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Lionel Windsor
Pauls Redefinition of Jewish Identity (Romans 2:17-29)
Paper Presented at the Durham New Testament Seminar, Durham
University,
October 2011
This document is intended for personal supporters , family and
friends of
Lionel Windsor only. Please don t copy or distribute.
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3
What do you say to St Paul, itching with a
Jewishness he couldnt scratch away until hed
turned half the world against it?
I say thank you, Paul, for widening the argument.
Libor and Finkler, The Finkler Question1
The relationship between Pauls Jewish identity and his
Christ-identity is complex and
disputed. I argue that Paul neither affirms Jewish identity as
it stands nor rejects the
value of Jewish distinctiveness altogether. Rather, Paul
redefines Jewish identity in light
of the gospel of Christ. For Paul, Jewishness retains a
distinctive value (e.g. Rom 3:1-2).
However, this value should not be conceived principally in terms
of salvation. Rather,
Jewish identity should be understood primarily in terms of a
special divine vocation
(i.e. a role or task in the world) which springs from the law as
a gift of divine
revelation. Thus there is a close relationship between Pauls
Jewish identity and his
apostleship. Romans 2:17-29, which is located in the social
context of the synagogue, is
intended by Paul as a summary of his redefinition of Jewish
identity.
Part A: Pauls Redefinition of Jewish Identity
1. Paul the Jew?
The Apostle Paul was a Jew who fought with Jews. At certain key
points in his
letters, Paul emphatically asserts his Jewish identity.2 He
describes Jews as his
brothers,3 his family,4 his race,5 and his flesh.6 He grieves
for Jews,7 prays for Jews,8
seeks to win Jews,9 works alongside Jews,10 and shapes his
ministry in service of
1 Jacobson 2010.
2 Most notably Rom 11:1, 2 Cor 11:22.
3 Rom 9:3.
4 Rom 9:3; 16:7, 11, 21.
5 2 Cor 11:26, Gal 1:14.
6 Rom 9:3, 11:14.
7 Rom 9:1-3.
8 Rom 10:1.
9 1 Cor 9:20, cf. 1 Cor 1:22-23 (Watson 2007, 72-73).
10 Rom 16:7, cf. Col 4:11.
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Part A: Pauls Redefinition of Jewish Identity
4
Jews.11 Yet he also fights his fiercest battles with Jews.12 In
the course of these
battles, he abandons Jewish commitments,13 trivialises Jewish
lifestyles,14 curses
preachers of Jewish circumcision,15 dies to the Jewish law,16
and at times
seemingly renounces his Jewish identity altogether.17
At first glance, Pauls varied statements about Jewishness seem
mutually
incompatible. 18 They certainly constitute a wide spectrum, from
heartfelt
identification through to bitter denunciation. Not surprisingly,
then, scholars have
come to many different conclusions about Pauls Jewishness. Those
who examine
Pauls overall worldview, for example, often conclude that Paul
has recognisably
Jewish convictions.19 Mark Nanos, who is concerned with Pauls
attitude towards
other Jews, concludes that Paul never challenged Jewish Torah
observance; thus
Paul was a good Jew.20 John Barclay, on the other hand, who is
concerned with
whether Pauls Jewish contemporaries accepted him as Jewish,
concludes that they
did not; thus Paul was an apostate Jew.21 Love Sechrest,
moreover, asks about
Pauls group affiliation, and concludes that he felt a deeper
kinship bond with the
Christian community than with the Jewish community; and so Paul
is a former
Jew.22
11 Rom 11:14; 15:25-28, 31; 1 Cor 16:1-4.
12 Rom 15:31; 2 Cor 11:22, 24; Gal 6:12-13; Phil 3:2-6; 1 Thess
2:14-16.
13 Gal 1:13-14.
14 Gal 2:14-15, 1 Cor 9:20 (Dunn 1999, 182).
15 Gal 1:6-9; cf. Gal 5:6, 11; 6:12-15; Phil 3:2-3; cf. Tit
1:10.
16 Gal 2:19.
17 Phil 3:5-8.
18 Risnen (2008, 319-22) demonstrates the diversity and apparent
contradiction in Pauls stance towards Judaism.
19 E.g. Frey 2007, 299-310.
20 Nanos 1996, 9, citing Barth (1979). See also Rudolph (2011),
who critiques the consensus reading of 1 Cor 9:19-23 and argues
that Paul did not necessarily abandon a Torah-observant lifestyle.
Rather, consistent with contemporary Jewish practice of
accommodation, Paul ate with Gentiles but did not personally
transgress the Mosaic food laws. See also Eisenbaum 2009; Rudolph
2010.
21 E.g. 2 Cor 11:24, 26; 1 Thess 2:15-16. So Barclay 1995,
111-19. Cf. Barclays description of Paul as an anomalous diaspora
Jew (1996b, 381-95).
22 Sechrest 2009, 157-64. Cf. Sanders (1983, 171-79) who argues
that even though Paul did not intend to make the church into a
third race, his ministry inevitably had this effect.
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1. Paul the Jew?
5
Even this small selection of scholarship demonstrates that the
question of Pauls
Jewishness can be asked, and answered, in many different ways.
This plurality is
not in itself problematic. After all, each of the various
aspects of Pauls Jewishness
which scholars choose as a focus for study represents a
legitimate scholarly
concern, and provides valuable, discrete insights. Nevertheless,
the question of
Pauls Jewishness is not easy to confine; it has the unsettling
tendency to break
through narrowly defined areas of scholarly concern. Because it
is such a
significant topic, individual pronouncements about Pauls
Jewishness in one area
often influence studies in many other areas of Pauls life and
thoughthis
theology, Christology, soteriology, ecclesiology, hermeneutics,
missiology, social
views, etc.23
In my overall dissertation, I am taking yet another approach to
the question of
Pauls Jewishness. I am seeking to investigate Pauls Jewish
identity; that is, I am
seeking to understand who Paul himself thought he was, in light
of his Jewish
context.24 My aim is to identify similarities and differences
between Paul and his
Jewish contemporaries, and to discern how these similarities and
differences
generate Pauls own individual Jewish identity.
Of course, my approach, like any other, is selective. My primary
aim is to
understand aspects of Pauls own Jewish identity, not to judge
his Jewishness
against an independent, external standard (historical or
otherwise). Nevertheless,
despite its selectivity, an approach based on identity is
capable of making
significant contributions to other areas of Pauline studies.
This is precisely because
the approach seeks to understand Pauls own personal perspective
on Jewishness.
It therefore provides immediate points of integration with other
areas of his life,
his thought and his influence.
23 Hagner (2007) discusses the way in which Pauls Jewishness is
inseparable from other key areas of his life and thought.
24 Cf. Dunns question: Who did Paul think he was? (1999,
174-77). My approach is informed by the notion of social identity,
which conceives of an individuals identity in a dialogical
relationship with his or her social world through a dynamic
interplay of similarity and difference. For general discussions of
social identity, see Giddens 1993; Jenkins 2008; Lawler 2008. See
also the foundational work of Berger and Luckmann (1971, 194-96),
discussed and critiqued by Horrell (2001). Like Meeks (1983, 5),
our use of social theory will be suggestive, rather than
generative.
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Part A: Pauls Redefinition of Jewish Identity
6
The notion of identity is, in fact, particularly valuable for
examining the numerous
elements of conflict and dissonance in Pauls statements about
Jewish identity.
Theorists frequently describe identity formation as an
evolutionary process, a
constant interaction between individuals and their social world
which changes
both the individuals and the world.25 We can examine Paul in
these terms, as an
agent of identity, who by his apostolic ministry is both
reproducing older
conceptions of Jewish identity and simultaneously creating newer
conceptions.
2. Pauls gospel and his Jewish identity
However, Pauls identity-shaping activities are more drastic and
disruptive than
might be suggested by a term such as evolutionary. Paul is
convinced that
something revolutionary has occurred in the life, death and
resurrection of Christ,
an event which he proclaims in his gospel. This radical
Christ-event pervades
Pauls letters and undergirds both his own identity and his
conception of his
readers identities.26 It creates new communities with new social
realities.27 It even
challenges elements of Jewish distinctiveness.28 Pauls Jewish
identity, therefore,
cannot be understood without reference to this even more
fundamental Christ-
identity.29 The relationship between Pauls Jewish and
Christian30 identities has
itself been conceived in different ways by different
scholars.31
25 E.g. Giddens (1993): Every act which contributes to the
reproduction of structure is also an act of production, a novel
enterprise, and as such may initiate change by altering that
structure at the same time as it reproduces itas the meanings of
words change in and through their use. (134)
26 E.g. Rom 1:1-7; 1 Cor 15:1-11; Gal 1:1-5; 1 Thess 1:4-10;
etc.
27 E.g. Rom 14:1-15:7; 1 Cor 1:2; 2 Cor 1:1; Phil 2:1-11;
etc.
28 E.g. Rom 3:29-30, 10:12; 1 Cor 12:13; Gal 3:28; cf. Col
3:11.
29 Barclay (2010) contends that in Galatians, The Christ-gift is
the fulfilment of the divine promises to Abraham, but is neither
prepared for nor conditioned by Israels prior history (53). Jewish
identity, then, as expressed in Torah-observance, can no longer be
seen as something intrinsically valuable in and of itself.
Ethnicity, including and especially Jewishness, retains no value,
as a mark of status, within the new reality created by the gift
(50).
