Zealotism and the Lukan Infancy

Zealotism and the Lukan Infancy NarrativesAuthor(s): J. Massyngberde FordSource: Novum Testamentum, Vol. 18, Fasc. 4 (Oct., 1976), pp. 280-292Published by: BRILLStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1560537 .

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Novum Testamentum, Vol. XVIII, fasc. 4

ZEALOTISM AND THE LUKAN INFANCY NARRATIVES

BY

J. MASSYNGBERDE FORD Notre Dame, Ind., U.S.A.

The prologue to Luke's Gospel states unequivocally the author's intention to make an accurate record concerning Jesus 1). As a theological historian Luke, writing between the two great Jewish revolts against the Romans, could hardly have been uninfluenced by the strongest rebellious elements within Judaism, namely, the Zealots. In this essay I shall attempt to show that the sources for Luke's Infancy Narrative present a climate of Zealot enthusiasm. In a further work 2) I shall try to demonstrate that Jesus divested himself of this familial political stance and that the main purpose of Luke's Gospel (and, perhaps, Acts) is to present a book of consolation for the disappointed Zealot, be he Jewish or Jewish- Christian.

The Birth of the Baptist The family of John the Baptist could have been Zealots. Zechariah

and Elisabeth were righteous and blameless with regard to the Torah (Lk. i 6) as were the Zealots. Zechariah, the father of the Baptist, appears to be a country priest 3). BRANDON 4) remarks that the founders of the Zealot movement were men of repute but that a considerable number of priests, especially of the lower class, were Zealots or sympathized with their ideals. Zechariah served in the Temple at Jerusalem (Lk. i 9) and it was upon this occasion that he received the vision of and message from Gabriel. There are four points of interest here. Firstly, in Jewish literature Gabriel is often

1) See D. J. SNEEN, 'An Exegesis of Luke i 1-4 with Special Regard to Luke's Purpose as a Historian', E.T. 83 (1971) PP. 40-43.

2) The SCHAFF Lectures delivered at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, April, 1974.

3) Lk. i 5, cf. i 39, Mary going into the hill country. 4) S. G. F. BRANDON, Jesus and the Zealots, Manchester, 1967, pp. 125-7,

130-132.



ZEALOTISM AND THE LUKAN INFANCY NARRATIVES 281

mentioned with Michael, who is the heavenly warrior (e.g. I QM xi 16) but his own work frequently includes defensive or aggressive attack or helping in battle 5), thus his presence here and in the Annunciation pericope may be significant. Secondly, the Zealots did not oppose the temple in Jerusalem but sought to purify it. They defended the holy place in the war of 66-70 A.D. and many perished in its final conflagration. When, however, the Temple was in flames the Zealots interpreted this to mean that God had for- saken his sanctuary and they petitioned Titus to allow them to go into the desert. Thirdly, more germane to our present pericope is the fact that Josephus reports visions and miraculous phenomena associated with the Temple which the Zealots strove to protect:

Again, not many days after the festival (the feast of unleavened bread) ... there appeared a miraculous phenomenon, passing belief. Indeed, what I am about to relate would, I imagine, have been deemed a fable, were it not for the narratives of eye witnesses and for the subsequent calamities which deserved to be so signalized. For before sunset throughout all the parts of the country chariots were seen in the air and armed battalions hurtling through the clouds and encompassing the cities (B.J. vi 296-299 cf. Tacitus, Hist. v 13).

The Zealots numbered visionaries among their ranks 6). Judas the Galilean, the second leader of the Zealots, was a man of dynamic personality in line with the prophets and the Maccabees 7). At his death he was venerated as one of the glorious successors of the martyrs of Israel. Zechariah, the father of John, is also presented as the recipient of prophecy (Luke i 13-17) and a prophet himself (Luke i 67-79). We know that the Zealots numbered prophets among their leaders and followers 8) although Josephus 9) refers to false prophets among them. However, his account may be biased. Fourthly, when the angel, who appears to Zechariah in the temple, prophesies about the son who will be born to him he predicts that he will go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah (Lk. i 17). Phinehas, who was identified with Elijah, was the prototype of the Zealots because of his zeal for the law of God (Numb. xxv cf.

