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New Testament Theology: The Proclamation of Jesus
Journals & SeriesBooks Cited FrequentlyHow Reliable is the Tradition of the Sayings of Jesus?The Mission of JesusThe Dawn of the Time of SalvationThe Period of GraceThe New People of GodJesus' Testimony to his MissionEasterIndex of Biblical References
330 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1970
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About the author
Joachim Jeremias
99 books24 followersJoachim Jeremias was a German Lutheran theologian, scholar of Near Eastern Studies, and professor of New Testament studies.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 8, 2023
An erudite and insight study of the proclamation of Jesus. Following in the tradition of Bultmann and the German theologians, it differs in structure and content from traditional English New Testament Theology. It makes extensive use of literary analysis to attempt to uncover the actual words Jesus spoke. As Jesus would have spoken Aramaic, there is analysis of what the original Aramaic words would have been. Of course I have no ability to judge the merits of this work, but it does seem to lead to some interesting insights.
In addition to the Aramaic, there is a lot of Greek in the text. Every page has a few words to a few lines of Greek. As the references are most often given, one can follow the argument even without extensive knowledge of NT Greek (never mind Aramaic). The first 10% of the book lay out the groundwork for finding the Aramaic words of Jesus.
The book also follows the German pattern of having a very clear and logical outline. In addition to the careful outline, the exegesis and detailed arguments in a smaller typeface. Mini excursus, if you will. One could profitably read by skipping all the small type as the book flows uninterrupted without these small type sections.
Jeremias sheds some light on the Proclamation of Jesus, the subtitle that should really be the title. He traces the thoughts of Jesus from his baptism to his initial announces of the Kingdom, which Jeremias persuasively says should be translated as Reign in our modern word. He devotes a chapter to the use of ‘Abba’ as an address of God. He expounds the meaning of the dawn of the reign of God. What that means for power over evil, what that means for the poor and who they are. He also discusses the challenge of the reign of God - repentance, on which he has some insightful comments, such as it is characterized by joy (to tease some of the content).
He then expounds on the new community and what it means to be the new people of God. He closes with Jesus’ self understanding of his death and the veracity of the Easter stories, on which he differs from the Bultmann school.
On the whole, a book full of nuggets for anyone who wants to understand this Jesus. In fact, easily one of the top 10 books I’ve ever read on Jesus, probably top 3.
A small note regarding the print quality of the 1972 SCM printing (printed in Great Britain) with the blue dust cover. Simply fantastic. Sewn binding with extra crisp print and lay flat pages from page 1 to 330. A pure physical pleasure to read. The quality of print and binding that is essentially unavailable today.
In addition to the Aramaic, there is a lot of Greek in the text. Every page has a few words to a few lines of Greek. As the references are most often given, one can follow the argument even without extensive knowledge of NT Greek (never mind Aramaic). The first 10% of the book lay out the groundwork for finding the Aramaic words of Jesus.
The book also follows the German pattern of having a very clear and logical outline. In addition to the careful outline, the exegesis and detailed arguments in a smaller typeface. Mini excursus, if you will. One could profitably read by skipping all the small type as the book flows uninterrupted without these small type sections.
Jeremias sheds some light on the Proclamation of Jesus, the subtitle that should really be the title. He traces the thoughts of Jesus from his baptism to his initial announces of the Kingdom, which Jeremias persuasively says should be translated as Reign in our modern word. He devotes a chapter to the use of ‘Abba’ as an address of God. He expounds the meaning of the dawn of the reign of God. What that means for power over evil, what that means for the poor and who they are. He also discusses the challenge of the reign of God - repentance, on which he has some insightful comments, such as it is characterized by joy (to tease some of the content).
He then expounds on the new community and what it means to be the new people of God. He closes with Jesus’ self understanding of his death and the veracity of the Easter stories, on which he differs from the Bultmann school.
On the whole, a book full of nuggets for anyone who wants to understand this Jesus. In fact, easily one of the top 10 books I’ve ever read on Jesus, probably top 3.
A small note regarding the print quality of the 1972 SCM printing (printed in Great Britain) with the blue dust cover. Simply fantastic. Sewn binding with extra crisp print and lay flat pages from page 1 to 330. A pure physical pleasure to read. The quality of print and binding that is essentially unavailable today.
September 14, 2014
Jeremias never finished the series of which this book is the first volume, having intended to go from what we can surmise about Jesus' theological beliefs as represented by the three synoptic gospels into Paul's as represented in the epistles. A Lutheran, he is a believer, but a sophisticated and erudite one. His work on the parables--covered more thoroughly in other works--is outstanding.
July 24, 2011
Some of Jeremias's operating assumptions have been supplanted by more recent Jesus research, but his NT scholarship remains stunning, and his insights helpful. The book has strongly influenced my own reading of the gospels, and consequently my preaching, too.
June 19, 2014
Jeremias limited himself to comment on what he thought the reliable preserved material of Jesus in the gospels, and in the end produced what was, frankly, a limited theology of the Gospels. Better on the parables and the teaching of Jesus, than the passion and resurrection narratives.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews