Jewish Followers of Jesus Interpret Scripture*

Jewish Scriptures were central to the earliest Christians, who depended on their authority as a source for Jesus’ teachings and for proving that he was the Messiah. Two directions emerged in their interpretation of Scriptures. The first was a shift from the priests and rabbis who had previously held authority for interpretation, to Jesus (and then his followers) who now held that authority. The second was a sense that there was an underlying truth to these ancient writings that had been missed--truth that only became clear in the context of Jesus.

Early Christians combed the Jewish Scriptures for events that would serve as types that served to foreshadow Jesus and his life. Allegorizing and prefiguring or typology--that is, reading Jesus and his coming into the Jewish Scriptures--became their preferred tools of interpretation. Thus ancient prophecies were reinterpreted as referring to Jesus.

The portraits of Jesus in the Gospels are the evangelists’ interpretations, and the only ones we have to go by, since we have nothing written by Jesus himself. They show a Jesus who constantly pushes past the boundaries of traditional interpretation. The gospels frequently use the phrases "as it is written..." and "have you not heard?" both in the narrative and in remarks quoting Jesus. The gospel writers also quote Jesus as he deliberately reinterprets Scripture, saying "You have heard it said.... but I say to you..." They describe Jesus as taking onto himself the authority of the religious leaders as well as that of Moses, the prophets, King David, and ultimately, God. To any faithful Jew of the time, this was terrible blasphemy; to a Roman it was dangerous, potentially revolutionary talk.