5) His name means "strong man" or "warrior" of God. Cf. I Enoch ix 9-io and liv 6 where he destroys the wicked and II Chron. xxxii 21 (targum) and Sank. 95 b where he slays Sennacherib.

6) Martin HENGEL, Die Zeloten, Leiden, 1961 p. 239. Cf. Josephus B.J. ii 264 f. and vii 438 ff.

7) BRANDON, op. cit., p. 53. 8) HENGEL, op. cit., pp. 235-251-. 9) Josephus B.J. vi 285-288.



282 J. MASSYNGBERDE FORD

Sotah 22b). In IV Maccabees xviii 12 the mother of the seven Maccabean martyrs says that her father 'was accustomed to speak to us of the Zealot Phinehas'. Phinehas appears in the Old Testa- ment as a leader and conducts a holy war of revenge on the Midian- ites. In the traditions where he is identified with Elijah he acquires a messianic and/or eschatological significance. The absension from wine (Lk. i 15), probably suggesting the Nazirite vow, might associate Zechariah's son with a Holy War. In early Israel Nazirites were "chaplains" in the army. Thus Zechariah's experience in the Temple is consonant with the ideology of the Zealots.

Further, one notes that Lk. i 59 is careful to record the circumcision of the Baptist and makes this the occasion when Zechariah recovers his power to speak. Circumcision was of prime importance to Maccabees and Zealots. With regard to the law of circumcision it was said that the Zealots would slay any uncircumcised gentile who listened to a discourse on God and his laws unless he was prepared to undergo the rite (cf. Sanh 59a) 10). On this occasion, too, Zechariah is filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesies. Zechar- iah's prophecy, the Benedictus, could certainly be placed in the mouth of a Zealot. It speaks of the Heilsgeschichte, the defeat of the Jews' enemies and of those who hate them (Lk. i 71, 74), the hope of serving God in holiness and righteousness, the purified worship desired by the Zealots, and of the Baptist himself being a prophet. Douglas JONES 11) has shown that the Benedictus, together with the other Lukan psalms, show affinity, not only with the Psalter, but also with the Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs, the Qumran writings and the Psalms of Solomon. He draws attention to the fact that the Benedictus opens with the same formula as the 'Hymn of the Return' in the War Scrolls (I QM. xiv 4) and he remarks the contrast with the Psalter where the blessing-formula is never found in this position 12). He points out that keras (horn) (Lk. i 69) is a symbol of power, often belonging to God himself 13). Salvation (a*Tploc vv. 69 and 71) would appear to mean deliverance from oppressors. We may compare I Macc. ii 7, 9; xii 15 etc. Josephus speaks about "tokens of their deliverance" (&T0 ea-i~Lo C arp~oC a )

10) Cf. Hippolytus, Ref. Haer. ix 21. 11) Douglas JONES, 'The Background and Character of the Lukan Psalms',

JTS 19 (1968) pp. 19-56 especially pp. 28-40. 12) Ibid., p. 28. 13) Ibid., p. 30.




with reference to the Zealots awaiting help when Jerusalem was about to fall 14). Lk. i 75 finds a parallel, not only in the 'Hymn of the Return' (I QM. xiv 4-5), but also in I QH. xvii 14 and I QH. ii 35-36 15). Further, JONES demonstrates the affinity between Lk. i 78 (arXkyXvoa ;xeouq) and I QS. i 22 (ianlron)

and i QS. ii i rron 4ann, 16) and the motives of light, darkness and peace found in Lk. i 79 and I QH. xviii 17). These parallels are of great interest if John the Baptist was associated with the Qumran movement is). However, above all they suggest that the Benedictus is a militant hymn as P. WINTER 19) and other scholars have observed.

