Paul's list of the resurrection appearances in 1 Corinthians 15, likely derived from an early creedal tradition, is an important datum when analyzing Christian origins. While I think some apologists overstate the significance of this creed, it is nonetheless deserving of careful study as it gives us an account outside of and earlier than the Gospels from someone who claimed to have seen the risen Jesus.
A common objection to the appearances recounted in this creed is that the Greek word for "appeared", ὤφθη (passive form of ὁράω, "to see"), often denotes appearances in visions or other types of vague, spiritual manifestations. This, it is argued, casts doubt on whether the appearances of Jesus referenced in 1 Corinthians 15 are on the same footing as the robust, physical appearances recounted in the later Gospels. The purpose of this post is to lay to rest the notion, primarily through literary examples, that ὤφθη carries any relevant connotations beyond our English "appeared", and thus, it is hardly notable in analyzing the creed.
Here is some more information on ὤφθη, and the root verb ὁράω. A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (BDAG) gives the following definitions for ὁράω:
1) to perceive by the eye, catch sight of, notice
2) to see someone in the course of making a friendly call, visit
3) to experience a condition or event, experience, witness
4) to be mentally or spiritually perceptive, perceive
Under definition #1, the passive form of the verb is defined as "become visible, appear". The passive form is what we're concerned with in 1 Corinthians 15.
From the 10-volume Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (TDNT):
"The range of meaning is much the same in the case of ἰδεῖν ("to see") as in that of ὁράω. It denotes seeing as sense-perception, hence eye-witness."
Further:
"The important point about ὤφθη with the dative, however, is that the one who constitutes the subject is the one who acts, i.e., appears, shows himself, with no special emphasis on the resultant action of the person in the dative, namely, that he sees or perceives." (TDNT)
Instances in which ὁράω refers to normal seeing
For many of these examples I am indebted to NT Wright's book The Resurrection of the Son of God. I have divided the verses into sections which broadly delineate the different types of appearances involved. Most of the English translations are taken from the NASB. The Greek terms are taken from the Septuagint, specifically this online version.
Appearing before God
Deuteronomy 16.16
Three times a year all your males shall appear (ὀφθήσεται) before the Lord
your God at the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened
Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Booths; and they are
not to appear (ὀφθήσῃ) before the Lord empty-handed.
Deuteronomy 31.11
when all Israel comes to appear (ὀφθῆναι) before the Lord your God at the place which He will choose, you shall read this Law before all Israel so that they hear it.
Isaiah 1.12
When you come to appear (ὀφθῆναι) before Me,
Who requires of you this trampling of My courtyards?
Sirach 52.4
Thou shalt not appear (ὀφθῇς) empty before the Lord.
Appearing before other people
Genesis 46.29
And Joseph prepared his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father
Israel; as soon as he appeared (ὀφθεὶς) to him, Joseph threw himself on his neck
and wept on his neck a long time.
1 Kings 3.16
Then two women who were prostitutes came to the king and stood before him (ὤφθησαν).
1 Kings 18.1
Now it happened after many days that the word of the LORD came to Elijah
in the third year, saying, “Go, present yourself (ὄφθητι) to Ahab, and I will
provide rain on the face of the earth.”
Sirach 39.4
He shall serve among great men, and appear (ὀφθήσεται) before princes: he will
travel through strange countries; for he hath tried the good and the
evil among men.
1 Maccabees 4.6
But as soon as it was day, Judas showed himself (ὤφθη) in the plain with three
thousand men, who nevertheless had neither armour nor swords to their
minds.
1 Maccabees 4.19
As Judas was yet speaking these words, there appeared (ὤφθη) a part of them looking out of the mountain...
Acts 7.26
And on the following day he appeared (ὤφθη) to them as they were fighting each
other, and he tried to reconcile them to peace, by saying, ‘Men, you are
brothers, why are you injuring each other?’
Other
Judges 5.8
New gods were chosen;
Then war was in the gates.
Not a shield or a spear was seen (ὀφθῇ)
Among forty thousand in Israel.
Genesis 1.9
Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear (ὤφθη)”; and it was so.
Leviticus 13.14
But whenever raw flesh appears (ὀφθῇ) on him, he shall be unclean.
Deuteronomy 16.4
For seven days no leaven shall be seen (ὀφθήσεταί) with you in your entire territory...
2 Chronicles 9.11
From the algum trees the king made steps to the house of the LORD and
for the king’s palace, and lyres and harps for the singers; and nothing
like them was seen (ὤφθησαν) before in the land of Judah.
Song of Solomon 2:12
The blossoms have already appeared (ὤφθη) in the land...
Exodus 10.28
Then Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me! Be careful, do not see my
face again, for on the day you see (ὀφθῇς) my face, you shall die!”
