The Temple of Jesus' Body: The Temple Theme in the Gospel of John

433 Pages·2002·22.412 MB·English

by  Alan Kerr

l i b r a r y o f n e w t e s t a m e n t s t u d i e s
The TempLe of
JeSuS’ Body
The Temple Theme in the Gospel of John

AlAn R. KeRR
JOURNAL FOR THE STUDY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT
SUPPLEMENT SERIES
220
Executive Editor
Stanley E. Porter
Editorial Board
Craig Blomberg, Elizabeth A. Castelli, David Catchpole,
Kathleen E. Corley, R. Alan Culpepper, James D.G. Dunn,
Craig A. Evans, Stephen Fowl, Robert Fowler,
George H. Guthrie, Robert Jewett, Robert W. Wall
Sheffield Academic Press
A Continuum imprint

The Temple of Jesus' Body
The Temple Theme in the
Gospel of John
Alan R. Kerr
Journal for the Study of the New Testament
Supplement Series 220
Copyright © 2002 Sheffield Academic Press
A Continuum imprint
Published by Sheffield Academic Press Ltd
The Tower Building, 11 York Road, London SE1 7NX
370 Lexington Avenue, New York NY 10017-6550
www.SheffieldAcademicPress.com
www.continuumbooks.com
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Typeset by Sheffield Academic Press
EISBN 9781841272627
In loving memory of my father and mother,
Dick and Barbara

CONTENTS
Preface ix
Abbreviations xi
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION 1
Chapter 2
OUTSIDE THE JOHANNINE TEXT: SOME JEWISH RESPONSES
TO THE FALL OF THE TEMPLE IN 70 CE 34
Chapter 3
THE NEW TEMPLE: JOHN 2.13-22 67
Chapter 4
THE NEW BEGINNING: THE PROLOGUE 102
Chapter 5
THE PROGRAMMATIC VISION OF JOHN 1.51 136
Chapter 6
A NEW CENTRE OF WORSHIP: JOHN 4.16-24 167
Chapter 7
THE TEMPLE FESTIVALS 205
Chapter 8
THE FATHER'S HOUSE:
POSSIBLE TEMPLE CONNECTIONS IN JOHN 13 AND 14 268
Chapter 9
POSSIBLE HIGH PRIESTLY AND TEMPLE ALLUSIONS IN JOHN 17 314
viii The Temple of Jesus' Body
Chapter 10
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 371
Bibliography 377
Index of References 391
Index of Authors 413
PREFACE
This study is an exploration of the Temple theme in the Gospel of John,
Numerous scholars have detected Temple allusion in John, but when I
embarked on this study there had been no systematic and sustained treat-
ment of the topic. Dr Paul Trebilco encouraged me to pursue this line of
enquiry and so over the past eight years I have worked on this study. I am
conscious that it is an unfinished task—that there are more Temple
references in John to be uncovered and analysed. However, I am confident
that what is offered here points in the direction of Jesus being the ful-
filment and replacement of the Temple and its associated festivals.
Throughout my study I have been supported and encouraged by a num-
ber of people and organizations. I am indebted to the Presbyterian Church
of Aotearoa New Zealand, who financially contributed towards my travel
to the United Kingdom in 1995 through the Bill and Margaret Best Travel
Fund; to the trustees of the Helmut Rex Trust for a grant to offset costs
incurred with the 1995 study leave; and to the congregation and Session of
the then Andersons Bay Presbyterian Church, whose generous provision
of study leave made my overseas research possible and whose encourage-
ment and support throughout the project has been much appreciated. I also
record my warm thanks to the Revd John Proctor, Director of New
Testament Studies, Westminster College, Cambridge, who supervised my
three and half months' study leave in the United Kingdom. He read every-
thing I wrote during that period, raised useful points for discussion and
offered helpful suggestions. I am very grateful for his interest and kind-
ness. My thanks also to the Warden and staff of Tyndale House, Cam-
bridge, for making their accommodation and library facilities available
during my stay in Cambridge.
Here in Dunedin I have been accorded long-term lending privileges
from both the Hewitson Library of Knox College and the Central Library
of the University of Otago. I am thankful for the patience of the staff in
both libraries and their diligent persistence in tracking down elusive titles.
During the summer holidays of 1997 and 19981 was able to spend time