When the Baptist grows up he remains in the wilderness until his manifestation to Israel: the wilderness was the rendezvous of the Zealots 20). He is to be filled with the Spirit (Lk. i 15), the Zealot movement was pneumatic 21) and he turns back many to the Lord God (Lk. i I6), an achievement for which the Zealots strove. One might also add that the retribution which fell on Zechariah because of his unbelief would be consonant with Zealot tenets 22). It is almost too obvious to mention the lively messianic hope which constantly stirred the members of the zealot movement 23). Thus we submit that the family or clan of priestly people surrounding John the Baptist were sympathisers with the Zealots.

Zealotism with reference to the Annunciation and the Magnificat Josephus remarks two oracles, which were of interest to the

Zealots 24). One predicted that the sanctuary would be taken when the temple should become four-square: the source of this is un- known. A second one, which he calls an "ambiguous oracle", like- wise found in their sacred scriptures, was to "the effect that at

14) Josephus, B.J. vi 285-288. 16) D. JONES, op. cit., p. 33. 16) Ibid., p. 38. 17) Ibid., p. 39. 18) E.g. see W. H. BROWNLEE, 'John the Baptist in the New Light of

Ancient Scrolls', in The Scrolls and the New Testament, ed. K. STENDAHL, London, 1957.

19) Paul WINTER, 'Magnificat and Benedictus-Maccabean Psalms?' BJRL, 37 (1954), PP. 328-47.

20) M. HENGEL, op. cit., pp. 254-258. 21) Ibid., p. 235, 251 cf. Josephus BJ vi 300 f. 22) Cf. the whole concept of God's wrath, HENGEL, op. cit., pp. 251-4. 23) Ibid., pp. 296-307. 24) Ibid., pp. 243-246.




that time one from their country should become ruler of the world" (B.J. vi 311). Josephus adds that they thought this would be a Jew but he himself interpreted it to signify Vespasian who became an emperor on Jewish soil (ibid. 313).

In the light of these expectations the angel's words to Mary are highly significant. Her son will be called Jesus, that is, Savior, he will have the throne of his father David, he will be of the tribe of Judah, he will reign over the house of Jacob forever and he will have an everlasting kingdom (Lk. i 32-33). The prophecy to Mary should be placed against the background of enthusiastic Zealot expectation occurring especially around the time of the death of Herod (4 B.C.) onwards. It is not known upon which Biblical text the "ambiguous oracle" was founded. Some suggest Dan. vii 13 ff. for the book of Daniel was influential in Zealot circles. Others proffer Numb. xxiv 17. If Daniel were influential then this would be consonant with LAURENTIN's hypothesis of Daniel's relevance to the Infancy Narratives of Luke 25). There seems to be no tradition among the Zealots that the world leader would be the Son of God but Dan. vii would suggest a heavenly figure and the Qumran documents may refer to a Messiah begotten by God 26). The Zealots may have been associated with the later residents of the Qumran site.

However, the Annunciation pericope may suggest merely a messianic figure who will be an adopted son of God like the Israelite kings. One notes that Lk. i 32 states that the child will be called a (not "the") Son of the Highest and Lk. i 35 says "a" son of God 27). Luke, therefore, records nothing which would be alien to Jewish messianic expectation.

Mary is told of her cousin Elisabeth's condition and she goes with haste to visit her: both women rejoice in the messianic expectation. At this point either Mary or Elisabeth recite the Magnificat. Paul WINTER 28) argued that the Magnificat and the first part of the

25) Ren6 LAURENTIN, Structure et Thdologie de Luc. I-II, J. Gabalda, Paris, 1964, PP. 43-48.

26) I QSa ii I1-12 and an unpublished fragment in the hands of Dr. Milik which, apparently, closely resembles Lk. i 32-34.

27) P. GAECHTER, 'Der Verkiindigungsbericht Lk. I, 26-38', ZKT 91 (1969) pp. 330-1 thinks that 'Son of God' is an addition to the material before Luke adopted it but, then, one would probably expect the article as, for example, in Acts. ix 20.

