请您为“沈阳安全文化形象大使”起名

Question

John 7

11 The Jews were looking for him at the feast and saying, “Where is he?” 12 And there was considerable murmuring about him in the crowds. Some said, “He is a good man,” while others said, “No; on the contrary, he misleads the crowd.” 13 Still, no one spoke openly about him because they were afraid of the Jews.

Readers have long noticed that the Gospel of John speaks negatively of "the Jews" in general. Here, we see that the author makes a distinction between "the Jews" and "the crowds." In our normal terminology, the crowds were no doubt Jews themselves since they had gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles (7:2), known to Jews today as Succoth. Later in the chapter, "the Jews" who have seeking to kill Jesus (7:1) are amazed at Jesus' teaching because he had not studied (7:15). Meanwhile "the crowds" (7:20) are bewildered when Jesus asks "Why are you trying to kill me?” and they answer: “You are possessed! Who is trying to kill you?”

The longer question: Assuming John's distinction between the crowds and the Jews in intentional, how should we understand it? When he speaks of "the Jews" elsewhere, does he mean this in a different sense than "the general Jewish population?" Should we understand "the Jews" in John's gospel to mean something more like "Jesus' religious opponents?"

---

Note to moderators: this is a different question from the more general "Who are the Jews in John's Gospel" as it deals with a specific text and asks about "the crowds" as well as "the Jews."

Answer 1

Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg points out that Judeans might be more appropriate to translate ?ουδα?οι than Jews, but he also points out the ?ουδα?οι usually mean the leadership in Judea. Obviously, the crowd were Jews, but not leadership.

1. ?The Gospel of John was initially written for a particular audience consisting of a variety of intra-Israelite groups, one of the main ones being the Samaritan Israelites. To them, unlike for us today, the word ?ουδα?οι (pronounced Ioudaioi and translated as “Jews”) did not mean “the People of Israel,” i.e. “the Jewish people” as we call them today. For these people, the people I propose are one of the main audiences for the Gospel of John, the Ioudaioi, meant something different. -- Lizorkin-Eyzenberg, Eli. The Jewish Gospel of John: Discovering Jesus, King of All Israel. Jewish Studies for Christians. Kindle Edition.

The translation of Ioudaioi always and only as “Jews” sends the reader in the opposite direction from what the author intended. While the translation of this word simply as “Judeans,” is a more accurate choice than “Jews,” it is still not fully adequate - ... -- Ibid.

The inadequacy of the current Ioudaioi [?ουδα?οι] as leaders of God’s people Israel is increasingly emphasized. (Jn. 3:9-10; 6:31-32; 8:21-22) Ultimately, their opposition to God’s Anointed One (Jesus) is exemplified by their attempt to preserve Judea’s Temple worship and therefore to prosper for themselves, their families and their sects, under the terms dictated by the Roman occupation. (Jn. 11:48)? Such aims disqualify them to be the proper leaders of the Children of Israel. -- Ibid.

However, obviously both the crowd and leadership had split opinions within each group, but their vast opinions of the leadership and crowd opposed each other.

The Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? 48?Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? 49?But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.” 50?Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, 51?“Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” 52?They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Search and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.” (John 7:47–52, ESV2016)

Answer 2

Let's look at the NIV version of John 7:11-13

11 Now at the festival the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus and asking, “Where is he?” 12 Among the crowds there was widespread whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.” Others replied, “No, he deceives the people.” 13 But no one would say anything publicly about him for fear of the leaders.

The NIV version interprets the term "the Jews" as "the Jewish leaders", while "the crowd" is understood as everyone attending the festival, including both those who loves Jesus and those who opposed Him. The question then arises: "Does NIV have a basis for interpreting "the Jews" as "the Jewish leaders"?

The clue seems to lie in John 7:13, where the public is fear of "the Jews", suggesting that they were a specific group of Jews with authority. This is not the only instance in John. In John 9:22, the Pharisees investigate the healing of a man born blind, and the parents of the man express feaar of "the Jews" (Jewish leaders in NIV), implying the Pharisees.

Further insight can be obtained from Paul's letters. In Romans 2:17, Paul refers to "Jews" as people who adhere to the Mosaic law:

Romans 2:17 NIV

Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God;

Similarly in Galatians 2:14 where Paul confronts Peter.

When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

It appears that the meaning of "the Jews" has a temporal essence. From the perspective of John and Paul, "the Jews" specifically refers to those who adhere to Mosaic law. In John's gospel, the main adversaries of the Gospel were the Jewish leaders, while in Paul's time, it was those who abided by the Mosaic law. The term "the Jews" is never meant to refer to the entire Jewish nation. Unfortunately, over the centuries, this phrasing has led to unwanted misunderstandings about Jewish people as a whole, giving rise to harmful stereotypes and attitudes.

Answer 3

One of the tricky things about John's gospel is that he does not use the term "Judeans, Jews" in a consistent sense. Specifically:

Those who Identify with Jesus and His Teaching (to various degrees)

• John 10:19-21 - Again there was division among the Jews because of Jesus’ message. Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and insane. Why would you listen to Him?” But others replied, “These are not the words of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
• John 11:45 - Therefore many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in Him.
• John 12:11 - for on account of him many of the Jews were deserting them and believing in Jesus.

Those who bitterly opposed Jesus

• John 1;19 - And this was John’s testimony when the Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him, “Who are you?”
• John 1:18 - On account of this, the Jews demanded, “What sign can You show us to prove Your authority to do these things?”
• John 5:10 - so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “This is the Sabbath! It is unlawful for you to carry your mat.”
• see also John 5:15, 6:41, 52, 7:1, 11, 13, 9:18, 22, 10:24, 31, 33, etc

Thus, each case of the use of "Jews" must be decided on a case-by-case basis.

In the specific case John 7:11ff, John distinguishes between the "Jews" and the "crowds". In this instance, it is probably safe to assume that "Jews" mean those who are conservative-orthodox Jews (V1, 2, 3, 11, 13, 15, 35) opposed to Jesus, in contrast to the crowds (V12, 20, 31, 32, 40, 43, 49). However, it is the crowds that are divided because some became opposed to Jesus and others from the same crowds believed (V12, 20, 31, 40, 43)

Thus, John presents Jews, both in the leadership and the crowds who were still debating and trying to understand Jesus' (to them) novel teaching. Some believed and some opposed.

Therefore, the distinction between "Jews" and "crowds" in John 7 exists but it is not a sharp distinction.