dt. 18:18 and the promise of a prophet like Moses being appointed from

among the Israelites.41 Likewise, in John 7:40 the people say “'surely this man is the

39 To go along with this reinterpretation of the Messiah by John, Elijah must be viewed as coming inJohn the Baptist as Jesus identifies in the Synoptic Gospels.

40 Bentzen, King and Messiah, 66.

41 Incidentally the next verse speaks of Jesus withdrawing because he knew that the people were

coming to make him King (and lead a revolt against Rome). This speaks to the blurring of Messianic

roles that had occurred among the general Jewish population during the time of Jesus. The people saw

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prophet'”. In these two instances Jesus' actions (signs) are interpreted by the people that

he is The Prophet proclaimed by Moses in Dt 18:18. These two instances of signs that

parallel Moses help the reader to see that throughout the gospel of John there are several

passages that contrast and parallel Jesus with Moses.42 This shows up first in Jn 1:17

where Jesus is compared to Moses and what he did on earth. Comparisons to Moses are

in some places quite explicit, such as the raising of the serpent in 3:14 and the reference

to Manna in 6:30-33; 48-51. Others signs such as the feeding of the 5000 and the woman

at the well in John 4 (Water coming from Jesus rather than coming from Moses through

an inanimate rock) are more implicitly pointing out how Jesus is the one that Moses

wrote about in the Law and that he prophesied about, and because of this the people

around Jesus should be hearing the message and obeying. These references and examples

show that the people of Jesus' day were aware of what the signs that Jesus was

performing meant43.

The gospel of John repeatedly contrasts what Jesus is doing to what Moses did

and the contrast implies that Jesus is greater than Moses was. This implies that Jesus is to

be counted as “one greater than Moses” the second Moses, a better Moses who has come

to fulfill Deuteronomy 34:10. John performs this literary contrast subtly throughout the

gospel. First, Moses was a man. He was a special man, but merely a man. Jesus was

from heaven (6:28; 13:3; 16:28). Thus, Moses could only supply for the people of Israel

temporarily whereas Jesus is empowered to grant his followers eternal life.44 This is a key

the signs and came to make him King (Messiah).


43 Or at least they were being made aware by John and the other disciples.

44 Tom Thatcher, “ Remembering Jesus: John's Negative Christology”,ed. Stanley E. Porter (Grand

Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Pub. Co. 2007), 181-182.

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contrast for John: Christ’s mission on earth is superior to what Moses did because of

Jesus' origin (Jn. 1:1). Another contrast that is seen is the feeding of the five thousand

and the bread of life discourse in John 6. Mince Moses was “from below” the manna that

he gave spoiled quickly (Ex 16:20; Jn 6:27)45 but the bread of life that Jesus is and that he

offers will never spoil and those who partake in it will never parish as compared with the

“earthly” manna of Moses which only sustained the Israelites for a relatively short time.

John sees Jesus as being the prophet that was to come that would be like Moses, Jesus

could do what Moses did but because Jesus was not limited by the world. Jesus, while he

is God incarnate could take what Moses gave to the Jews, namely the law, and properly

convey it to the people because Jesus was not limited in the same way that Moses was

limited.

The passage of Nathanael being called to Jesus must be recognized as being a

passage that points to Dt. 18:18 and indirectly to 34:10-12. John 1:45-52 tells the story of

Phillip telling Nathanael that he had found the one “Moses wrote about in the Law, and

about whom the prophets also wrote” referring to Jesus of Nazareth. Nathanael does not

believe Phillip and Jesus says about him later, “here is a true Israelite, in whom there is

nothing false.” Jesus and Nathanael met, “How do you know me” Nathanael replied and

Jesus answered him, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Phillip

called you.” to this Nathanael declares, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King

of Israel.” This story raises several question, specifically what texts could of Phillip been

possibly talking about that Moses wrote about? Here we have several options such as Dt