28) See note 19.




Benedictus were Maccabean war songs which 'found their place in the third gospel by way of a Jewish Christian (Nazarene) adaptation of the "Baptist document", i.e. a first century literary record emanating from the circle of the followers of John the Baptist in dealing with John's birth.' The present writer does not think they need be insertions into the narratives but genuine hymns recited by those who lived subsequently to the Maccabees and were in sympathy with the Zealots, sharing their nationalistic thinking (these expectations still obtained at the time of the Ascension, cf. Acts. i 6). They are Zealot hymns, not indeed inserted into the narrative, but recited upon the occasion to which they are attri- buted. Thus both appearances of Gabriel evoke from the recipients of the vision a warlike song.

Douglas JONES 29) draws attention to the fact that the author of the events which the Magnificat predicts is 6 &uvot6s and that this title 'seems initially more appropriate to the divine warrior-cham- pion of Israel o3) than to the power of the Most High who will overshadow Mary (verse 35) ... As in Zeph. iii 17 this is a language of divine triumph over enemies: 6 0uvovrt octaae as (Pi '11t).' The reference to God's arm and the scattering of enemies recalls Ps. lxxxviii (lxxxix) II s1), and the 67repl'poCvot are plainly the enemies of Israel scattered by divine intervention 32). JONES compares Ps. lxxxviii (lxxxix, ii; Isa. xiii II; III Macc. v ii). In the Mes- sianic Psalm of Solomon (xvii) Israel's enemies are described in this way four times (8, 15, 26, 46). The same militant tone sounds in Lk. i 52 for behind this verse lies 'the classical vocabulary of the Day of the Lord in Isa. ii' 33), a day of reversal of human arrogance. A similar thought prevails in the Song of Hannah, Tobit xiii 2 and the Qumran 'Psalm of the Return' (I QM. xiv Io0-I) 34). The Zealots were in sympathy with the poor and on seizing the Temple they burnt the archives to destroy the evidence of debts 35). With

29) D. JONEs, op. cit., p. 23. 30) Ibid., JONEs thinks that 6 0uvor6;6 equals '1121 and in note 3 P. 23

cites Ps. xxiii (xxiv) 8; Jer. xxxix (Hebr. xxxii) 18; cf. Deut. x 17 and Isa. X 21.

31) JONEs, op. cit., p. 24. 32) Ibid., p. 25. 33) Ibid. 34) Ibid., pp. 25-26. 35) Josephus B.J. ii 427 (in 66 A.D.).




regard to Lk. i 54 n7c is only used of Israel in Psalms of Solomon xii 7 and xvii 21 (23) of which the latter is Messianic 36).

While scholars have compared the song of Hannah with the Magnificat perhaps the differences are more striking. Whether the Magnificat was sung by Elisabeth or Mary it is interesting to note in verse 48 that the singer believes that her son will have an important influence for many generations, that is, she realizes the historical significance of her child (cf. also verse 50). Hannah dedicates her son but shows no indication that he will be important. Further in Lk. i 54-55 the birth is seen in relationship to the covenant (cf. I Macc. iv Io). In other words, Hannah's prayer is a personal, family and non-messianic thanksgiving but Mary's is one which indicates a national and supernatural dimension, which is perfectly consonant with the aspirations of the Zealots. However, there is considerable weight in the view that the Magnifi- cat was not written with Hannah in mind but rather Judith 37) or that it is a song of praise 'by a mother on the occasion of the return of her son from a victorious battle' 38).

The Shepherd Pericope It would seem significant that Luke precedes the birth of Jesus

by a reference to the very event which caused great hostility on the part of the Zealots, namely, the notorious census of Quirinius when he was governor of Syria 39). But Lk. ii 1-7 shows Joseph with Mary his betrothed complying with the census together. There is no indication that Joseph 40) was a Zealot or, if he were, he was not extreme but accepted the decision of Joazer, the high priest who tried to persuade his people to accept the taxation. Judas the Galilean reprimanded his countrymen as cowards for consenting to

36) D. JONES, op. cit., p. 26. 37) Stephen BENKO, 'The Magnificat, a History of the Controversy',

J.B.L. 86 (1967) p. 268 citing HILGENFELD, 'Die Geburts- und Kindheits- geschichte Jesu Luc. I, 5-11, 52' ZW Th 44 (1901) pp. 203-15.

