The Barren Temple and the Withered Tree: A redaction-critical analysis of the Cursing of the Fig-Tree pericope in Mark’s Gospel and its relation to the Cleansing of the Temple tradition. 9781474266390, 9781474231084, 9780567057020

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PREFACE This i n v e s t i g a t i o n has a s its o v e r a l l aim t h e t a s k o f a s c e r t a i n i n g t h e a t t i t u d e taken t o t h e Temple by t h e author o f t h e e a r l i e s t gospel, Mark, and t h e community t o which and f o r which he speaks. I n narrower and more concrete terms, it i s concerned with one of t h e most c u r i o u s miracle s t o r i e s i n t h e J e s u s t r a d i t i o n , v i z , h i s c u r s i n g of t h e b a r r e n f i g - t r e e (Mk.11. 12-14, 2 0 f f . ) , a s t o r y which is seen a s supplying a v i t a l c l u e t o t h a t a t t i t u d e . The p l a c e and f u n c t i o n o f t h i s pericope w i t h i n Mark's r e d a c t i o n a l scheme, i t s subsequent r e d a c t i o n - h i s t o r y within t h e gospels, i t s o r i g i n , background and S i t z i m Leben p r i o r t o Mark, and i t s p a r t i c u l a r connection with t h e Cleansing t r a d i t i o n form t h e b a s i c core o f t h e enquiry. I n this study, I have sought t h e answer t o a twofold quest i o n . What d i d Mark i n t e n d t h i s p u z z l i n g s t o r y t o convey i n i t s p r e s e n t c o n t e x t , and how i n t u r n was it l i k e l y t o have been unders t o o d by t h e f i r s t - c e n t u r y r e a d e r f o r whom it was intended? I n v e s t i g a t i o n s , t h e r e f o r e , have proceeded along two main l i n e s . I n t h e f i r s t p l a c e , l i t e r a r y - , form-, source- and r e d a c t i o n c r i t i c a l work on t h e Synoptic gospels, and on Mark i n p a r t i c u l a r , has been brought t o b e a r on t h e pericope. I n t h e second p l a c e , I have sought t o t r a c e c e r t a i n r e l a t e d m o t i f s p e r t a i n i n g t o o u r s t o r y w i t h i n background m a t e r i a l s u p p l i e d by t h e Old Testament, l a t e Judaism and e a r l y C h r i s t i a n i t y . (A f u r t h e r c h a p t e r on t h e Graeco-Roman background, c o r r o b o r a t i n g my f i n d i n g s i n t h e s e t h r e e a r e a s , has u n f o r t u n a t e l y had t o be omitted, b u t it i s hoped t h a t i t can be published s e p a r a t e l y a t some f u t u r e d a t e . ) I n p a r t i c u l a r , t h e p l a c e o f t h e t r e e and f i g - t r e e w i t h i n t h i s m a t e r i a l has been examined, and t h e i r l i t e r a r y , r e l i g i o u s and symbolic usage explored. The aim has been t o c o n s t r u c t thereby a conceptual p a t t e r n o r g r i d o f r e l a t e d i d e a s and a s s o c i a t i o n s t h a t w i l l enable us to p l a c e o u r s e l v e s w i t h i n t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i v e frame of r e f e r e n c e t h a t might have been adopted by a f i r s t century r e a d e r o f t h e gospel.

