Jesus and Jewish Law

Why did some Jews object to Jesus healing on the Sabbath? Was it because they were cold, hard legalists who cared about observing the law more than having compassion on others? And why did Jesus think it was permissible for him to heal people on the sabbath? In this episode, we explore various ancient Jewish views on the relationship between sabbath, healing, and preserving life, and we take a close look at Jesus' legal arguments for why he heals on the sabbath.

Primary Texts Referenced in this Episode:
1 Maccabees 2:29-41: ⁠https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20macc%202%3A29-41&version=NRSVUE⁠
Josephus, Antiquities 3:281-82:⁠https://penelope.uchicago.edu/josephus/ant-3.html#EndNote_Ant_3.33a⁠
Josephus, Antiquities 12.274ff: ⁠https://penelope.uchicago.edu/josephus/ant-12.html⁠]
Jewish War 2.147: ⁠https://penelope.uchicago.edu/josephus/war-2.html⁠]
Philo, Special Laws 2.39: ⁠https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/yonge/book28.html⁠
Philo, On the Migration of Abraham 1.91: ⁠https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/yonge/book16.html⁠
CD/Damascus Document 11:13:
4Q265/4QMiscellaneous Rules, Fragment 6, 5-8
11Q13/11QMelchizedek: ⁠https://www.marquette.edu/maqom/11QMelchizedek.pdf⁠
Mishnah, Rosh ha-Shanah 1.9: ⁠https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Rosh_Hashanah.1.9?lang=en⁠
Mishnah, Yoma 8.5–7: ⁠https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Yoma.8.5?lang=bi⁠
Mishnah, Shabbat 14:4: ⁠https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Shabbat.14.4?lang=bi⁠
Tosefta, Shabbat 14.3: ⁠https://www.sefaria.org/Tosefta_Shabbat.14.3?lang=en⁠
Hippocrates, Aphorisms 7.47: ⁠https://classics.mit.edu/Hippocrates/aphorisms.7.vii.html⁠

Articles Mentioned in this Episode:
Logan A. Williams, 'Melchizedek, the Son of Man, and Eschatological Jubilee: The Sin-Forgiving Messiahs in 11QMelchizedek and Mark', JSNT 46 (2023): 1-41: ⁠⁠https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0142064X231191176⁠⁠
Aharon Shemesh, '"Piqquach Nefesh Docheh Shabbat": Piqquach nefesh u-dvarim acherim she-dochim et ha-shabbat', Tarbiz 80 (2012): 481-505: https://www.jstor.org/stable/23607975?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents

In all three synoptic gospels, Jesus' disciples are accused of transgression when they make their way through a field and pluck grains on the sabbath. What is the meaning of Jesus' defense? Does he think the sabbath doesn't matter anymore, or that the rules don't apply to him? In this episode, we investigate how, in Mark 2:23-28 and Matthew 12:1-8,Jesus establishes a complicated legal case to defend the disciples action.

Biblical Sabbath Texts Referenced in this Episode:
Genesis 2.2-3
Exodus 16.4–5
Exodus 16.16–30
Exodus 20.8-11
Exodus 34.21
Exodus 35.2-4
Leviticus 23:3
Leviticus 24:8
Numbers 15.28-35
Numbers 28:9-10
Jeremiah 17.22
Nehemiah 10.31
Nehemiah 13.15-21
Amos 8.4–5
Mark 15.42
Luke 23.54
John 7.22
John 19.31

Primary Texts Referenced in this Episode:
Jubilees 2.29: https://www.pseudepigrapha.com/jubilees/2.htm
Jubilees 50: https://www.pseudepigrapha.com/jubilees/50.htm
Philo, Life of Moses 2.22: https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/yonge/book25.html
Mishnah Shabbat 7.2: https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Shabbat.7.2?lang=en
Mishnah Yoma 8.5–7: https://www.sefaria.org/Yoma.8.5?lang=en
Mishnah Nega'im 7.5: https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Negaim.7.5-8.1?lang=en
Mishnah, Nedarim 3.9: https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Nedarim.3.9?lang=en
Mishnah, Nedarim 3.11: https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Nedarim.3.11?lang=en
Talmud Yerushalmi, Nedarim 3.9.6: https://www.sefaria.org/Jerusalem_Talmud_Nedarim.3.9.6?lang=en
Talmud Bavli, Shabbat 132b9: https://www.sefaria.org/Shabbat.132b.9?lang=en

Secondary Sources Referenced in this Episode:
Max Botner, 'Has Jesus Read What David Did? Probing Problems in Mark 2:25–26', Journal of Theological Studies (2018): https://academic.oup.com/jts/article-abstract/69/2/484/5088397?
Paul Sloan, Jesus and the Law of Moses (Baker, 2025): https://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/jesus-and-the-law-of-moses/415310

In this episode, we respond to questions sent to us by our listeners!

