Studies in Early Christology

by Martin Hengel

Publisher:

T&T Clark

, 2004

Overview

Christology, the doctrine concerning the revelation of God in Christ and the salvation of humanity through Christ, is at the heart of Christian theology and at the heart of the church’s proclamation.

These studies, including hitherto unpublished work, explore the origins of Christology. They explore, for example, the earliest Christological thinking, the messianic claim of Jesus, the reasons for the condemnation of Jesus, the exaltation of Christ, the development of hymn singing, the development of Christological titles, and neglected features of Johannine Christology. In these mysterious beginnings, Martin Hengel discovers a coherent and unique process.

In a substantial foreword, Professor Hengel describes the context of his work in modern scholarship and develops his current thinking.

Contents

Top Highlights

“This means that within an amazingly brief period Christians changed the title Χριοτός into a name and thereby usurped it for the exclusive use of their Lord, Jesus of Nazareth.” (Page 2)

“For Paul and his community, the name Ἰησοῦς Χριστός has completely absorbed in certain respects the title ὁ Χριστός, ‘The Anointed One’—there is only one Χριστός, this very Jesus who was crucified. Thus, already in the earliest Christian texts, he has no other name than Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, and in theological exchanges Paul can pointedly add: ‘who was crucified’, ὁ ἐσταυρωμένος (Gal. 3:1; 1 Cor. 1:23, 2:2). Already in the first literary witness the title has become fully a part of the name, and thus Paul frequently speaks not of ‘Jesus’, but of ὁ Χριστός.” (Page 1)

“Jesus even dared to offer forgiveness of sins, that is—as Ernst Fuchs has said—‘to act in place of God’.” (Page ix)

“ for a Greek, Χριστός referring to a person would have been meaningless.” (Page 2)

“The earthly and suffering Son of Man are a cipher with which Jesus, in certain situations, expresses both his authority as ‘eschatological proclaimer of salvation’ (indeed, we may say as ‘Messias designatus’), and his humility and tribulation, which ultimately lead him to suffering and death.” (Page 61)

Praise for the Print Edition

. . . a book of immense value.

—Epworth Review

Product Details

• Title: Studies in Early Christology
• Author: Martin Hengel
• Publisher: T & T Clark
• Publication Date: 2004
• Pages: 424

About Martin Hengel

Martin Hengel (1926–2009) was emeritus professor of New Testament and early Judaism at the University of Tübingen. He specialized in early Christianity and the origins of Christianity. 

Hengel began studying theology in 1947 in Tübingen before moving to the University of Heidelberg in 1949. He eventually earned his Ph.D. in 1959 from the University of Tübingen.

Hengel’s works include Studies in Early Christology, Crucifixion: In the Ancient World and the Folly of the Message of the Cross, and The Septuagint as Christian Scripture: Its Prehistory and the Problem of its Canon.