The Messiah Is Jesus, with David Ritsema: John 20:31
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In this episode of Exegetically Speaking, Dr. David Ritsema, assistant professor of New Testament at B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary, explores the theological and grammatical significance of John 20:31, a pivotal verse that states the purpose of the Gospel of John. Ritsema begins by reflecting on his journey into Greek language study, emphasizing how formal training in New Testament Greek equipped him for deep exegetical work. He then turns to the verse itself, examining the ambiguity in the Greek copulative verb 'estin'—whether 'Jesus' or 'the Christ, the Son of God' is the subject. Drawing on scholarly work by Lain C. Magoghe, Stan Porter, and Donald Carson, Ritsema argues that despite traditional translations favoring 'Jesus is the Christ,' the more grammatically and contextually sound reading is 'the Christ, the Son of God is Jesus.' This shift, he contends, reflects a Jewish audience grappling with the identity of the Messiah and underscores the early Christian claim that Jesus is the divine Messiah—a concept supported by evidence from the Dead Sea Scrolls and early Jewish thought. The discussion highlights how linguistic precision can reshape theological understanding and affirm a high Christology from the outset of Christian tradition.
The subject of John 20:31 is likely 'the Christ, the Son of God' rather than 'Jesus,' based on grammatical and contextual evidence.
Early Christianity's claim that Jesus is the divine Messiah aligns with Jewish messianic expectations found in texts like the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Scholarly hesitation to assign 'the Christ' as the subject stems more from translation tradition than linguistic or historical evidence.
Reading Scripture in the original Greek enhances both grammatical precision and theological insight.
The purpose of John’s Gospel is not merely to affirm belief in Jesus, but to reveal that the long-awaited Messiah—divine in nature—is Jesus.
Introduction and Guest Background
Dr. David Ritsema introduces himself as assistant dean and professor of New Testament at B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary. He shares his personal journey into studying Greek, beginning with self-directed learning and culminating in formal training during his undergraduate years.
Reading and Translating John 20:31 in Greek
Ritsema reads John 20:31 in Greek, noting textual variants such as the bracketed sigma in the UBS edition. He provides a translation and highlights the ambiguity in the subject of the copulative verb 'estin,' setting up the central exegetical question.
The Grammatical Debate: Subject of the Copulative Verb
“The subject here should be hachristos. And the tendency not to want to make it the subject is more built around the fact... that no English translation renders it that way.”
Theological Implications and Audience Context
“Now we have kind of in the light of the Dead Sea Scrolls and everything else, this realization that Judaism at the time actually had some pretty exalted descriptions of Messiah...”
Challenging Scholarly Conventions
“I think translations have a tendency to go with what has been, as opposed to taking a chance to say, well, this might really be in fact the better reading of this text.”
“Now we have kind of in the light of the Dead Sea Scrolls and everything else, this realization that Judaism at the time actually had some pretty exalted descriptions of Messiah...”
“The subject here should be hachristos. And the tendency not to want to make it the subject is more built around the fact... that no English translation renders it that way.”
“I think translations have a tendency to go with what has been, as opposed to taking a chance to say, well, this might really be in fact the better reading of this text.”
Host
Guest
David Ritsema
person
John 20:31
other
Greek New Testament
other
David Capes
person
Lain C. Magoghe
person
Donald Carson
person
Wheaton College
organization
Dead Sea Scrolls
other
B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary
organization
Stan Porter
person
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