Article
Obedient Unto Death: Philippians 2:8, Gethsemane, and the Historical Jesus
Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus
(2017)
Abstract
Despite the extensive attention that has been given to Philippians 2:6–11 in relation to its Christology, the possibility that v8 alludes to the story about Jesus in Gethsemane has received only cursory mention when it has been considered at all. Philippians 2:8 and the Gospel tradition converge in depicting Jesus choosing to be obedient to God even to the point of death, in the absence of an interpretation of that death as itself salvific. The historical allusion, offered in the midst of a heavily theologized Christo- logical statement, offers an excellent test case for an approach to history which accepts that fact and interpretation are inseparable, and yet still proceeds under the convic- tion that critical historiography remains possible.
Keywords
- Gethsemane,
- prayer,
- epistles,
- methodology,
- historiography
Disciplines
Publication Date
April, 2017
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1163/17455197-01403015
Publisher Statement
This is a pre-print version of an article originally published in the Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus, 2016, Volume 14, Issue 3.
Citation Information
James F McGrath. "Obedient Unto Death: Philippians 2:8, Gethsemane, and the Historical Jesus" Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus Vol. 14 Iss. 3 (2017) p. 223 - 240 ISSN: 1476-8690 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/jamesmcgrath/82/