The Significance of ὤφθη
The above examples (more could be given) should suffice in showing that when Paul says the risen Jesus "appeared" no more needs be read into it than that Jesus appeared in some way to his disciples. It is worth noting that even if ὤφθη has spiritual or visionary connotations, this is still applicable to appearances of the risen Jesus. Paul held a very high Christology (Philippians 2:5-11) so it's understandable that he would use such a word in reference to the appearances.
In conclusion, there are plenty of instances in which the passive form of ὁράω and even the specific passive form ὤφθη refers to a regular, physical appearance. Of what exactly Paul or the early church believed these appearances to consist is a matter that must be settled on other grounds.
Good post. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI also discuss this some in the stream here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7xLU511B1w&t=10364s
//"A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (BDAG) gives the following definitions for ὁράω:"//
ReplyDeleteThe relevant section pertaining to ὤφθη says this under section 1d:
"Mostly of beings that make their appearance in a transcendent manner, almost always w. dative of the pers. to whom they appear: God (Gen 12:7; 17:1 [cp. 1QapGen 22:27 God appears to Abraham]"
The aorist passive form with the dative is exactly how it's used in 1 Cor 15. Most of the examples you cited do not fit the same criteria.
Compare Gen. 12:7
"And the LORD appeared (ὤφθη) unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him."
With verses 14-15
"When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw (ἰδόντες) that Sarai was a very beautiful woman. And when Pharaoh’s officials saw (εἶδον) her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace."
Verses 14-15 are clearly referring to normal seeing. All three passages are referring to past (aorist) events, yet notice how verse 14 and 15 use ἰδόντες and εἶδον which are active forms, not passive. Sarai does not "appear" to the Egyptians like God reveals himself at will to the Patriarchs. The Egyptians "see" her by their own agency like we normally think of seeing someone in physical reality. So the point is the verb ὤφθη is not typically employed in recounting normal seeing of a physical person in the past. Obviously, no one thinks God has a physical body and that Abraham actually saw it, right? So something else must have been meant by the expression. Well, then why can't that be the same usage in 1 Cor 15?
“The LXX uses ὤφθη thirty-six times with all but six referring to theophanic events (or angelophanies). Likewise, of the eighteen occurrences of ὤφθη in the NT, all but one refer to supernatural appearances to people.” – Rob Fringer, Paul’s Corporate Christophany, pg. 99.
//"From the 10-volume Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (TDNT):"//
According to volume 5 pg. 330, ὤφθη is:
“the characteristic term to denote the (non-visual) presence of the self-revealing God.”
On page 358 it goes on to say the word indicated being “in the presence of revelation as such, without reference to the nature of its perception, or to the presence of God who reveals Himself in His Word. It thus seems that when ὤφθη is used to denote the resurrection appearances there is no primary emphasis on seeing as sensual or mental perception. The dominant thought is that the appearances are revelations, encounters with the risen Lord who reveals Himself or is revealed, cf. Gal. 1:16…they experienced His presence.”
All of my examples are in the passive form, many even in the specific aorist passive form ὤφθη. Even so, it's unlikely that different declensions of the passive form would have radically different definitions.
DeleteWhile ὤφθη can mean a non-physical inner revealing of God's presence, it's unlikely this is what Paul means in 1 Corinthians 15. He stresses that his appearance is the last in a series of encounters. From The Challenge of Jesus by N.T. Wright: "When [Paul] says 'last of all,' he means that what one might call the ordinary Christian experience of knowing the risen Jesus within the life of the church, of prayer and faith and the sacraments, was not the same sort of thing that had happened to him." (124)
Given the importance of "seeing" Jesus to being an apostle (1 Corinthians 9.1), it's unlikely this was some kind of spiritual experience.
So in this context ὤφθη most likely means seeing, though the usage is ambiguous and can only be settled decisively on other grounds. This is something you have conceded elsewhere yourself, so I'm glad we can find common ground here.
//"All of my examples are in the passive form, many even in the specific aorist passive form ὤφθη. Even so, it's unlikely that different declensions of the passive form would have radically different definitions."//
DeleteThat's the thing though. Wright is lumping *ALL* of the passive forms together instead of just looking at the exact same aorist passive form of the verb with the dative as used in 1 Cor 15. I think it's pretty obvious why he does that.
//"Given the importance of "seeing" Jesus to being an apostle (1 Corinthians 9.1), it's unlikely this was some kind of spiritual experience."//
I think in 1 Cor 9:1 Paul is evoking Sirach 42:15
"Now I will remind you of the works of the Lord
and describe the things I have seen (ἑόρακα)."
Compare that to the mention of "work" the "Lord" and the same verb ἑόρακα as used in 1 Cor 9. If Paul just wanted to say he saw Jesus then he would have used a form of εἴδω like the does in Gal. 1:19 and as Philo says.
You are aware that the experience is called a "vision from heaven" in Acts 26:19 and just describes Paul seeing a bright light and hearing a voice, right? The story never describes him seeing the physical body of Jesus. Do you think the Acts story is accurately describing what Paul experienced?
