Paul's Jewish Addressee in Romans 2 - 4: Revisiting Recent Conversations
Several scholars (many of whom belong to the approach commonly labelled ‘Paul within Judaism’) have argued that in Romans 2:17 Paul does not address a Jew but a Gentile who believes he can ‘call’ himself ‘a Jew’ because he has been circumcised and adopted customs from the Mosaic Law. These scholars...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
2023
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| In: |
The journal of theological studies
Year: 2023, Volume: 74, Issue: 2, Pages: 516-566 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Bible. Römerbrief 2-4
/ Judaism
/ Heathen (Religion)
/ Ethnocentrism
/ Law
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| IxTheo Classification: | BH Judaism HC New Testament |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Several scholars (many of whom belong to the approach commonly labelled ‘Paul within Judaism’) have argued that in Romans 2:17 Paul does not address a Jew but a Gentile who believes he can ‘call’ himself ‘a Jew’ because he has been circumcised and adopted customs from the Mosaic Law. These scholars claim that identifying the addressee as a Gentile dramatically affects the interpretation of Romans by shifting a purported Pauline critique of ‘legalism,’ Jewish ‘ethnocentrism’, or ‘Judaism’ to the more accurate critique of gentile transgression and Judaizing. These scholars have rightly noted that the identification of the addressee as a Jew in 2:17 has often been assumed rather than argued. This article responds to common arguments made for a Gentile addressee, provides a positive case that the figure is Jewish, and argues that a Jewish addressee can be accommodated within an interpretation of Rom. 2-4 that does not interpret Paul’s indictment in terms of ‘legalism,’ Jewish ‘ethnocentrism’, or ‘Judaism’, but as an address to a Jewish kinsman of the sinful generation of ‘the last days’ that precedes the national restoration. |
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| ISSN: | 1477-4607 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The journal of theological studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1093/jts/flad053 |