In Mark 5, a woman who experienced vaginal bleeding for 12 years touches Jesus. What happens when she does this, and why?
In this episode we dive into Leviticus 15, the legislation genital discharges, both natural and unnatural. We look at how this legislation was applied by ancient Jews and how all this helps us read Mark 5.24–35 with new eyes.
We are doing a Q&A for our next episode! Make sure to listen to the end for the information about how to send in your questions.

Primary Sources Referenced in This Episode:
Mishnah Keilim 1.7–8. https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Kelim.1.7?lang=bi
Sifre BaMidbar 1. https://www.sefaria.org/Sifrei_Bamidbar.1.1-8?lang=bi
Damascus Document (CD) 12.1. https://palimpsest.stmarytx.edu/thanneken/th6314/content/DamascusDocument.htm
Temple Scroll (11Q19) 45.7–17. http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/temple

Secondary Sources Referred to in this Episode:
Dale Allison "Healing in the Wings of His Garment: The Synoptics and Malachi 4:2", in The Word Leaps the Gap: Essays on Scripture and Theology in Honor of Richard Hays (ed. J. Ross Wagner; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008), 132-146. https://www.academia.edu/118917364/Healing_in_the_Wings_of_His_Garment_The_Synoptics_and_Malachi_4_2
Candida Moss, "The Man with the Flow of Power: Porous Bodies in Mark 5:25–34", Journal of biblical Literature 128 (2010): 507–519. http://jstor.org/stable/25765949?seq=1
Matthew Thiessen, Jesus and the Forces of Death: The Gospels’ Portrayal of Ritual Impurity within First-Century Judaism (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2020): https://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/jesus-and-the-forces-of-death/399984

Lepers weren't "excluded" from all of society in ancient Judaism. So what is the significance of Jesus touching a leper?
The focus of this episode is the scene where Jesus "purifies" a leper through touch in Mark 1.39–44. This short passage raises numerous questions: Did Jesus disregard the torah when he touched the leper? What was the leper doing in the synagogue if lepers were marginalised and excluded from society? In healing the leper, did Jesus usurp the role of the priests? If Jesus purifies him, why does Jesus tell him to go make offerings "for his purification". And how does this function as a "witness" to the priests?
To approach these issues, we provide a detailed examination of the leprosy legislation in Leviticus 13–14 and its interpretation in ancient Judaism, and, as usual, we do a bit of myth busting along the way. For example: Lepers, it turns out, were only excluded from particular spaces, not all of society, and they could actually attend synagogue services! We also get into a detailed discussion of Jesus' limits as a Judahite and what that means for his relationship with Levitical priests.
The episode closes with three final questions: Did Jesus contract impurity from touching the Leper? Would Jesus disagree with the “exclusionary” facet of lepra legislation? And does this scene portray Jesus as being contagious with holiness?
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Primary Sources in This Episode:
The Temple Scroll (11QTemple/11Q19) 48.14–17. Link: http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/temple
Mishnah, Negaim 13: https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Negaim.13.1?lang=bi
Tosefta, Keilim Kamma 1.11: https://sefaria.org/Tosefta_Kelim_Kamma.1.11?lang=bi
Josephus, Antiquities 3.264 [not 3.246!]: https://lexundria.com/j_aj/3.264/wst

Secondary Sources in This Episode:
Jacob Milgrom, Leviticus 1–16: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, Anchor Bible (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1991): https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300139402/leviticus-1-16/
Matthew Thiessen, Jesus and the Forces of Death: The Gospels’ Portrayal of Ritual Impurity within First-Century Judaism (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2020): https://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/jesus-and-the-forces-of-death/399984
Yitzhaq Feder, "The Wilderness Camp Paradigm in the Holiness Source and the Temple Scroll: From Purity Laws to Cult Politics", Journal of Ancient Judaism 5 (2014): 290–310: https://brill.com/view/journals/jaj/5/3/article-p290_2.xml?language=en