30 Henceforth we will use the adjective Christian as shorthand
for pertaining to faith in relation to Jesus Christ (cf. Rom 3:22).
Although the term Christ-believing would be closer to Pauls usage,
it is too cumbersome to use repeatedly.
31 For the feasibility of the idea that Paul could have
multiple, nested identities, see Hodge (2005).
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2. Pauls gospel and his Jewish identity
7
According to Mark Nanos, for example, Pauls view of Christian
identity provides
little direct challenge to Jewish identity at all.32 The
Christians to whom Paul is
writing are non-Torah-observant synagogue-attending righteous
Gentiles.33 In
Romans, Paul is urging these gentiles to regard the weak, i.e.
non-Christian Jews,
as brothers and sisters in faith; hence the Christians should
respect the Jewish
identity of their brothers and sisters while seeking to win them
for Christ if they
can. It has been demonstrated that are a number of significant
flaws with Nanos
proposal, most seriously in aspects of his exegesis of Rom
14:1-15:6.34 Nanos
proposal, therefore, while provocative, ultimately lacks firm
exegetical support.
Daniel Boyarin, on the other hand, argues that Pauls gospel is a
universalistic
system which effectively (if not quite intentionally) supersedes
and eradicates
Jewish identity by rendering any concept of Jewish
distinctiveness meaningless.35
Boyarin, it must be said, has self-consciously limited himself
to reading Paul
through the lens of Gal 3:28-29, which affirms the relative
unimportance of Jewish
distinction.36 Boyarin does not fully explore the significance
of Pauls closely
argued affirmations of on-going Jewish advantage (e.g. Rom
3:1-2, 9:4-5, 11:28-
29).37 Nevertheless, Boyarins challenge must be recognised by
anyone who seeks
to examine Pauls view of Jewish identity.
A number of scholars have attempted to reconcile Pauls
affirmation of the unity of
Jew and Gentile in Christ with his statements about an on-going,
distinct, Jewish
identity. William Campbell, Philip Esler and Bruce Hansen, in
different ways and
32 Nanos 1996.
33 See also Nanos 2010. Nanos argues that Paul and his Christian
contemporaries were claiming that non-Jews, by way of their
response to the gospel of Christ, have become included in the
Jewish communities, in Judaism, as equal members, apart from them
becoming Jews, that is, without undertaking proselyte conversion
(157). Nanos article is nuanced and at points persuasive, but
continued insistence on using terms of Jewish identity such as
Judaism to describe the Christian communities as a whole seems
strained and paradoxical.
34 E.g. elsewhere in Romans, Paul describes non-Christian Jews,
not simply as weak in faith, but without faith, (Rom 11:20, 23)
(Das 2003, 69-74, 2007, 115-48; cf. Fisk 2008, 176; Gagnon 2000;
Hvalvik 2007, 193-96). See also Esler (2003, 120), who notes that
Pauls failure to mention any connection with the social and
architectural forms typical of the Judean community in Rome in the
mid-first century in Romans 16 poses a significant obstacle to this
pioneering thesis.
35 Boyarin 1994, 152, cf. 7-8.
36 Boyarin 1994, 5-6.
37 Texts such as these are discussed by Stowers (1994,
129-34).
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Part A: Pauls Redefinition of Jewish Identity
8
with different emphases, argue that Paul affirms Jews as members
of an ethnic
group whose distinction from non-Jews must be protected within
the Christian
community.38 Gentiles do not have to become Jews in order to be
Christian; but
neither do Christian Jews have to give up their Jewish identity.
In order for Pauls
vision to be put into effect, however, the Mosaic law must be
divested of its
theological significance. According to these interpreters, Paul
views the law of
Moses simply as a set of cultural norms and practices which must
be affirmed
within his multicultural Christian communities.
While the studies I have just mentioned are thorough and
insightful attempts to
account for Pauls affirmations of a distinct place for Jewish
identity within the
Christian community, in the end they are still subject to
Boyarins critique.39 They
claim that Paul both denied any kind of ultimate theological
significance to the
Mosaic law and that he also affirmed a distinct ethnic identity
for Jews. However,
this does not fit with what we know about Pauls understanding of
Jewishness.
When Paul asserts the value of a distinct Jewish ethnic
identity, he implies that this
identity is closely bound up with the theological significance
of the Mosaic law (e.g.
Rom 3:1-2, 9:4-5, 11:28-29). Given his Pharisaic background,
Paul would also have
been intimately aware that any suggestion that the law should be
robbed of its
theological significance entirely would cause uproar amongst his
Jewish
contemporaries.40 Paul, in other words, could not have denied
any ultimate
theological significance to the Mosaic law without destroying
the distinctiveness of
Jewish identity.41 But, as we have seen, Paul did affirm the
value of Jewish identity.
