Who [else] has made the claim that the Beloved Disciple is a new Benjamin?
score:1
The short answer is: NONE.
This is what Dr. Brant Pitre himself said in his 2018 Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary book, Chapter 7 (The New Rachel) section "Mary the New Rachel", subsection "The Mother of Jesus and the 'Beloved' Disciple" (emphasis mine):
The third and final connection between Mary and Rachel may be the most subtle of all, but it is also potentially the most significant. Although I do not know of any New Testament scholar who has recognized the parallel, I would suggest that Mary is also being depicted as a new Rachel in the Gospel of John, insofar as she becomes the mother of the Beloved Disciple through her suffering at Golgotha.
...
Perhaps most intriguing of all, if Mary is being depicted as a new Rachel and the apostle John as a kind of “new Benjamin,” then this would provide an explanation for the otherwise baffling question of why the author of John’s Gospel refers to himself as the “Beloved Disciple” (cf. John 13:23; 19:26; 21:7; 21:20). For decades, contemporary scholars have struggled to come up with a convincing explanation for why John refers to himself in this enigmatic (and seemingly prideful!) way.26 ...
I also consulted the (obligatory) treatment on the identity of the Beloved Disciple in the "Introduction" chapters of the following well-regarded commentaries on the Gospel of John, but none of them offers a theory that frames the Beloved Disciple as the New Benjamin:
- D.A. Carson, Pillar NT Commentary (Eerdmans, 1991)
- J. Ramsey Michaels, New International Commentary (Eerdmans, 2010)
- Craig R. Koester, The Word of Life: A Theology of John's Gospel (Eerdmans, 2008)
- Craig Keener, 2-Volume Commentary (Baker, 2012)
- Andreas J. Köstenberger, Baker Exegetical Commentary (Baker, 2004)
The "Beloved Disciple" entry of the popular Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels (IVP, 2nd Ed, 2013) also does NOT mention Benjamin at all even though that dictionary series is well known to summarize the latest research on a topic.
Why this connection has not surfaced until now? My guess is that it's due to:
- The explosion of Second Temple Judaism research which just started in the recent decades now that the 1940s Dead Sea Scrolls and Nag Hammadi findings have been completely catalogued and published for everyone to study.
- Renewed appreciation of Talmudic, Coptic, and Syriac literature to shed light on the thought background of New Testament authors.
- Post-modern climate of wanting to find fresh perspectives on text.
- Assistance with the larger historical enterprise that focuses on social history: how actual people lived, not just major figures / ideas that exerted society-level change.
- More studies on how other religious traditions interpreted the OT and used the apocrypha, especially the early Rabbinic Judaism, the shamefully neglected Syriac & Coptic Christianities, and even Islam.
- The rise of Biblical theology (instead of older systematic theology) which in turn demands new research to reconstruct the world behind the text using new data.
We will see what future commentaries on the Gospel of John will say about Dr. Brant Pitre's findings.
More post
- 📝 Does Christianity teach the circumcision of the breath?
- 📝 Were there other people with camel hoof knees from praying?
- 📝 Why hasn't the Republic of Ireland returned Anglican church properties to the Catholic Church?
- 📝 In the Catholic Church, what is the explanation for having, and the history behind Principal Co-Consecrators?
- 📝 What scriptural evidence exists in support of our spirit's pre-mortal existence?
- 📝 "Actor's idolatry" problem - is it a sin?
- 📝 Why Jeremiah 10:5 was changed from palm trees to scarecrows
- 📝 Old testament accuracy of God's Word
- 📝 James first or Paul's letters
- 📝 Were any of the early church leaders Gentile converts to Christianity?
- 📝 How does Protestant Church explain Luke 2:48?
- 📝 If flour seems to be accepted as sin offering/atonement, then why is blood needed?
- 📝 Did Jesus really go to "hell"?
- 📝 Are there instructions in OT , specifying guidelines on maintenance of tombs?
- 📝 What does Reformed Protestantism teach regarding 'spirit and soul and body' (I Thessalonians 5:23)
- 📝 What is the source DNA for the body of Jesus?
- 📝 Why is the Exsultet so keen on bees?
- 📝 Why did Jesus wear the crown of thorns?
- 📝 What are the 'Scriptures' mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15?
- 📝 How do Trinitarian Christians understand the description of Deity in Isaiah 46:9?
- 📝 What is the general Baptist stance on pacifism?
- 📝 Did Christ consort with mystics?
- 📝 Did Jesus undergo another temptation in the the garden?
- 📝 For Those who deny the deity of Jesus Christ why does He at Revelation 1:8 identify Himself as the Lord God Almighty?
- 📝 Was Noah a Prophet?
- 📝 Are these LDS scriptures consistent with LDS doctrine?
- 📝 Under what conditions can a "good" or "charitable" act actually be sin?
- 📝 How could a loving, just, merciful God have created such an unfair test for humans?
- 📝 John's question in prison
- 📝 Are these Bible verses referencing UFOs?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Who [else] has made the claim that the Beloved Disciple is a new Benjamin?
- 📝 Has a substantial case been made from the New Testament that burning heretics is against the will of the Spirit?
- 📝 What is the basis for the claim that the entire New Testament can be reconstructed apart from original and copied manuscripts?
- 📝 How is the claim that the doctrine of Papal Infallibility has always existed within the Church substantiated?
- 📝 Are there any groups of Christians who believe that all loans made with their money should be made without the expectation of repayment?
- 📝 Since there is only one God who is not formed then how can the Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that Jesus is a created god?
- 📝 How do Christians who believe in a witness of the Holy Spirit via thoughts & feelings respond to the claim that thoughts & feelings are unreliable?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the claim that Malachi 3:6-12's curse and blessings concerning tithing apply to the New Testament Church?
- 📝 How is the claim that the doctrine of Papal Supremacy has not always existed within the Church substantiated?
- 📝 What verses from the Bible claim that Jesus has justified and redeemed man by his sacrifice on a cross?
- 📝 Has the Catholic Church made any comparative study of the faith of Martha vis-a-vis that of Mary?
- 📝 How do sedevacantists who claim the See has been empty since Vatican II understand the legitimacy of the bishops and priests?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the claim that abortion is immoral?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis to claim that masturbation is a sin?
- 📝 Who was St. Joseph's Father? The New Testament seems to give two answers
- 📝 According to the Roman Catholic church, who can baptize a new believer?
- 📝 Is there any evidence for the claim that the Catholic church suppressed translation of Scripture?
- 📝 What is the basis for the claim that Ezekiel 44 is about Mary the Mother of Jesus?
- 📝 Is there any substance to the claim that Origen supported reincarnation?
- 📝 According to Jehovah's Witnesses, does Jesus make the same claim as God, that he is the "first and the last,"?
- 📝 Was Jesus' resurrected body the same as his glorified body that he now has in heaven?
- 📝 What is the Biblical basis for testing the truthfulness of every statement made by Prophets or Apostles who have been confirmed as 'real'?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the belief that Jesus' death made satisfaction for individual sins?
- 📝 How many 'Books' never made it to the Bible (Old and New Testament)?
- 📝 Why did Jesus say that "Mary has chosen the better part"?
- 📝 Does the Catholic Church teach that it has the authority to change what is morally right and wrong?
- 📝 How is the amazement of the Jews explained by those who believe that "Render Unto Caesar" affirmed the paying of taxes?
- 📝 What is the source of the quote attributed to Origen, that "the soul has neither beginning nor end"?
- 📝 Who was the Egyptian that led the revolt of the Assassins in Acts 21?
- 📝 Do any trinitarian Protestant traditions teach that anyone who denies the Trinity is necessarily unsaved?