38) Ibid. citing J. HILLMANN, 'Die Kindheitsgeschichte Jesu nach Lucas kritisch untersucht', Jahrb. fiir prot. Theologie, II (1891) pp. 192-261.

39) A discussion of the date and historicity of this census does not come under the purview of this article. See C. F. EVANS, 'Tertullian's Reference to Sentius Saturninus and the Lukan Census', JTS 24 (1973) PP. 24-39; G. OGG, 'The Quirinius Question Today', E.T. 79 (1968) pp. 231-6 and G. M. LEE, 'The Census in Luke', Church Quart. Rev. 167 (1966) pp. 431-6.

40) P. GAECHTER, 'Der Verkundigungsbericht Lk. i 26-28', ZKT 91 (1969) p. 569 remarks that Joseph is mentioned very little in Luke and that he is not given a speech like Zechariah, Elizabeth, Mary and Anna.




pay tribute to a pagan state and tolerating earthly masters. Jose- phus tells us that Judas assisted by Saddok, a Pharisee, "maintained that this census would lead to nothing less than complete slavery, and they called upon the people to vindicate their liberty. They argued that, if they succeeded, they would enjoy the consequences of their good fortune, and if they failed, they would at least have the honor and glory of having shown a greatness of spirit. Moreover, God would surely assist them in their undertaking, if inspired by such ideals, they spared no effort to realize them" 41).

Yet Jesus' birth and infancy, like his conception, may be sur- rounded by a Zealot atmosphere. Luke's source first records a celestial apparition. In II Maccabees one finds allusion to what would seem to be angelic apparitions, either of a single celestial being or several, who helped the Maccabees to overcome their enemies. For example, in II Macc. ii 21, there is a general reference to heavenly apparitions (&as e o0'pavo" yevovhcS i~ Lpvelsc); in iii 24-25 a heavenly horseman appears (mvcpav~mav ayouXv) and iii 30 identifies him with the Lord himself: all are filled with joy and gladness (cf. Lk. i 14 but there is no verbal affinity); in v 1-4 horsemen are seen in the air and everyone hopes that this apparition (ktypvLetv) will turn to good. In x 29-31 five comely men upon horses appear from heaven and in xi 8 horsemen with white clothing and golden armor are seen (one may compare Revelation xix 11-16, the Rider on the White Horse). Although the word regularly used for these visions is LcpM&vseL and &yyeXoq does not occur, it is difficult to see what else could have appeared to the Maccabees except angels save in the text II Macc. iii 30 where the vision is specifically identified with the Divine Warrior himself. Where there are several beings, all of them cannot be Yahweh.

In the Infancy Narratives the description of the appearance of Gabriel, once to Zechariah and once to Mary, the manifestation of the angel of the Lord (Luke ii 9) and the heavenly army (7tX"Ooq ea-pcL-noiq Luke ii 13) are more restrained but not necessarily less militant. However, of most interest is the word acpcaru (Luke ii 13). Stratia, militia, occurs only here and in Acts vii 42 and twice in the Septuagint (II Chron. xxxiii 3 and Nehemiah ix 6). It is true that all these three references refer to the host of heaven but the host of heaven was thought of as God's militia and the classical usage of stratia means the same as stratos, army. Stratia can be used for a

41) BRANDON, op. cit., pp. 33-34-




naval force or land force or an expedition. Lk. ii 13 could have used sabaoth, which is the usual word used in the Septuagint for the hosts of the Lord. However, the more secular word has given the Lucan text a more military air. In all probability the shepherds saw a vision akin to the apparitions reported in II Maccabees. Josephus reports a similar phenomenon occurring before the destruction of the city of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. (vide supra p. 281). Thus the militia may be a heavenly army rather than a celestial choir. Singing in the form of war songs would not be incongruous. One recalls also that both angels and songs in battle occur in the War Scroll. The shepherds would think that a political saviour has been announced. The angels' singing is the third battle hymn.

