From Joseph to Jesus
The Joseph Narrative as a Compositional Template from Old Greek Esther to the Gospel of Luke
By (author) T. Siegenthaler
It has long been observed that the Joseph story was deployed as a narrative template by later Biblical writers, such as the writers of 2 Samuel 13, 2 Kings 25 par, Esther, Susanna and the gospels. In this volume Tobias Siegenthaler gathers, organises and complements those observations with his own. He argues that the the writers of Old Greek Esther and the Gospel of Luke employ the narrative paradigm established by the Joseph narrative as a template for the composition of their narratives of conflict, salvation and ascension to power. He demonstrates how they draw on patterns of interpretation that have already been established by the writers of the literature of the Hebrew Bible and its Old Greek iterations. Thus, the figure of Joseph does not only stand pars pro toto for Israel’s descent to Egypt or the later Northern Kingdom, but he also sets the pattern for ascension to power through conflict and suffering. Therefore, Jesus, though being a son of David from the tribe of Judah, looks very much like Joseph, and the question of the audience in the synagogue in Nazareth, “Is this not the son of Joseph?” (Lk 4:22), is telling. Siegenthaler concludes that Jesus is portrayed in the likeness of Joseph in order to express the reunification of the Northern and Southern kingdom, Joseph and Judah, the Samaritans and the Jews, in and through the Messiah son of David.
It has long been observed that the Joseph story was deployed as a narrative template by later Biblical writers, such as the writers of 2 Samuel 13, 2 Kings 25 par, Esther, Susanna and the gospels. In this volume Tobias Siegenthaler gathers, organises and complements those observations with his own. He argues that the the writers of Old Greek Esther and the Gospel of Luke employ the narrative paradigm established by the Joseph narrative as a template for the composition of their narratives of conflict, salvation and ascension to power. He demonstrates how they draw on patterns of interpretation that have already been established by the writers of the literature of the Hebrew Bible and its Old Greek iterations. Thus, the figure of Joseph does not only stand pars pro toto for Israel’s descent to Egypt or the later Northern Kingdom, but he also sets the pattern for ascension to power through conflict and suffering. Therefore, Jesus, though being a son of David from the tribe of Judah, looks very much like Joseph, and the question of the audience in the synagogue in Nazareth, “Is this not the son of Joseph?” (Lk 4:22), is telling. Siegenthaler concludes that Jesus is portrayed in the likeness of Joseph in order to express the reunification of the Northern and Southern kingdom, Joseph and Judah, the Samaritans and the Jews, in and through the Messiah son of David.
- By (author) T. Siegenthaler
Other Titles in this Series
Three Versions of Esther
Their Relationship to Anti-Semitic and Feminist Critique of the Story
Volume 74
A Cosmic Leap of Faith
An Authorial, Structural, and Theological Investigation of the Cosmic Christology in Col 1:15-20
Volume 41
Sabbath in the Making
A Study of the Inner-Biblical Interpretation of the Sabbath Commandment
Volume 97
Anthropology in the New Testament and its Ancient Context
Papers from the EABS-Meeting in Piliscsaba / Budapest
Volume 54
“Have You Not Read this Scripture?”
Memory Variation and Context-Based Modification in the Old Testament Quotations in the Gospel of Mark
Volume 116
My Shepherd, though You Do not Know Me
The Persian Royal Propaganda Model in the Nehemiah Memoir
Volume 78
Happy the One who Meditates on Wisdom (Sir. 14,20)
Collected Essays on the Book of Ben Sira
Volume 43
The Old Greek of Isaiah: Issues and Perspectives
Papers read at the Conference on the Septuagint of Isaiah, held in Leiden 10-11 April 2008
Volume 55
Meaningful Meetings with Foreigners in the World of the Bible
Essays in Honour of Klaas Spronk on the Occasion of His Retirement
Volume 119
Jesus, the Eschatological Temple
An Exegetical Study of Jn 2,13-22 in the Light of the Pre 70 C.E. Eschatological Temple Hopes and the Synoptic Temple Action
Volume 58
The Sources of Celsus’s Criticism of Jesus
Theological Developments in the Second Century AD
Volume 108
A Divine Round Trip
The Literary and Christological Function of the Descent/Ascent Leitmotif in the Gospel of John
Volume 79
Qumran and the Bible
Studying the Jewish and Christian Scriptures in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls
Volume 57
From Worshipping, Sacrificing and Mourning to Praising and Praying
Key Concepts of the Greek Bible
Volume 120
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