38 Campbell 1991, esp. 98-116, 2006, 104-20; Esler 2003; Hansen
2010
39 This is despite Hansens claim that he has answered Boyarin
(2010, 60-62, 103-04, 202).
40 Given Pauls background as a Pharisee (Phil 3:5-6) and zealot,
(Gal 1:13-14), he must have been aware that his negative statements
concerning the law would immediately threaten the core of Jewish
ethnic identity and thus risk intense social disharmony, even in
the short term. Thus Pauls statements cannot be explained simply as
part of a well-intentioned conflict-reduction strategy which only
later caused unintended problems for Jewish identity, as claimed by
Esler (2003, 354-56) and Campbell (2006, 116). Cf. Acts 6:13-14,
13:38-47, 18:13-15, which imply that even before Paul wrote to the
Romans, the gospel had been preached in a form that implied an
unorthodox view of the Law which induced heated conflict, and may
well have contributed significantly to the disturbances which led
to the expulsion of the Jews under Claudius at the instigation of
Chrestus. (Suetonius 1914-1920, Claud. 25.4) (Hvalvik 2007,
182).
41 To render a practice that was so central to Jewish identity
ultimately unnecessary implies a similar judgment regarding that
identity itself (Das 2003, 78; cf. Barclay 1996a, 308). While
this
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3. The vocational dimension of Jewish identity
9
This, in turn, must imply that Paul saw some theological value
in the law of
Moses.42
What, then, was Paul doing with the law, and thus with Jewish
identity? I have
argued that he wasnt simply affirming it as it stood (Nanos), or
dissolving it in a
Hellenistic sea of universalism (Boyarin), or preserving it in a
relativised ethnic
form by removing its deep theological significance (Esler,
Campbell, Hansen). In
my dissertation, I argue that Paul is doing something else with
the law and with
Jewish identity. He is simultaneously affirming that Jewish
identity and the law
have immense theological significance, and is profoundly
redefining the nature of
that theological significance, in light of the gospel of Christ.
My research, therefore,
is an exploration of how this transformed understanding of the
law and Jewish
identity informs Pauls activity as apostle and gospel preacher.
What, in other
words, does Paul see as the on-going significance of distinctive
Jewishness?
3. The vocational dimension of Jewish identity
The theological value which Paul ascribes to Jewishness is
clearly not soteriological
in any straightforward sense. Paul repeatedly declares that
Jewish identity is not a
deciding factor in a persons salvation,43 justification,44
divine inheritance45 or
membership in the Christian community;46 since these things are
all obtained
through Christ regardless of whether one is a Jew. What, then,
is the value of being
Jewish for Paul?
I contend that the concept of a divine vocation for Israel
undergirds many of Pauls
discussions of Jewish identity. The word vocation or calling in
this context is
meant to refer to any kind of conviction that God has given
Israel a special role or
kind of tolerance appears positive from a Christian perspective,
it is disastrous from a Jewish perspective (Boyarin 1994,
31-32).
42 So Das 2003, 141. Das does outline a positive vision for the
Mosaic law in the life of Christians in general (166-186) but
doesnt explore the implications of Pauls view of the law for the
on-going existence of a distinct Jewish identity in Pauls
communities. It is our intention to explore this issue further.
43 E.g. Rom 10:12-13.
44 E.g. Rom 3:29-30.
45 E.g. Rom 4:13-14, Gal 3:28-29.
46 E.g. 1 Cor 12:13.
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Part A: Pauls Redefinition of Jewish Identity
10
task within his wider purposes. The concept is referred to and
developed by a
number of scholars, especially those who are particularly
conscious of a Jewish
perspective in their biblical interpretation. Such scholars
speak of exclusive Jewish
cultural practice as a task and calling in the world47 or as a
distinct vocation,
, within the Christian community, a vocation that is not
coterminous with
Gods call to salvation.48 The purpose of this special call is to
promote Gods
wider purposes in the world not simply to create an
inward-looking triumphant
exclusivism.49
A sense of Israels vocation is usually closely related to the
conviction that the law
of Moses, and the scriptures more generally, are a gift of
divine revelation to Israel.
Since God has uniquely revealed himself to Israel in the law,
Israel has a unique
task to perform in response to that law. The exact nature of
Israels response was
conceived in different ways by Pauls Jewish contemporaries; e.g.
obedience to the
law, enforcing purity, mediating divine wisdom to Gentiles, etc.
I contend that Paul
affirms that the revelation of the law to Israel provides them
with a unique gift and
thus a significant divine vocation. However, in light of the
gospel of Christ, Paul
radically redefines the significance of the law,50 and so also
redefines the nature of
Israels distinct vocation.
