William Campbell’s Romans– The Dialogue Part Fifteen

Last updated on: June 15, 2023 at 1:53 am by Ben Witherington

William Campbell’s Romans– The Dialogue Part Fifteen 2023-05-17T13:57:22-04:00 Ben Witherington

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Q. So far as I can see, Gentiles did not go around calling themselves Jews, even if they were God-fearers. Besides the general anti-Semitism of the Roman culture (see e.g. Juvenal’s satires), they were perfectly happy to just be called God-fearers. Consider for example this inscription from the theater in Miletus—– it reads. “τόπoς Ειουδέων τῶν καὶ Θεοσεβίον”the place for the Jews and the God–worshipers”.

This inscription was surely made by Gentiles.

So far as I can see the person who calls himself or is called a Jew in some public way is surely a Jew who is proud of being a Jew. In Rom. 2.17 Paul does not use the term legomenon— so-called. In fact, the Greek either reads ‘if you are called a Jew’ or ‘if you call yourself a Jew’ relying on the Mosaic Law and boasting in the Biblical God. So here Paul is critiquing a censorious Jewish teacher, having already critiqued a Gentile one. And notice the second verb is also imperfect passive or middle/passive, but no one is rendering it ‘you yourself boast’. What do we make of the fact that neither Paul nor Josephus ever uses the term proselytos? One thing one could conclude is that when Paul says Jew, he means Jew. He may not mean Judean but he does mean Jew.

How would you respond?

A. I am not convinced that if I am reported as calling myself something e.g. a sportsman, that it means that I actually am what I am reported as claiming to be-it could be an ironic statement saying indirectly “Yes, you are reported to be this, but I am not convinced that you qualify to be called a sportsman”. If I am born as a Texan or as a Scot , I would not go around wanting to be called such – there would be no need to make such claims because there is no doubt about my status. Only if there is some debate about my citizenship would there be any need for me to make claims about it e.g. an immigrant’s documentation. It seems much more plausible that Paul is describing a non-Jew who by practising certain Jewish things is seeking to further claims to be a Jew.

As I note in the Commentary the strongest evidence in support of this reading is found in a text at the time just before Romans was written. When Claudius was emperor, i.e. in Paul’s time, a legal claim to be a Roman citizen was permitted if certain conditions had been fulfilled. “I so grant this benefit to them that whatever they have done or transacted as if they were Roman citizens, either with the Tridentini or with others , those things I order to be legally valid, and the names which they have previously had as if they were Romans citizens I permit them to retain”. Claudius here solves the problem of citizenship and legal status for certain alpine tribes by legislating that those things that were done previously as if they were Roman citizens, but prior to becoming such, are confirmed exactly as if they had been citizens at the time when they began their military service. Clifford Ando the well known classical scholar comments on this legislation thus “in the crucial matter of one’s identity as slave or free, the fact that others took you as one or the other was sufficient to prove as it were what you were, and the legal judgment that followed was taken to bring into harmony the legal and the social”(Race and Citizenship in Roman Law and Administration” (Romans Commentary 102-03). In the light of this contemporary example, it seems the best way to read ‘calling yourself’ or ‘being called a Jew’ in Rom.2.17 is that this indicates taking on a status which one did not have previously, or about which there was some uncertainty. If one adds to this Paul’s clear address to the Romans as non-Jews, and the fact that he does not use the term proselytos in Romans, then it seems unwarranted to take a claim to be a Jew or wanting to be called a Jew as a reference to actual Jews, of whom there were many in Rome, but whom Paul does not address here.

Education and Religion

History and Religion

Uncategorized

Who called themselves Jews?

Previous Post

June 14, 2023

William Campbell's Romans-- The Dialogue Part Fourteen

Next Post

June 15, 2023 Furious X-- Lives Up to It's Name

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz