The Prophet Is the People: An Answer to Why Elijah? in Second Temple Jewish and Early Christian Literature

Erscheinungsjahr 2025
ISBN: 978-90-04-72976-6
Verlag: Brill

Buch, Englisch, Band 199, 244 Seiten, Format (B × H): 155 mm x 242 mm, Gewicht: 524 g

Reihe: Vetus Testamentum, Supplements

The question of why the prophet Elijah comes to hold such enduring significance in early Jewish and Christian tradition has previously remained largely unaddressed. Why is it Elijah, as opposed to any other prophet of the Hebrew tradition, who is associated with Israel’s future restoration? Why is his return predicted by the book of Malachi? Why are both Jesus and John the Baptist associated with Elijah in the New Testament Gospels? This study argues that Elijah’s literary character is portrayed and received throughout early Jewish and Christian literature as the paradigmatic prophet who simultaneously embodies the righteous people of God, and thereby, by his ongoing life, ensures a remnant’s survival and restoration.

Autoren/Hrsg.

R Hein, Alicia

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Jüdische Studien Jüdische Studien
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Christentum/Christliche Theologie Allgemein

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Acknowledgements

Abbreviations

1 Introduction and Approach to the Texts 1 Introduction 2 Overview of Analysis 3 Literature Review 4 Methodology 5 Conclusion

2 Elijah and the Endangered Son in Kings 1 Introduction 2 The Prophet Like Moses 3 Endangered Entities in the Elijah Cycle 4 The Rest of the Cycle: Judgement, Remnant, and Survival 5 Conclusion: Elijah as Prophet and People

3 Elijah and the Messenger in Malachi 1 Introduction 2 Malachi’s Messenger 3 Elijah as Malachi’s Messenger 4 Elijah’s Coming as Conclusion to the Law and the Prophets 5 Conclusion: Elijah as Past and Future

4 Elijah and the Hope of Second Temple Texts 1 Introduction to the Texts 2 Elijah in Ben Sira/Sirach 3 Elijah in Other Second Temple Texts 4 Conclusion: a Conflated Expectation

5 Elijah, John, and Jesus in the Gospels 1 Introduction 2 The Synoptics 3 The Fourth Gospel 4 Conclusion: the Story Continues

6 Elijah and the Believers in the Epistles 1 Introduction 2 Pauline Literature 3 James 4 Conclusion: God’s People as Prophet and Remnant

7 Elijah and the Witnesses in Revelation 1 Introduction 2 Lenses of Analogy 3 The Prophet and the People: Ezekiel 37 and Ezekiel 2–3 4 The Prophet and the People at the Beginning and the End 5 Conclusion: a Remnant Preserved and Restored

8 Conclusion

Bibliography

Index of Authors

Index of References

Über Autor(innen)

Alicia R. Hein, Ph.D. (2024), University of St. Andrews, researches at the University of Tübingen, Germany, with interests in Second Temple scribal practices, literary allusion, and Hebrew Bible ethics of war.