What do you think?
Rate this book
What Do We Know about Jesus?
What can we really know about Jesus ? Are there some basic facts which resist the criticism of even the most sceptical New Testament scholars? Despite the many problems of which modern study of the Gospels has made us aware, can we go beyond the picture of Christ drawn by the theologians of the Early Church to discover Jesus himself? Answers to these questions from Germany have been more often negative than positive since the failure of the 'Quest of the historical Jesus' and the rise of form criticism. In this book, however, a distinguished German New Testament scholar, who has also taught in the United States, argues that our knowledge of the historical Jesus is not as limited as it is sometimes made out to be. Although aware of the arguments of the sceptics, he is ready to set forward in clear and simple terms what we can claim to know of the work and message of Jesus and the way in which he came to be proclaimed as Christ by the Early Church. A notable feature of the book is the use made of the Qumran scrolls. The author points out in a valuable survey of the material just where it illuminates the New Testament record and where it is largely irrelevant.
98 pages, Paperback
First published August 13, 2013
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 26, 2024
A GERMAN NEW TESTAMENT PROFESSOR ANSWERS THIS QUESTION (circa 1965)
At the time this book was published in Germany in 1965, Otto Betz was professor of New Testament at Chicago Theological Seminary. He wrote other books such as 'Jesus, Qumran and the Vatican: Clarifications,' 'Making Sense of Confession: A New Approach for Parents, Teachers and Clergy,' etc.
He wrote in the Foreword, "Critical work on the New Testament continually confronts us with the challenging question of the historical basis of our faith. Is there a bedrock of fact, untouched by the breakers of doubt and impregnable to the flood of ever-new theories? What do we really know about Jesus? This book provides an answer---though admittedly an incomplete one---to this question. It rejects the view that the Gospels are not intended to stand up to historical investigation.
"It is true that they are designed to be read as a testimony of faith, not as historical sources. But each of the four Gospels paints a picture of Jesus as a historical figure. If these pictures are compared, both similarities and dissimilarities emerge. For this reason alone, the Gospels force us to make our own picture of Jesus, one which will do justice both to their testimony and to our restless urge for truth." (Pg. 7)
He states, "It was not difficult for New Testament scholars like Bousset, Julicher or Klostermann to expose the 'Christ myth' as a phantom, and since that time no serious scholar has ventured to postulate the non-historicity of Jesus." (Pg. 9; of course, Betz wrote this before books appeared such as G.A. Wells' The Historical Evidence for Jesus.)
He observes, "But Jesus did not rescind the Sinaitic law. He gave it a new interpretation, lending it a new force in the light of the coming of the kingdom of God. Certainly in so doing he passed over the letter in order to go back to the will of God itself." (Pg. 44) He says, "It is certain that Jesus performed miracles, healing all kinds of sickness; that fact can be deduced even from the Jewish polemic which called him a sorcerer." (Pg. 58) He notes, "Jesus, too, replaced the physical family by a spiritual one. He rejected the attempt of his mother, brothers and sisters to fetch him home." (Pg. 72)
He argues, "Consequently Jesus knew himself to be the Messiah. He admitted as much before Pilate (Mark 15:2), and it was Jesus 'good confession' (cf. 1 Tim 6:13) that the faith of the disciples took over." (Pg. 92) But he adds, "It is no coincidence that some of the sayings about the life of the Son of Man on earth recall the fate of David before he became king, misunderstood, hungry and without shelter... Jesus did not proclaim himself openly as Messiah; he simply called himself 'man,' because this formal word remained ambiguous and mysterious and only made sense in the context of his work." (Pg. 112)
This book is somewhat "dated," but may still be of interest to those studying the history of interpretations of the historical Jesus.
At the time this book was published in Germany in 1965, Otto Betz was professor of New Testament at Chicago Theological Seminary. He wrote other books such as 'Jesus, Qumran and the Vatican: Clarifications,' 'Making Sense of Confession: A New Approach for Parents, Teachers and Clergy,' etc.
He wrote in the Foreword, "Critical work on the New Testament continually confronts us with the challenging question of the historical basis of our faith. Is there a bedrock of fact, untouched by the breakers of doubt and impregnable to the flood of ever-new theories? What do we really know about Jesus? This book provides an answer---though admittedly an incomplete one---to this question. It rejects the view that the Gospels are not intended to stand up to historical investigation.
"It is true that they are designed to be read as a testimony of faith, not as historical sources. But each of the four Gospels paints a picture of Jesus as a historical figure. If these pictures are compared, both similarities and dissimilarities emerge. For this reason alone, the Gospels force us to make our own picture of Jesus, one which will do justice both to their testimony and to our restless urge for truth." (Pg. 7)
He states, "It was not difficult for New Testament scholars like Bousset, Julicher or Klostermann to expose the 'Christ myth' as a phantom, and since that time no serious scholar has ventured to postulate the non-historicity of Jesus." (Pg. 9; of course, Betz wrote this before books appeared such as G.A. Wells' The Historical Evidence for Jesus.)
He observes, "But Jesus did not rescind the Sinaitic law. He gave it a new interpretation, lending it a new force in the light of the coming of the kingdom of God. Certainly in so doing he passed over the letter in order to go back to the will of God itself." (Pg. 44) He says, "It is certain that Jesus performed miracles, healing all kinds of sickness; that fact can be deduced even from the Jewish polemic which called him a sorcerer." (Pg. 58) He notes, "Jesus, too, replaced the physical family by a spiritual one. He rejected the attempt of his mother, brothers and sisters to fetch him home." (Pg. 72)
He argues, "Consequently Jesus knew himself to be the Messiah. He admitted as much before Pilate (Mark 15:2), and it was Jesus 'good confession' (cf. 1 Tim 6:13) that the faith of the disciples took over." (Pg. 92) But he adds, "It is no coincidence that some of the sayings about the life of the Son of Man on earth recall the fate of David before he became king, misunderstood, hungry and without shelter... Jesus did not proclaim himself openly as Messiah; he simply called himself 'man,' because this formal word remained ambiguous and mysterious and only made sense in the context of his work." (Pg. 112)
This book is somewhat "dated," but may still be of interest to those studying the history of interpretations of the historical Jesus.
Displaying 1 of 1 review