Second Corinthians and Paul's Gospel of Human Mortality (eBook)

Cover 1
Preface 6
Table of Contents 10
Chapter 1: Introduction, Issues, Method 16
1.1 Introduction 16
1.2 Literary & Historical Reconstruction of Second Corinthians
1.3 Opponents 24
1.4 Method 27
1.5 Implications 30
Chapter 2: Death in Ancient Corinth: Attitudes that Contributed to the Fall of an Afflicted Apostle 33
2.1 Introduction 33
2.2 The History and Culture of the Corinthia 34
2.3 Attitudes Toward Death in Graeco-Roman Corinth 45
2.4 Attitudes Toward Death in Graeco-Roman Literature 51
2.4.1 Plato: Phaedo 53
Plato’s Body-Soul Dualism 54
Plato’s Understanding of Physical Death 57
Plato’s Understanding of the Soul’s Immortality 58
Plato in Corinth 59
2.4.2 Cicero: “Somnium Scipionis” in De Re Publica 61
Cicero’s Personalisation of the Soul 62
Cicero in Corinth 65
2.4.3 Virgil: Book Six of the Aeneid 66
Virgil’s Depiction of Death 68
Virgil’s Conceptualisation of Death 70
Echoes of Roman Funeral Practice 73
Virgil in Corinth 75
2.5 Attitudes Toward Death in Roman Funeral Practice 77
2.5.1 Pagan-Christian Syncretism 77
2.5.2 Graeco-Roman Transition from Cremation to Inhumation 80
2.5.3 The Roman Funeral and the Cult of the Dead 82
Rites for the Dying and Immediately Dead 83
Rites Following Death, Including Interment or Cremation 83
Rites Following Interment or Cremation 84
Continuity of Person, Corpse, and Soul in Roman Funeral Practice 84
Pre-burial Caution 85
Burial Procession 86
Burial Site Location 86
Burial Necessity 87
Corpse Manipulation 88
Corpse Handling 88
Post-burial Purification Rites 89
The Cult of the Manes 90
2.6 Summary 92
Chapter 3: Paul’s Experience of Death: 2 Corinthians 1.3–11 95
3.1 Recent History of Interpretation 95
3.2 The Introductory Thanksgivings of 1 and 2 Corinthians 98
3.3 Exegesis of 2 Corinthians 1.3–11 100
3.3.1 A Jewish Eulogy (Berakah) 103
3.3.2 Beginning with Two Divine Descriptors 106
3.3.3 An “Interpolation” on Pastoral Theology: 1.4–7 109
Paul’s Use of Pronouns in 1.4–7 110
The Strengthening Character of God in 1.4–7 113
The Centrality of Christ in 1.4–7 115
The Present Character of God’s Strengthening in 1.4–7 116
Coupling Divine Strengthening and Human Mortality in 1.4–7 118
Summary 119
3.3.4 An Account of Mortal Affliction in Asia: 1.8–11 120
Paul’s Disclosure of His Asian Affliction in 1.8 120
The Extravagance of Paul’s Disclosure in 1.8 123
Recapitulation or Counterpoint in 1.9? 125
The Interdependence of the Church in Affliction in 1.11 127
Summary 128
Chapter 4: Paul’s Theology of Death: 2 Corinthians 4.7–12 130
4.1 Introduction 130
4.2 Paul’s Turn Toward the Corporeal at 4.7 131
4.3 Exegesis of 2 Corinthians 4.7–12 135
4.3.1 The Antecedent to “Treasure” (????????) 136
4.3.2 The Meaning of “Pottery Jars” (??????????? ????????) 145
4.3.3 The Meaning of “in order that ... being" (??? ... ?) 147
4.3.4 The Phenomenon of “Overabundance” (????????) 152
4.3.5 Paul’s Poetic Participial Pairing in 4.8–9 154
4.3.6 The Semantic Meaning of “Deadness” (????????) in 4.10 156
Paul’s Use of ????-Cognates 157
Paul’s Only Other Use of ???????? in Romans 4.19 160
???????? in the Ancient Greek Corpus 164
???????? in Severus 166
???????? in Soranus of Ephesus 166
???????? in Aretaeus of Cappadocia 167
???????? in Galen of Pergamum 167
???????? in Philumenus of Alexandria 169
???????? in Shepherd of Hermas 169
???????? in Irenaeus of Lyons 170
Summary 171
The Semantic Meaning of ???????? for Paul 172
4.3.7 Paul’s Recapitulation of 4.10 in 4.11 174
4.3.8 The Meaning of “being handed over” (??????????) in 4.11a 175
4.3.9 The Fruitfulness of Paul’s Mortality in 4.12 179
4.3.10 The Conceptual Parallelism Between 4.7 and 4.10–11 180
4.3.11 The Theological Meaning of “the deadness of Jesus” 183
Hans Windisch 183
Adolf Schlatter 184
Ernst Käsemann 185
Erhardt Güttgemanns 186
Walter Schmithals 187
Jean-François Collange 188
Jan Lambrecht 189
Summary Interpretation 190
4.4 Summary 191
Chapter 5: Experience and Theology in Conversation: 2 Corinthians 1.3–11 and 4.7–12 197
5.1 Introduction 197
5.2 The Correspondence of Vocabulary 198
5.2.1 Significant Vocabulary Correspondence 199
Linking “overabundance” and “power” (???????? and ???????) 199
Paul’s Only Two Uses of “despair” (???????????) in the NT 200
Paul’s Only Two Uses of “work” (???????) in 2 Corinthians 202
The Degree of Agreement Between 1.11 and 4.15 202
5.2.2 Suggestive Vocabulary Correspondence 203
Concentration of ???-Cognates and Ironic Usage of ???-Cognates 203
Paul’s Peculiar Language of “Death” (???????) 205
Paul’s Use of ?????? to Characterise God 205
5.2.3 Summary 206
5.3 The Correspondence of Textual Character 206
5.3.1 Degree of Parallelism 207
5.3.2 Context of Crisis and Confidence 207
5.3.3 Central Role for Jesus Christ 208
5.3.4 Mortality as a Burden 209
5.3.5 The Organicity of Death and Life 210
5.3.6 God Has Altered the Nature of Death 210
5.3.7 Introspective, Self-referential Tone 211
5.3.8 Summary 213
5.4 The Correspondence of Theology 213
5.4.1 The Function of Human Mortality: Dislocation and Dependence 213
Dislocation and Dependence in 2 Corinthians 1.3–11 214
Dislocation and Dependence in 2 Corinthians 4.7–12 217
5.4.2 The Consequence of Human Mortality: Freedom and Life 218
Freedom from Despair 219
Communication of Life 220
5.5 Summary 224
Chapter 6: Conclusion 227
6.1 Overview 227
6.2 2 Corinthians Among the Paulines 230
6.3 Indebtedness 235
6.4 Contributions 237
6.5 Future Work 237
6.6 Implications 238
Appendix 1: Diagramming Paul’s Experience of Death in 2 Corinthians 1.3–11 244
Appendix 2: Diagramming Paul’s Theology of Death in 2 Corinthians 4.7–12 246
Appendix 3: Paul’s Vocabulary of Death 247
Bibliography 250
Index of Ancient Sources 272
A. Hebrew Bible and Septuagint 272
B. New Testament 273
C. Other Ancient Sources 279
Index of Modern Authors 282
Index of Subjects 285