Creeping Death

Chapter 14: The drama of the narrative of Jesus in the Gospel peaks at his death. All the previous content has led to this point, from the Galilee to Jerusalem, as he foresees his death, and it culminates surrounding the Temple and the Passover holy festival. 

[Remember, it was not a given that the Messiah's career would include death and dying, nor a meaningful death as part of the mission, nor all the symbolism of things like the Passover to Messiah - what we are experiencing as readers is these themes coming together as the rise of messianism as such.]

Passover Lamb, Firstborn Son

Everyone knows the central role of the Passover and Crucifixion in the narrative of Jesus, and here we will address briefly from the perspective of the development of messianism and the dynamic of associations to Jesus, as Son, Son of G-d, Son of Man, Son of David, Messiah, etc.

First of all, the fact that his death occurs at the Passover, already is an obvious association with Jesus as the Son, the firstborn son, the Son of G-d, as we saw on the Mountain with Elijah and Moses, and at the Jordan river baptism with John the Baptist. 

It is a literary fact, an objective textual fact, that Jesus is associated above all as “son”, whether of G-d or Man or David. So the Passover as his death, or his death on Passover serves, to further emphasize his sonship.

Besides the concept of the death of the firstborn son, in the context of Passover, the other obvious association is that of the lamb, the slaying of lambs by the Israelites, instead of the death of their firstborn sons, and wiping (kind of like anointing) blood on the doorframes.

These are related indirectly to messianism, but in the messianic case of Jesus are essential components - sonship, sacrificial death, etc.

Just before the Passover, before Jesus’ death, a woman anoints his head with expensive oil, which is a literal messianic association, the anointing of oil, is literally messianic. Jesus says, “she has prepared my body for burial” (14:8).

This is a connecting point between his death and messianism literally. 

Death is a central element of Jesus’ narrative, but the Son of Man was also central, perhaps more central before Jerusalem, and there is a need to connect everything, all the different associations, with the development of his life and the ideas associated - there is no original association of the Son of Man. 

Sheep or Shepherd? Symoblism Upon Symbolism

In chapter 14, at the Passover feast as they were eating: "Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, Take, eat; this is my body...

Then he took the cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many. Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink anew in the kingdom of God.” 

And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of me this night, for it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be scattered.’ “But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.”  (22-28)

At the end of this passage Jesus predicts his resurrection. Before that, he interprets biblical prophecy as to himself, more blatantly so than we previously have seen, this time from Zechariah 13:7.

The Shepherd fits well with the idea of Messiah the Son of David, as David was a shepherd, and in the Prophets there are metaphors of the leader or redeemer of Israel as a shepherd, as The Shepherd of Israel (see Ezekiel 34). 

Zechariah chapter 13 specifically, verses 7-9, describes an act of G-d, passively and actively at parts, enabling the killing of the shepherd of the sheep, which are the people, then many will be struck down and perish, and the rest will be refined through fire, and they will call upon His name, and they will say - “The LORD is our G-d”. This harsh passage serves to associate the Shepherd, David, with Jesus’ death, and the meaning of his death.

Sometimes it feels like there are so many symbols upon symbols that we forget where it started and where we came to. Contextually Jesus is the Passover lamb, which is like the Israelite swap of the firstborn son, and he is also the firstborn son. But he is also the Shepherd, not the lamb or the sheep. The Shepherd is like David and Messiah and Redeermer of Israel. These are all rushing at us.

More and More References

Jesus directly interprets that the wine they drink is his soon to be spilled blood and the bread is a symbol of his broken body. “This is my blood, the blood of the covenant (Jeremiah 31 reference) poured out for many (Isaiah 52 reference)…

I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the day I will drink again in the Kingdom of Heaven.” 14:24-25) [The Kingdom of Heaven may be in some heavenly place, or after a resurrection in the next world again with them in the kingdom manifested.]

Referencing Jeremiah 31 as the New Covenant is a huge interpretive endeavour in and of itself, as well as referencing Isaiah 52 as the Suffering Servant, which are two additional major circles of symbolism and meaning of death!

But we will refrain from delving into them here and now, in order to stay focused on the dynamic of associations developing together as messianism, and on the death consciousness theme...

Finally, praying at the Garden of Gethsemane ,literally the garden of the oil press on the Mount of Olives, may very well be another literal messianic / anointing reference - just like the woman applying expensive oil on him.

A Comment on Critical Reading

As critical readers, it is always a game, as we interpret the texts, we never know what is original, nor how original, and what is inauthentic and added later...

The tricky part is, that in order to create a meaningful reading, we have to piece together a quantity of texts, it is something we build passage upon passage, so besides deconstructing and criticizing.

We have to at some point assume a fair amount, in order to construct a coherent narrative, however critical, ommitting which ever parts and pieces we wish. Nonetheless, one needs to build a reading in order to reflect on all the passages whether they make sense together.

So you read and criticize, and then connect pieces you are sure and unsure about, then feel there is a thread, then review everything again with the thread in mind, and then judge again which pieces should be ommitted from your interpretive construct, and which to keep, and some pieces remove.