The political atmosphere of the Shepherd pericope is also consonant with the theory that the event pertains especially to the emperor cult. R. GYLLENBERG saw the whole passage as an acknowl- edged or obvious parellelism to the profane pax Romana and the saviour Augustus. J. COMBLIN defended a similar thesis but placed it within the general background of an inclusive interpretation of the theology of Luke 42). The song of the angels is not idyllic. Shalom can be used as a well-conducted war 43). Further, as BISHOP 44) and VOGT 45) have argued d&v0p-lcotL euoxtLcS has a parallel from Qumran in the "sons of His good pleasure" (bene resono). This phrase designates those whom the Divine Will has chosen (cf. I QH. iv 30-38 and xi 9 and I QS. viii 6). Certainly the Qumran covenants were not pacifist. The "good will" belongs to God not to men.

P. NEIRYNCK 46) submits that the shepherd pericope is a separate literary unit. He thinks that we can see a priori in this description of the Messiah's birth at Bethlehem some contact with the Micah prophecy especially as Migdal-Eder, the tower of the fold in Micah iv 8 and the shepherds of Bethlehem seem to play a special role in late Jewish expectation of the Messiah (he refers to the Targum of Jonathan on Genesis xxxv 21 and also Micah iv 8 and v 1-3).

42) Cited by P. NEIRYNCK, ' "Maria bewaarde al de woorden in haar hart"

(Lk. ii 19, 51) in hun context verklaard', Coll. Brug. et Gand 5 (1959) pp. 441-442. This article was translated for me by Fr. M. Schoenberg.

43) II Sam. xi 7. 44) E. F. F. BIsHoP, 'Men of God's Good Pleasure', Ang. Theo. Review 48

(1966) pp. 63 ff. 46) Ernest VOGT, 'Peace Among Men of God's Good Pleasure' in The

Scrolls and the New Testament, ed. by K. STENDAHL, London, 1957. 46) P. NEIRYNCK, op. cit., p. 440.




Certainly the last part of Micah iv is a military setting. NEIRYNCK

argues that the annunciation of the angel in v. ii can well be under- stood as the proclamation that the prophecy of Micah has been realized. The word "today" (Luke ii ii) has for Luke a special overtone of eschatological salvation fulfillment (cf. Luke xix 9 and more especially Luke iv 21). In Luke ii the point at issue is the fulfillment of the Micah prophecy which at the same time gives the explanation why the city of David can be given as a name for Bethlehem 47): in the Old Testament the city of David always refers to the Zion hill of Jerusalem, the residence of King David. NEIRYNCK concludes by saying that the setting of the appearance of the angel reminds us of apocalyptic visions.

Thus the shepherd pericope includes the important people, the shepherds, in the messianic expectation but it is not without a nationalistic overtone in the words stratia and Soter, Christos and Kurios (or Kuriou cf. Luke ii 26). It would have been people like the shepherds whom both the Maccabees and the Zealots recruited. BISHOP 48) avers that the shepherds were men who were 'sufficiently rationally and spiritually alive to grasp the implication of the message of the Herald Angel and appreciate the song of the Heaven- ly Host'. E. VOGT 49) argues that they, together with Simeon, Zechariah, John the Baptist, Christ and his disciples could have been acquainted with the people and the ideology from Qumran. M. BAILY 50) observes that 'shepherds held a proud place in the ancient traditions of Israel' (cf. I Sam. xvi). Abraham, Moses and David were shepherds and Luke wishes to evoke the world of David 51). The title "Anointed" (cf. I Sam. ix Ib; xxvi 13; III Kings i 34; Ps. ii 2 etc.) and the location, Bethlehem give the scene a Davidic character 52). The sign that the shepherds receive is the sign of a shepherd's child in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger 53). DERRETT 54) observes that the child is not neglected, rather he is swaddled by an expert.

