Jesus and Apocalyptic Literature

In the Gospel presentation of the ministry of Jesus, Jesus never makes an explicit connection to apocalyptic literature, with the one exception of Daniel. Most scholars agree that Daniel is the only apocalypse in the Hebrew Bible. Additionally, Daniel provides some of the essential imagery for Jesus’ ministry as presented in the four Gospels.

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There are three significant connections between Jesus’ teaching and the book of Daniel. First, Jesus’ favorite way to describe himself is with the expression “son of man,” taken directly from Daniel. Specifically, Jesus’ sayings about the “coming” of the “son of man” (Matt 10:23; 26:64; Mark 8:38; 14:62; Luke 18:8; 22:69) are derived from the “son of man” who “comes” with “the clouds of heaven” in Daniel 7:13-14. Second, Jesus’ teaching also emphasizes the coming of the “kingdom of God.” Daniel is the only book in the Hebrew Bible that explicitly speaks of a coming kingdom of God. The opening vision of Daniel climaxes with the “God heaven” establishing his “kingdom” (Dan 2:44-45). Then, later in the book, an “everlasting” kingdom is given by God to the “one like a son of man” (Dan 7:14-16). Finally, Jesus’ speech about the “abomination of desolation” (Matt 24:15; Mark 13:14; cf. Luke 21:20), perhaps one of the most apocalyptic sayings of Jesus, is a direct quote from the book of Daniel (Dan 9:24-26).

Jesus’ Apocalyptic Worldview

Most scholars would agree that Jesus, to some degree, shared in the apocalyptic worldview of Second Temple Judaism. When one examines the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels, many of the characteristics of Second Temple apocalyptic literature, as outlined above, can be detected. For example, apocalyptic literature is built upon visions and revelations that provide hidden information about the spiritual realm or the end times. Similarly, visionary experiences are attributed to Jesus by the Gospel writers. Examples include Jesus’ baptism (Matt 3:13-17; Mark 1:10-11; Luke 3:21-22), the transfiguration (Matt 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36), and the Father speaking from heaven at Passover (John 12:27-30). Jesus also speaks about “mysteries of the kingdom” (Matt 13:11-12; Mark 4:10-12; Luke 8:10) and revelations that are “hidden” (Matt 11:25-27; Luke 10:21-22). One can especially see the connection between Jesus and heavenly revelation in John’s Gospel, where Jesus, as the one descended from heaven (John 3:13), teaches about what he has “seen and heard” from God (John 8:28, 38).

Second, apocalyptic literature tends to be preoccupied with spiritual forces (e.g., angels and demons). In the Gospels, Jesus shares similar beliefs about angels and demons. Jesus teaches that angels look over God’s “little ones” (Matt 18:10), rejoice when sinners repent (Luke 15:10), carry Lazarus’ soul to Abraham’s bosom (Luke 16:22), gather God’s elect (Matt 24:31; Mark 13:27), separate the righteous from the wicked at the final judgment (Matt 13:36-42), assist in punishing the wicked (Matt 13:42-42, 49-50), and are associated with the glory of the son of man (Matt 25:31; John 1:51). Demonic beings also play a significant role in Jesus’ ministry. Jesus teaches about Satan (Matt 5:37; 12:24-29; Mark 3:22-27; Luke 10:18; 11:15-22; John 12:30-32; 13:30) and exorcism is a vital characteristic of Jesus’ ministry in the Synoptic Gospels (Matt 8:28-34; 17:14-18; Mark 1:23-28; 5:1-17; 9:14-17; Luke 4:33-37; 8:26-37; 9:37-43).

Third, Second Temple apocalypses are also interested in the makeup of the spiritual realm. Jesus’ teachings also show an interest in the spiritual realm. For example, Jesus teaches more about Gehenna, a place described as the location of eternal punishment, than the rest of the New Testament combined (Matt 5:27-30; 10:26-33; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 12:2-7). He also speaks of “Abraham’s bosom” as a place of postmortem rest and peace and “Hades” as a postmortem place of torment (Luke 16:19-31).

Finally, apocalyptic literature is eschatologically focused. It speaks of the end times as a period of tribulation, false messiahs, war, a final judgment, the resurrection of the dead, and new heavens and new earth (e.g., Dan 7-9; 11-12; 1 Enoch 85-90; 91:11-17; 93; 4 Ezra 7; 13; 2 Baruch 26-30). Jesus also has many teachings about the eschatological end. He contrasts “this age” with “the age to come” (Matt 10:29-31; Luke 17:30), predicts the coming of tribulations characterizes by war, persecution, and false messiahs (Matt 24:3-8; Mark 13:3-8; Luke 21:5-9), looks forward to the resurrection of the dead (Matt 11:20-24; Luke 10:13-15), the final judgment (Matt 12:38-42; Luke 11:29-32; John 5:24-25), and God’s establishment of a “new world” (Matt 19:28).

Conclusion

As this brief overview has demonstrated, apocalypticism was an important belief among many, if not most, Second Temple Jews. An apocalyptic outlook focused on the heavenly realm, the manifestation of spiritual forces in the physical world, and ultimately God’s reward and judgment was produced from the difficulties of Jewish life in captivity. Apocalypticism provided Second Temple Jews with an outlet to understand their present circumstances and to give them hope in God’s eschatological plans. 

However, this way of speaking about God and viewing the world was not only shared by non-Christian Jews during the Second Temple period but also by Christian Jews and is even found in the Gospel presentation of Jesus’ ministry. The themes discernable throughout apocalypses of the Second Temple period can also be found in the teaching ministry of Jesus. Jesus had visions, emphasized spiritual beings, taught about the spiritual realm, and prophesied about God’s eschatological judgment. Most significantly, perhaps, is Jesus’ dependence upon the Danielic “son of man” as the prototype for his ministry. 

Therefore, to fully appreciate and understand the teachings and ministry of Jesus, as presented in the Gospels, one must have at least a basic understanding of Second Temple Jewish apocalypticism. The ways in which Jesus taught about himself and God were not new but rooted in a deeply engrained apocalyptic history amongst the Jewish people. Jesus used the apocalyptic language and teachings of his contemporaries throughout his ministry. Sometimes Jesus agreed with the generally held beliefs; at other times, he re-envisioned an apocalyptic outlook in light of his ministry and the coming of the kingdom of God. 

For example, apocalypticism looked forward to God’s eschatological judgment, where the righteous are rewarded and the wicked punished. Jesus’ teachings agreed with this general outlooked, but he made it clear that the way to reward (i.e., the way to God) was through him (John 14:6). Also, the Second Temple Apocalyptic worldview was quite focused on the coming of God’s kingdom and believed that they were living in the end times. Jesus capitalized on this belief by teaching that through his work, the kingdom of God (Matt 12:28; Luke 11:20) and the end times had come (Luke 4:18–19; cf. Isa 61:1-2).

Of most significance, perhaps, is an understanding of the apocalyptic nature of Daniel. As mentioned above, Jesus’ favorite description of himself is the “son of man.” In Daniel, the “son of man” is presented as a kingly representative of God. In his ministry, Jesus takes this language, applies it to himself, and expands its meaning. Jesus identifies himself as the “son of man,” the king who has come to bring God’s eternal kingdom, a kingdom inaugurated through the death and resurrection of Jesus the Messiah. 

by: Spencer Shaw