47 Boyarin 1994, 32.
48 Rudolph 2011, 75-89. See also Kaminsky (2007, 2011; 2006 and
Levenson (1996, 154-56).
49 Nanos 1996, 9. An emphasis on the vocation of Israel is also
a feature of the work of Stanley Stowers and N. T. Wright, although
their particular interpretations of the nature of Israels vocation
and its relationship to Israels salvation are problematic. Stowers
(1994, 189-91, 299-300, 06-12) claims that Paul is only wrestling
with vocational issues and not with soteriological issues. However,
Stowers does not deal adequately with Pauls very strong statements
about the soteriological nature of Israels problem (e.g. Rom 3:20;
10:21; 11:20, 23) and his clear concerns about Israels salvation
(e.g. 9:3, 10:1) (Longenecker 2007, 27-31). For other critiques of
the Sonderweg approach of which Stowers is a representative see
Risnen (1988, 180); Hvalvik (1990); Donaldson (2006, 39-44). Wright
(1991, 20-21, 231-57) conceives of Israels divine vocation
primarily in terms of incorporation. Israels greatest sin (which
nevertheless achieved Gods purposes) was her failure to include
Gentiles; her positive role is to incorporate others into herself,
thereby becoming Gods new saved humanity, the church. Wrights
particular conception of Israels vocation ultimately undercuts the
very issue we are trying to address: the value of a distinct
identity for Jewish identity within Christian identity. Israels
ultimate vocation, for Wright, is precisely to abandon her
distinctiveness. This is because Wright connects Israels vocation
with incorporation, which is a unifying concept, rather than with
revelation, which is a more distinctive concept.
50 Cf. Watson 2004, 16-17.
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3. The vocational dimension of Jewish identity
11
To reiterate: Paul did not conceive of the distinct value of
Jewishness principally in
terms of salvation, but rather in terms of a special vocation
springing from a
unique divine revelation. For many other Jews in Pauls context,
such a distinction
between vocation and salvation would have been largely
irrelevant, since Israels
response to the divine revelation of the law was thought to lead
to salvation in a
fairly straightforward manner. However, in Pauls discussions of
Jewish identity, it
is important to distinguish soteriological and vocational
elements. This is because
Paul views the relationship between the law-revelation and
salvation as
contentious and problematic. For Paul, the possibility that
Israels response to the
law may achieve Gods purposes in the world but not thereby
ensure salvation for
Israel itself is a topic of intense discussion, especially in
his letter to the Romans.
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Part B: Romans 2:17-29
In Rom 2:17-29, many of the key interpretative puzzles
associated with the
complex relationship between Pauls Christian identity and his
Jewish identity rise
to particular prominence. This passage appears within a letter
whose overarching
theme is the Christian gospel;51 yet the passage itself is a
discussion of Jewishness.
Many contemporary exegetes therefore assume that Pauls aim here
is to
demonstrate that the true Jews are in fact all Christians, not
ethnic Jews.52 Daniel
Boyarin, while agreeing with this line of interpretation, points
out that it therefore
constitutes an effective dissolution of Jewish identity.53 I
have maintained,
however, that Boyarins interpretation does not take Pauls
affirmations of on-
going Jewish advantage into account. In fact, Pauls very next
statementRom 3:1-
2is a strong affirmation of Jewish advantage. I contend, rather,
that Paul should
be seen as redefining Jewish identity in light of the Christian
gospel without
thereby denying its distinctiveness. In fact, I wish to argue
that that Rom 2:17-29
itself constitutes a carefully crafted summary of this very
process of Jewish identity
redefinition in light of the gospel.
In the remainder of this paper, I will locate this passage
within its context in
Romans, describe its intended social setting and purpose, and
then present my key
conclusions about the nature of Pauls redefinition of Jewish
identity.
1. The location of Romans 2:17-29 within the argument of
Romans
Pauls thematic statement in Rom 1:16-17 shows that the
Jew-Gentile dynamic is
an important factor in his gospel presentation.54 Paul is not
ashamed of the gospel
because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who
believes, both to the
Jew first, , and also to the Greek. On the one hand, this means
that
believing Jews and Greeks are united in salvation through the
gospel. On the other
51 Rom 1:1-5, 1:16-17.
52 E.g. Cranfield 1975, 1.176; Dunn 1988, 1.125; Jewett 2007,
236; Ksemann 1971, 144; Moo 1996, 175; Schmidt 1966, 53-55; see
also Barclay 1998, 546; Das 2003, 184; Schreiner 1998, 141-45;
Watson 2007, 215; Wright 1996, 133-39. Schmithals (1988, 101) is an
exception.
53 Boyarin 1994, 94-95.
54 Rom 1:16-17 is the thematic statement of Romans (Cranfield
1975, 1.87-102; Dunn 1988, 1.37; Fitzmyer 1993, 98; Jewett 2007,
vii; Moo 1996, 63-79; Schreiner 1998, 58-76).