47) Ibid., note 41. 48) E. F. F. BISHOP, 'Bethlehem and the Nativity: some travesties of

Christmas', Ang. Theol. Rev. 46 (1964) p. 403. 49) E. VOGT, op. cit., p. 114. 50) M. BAILY, 'The Crib and Exegesis of Lukeii 1-20', I.E.R. Ioo (1963) P. 365. 51) Ibid., p. 367-8. 52) Ibid., p. 369. 53) Ibid., p. 372. 54) J. Duncan M. DERRETT, 'The Manger: Ritual Law and Soteriology',

Theology, 74 (1971) p. 569.

T9




Luke ii 21 carefully recorded the circumcision of the child, Jesus. This is the more remarkable as the author of the Gospel of Luke may well have supported the Pauline doctrine of the dispensibility of male circumcision. Had he omitted this information pious tradition in the early Church might have placed Christ among the privileged men who were purported to be born circumcised, Seth, Noah, Jacob, Gad, Joseph, Jeremiah, Adam, Shem-Melchizedek, Moses, Obed, and David 55). It is remarkable that no such fable arose concerning Jesus or John. Many of the Maccabees, including women, had died for the observance of the law of circumcision and Judas and his men forceably circumcised male Jews whom they conquered. Hippolytus reports concerning the Zealots:

If they hear some man discussing God and His Law, who is uncircumcised, they lie in wait for him and, when they catch him along, they threaten him with death, if he will not allow himself to be circumcised; should the man refuse, without compunction, he is killed. (Ref. Haer. ix 21).

The Presentation Pericope (Luke ii 22-40) The Presentation pericope may be reminiscent of the dream or

vision of Onias which is related concerning Judas Maccabeus (II Macc. xv 12-16). While Onias, the priest, was praying for the whole people of Israel a man appeared to him and Jeremiah gave Judas Maccabeus a golden sword, saying, 'Take this holy sword ( otlcpcclv Xpuamv), a gift from God, with which you will strike down your adversaries'. We have referred already to the portent pur- porting to occur before the fall of Jerusalem which Josephus records, namely, a star 'Resembling a sword (rhomphaia), stood over the city, and a comet which continued for a year', (B.J. vi 289). In the Presentation pericope Jesus is to be the sign of contradiction and to be responsible for the rise and also the fall of many in Israel, a sword will also pierce Mary's heart. Rhomphaia is used in this pericope and six times in Revelation but not elsewhere in the New Testament.

WINANDY 56) thinks that the fall in Luke ii 34 may refer to the destruction of Jerusalem under the wrath or sword of Yahweh. This symbol is especially frequent in Jeremiah 57).

56) L. GINZBERG, Legends of the Jews, Philadelphia, 5719 (1959) vol. I, pp. 121, 146-147, 315, 365 (but see V p. 267); II p. 4; IV p. 294; V pp. 1oo, 226, 399; VI pp. 194-248.

56) J. WINANDY, 'La Proph6tie de Sym6on (Lk., II, 34-35)', R.B., 72 (1965) pp. 330-1.

57) E.g. Jer. xx 4; xliv 12 etc. cf. also Ezek. xxi 2-22 cf. v 12; xi IO; xxiii 25.




BENOIT 58) discusses several senses of the word "sword", an instrument of war or of chastisement to decimate God's people but also as a metaphor for discriminating between good from evil 59). Luke sees Mary as the epitomy of Israel and picture presented is that of the Avenging God who crossed the country. Thus this pericope predicts an internal division among the people of Israel, those who accept Jesus and those who do not 60).

CUTLER gives eleven reasons why Simeon could be identified with the Son of Hillel 61). Hillel, as CUTLER purports, was not a pacifist as many suppose 62). He was anti-Herodian and anti- Roman.

