031 Commentary
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Commentary
John Dominic Crossan
Crossan [Historical Jesus] (274-76) notes that this saying is part of a larger complex critical of wealth within the wider motif of a "brokerless kingdom." he also notes the "twin" saying, [040 Have and Receive] [1/3].
International Q Project
[IQP] omits this saying from the critical text of Q and translates Q 13:28-29 as follows:
29 [And many] shall come from Sunrise and Sunset and recline 28 with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of God, but [you will be] thrown out [into the] out[er darkness], where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. [30 The last will be first, and the first last.]
Jesus Seminar
The views of the Seminar can be represented as follows:
- GThom 4:2
- GThom 4:3
- POxy654 4:2a
- Luke 13:30
- Matt 20:16
- Mark 10:31
- Matt 19:30
- Barn 6:13a
[The Five Gospels] (p 93f & 225) notes that the form of the saying in Matt 20:16 is more likely to be close to the speech of Jesus due to its unequivocal form, whereas Mark 10:31 (followed by Matthew at 19:30) modified the radical reversal of roles implicit in the saying. The commentary observes: "By placing it here, Mark gives this aphorism a meaning that is nearly the opposite of what it meant on the lips of Jesus."
Gerd Lüdemann
Lüdemann [Jesus] (69) observes this saying is found "attached to a great variety of stories and is not suitable as the object for verdicts of authenticity."