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Part B: Romans 2:17-29
14
hand, within this fundamental unity, Jews have a certain
pre-eminence.55 This
signals a dialectic between Jewish equality and Jewish
pre-eminence which
remains active in Pauls subsequent discussions.
In Rom 2:1-16, Paul envisages a representative judgmental human
being, actively
condemning members of his surrounding society. A Jewish figure
is probably
envisaged here;56 nevertheless he is addressed as in order to
highlight
his equality with Gentiles with respect to the criteria by which
God will judge
him.57 Paul argues that Jewish status and possession of the law
provides no special
protection from Gods judgment.58 The function of Romans 2:1-16,
as a whole, is to
deny salvific advantage to Jews who possess the law. Gods
eschatological
judgment is impartial, according to works. Thus mere possession
of the law of
Moses provides no security in the face of this judgment, because
possession of the
law does not define the limits of knowledge of, or obedience to,
the divine moral
will.
Many contemporary exegetes treat our passage, Rom 2:17-29, as an
elaboration
upon vv. 1-16. Paul, according to this view, explicitly names
the imaginary
interlocutor whom he has so far been addressing implicitly and
then uses sharper,
more polemically crafted statements in order to drive home
points similar to those
already introduced in the first part of the chapter.59 However,
closer scrutiny
shows that the second part of Romans 2 has its own quite
distinct purpose and
setting.
The two passages do, of course, exhibit numerous parallels, as
Simon Gathercole
has shown.60 Despite these parallels, however, the two passages
differ significantly
with respect to their setting and function. In the former
passage, Rom 2:1-16, Paul
55 Stenschke 2010, 202-03.
56 Dunn 1988, 1.78-82.
57 Rom 2:9-11, cf. 3:28.
58 Rom 2:9-10, 2:13, 3:19-20.
59 E.g. Dunn 1988, 1.108-09; Fitzmyer 1993, 315; Gathercole
2002; Jewett 2007, 221; Ksemann 1980, 72; Moo 1996, 157-58;
Schreiner 1998, 127; Watson 2007, 198-99; Wright 1996, 147-48.
60 Gathercole 2002.
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1. The location of Romans 2:17-29 within the argument of
Romans
15
addresses his interlocutor as ,61 highlighting his humanity. In
the latter
passage, Rom 2:17-29, however, he addresses his interlocutor as
,62
highlighting his Jewish identity. The former passage opens and
closes with the
theme of divine eschatological judgment using the keyword ; the
latter
passage contains no explicit references to divine judgment (just
a single reference
to human judgment!).63 In the former passage, Paul frequently
uses words
emphasising universality, such as ,64 65 and .66 All of
these
words are absent from the latter passage.67 In the former
passage, there is no
indication of any social contact between Jews and Gentiles: Jews
hear the law;
Gentiles are simply described as not having the law. In the
latter passage,
however, those who have the law are described as teachers of
others, which
implies significant social contact between Jews and Gentiles. In
the former passage,
the unspecified Gentiles simply do the generalised things of the
law,68 implying
that they havent heard the specific law of Moses. The
uncircumcised man in the
latter passage, on the other hand, keeps the specific precepts
of the law,69
implying that he has heard direct Jewish instruction in the law.
This all implies that
Paul has moved from a wider world-setting in verses 1-16, to a
more specific and
concrete setting in verses 17-29.
61 Rom 2:1, 3.
62 Rom 2:17.
63 Romans 2:1-16 begins with the human, , who judges, , and
concludes with the day when God will judge, , the secrets of
humans, .
64 Rom 2:1, 3, 9, 16.
65 Rom 2:1, 9, 10.
66 Rom 2:6.
67 Apart from a negative reference in 2:29, where praise is
denied significance.
68 Rom 2:14.
69 Rom 2:26.
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Part B: Romans 2:17-29
16
2. The synagogue social context of Pauls argument in Romans
2:17-29
In fact, the concrete setting of Rom 2:17-29 can be specified
precisely. There are a
number of strong indications that Paul wishes his Christian
readers to envisage
this passage in the context of the mainstream Jewish
synagogue.70
The first, and most obvious, indication is that Paul
deliberately addresses his
interlocutor, for the first and only time in his letter, as a .
Paul opens his
diatribe with the phrase . Some scholars have suggested
that Paul is addressing here a Gentile who wants to be called a
Jew or who calls
himself a Jew.71 This suggestion assumes that the verb is being
used
in the middle voice to refer to a personal act of
self-designation which challenges
the public consensus. However, this would not fit with the known
usage of the
word. This verb is frequently used in the LXX and Josephus to
describe the act of
giving a publically available name to an individual or place.72
Since such public
names are conferred by others or come about through general
consensus, the verb
never appears in the middle voice.73 The passive voice is,
however, used; and when
it is used it means publically known by the name of 74 This
suggests that the
verb in Rom 2:17 should also be understood in the passive voice;
and that we
should paraphrase Pauls opening statement: If you are generally
acknowledged
as entitled to the name Jew Paul is emphasising the public
nature of his
interlocutors Jewishness, and hence the interlocutors membership
of the
mainstream Jewish community situated in the synagogue.
70 In 2 Cor 11:24, Paul reports that five times he received
thirty-nine lashes by the Jews. This implies that he repeatedly
expressed vocal opposition to authorities in a synagogue context
for at least some time after his conversion (Frey 2007, 304; Watson
2007, 80); cf. Josephus, A.J. 4.238. Paul is letting his Christian
recipients overhear his synagogue debate; he may perhaps also be
demonstrating his ability to conduct debates in the Roman
synagogues during his forthcoming visit.
71 Campbell 2006, 108; Thorsteinsson 2003, 197-204.
72 The many instances include, e.g., Gen 21:31, 25:25; Jos. A.J.
7.21.
73 Pace Jewett 2007, 222. Jewett cites Thucydides Hist. 7.69,
but there the verb is in the active voice, not the middle
voice.
74 e.g. Jos. A.J. 2.1; Exod 15:23. See also the use of the
passive in the Papyri to denote publically acknowledged names
(Moulton and Milligan 1914-1924, 3.251).
-
2. The synagogue social context of Pauls argument in Romans
2:17-29
17
Secondly, there is a strong emphasis on the law, , as the basic
constitutive
element for all the other activities in this passage. The word
appears 10
times in the space of 13 verses and is a key element in Pauls
discussion. Even the
uncircumcised person in vv. 26-27 is said to observe, , the
regulations of the law, , and to keep the law,
. As we have already stated, this indicates that the
uncircumcised
person has had an opportunity to learn particular requirements
relating to the law
of Moses.75 It is highly unlikely that Paul is referring to the
use of the law in the
Christian community, because Paul never speaks of the
relationship between
Christians and the law in these terms.76 On the other hand, this
description
conforms very closely to what we know of the diaspora synagogue.
The synagogue
was the social centre of the Jewish community, where membership
of the
community was thoroughly integrated with its key defining
activity: reading of and
instruction in the law.77
Thirdly, the argument about the reckoning, , of circumcision to
this
physically uncircumcised person also indicates that Pauls
argument is set in the
synagogue. Jews in Pauls day debated the issue of whether
uncircumcised Gentile
synagogue adherents should be welcomed or treated like Jews.78
This indicates
that Paul is referring to a known Jewish debate. We should not,
as some scholars
do, see the reckoning of circumcision in this passage as an
equivalent to Gods
reckoning of righteousness in chapter 4, because in chapter 4
Paul explicitly
denies that that circumcision has anything to do with Gods
reckoning of
righteousness.79 The phrase makes sense, however, if Paul is
entering into a
75 Cf. similar language used of Jewish Torah-observance in Gal
6:13; Acts 7:53, 21:24.
76 Paul nowhere speaks of Christians relying on the law,
boasting in the law, knowing Gods will through the law, being
educated in the law, observing the law, keeping the law, or
transgressing the law (Rosner 2010).
77 The second-temple synagogue was both a community centre,
hosting a range of activities such as communal meals, forensic
discipline, hospitality for travellers, the distribution of
welfare, and education of children in basic literacy; and also a
place of religious instruction in the Torah (Levine 1999, 124-59).
Torah reading was usually accompanied by a didactic activity such
as a sermon or word of exhortation or time of communal study (e.g.
Josephus C. Ap. 2.175, A.J. 16.43; Philo Legat. 156; Acts 13:13-15)
(Schiffman 1999, 46-48).
78 Watson 2007, 74-79. We shall discuss this debate in more
detail below, pp. 202-207.
79 Rom 4:9-12. See Nygren 1952, 134.
-
Part B: Romans 2:17-29
18
mainstream Jewish debate about whether Jews should welcome
law-keeping
synagogue adherents as if they were Jews. The law-keeping
Gentile is thus best
understood as a synagogue adherent, who has been introduced into
Pauls
argument as part of his polemic against his Jewish
interlocutor.
Finally, Pauls conclusion concerns the meaning of the terms Jew
and
circumcision. In the rest of Pauls writings, these terms refer
to ethnic Jewishness
and physical circumcision.80 We should assume the same is true
here also. Paul is
making a point about the significance of ethnic Jewishness, not
robbing Jewishness
of its ethnic significance altogether.