Chapter V

THE OLD TESTAMENT BACKGROUND Introduction Thus f a r we have approached t h e problems of t h e f i g - t r e e pericope from t h e p o i n t of view of i t s f u n c t i o n w i t h i n t h e Markan r e d a c t i o n a l scheme. We have sought t o unravel t h e d i f f e r e n t r e d a c t i o n a l l e v e l s d i s c e r n i b l e w i t h i n t h e pericope and t o throw l i g h t on t h e hermeneutical development t o which it has been s u b j e c t . We s h a l l be r e t u r n i n g t o t h e q u e s t i o n of Mark's r e d a c t i o n a l purpose and procedure i n c h a p t e r s V I I and V I I I b u t having s t a t e d what we t h i n k t h e second e v a n g e l i s t intended h i s s t o r y t o convey w i t h i n i t s p r e s e n t c o n t e x t , we have now t o c o n s i d e r t h e second h a l f o f t h e q u e s t i o n t h a t was r a i s e d a t t h e end o f c h a p t e r I . How was t h e Markan s t o r y l i k e l y t o have been understood by t h e f i r s t - c e n t u r y r e a d e r f o r whom i t was intended? Would he o r she have n e c e s s a r i l y i n t e r p r e t e d t h e s t o r y i n t h e e s c h a t o l o g i c a l and symbolic terms t h a t we have suggested? How can we be sure? To read Mark's gospel through the eyes of a f i r s t - c e n t u r y r e a d e r i s o f n e c e s s i t y t o adopt an a n a l y t i c a l s t a n c e t h a t proves i t s e l f d i f f i c u l t f o r t h e twentieth-century r e a d e r who i s accustomed t o t h i n k i n q u i t e d i f f e r e n t conceptual c a t e g o r i e s and who o f t e n a p p l i e s t o what he reads (sometimes unknowingly) a s e t of c u l t u r a l and p h i l o s o p h i c a l p r e s u p p o s i t i o n s t h a t would n o t be shared by t h e former. The t a s k of exegesis, then, i s a formidable one, i f we a r e t o ' t h i n k our way' i n t o t h e l i f e s i t u a t i o n o f those whose Weltanschauung i s so d i f f e r e n t from our own. I t i s a s a i d s f o r t h i s t a s k , however, t h a t background s t u d i e s have s o important a p l a c e . By acquainting o u r s e l v e s w i t h a p p o s i t e and c o r r e l a t i v e m a t e r i a l from t h e Old Testament, l a t e Jewish and e a r l y C h r i s t i a n world, we a r e a b l e i n some measure t o c o n s t r u c t t h e conceptual ' g r i d ' through which t h a t world was viewed, and hence t o p l a c e o u r s e l v e s t e n t a t i v e l y and e m p a t h e t i c a l l y w i t h i n t h e frame of r e f e r e n c e t h a t might have been adopted by t h e s e r e a d e r s of long ago.

I n o u r l a s t c h a p t e r , we were examining t h e mountain-moving logion t h a t Mark has a t t a c h e d t o t h e f i g - t r e e s t o r y , and t h e meaning and s i g n i f i c a n c e t h a t was t o be drawn from it. We suggested t h a t an a p p r o p r i a t e S i t z i m Leben f o r t h e saying was an e s c h a t o l o g i c a l one, and t h a t Mark has heightened t h i s o r i g i n a l e s c h a t o l o g i c a l import

Chapter VI

THE LATE JEWISH BACKGROUND Introduction I n o u r l a s t c h a p t e r we brought t h e Old Testament to bear on t h e f i g - t r e e p e r i c o p e , and we attempted t o show how a f i r s t century r e a d e r s t e e p e d i n t h a t background would most n a t u r a l l y have i n t e r p r e t e d t h e s t o r y . The Old Testament and i t s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n i s n o t , however, a s t a t i c t h i n g . Exegesis a l t e r s and develops over time, and it i s important, t h e r e f o r e , t o look a t t h e l a t e Jewish background i n o r d e r t o a s c e r t a i n how f a r t h e a s s o c i a t i o n s mapped o u t i n t h e Old Testament with regard t o t h e f i g - t r e e can be seen t o have remained t h e same, a t a l a t e r d a t e , o r t o have developed. The study of t h i s m a t e r i a l w i l l s e r v e , we maintain, t o s t r e n g t h e n t h e impressions and conclusions gained i n c h a p t e r V, and w i l l be of g r e a t i n t e r e s t i n determining not only t h e v a r i e t y b u t a l s o t h e l i m i t s o f t h e a s s o c i a t i o n s and symbolism t h a t t h e f i g / f i g - t r e e and r e l a t e d themes c a r r i e d i n t h e Jewish mind. I n t h i s c h a p t e r , then, we s h a l l explore t h e s e themes. The thorny q u e s t i o n o f t h e d a t i n g of t h i s m a t e r i a l i s o f t e n r a i s e d b u t we should remark t h a t , f o r our purposes, t h e determining of p r e c i s e chronology i s n o t a s p r e s s i n g a s i t might be f o r s t u d i e s of a d i f f e r e n t kind. Our aim i s merely t o c o n s t r u c t a nexus of a s s o c i a t e d i d e a s and m o t i f s within t h e i n t e r r e l a t e d l i t e r a t u r e o f t h e Old Testament, New Testament and l a t e Jewish ' w o r l d s ' , such t h a t t h e r e l e v a n t elements o f t h e i r common Weltanschauung a r e revealed. The examination of each a r e a w i l l provide checks on t h e o t h e r . The p e r s i s t e n c e i n t h e l a t e Jewish p e r i o d of c e r t a i n i d e a s and b e l i e f s d i s c e r n i b l e i n t h e Old Testament w i l l make it reasonable t o assume t h a t they held sway i n t h e New Testament p e r i o d a l s o , and o u r examination o f t h e New Testament evidence ( c h a p t e r V I I ) w i l l b e a r t h i s o u t . A l l t h r e e a r e a s , we b e l i e v e , can f u r n i s h i n s i g h t s to i l l u m i n a t e t h e Markan s t o r y .