//"So in this context ὤφθη most likely means seeing, though the usage is ambiguous and can only be settled decisively on other grounds. This is something you have conceded elsewhere yourself, so I'm glad we can find common ground here."//
If it ends up being "ambiguous" in the end then it isn't convincing. What "other grounds" in Paul's letters can you appeal to for evidential support of veridical sightings of a resurrected person?
Why think the aorist passive would have a radically different definition? In any case, I gave several examples of ὤφθη denoting a regular appearance.
DeleteThe parallels between Sirach 42.15 and 1 Corinthians 9.1 are too tenuous to establish a connection. And I'm not sure what such a connection would establish. Regarding ἑόρακα, this is the same word Mary Magdalene uses in John 20.18 when she says "I have seen the Lord", indicating again that the word is ambiguous.
You've been corrected on the Damascus road experience before, for example here: https://triablogue.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-damascus-road-experience.html I'm not sure what you're trying to establish with it either.
You ask what other grounds I can appeal to for the physicality of the resurrection appearances. I don't think this question can be settled with certainty based on the Pauline corpus alone, but the evidence contained therein ought to at least incline us in that direction. Do you accept that Luke was a traveling companion of Paul? If so, it would be surprising if their understandings of the resurrection differed so drastically.
//"You've been corrected on the Damascus road experience before, for example here: https://triablogue.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-damascus-road-experience.html I'm not sure what you're trying to establish with it either."//
DeleteIf Jesus was visible in the sky then why don't the others see him - Acts 9:7? On the meaning of ouranos, while it can mean "in the sky" and not necessarily "heaven, the abode of God" sense, just appealing to the possibility of that is not sufficient. One has to look at the surrounding context and terminology.
This is a supernatural "vision" (optasia) which only Paul had full access to. That's what a VISION is. Visions take place OUTSIDE the normal mode of sense perception. Seeing Jesus floating around in the sky would not be called a "vision." The light originates "from heaven" not from the sky οὐρανόθεν (Acts 26:13) so the entire story indicates a celestial/heavenly origin. This is how the church fathers interpreted it and it's telling that Steve provided no scholarly source offering this interpretation. This was not the Second Coming. Jesus does not descend from heaven.
Lastly, we know from the Pseudo-Clementine Homilies that there was a dispute that questioned Paul's (who is called Simon Magus in this text) legitimacy precisely because his claim to authority relied on a vision. https://books.google.com/books?id=-pTy801iZyYC&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&lpg=PP1&pg=PA316#v=onepage&q&f=false
The point is the author of this text obviously interpreted Paul's experience as not reliable in comparison to the other apostles. Where was he getting the description of Paul's experience from? The New Testament of course. The same word "optasia" is used. So all the evidence speaks against a literal citing of Jesus floating around in the sky.
//"You ask what other grounds I can appeal to for the physicality of the resurrection appearances. I don't think this question can be settled with certainty based on the Pauline corpus alone, but the evidence contained therein ought to at least incline us in that direction. Do you accept that Luke was a traveling companion of Paul? If so, it would be surprising if their understandings of the resurrection differed so drastically."//
I agree the matter isn't settled, however I think the Pauline corpus is the most important due to its firsthand perspective and being closer in proximity to the events. The verdict is that the nature of the appearances is ambiguous when it comes to this source and so that would prevent anyone from claiming it's "more probable" that the experiences were veridical. I would say that the data in the gospels is expected even if those appearances never took place in history. It's just what the authors, who believed in physical resurrection, would construct as what they plausibly thought happened - similar to what Thucydides says about composing speeches. On Luke being a traveling companion, I cited the Oxford Annotated Bible on this in our other thread. That identification is disputed in modern scholarship. In every other ancient source that uses "we" in the first person, the author elsewhere identifies himself and explains his own relation to the events. The author of Acts never actually says he went on these journeys nor does he claim to have ever met Paul so his use of "we" is a single anomaly within ancient literature. See The Narrator as "He," "Me," and "We": Grammatical Person in Ancient Histories and in the Acts of the Apostles by William Campbell and The Problem of First Person Narration in Acts by Susan Marie Praeder.
Thanks for allowing me to comment on your blog.
I don't feel like debating the exact nature of Paul's resurrection appearance, but there's little doubt he saw something. I'm unsure what you're trying to argue his appearance was and why you're arguing for it.
DeleteI don't have access to the Oxford Annotated Bible so I can't consult it for information on this issue. Regardless, it's notable that the "we" passages start in Philippi, are present for several chapters, and then trail off when the narration goes back through Philippi. This is quite consistent with Luke residing in Philippi at the time. And the amount of things Luke gets right is quite indicative that he was close up to the facts. See here: https://isjesusalive.com/84-reasons-why-we-know-luke-was-a-traveling-companion-of-paul/
Thanks for the paper recommendations.
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