3. Jewish identity according to Paul
Thus Romans 2:17-29 is a summary of Pauls redefinition of Jewish
identity. By
presenting this argument, Paul wants to persuade his readers to
reject the
mainstream Jewish communitys view of Jewish identity and to see
how Jewish
identity finds its true significance in the Christian community,
in light of his own
teaching about Christ and the gospel.
In my dissertation, I examine in more detail the similarities
and differences
between Pauls view of Jewish identity and that of his
contemporaries. Here I will
briefly summarise my findings.
Firstly, Jewish identity, for both Paul and his contemporaries,
has an essentially
hermeneutical dimension. A Jew is, fundamentally, a person who
reads and knows
Gods will as revealed in Israels Scriptures. Paul, however, has
redefined this
hermeneutical dimension of Jewish identity in light of the
gospel of Jesus Christ.
The mainstream Jewish community defines itself by its possession
and knowledge
of the law of Moses, which it views as a complete and largely
sufficient revelation
from God. Paul, however, believes that the law, along with the
prophets, are open
texts, fulfilled in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul also believes that Jews have a real advantage over
non-Jews. However, he
redefines the nature of this advantage. For the mainstream
Jewish community,
80 I deal with Phil 3:3 and Col 2:11 elsewhere.
-
3. Jewish identity according to Paul
19
Israels privilege consists in the fact that the law is a gift
from God which enables
Israel to be obedient to Gods moral will and hence gives them a
soteriological
advantage. Paul affirms the reality and value of the
epistemological privilege that
comes from the possession of Gods word in the law. Yet he also
argues that
because of human sin, the law does not lead to ethical conduct
or therefore to
salvation in any such straightforward manner. This, in fact,
fits well with Pauls
subsequent statements in Rom 3. Paul affirms that the possession
of divine
revelation is the key Jewish advantage, but denies that the
law-revelation leads to
salvation in any straightforward sense.
Jewish vocation is also a prominent theme in Rom 2:17-29 (e.g.
vv. 19-20). The
mainstream Jewish community sees it as their collective vocation
to illuminate
gentiles, especially synagogue adherents, by teaching them Gods
will from the law.
Paul redefines the Jewish vocation in light of the gospel of
Christ. By examining
other passages from Romans, we can see that the collective
vocation of Christian
Jews according to Paul is not simply to teach Gods moral will
from the law, but to
teach the Scriptures as a whole and to proclaim the
eschatological fulfilment of the
law and the prophets in the gospel, so that the Gentiles come to
praise God
alongside them (e.g. Rom 15:7-12).
-
21
Part C: The wider concern of my research
This fact that Pauls redefinition of Jewish identity includes a
strong vocational
element is directly relevant to the wider concern of my thesis.
Very often, when
Paul explicitly mentions Jewish identity,81 he is talking about
his own vocation as
apostle to the Gentiles or issuing warnings about potential
rivals or opponents to
his apostolic vocation.82 Not only does this suggest that Paul
himself saw a strong
connection between Jewish identity and apostolic vocation; it
also suggests that
other Jewish teachers and their Gentile hearers also connected
Jewish identity with
a preaching ministry to Gentiles. In fact, my dissertation aims
to show how many of
Pauls discussions are generated directly by conflicts over the
legitimacy of various
conceptions of Jewish vocation and its outworking in ministry
among Gentiles.83
81 There are approximately 28 discrete places (23 in the
undisputed letters) where Paul uses terms explicitly related to
Jewish identity. The relevant terms are , , , , , , , , , , (see
chapter 1, pages 43-91). The discrete places where Paul discusses
these terms (grouping verses together wherever they form a
connected discussion) are: Rom 1:15-16, 2:9-3:9, 3:29-30, 4:1-16,
chs. 9-11, 15:7-33; 1 Cor 1:22-24, 7:18-19, 9:20-23, 10:18,
10:32-33, 12:13; 2 Cor 3:7-16, 11:22-24; Gal 1:13-14, 2:1-15,
3:6-29, 4:21-31, 5:2-6, 5:11-12, 6:12-16; Phil 3:2-6; 1 Thess
2:14-16 and cf. Eph 2:11-3:8; Col 2:11, 3:11, 4:11; Tit
1:10-14.
82 Rom 1:15-16, chs. 9-11, 15:7-33; 1 Cor 9:20-23; 2 Cor 3:7-16,
11:22-24; Gal 1:13-14, 4:21-31 (cf. vv. 17-19), 6:12-16; Phil
3:2-6; 1 Thess 2:14-16 and cf. Eph 2:11-3:8; Col 4:11. Tit 1:10-14
also mentions a Jewish form of teaching which is opposed to Pauls
preaching vocation (1:3).
83 E.g. 2 Cor 11:22-23; Gal 6:11-16; Phil 3:2-7 (see ch. 1) and
esp. Rom 2:17-29 (see ch. 3).
-
23
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