18:18 or Gen 49:10 “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from

45 Ibid, 182.

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between his feet, until he comes to who it belongs; and to him shall be the obedience of

the peoples.” or Num 24:17 “A star shall come forth out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise

out of Israel”.46 This text is most likely referring to Dt. 18:1847 Because in this passage it

is obvious that when Nathanael hears what Jesus had made reference to him being a true

Israelite and that Jesus had seen him under the fig tree, this comes across as some type of

supernatural knowledge or sign that Jesus gives to show that he is in fact the prophet like

Moses that has been sent into the world.48 Jesus the Messiah will “offer miraculous

provision and healing...he will also be a revelatory mediator between God and Israel...be

an exemplary teacher with special miraculous insight and he will have authority

to...purify people and grant them access to an eschatological community of the

redeemed.”49

The Messiah of Israel was touted to have many roles. The role that is most

emphasized in John is the role of prophet. John is familiar with Old Testament and

Intertestamental literature and uses that knowledge to impress upon his reader the role

Jesus had during his time here on earth (according to John). Jesus' role was to convey the

message of God to his people and to the world. John’s first 12 chapters consists of 16

references to the signs of Jesus and this is all done in order that the people who saw the

signs and who read through John's book will have the evidence needed to confirm that

Jesus performed signs and wonders that authenticate his message and his ministry to the

46

Boismard, Jesus or Moses, 25.

47 The reference to Jesus being the King of Israel is once again evidence that there had been a blurring of messianic roles among first century Jews.

48 The role of Jesus as King is also being explicitly referred to obviously, but I do not think that John

is only emphasizing King here; he is always putting stress on the prophetic role through his use of Jesus'

signs in his narrative.

49 Thatcher, Remembering, 179.

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people, these signs culminate in Jesus' death on the cross. Jesus death and resurrection are

both the greatest sign of all and the result of the rejection of Jesus' signs by the Jewish

leaders. Ironically, this rejection is the action that verified Jesus' identity and role as The

Prophet of Israel.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Allison Jr., Dale C. The New Moses: A Matthean Typology. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress

Press 1993.

Bentzen, Aage. King and Messiah. London: Lutterworth Press, 1955.

16



Boismard, Marie-Emile. Moses or Jesus: An Essay in Johannine Christology. Trans. B.T.

Viviano. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1993.

Charlesworth, J.H et al, ed. The Dead Sea Scrolls: Damascus Document, War Scroll and Related Documents. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1995.

Collins, John J. The Scepter and the Scroll: The Messiahs of the Dead Sea Scrolls and

Other Ancient Literature. New York, NY: Doubleday Press, 1995.

Guenter, Ken. “Reading the Prophets.” Introduction to the Prophets class notes, Fall

2007.

Hooker, Morna D. The Signs of a Prophet: The Prophetic Actions of Jesus. Harrisburg,

PA: Trinity Press Int., 1997.

Knight, G.A.F. Isaiah 40-55. Edinburgh: Handsel Press, 1984.

Longman III, Tremper. The Messiah: Explorations in the Law and the Writings.” in TheMessiah in the Old and New Testaments, ed. Stanley E. Porter, 13-34. Grand

Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Co. 2007.

Mackenzie, R.A.F. Sirach. Wilmington, DE: Michael Glazier Inc. 1983.

Miller, David. “Luke's Conception of Prophets Considered in the Context of SecondTemple Literature.” Ph.D. Thesis, McMaster University, 2004.

Nickelsburg, Goerge W.E. Ancient Judaism and Christian Origins: Diversity, Continuity,

and Transformation. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003.

Oxford University Press. The Apocrypha. Great Britain: Oxford University Press.

Smith, James. What the Bible Teaches About The Promised Messiah. Nashville, TN:Thomas Nelson Pub., 1993.

Thatcher, Tom. “Remembering Jesus: John's Negative Christology” in The Messiah in the

Old and New Testaments. ed. Stanley E. Porter 165-189. Grand Rapids, MI:Eerdmans Publishing Co. 2007.

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