Jesus Remembered: Christianity in the Making, vol. 1

§16.2 How Did Jesus See His Own Role?
ring. 57 This Q passage may thus indicate one of the shoots which grew into the
full Johannine bloom. But it also may indicate that the development was already
well under way in Q. If, for example, John 10.15 ('the Father knows me and I
know my Father') attests awareness of an early tradition somewhat along these
lines, 58 then Matt. 11.27/Luke 10.22 already attests a heightened exclusivity in
the christological claims of Q.
Second, the claim to unrestricted authority and the absoluteness and exclusiveness
of the relation postulated between 'the Father' and 'the Son' are unprecedented
in the pre-Easter Synoptic tradition. 59 Again it is possible to argue for an
earlier, less exclusive, form of the tradition. Jeremias suggested that the chiastic
parallelism of the two lines 'is simply an oriental periphrasis for a mutual relationship:
only father and son really know each other'. 60 And the Wisdom literature
throws up several parallels of not so dissimilar claims to knowledge of
God, 61 particularly Wis. 2.10-20, where it is said of the righteous man: 'He
claims to have knowledge of God, and calls himself a child (paida) of the Lord
... and boasts that God is his father' (vv. 13, 16). 62 However, the more we think
we can see a less controversial father-son saying behind Matt. 11.27/Luke 10.22,
the more controversial the present form of the Q passage seems to be. 63
Here it is wise to acknowledge that such a discussion is unavoidably
caught in the inadequacies of the historical method. 64 For its natural recourse is
to search out precedents and parallels to help explain particular and distinctive
data. And the tendency or temptation is to conform the data to the precedents, to
explain by explaining away the less obviously explicable elements.
57. Cf. John 1.18; 3.35; 5.20; 7.29; 10.15; 13.3; 14.7,9; 17.25. This is the decisive consideration
for Funk, Five Gospels 182, and Lüdemann, Jesus 330-31, in deciding for the saying's
inauthenticity. Note also Dial. Sav. 134.14-15: 'How will someone who does [not] know
[the Son] know the [Father]?'
58. Dodd, Historical Tradition 359-61.
59. The closest parallel to Matt. 11.27a in the Synoptic tradition is (the post-resurrection
saying) Matt. 28.18: 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me'.
60. Jeremias, Prayers 47-48; taking up a suggestion of Dalman, Words 193-94.
61. F. Christ, Jesus Sophia. Die Sophia-Christologie bei den Synoptikern (Zürich: Zwingli,
1970) 89 refers to Job 28.1-28; Sir. 1.6, 8; Bar. 3.15-4.4; cf. 1 Cor. 2.11. M. J. Suggs, Wisdom,
Christology and Law in Matthew's Gospel (Cambridge: Harvard University, 1970) 89-95 refers
particularly to Wis. 2.17-18 and 4.10, 13-15. For the DSS, see W. D. Davies,'"Knowledge" in the
Dead Sea Scrolls and Matt. 11.25-30', HTR 46 (1953), reprinted in Christian Origins and Judaism
(London: DLT, 1962) 119-44. E. Schweizer refers particularly to 1QS 4.22; 9.17-18; 11.3,15-
18; lQSb (lQ28b) 4.25-28; 1QH 10[2].13; 18[10].27-28 (TDNT&373 n. 281).
62. Cf. Schillebeeckx, Jesus 265.
63. Contrast I. H. Marshall, 'The Divine Sonship of Jesus', Interpretation 21 (1967) 87-
103, reprinted in Jesus the Saviour: Studies in New Testament Theology (London: SPCK, 1990)
134-49 (here 137-39); Witherington, Christology 221-28.
64. See above, §6.3c.
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