The Estimation of the Fig-Tree in the Rabbinical Literature / I / The f i g - t r e e was one of t h e most c h a r a c t e r i s t i c , most f r u i t f u l as is and most important t r e e s o f I s r a e l i n Talmudic times /2/, evidenced by t h e f a c t t h a t more than seventy e x p r e s s i o n s connected with t h e f i g occur i n t h e l i t e r a t u r e of t h e p e r i o d / 3 / . Reference

Chapter VII

THE NEWTESTAMENT BACKGROUND

Introduction Our i n v e s t i g a t i o n s t o d a t e i n t o t h e Old Testament and l a t e Jewish background have enabled u s t o c o n s t r u c t a nexus of i n t e r r e l a t e d themes and a s s o c i a t i o n s with r e s p e c t t o t h e t r e e and t h e f i g - t r e e i n the a n c i e n t world. Though d i s p a r a t e i n time and o r i g i n , t h i s m a t e r i a l has nonetheless introduced us i n t o a common 'world' i n which n a t u r e was seen a s responsive t o t h e human s i t u a t i o n , i n which t r e e s i n p a r t i c u l a r would literally o f f e r o r r e f u s e t h e i r f r u i t t o t h e r i g h t e o u s o r wicked, i n which a marvellous d i s p l a y of p r o d u c t i v i t y was deemed t o a t t e n d t h e Golden Ages of I s r a e l ' s experience. We have seen, t o o , t h a t t h e t r e e was a l s o highly symbolical f o r t h e a n c i e n t world. The blossoming o f t h e t r e e s was a s i g n of good f o r t u n e , t h e w i t h e r i n g of t h e t r e e s an omen o f impending d i s a s t e r . The t r e e was a common symbol f o r t h e r e l i g i o u s l i f e of t h e a n c i e n t s and t h e f i g - t r e e i t s e l f was compared i n Jewish t r a d i t i o n w i t h t h e n a t i o n of I s r a e l , i t s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s and even i t s Holy C i t y . This h i g h l y symbolic t r e e was observed, t o o , t o have a s p e c i a l connection with t h e Temple and t h e Messianic Age, i t s blossoming and f r u i t f u l n e s s an emblem f o r t h e b l e s s i n g s of t h a t Age, i t s withering a s i g n o f e s c h a t o l o g i c a l judgement. The overwhelming f o r c e o f t h i s evidence s u g g e s t s , then, t h a t t h e f i g - t r e e s t o r y i n Mark's gospel was intended a t t h e Markan l e v e l t o be understood both l i t e r a l l y and symbolically and, indeed, would have been s o understood. A t t h e pre-Markan l e v e l , t h e c l i m a t e c f e s c h a t o l o g i c a l b e l i e f regarding t h e expected f r u i t f u l ness of t h e Messianic Age has suggested a p l a u s i b l e c r e a t i v e m i l i e u f o r t h e s t o r y b e f o r e Mark took it and gave i t an added symbolic I t w i l l be t h e purpose of t h i s chapter, t h e r e f o r e , t o dimension. determine whether t h e more immediate 'world' of t h e New Testament lends support t o t h e s e conclusions. Was t h e abundant f e r t i l i t y of t h e New Age a b e l i e f e n t e r t a i n e d i n New Testament times? Is t h e New Testament use o f t r e e imagery i n g e n e r a l symbolic? Can an e s c h a t o l o g i c a l and/or symbolic dimension be perceived with r e s p e c t t o t h e New Testament's o t h e r r e f e r e n c e s t o t h e f i g - t r e e ? We s h a l l begin by examining b r i e f l y t h e c h a r a c t e r o f t h e New Age a s it i s r e v e a l e d i n t h e gospels.