Simeon, like Zechariah, may have expected a military leader. He is in the temple (we do not know whether he was a priest) waiting for the consolation of Israel. Consolation (7ioptixhalt) while occurring ten times in the primo-canonical books also appears four times in Maccabees (I Macc. x 24 in the sense of "favour"; xii 9 encouragement; II Macc. vii 24 [the tyrant enticing the boy- martyr]; xv II), the last reference appears on the occasion when Judas is encouraging his soldiers by recording the vision of Onias. Thus paraklisis does not necessarily mean quiet consolation, indeed, the classical meaning is "aid", "summons" or "exhorta- tion". Simeon could be awaiting a warlike leader like Judas Macca- beus.

One may also observe that both the names Simon (another form of Simeon) and John are prominent Maccabean names and are also found among the Zealots. There are 74 uses of the name Sum6n in the Maccabean literature contrasted with three in the rest of the Old Testament (Ezek. ix 32; x 31 and Sirach 1 I). Sumein in I Macc. ii I is a priest from Jerusalem, one of those sons (not the firstborn) is Simin but he is called Sumein in I Macc. ii 65 and is to be father to the family while Judas is to be the warrior. John or Jonathan is the name of two Hasmonean rulers. One recalls also John of Giscala

58) P. BENOIT, '"Et toi-meme, un glaive te transpercera l'ame" (Luc. 2: 35)', C.B.Q. 25 (1963) pp. 251-61.

59) Cf. Sib. Or. iii 316. 60) BENOIT, op. cit., p. 254. 61) A. CUTLER, 'Does the Simeon of Luke 2 refer to Simeon the Son of

Hillel ?', Journ. Bib. Rel. 34 (1966) pp. 29-35. 62) Ibid., p. 34. However, I have checked a few of the references and find

that they only implicitly suggest Hillel's attitude. Some of the documenta- tion is not available to me.



292 FORD, ZEALOTISM AND THE LUKAN INFANCY NARRATIVES

(Johanan ben Levi) the leader of the revolt against Rome. Giscala was in Galilee.

In Luke ii 36-38 the prophetess Anna from the tribe of Asher appears. It is conceivable that, if the Zealots numbered among their body male prophets, female prophets would also arise. It is noticeable that Anna speaks of those who were looking for the redemption (lutrysin) of Jerusalem. When the Zealots were winning the war against Rome they issued coins with the inscriptions "For the redemption (r0*) of Zion" and "Freedom (nmn) of Zion" 63). Is Anna akin to Deborah, a war prophetess?

One notes that Luke ii 39 ends the pericope by recording that Jesus' parents performed everything accoiding to the law of the Lord, a Zealot principle 64), but not one which we should immediate- ly predicate of the adult Jesus who made light of certain ritual observances (cf. Matt. xxiii etc.).

The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple Luke ii 41-51 records again the faithfulness of the parents of

Jesus to the Jewish liturgical life in their observance of the Passover. It may be significant that the source feels it necessary to portray Jesus as a young "sophist". Josephus informs us that Judas the Galilean, the second leader of the Zealot party, was a respectable sophist or doctor of the law (sophistis deinotatos) 65), a teacher who inspired fear or awe. Indeed, he twice calls Judas sophistis. Such a description would mean one learned in the Torah and an expounder of it. Does Luke ii wish to give the same impression of Jesus? Is he speaking to Zealot scholars? But Jesus goes to Nazareth and is respectful to his parents, that is, he is in no remote sense a rebellious son (Deut. xxi 18-21, cf. Sanh. 71a).

Thus the Infancy Narratives end on a note of propriety. They have shown all the personages to be pious and blameless Jews anticipating the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the oppres- sor. Luke is faithful to his sources and portrays them as "Zealots". In the rest of his Gospel, through redaction, Luke will give an entirely different character to both John and Jesus.

63) BRANDON, op. cit., p. 49. 64) Cf. HENGEL, op. cit., pp. 181-188. 65) Josephus, B.J. ii 433.



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Zealotism and the Lukan Infancy