Chapter VIII

CHRISTOLOGY AND THE MESSIANIC SECRET IN MARK CHAPTER ELEVEN: A POSTSCRIPT Few books have had such a profound ilifluence upon s t u d i e s o f Mark's gospel than t h a t of W. Wrede. Published i n 1901, h i s Das Messiasqeheimnis i n den Evangelien /1/ drew s c h o l a r l y a t t e n t i o n t o t h e c o n t r a s t w i t h i n t h e gospel between t h e p u b l i c n a t u r e o f J e s u s ' m i r a c l e s on t h e one hand, and h i s c u r i o u s and p e r s i s t e n t i n j u n c t i o n s t h a t they b e k e p t s e c r e t on t h e o t h e r . Wrede argued t h a t , viewed h i s t o r i c a l l y , t h e r e were i n t r i n s i c c o n t r a d i c t i o n s i n such a p r e s e n t a t i o n of J e s u s ' l i f e /2/. "Nothing i s more obvious," he d e c l a r e d , "than t h a t Mark understood t h e miracles a s That t h e e a r l i e s t recoverable m a n i f e s t a t i o n s of t h e Messiah " / 3 / . t r a d i t i o n s regarding J e s u s ' l i f e viewed them i n t h i s l i g h t was, however, u n l i k e l y . The secrecy with which J e s u s ' h e a l i n g and teaching a c t i v i t y i s surrounded, t h e implausible commands t o s i l e n c e /4/, t h e v e i l e d n a t u r e o f h i s p a r a b o l i c teaching /5/ and h i s f r e q u e n t s e s s i o n s with h i s d i s c i p l e s i n p r i v a t e / 6 / a l l l e d Wrede t o view t h i s Messianic S e c r e t motif a s a secondary and t h e r e f o r e u n h i s t o r i c a l t h e o l o g i c a l i d e a developed o u t of t r a d i t i o n s which o r i g i n a l l y d i d n o t r e p r e s e n t J e s u s ' l i f e a s having been Messianic i n c h a r a c t e r . The e a r l i e s t t r a d i t i o n , he maintained, h e l d a b e l i e f i n Jesus' f u t u r e Messiahship. I t was by v i r t u e of t h e r e s u r r e c t i o n , i n o t h e r words, t h a t J e s u s had been designated Messiah and he would appear s h o r t l y , a s such, i n g l o r y and power. The i d e a o f Jesus' s e c r e t Messiahship, t h e r e f o r e , could only have a r i s e n a t a time when nothing was known o f an open Messianic claim on t h e p a r t o f J e s u s i n h i s l i f e t i m e , and when t h e r e was a tendency a t t h e same time t o c a r r y t h e notion o f J e s u s ' f u t u r e Messiahship back i n t o t h e p e r i o d of h i s l i f e /7/. To Wrede, then, t h e key event i n t h e development of c h r i s t o l o g y was t h e r e s u r r e c t i o n . With t h e r e s u r r e c t i o n t h e r e was e f f e c t e d a transformation i n t h e d i s c i p l e s ' understanding of J e s u s ' s i g n i f i c ance. By v i r t u e of t h e r e s u r r e c t i o n , and n o t b e f o r e , they proclaimed t h a t J e s u s was Messiah /8/. ' T r a d i t i o n s regarding h i s l i f e , teaching and a c t i v i t y were o r i g i n a l l y non-Messianic i n c h a r a c t e r /9/. The Messianic S e c r e t motif o p e r a t e s i n Mark, t h e r e f o r e , such a s t o 'update' t h e s e t r a d i t i o n s and p r e s e n t them 'sub s p e c i e r e s u r r e c t i o n i s ' , a s it were. I t i s n o t t h e purpose of t h i s concluding chapter t o make a d e t a i l e d e v a l u a t i o n and c r i t i q u e of Wrede's work /lo/, b u t r a t h e r

A. INDEX OF ANCIENT AUTHORS AND SOURCES The f i g u r e s i n brackets i n d i c a t e n o t e s .

I . OLD TESTAMENT

Genesis

Numbers

Judges

( 1 Samuel Deuteronomy

Exodus

(2

Leviticus

Numbers

I

Samuel

1 Kings