Outstretched hands and The Cross

Discussion about the New Testament, apocrypha, gnostics, church fathers, Christian origins, historical Jesus or otherwise, etc.
Post Reply
User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

Relevant to a thread Ben started nearly four years ago titled Trees, Crosses, and Outstretched Hands (and perhaps in view of a few recent discussions* on this forum wondering why Christian terminology around and accounts of the crucifixion almost exclusively refer to it being on a tree or wood, and the word for cross in English translations of the NT is exclusively or almost exclusively in Greek, σταυρὸς, stauros, which translates most significantly as stake) are aspects of Justin Martyr's First Apology.

First, Ben's OP -
Ben C. Smith wrote: Sun May 14, 2017 3:22 pm
We know that early Christians could describe the cross as a tree or as wood:

Galatians 3.13: 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us -- for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree [ξύλου]."

1 Peter 2.24: 24 He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree [ξύλον], that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.

Acts 5.30: 30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had put to death by hanging Him on a tree [ξύλου].

Acts 10.39: 39 And we are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. And they also put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree [ξύλου].

Acts 13.29: 29 And when they had carried out all that was written concerning Him, they took Him down from the tree [ξύλου] and laid Him in a tomb.

Barnabas 8.5: 5 Then there is the placing the wool on the tree [ξύλον]. This means that the kingdom of Jesus is on the tree [ξύλου], and that they who set their hope on Him shall live for ever.

We also know that the shape of the cross is thought to be something like a tau:

Barnabas 9.8: 8 For the scripture saith; And Abraham circumcised of his household eighteen males and three hundred. What then was the knowledge given unto him? Understand ye that He saith the eighteen first, and then after an interval three hundred. In the eighteen 'I' stands for ten, 'H' for eight. Here thou hast JESUS (IHSOYS). And because the cross [σταυρὸς] in the 'T' was to have grace, He saith also three hundred. So He revealeth Jesus in the two letters, and in the remaining one the cross [σταυρόν].

This shape lends itself to the image of outstretched arms or hands:

Barnabas 12.1-4: 1 In like manner again He defineth concerning the cross in another prophet, who saith; And when shall these things be accomplished? saith the Lord. Whenever a tree shall be bended and stand upright, and whensoever blood shall drop from a tree. Again thou art taught concerning the cross, and Him that was to be crucified. 2 And He saith again in Moses, when war was waged against Israel by men of another nation, and that He might remind them when the war was waged against them that for their sins they were delivered unto death; the Spirit saith to the heart of Moses, that he should make a type of the cross and of Him that was to suffer, that unless, saith He, they shall set their hope on Him, war shall be waged against them for ever. Moses therefore pileth arms one upon another in the midst of the encounter, and standing on higher ground than any he stretched out his hands, and so Israel was again victorious. Then, whenever he lowered them, they were slain with the sword. 3 Wherefore was this? That they might learn that they cannot be saved, unless they should set their hope on Him. 4 And again in another prophet He saith; ''The whole day long have I stretched out My hands to a disobedient people that did gainsay My righteous way'' [Isaiah 65.2].

There are passages which specifically align the image of a tree with outstretched arms:

Sibylline Oracles 5.255-258: Then there shall come from the sky a certain / Exalted man whose hands he spread out upon the fruitful tree [ξύλου], / The noblest of the Hebrews who caused the sun to stand still / When he cries with fair speech and pure lips.

So let us imagine for a moment that the following poems are actual songs to be sung in worship:

Odes of Solomon 27.1-3: 1 I stretched out my hands and sanctified my Lord, 2 for the extension of my hands is His sign, 3 and my expansion is the upright tree.

Odes of Solomon 42.1-6: 1 I stretched out my hands and approached my Lord, 2 for the stretching of my hands is His sign. 2 My expansion is the outspread tree which was set up on the way of the Righteous One. 4 And I became of no account to those who did not take hold of me and I shall be with those who love me. 5 All my persecutors are dead; and they sought after me who hoped in me, because I was alive. 6 And I rose up and am with them; and I will speak by their mouths.

Could Odes such as these be what lies behind this verse in Galatians?

Galatians 3.1: You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified [προεγράφη ἐσταυρωμένος]?

Could it be that this "public portrayal" of Jesus Christ as crucified is actually a posture adopted during worship meetings? (Modern charismatic or Pentecostal Christians adopt all sorts of symbolic postures during their worship, and I have seen my fair share of outstretched hands during such meetings.) Could it be that Paul taught them songs and worship postures, which were the public display he refers to here?

Ben.

Ben also addressed this more recently in http://earlywritings.com/forum/viewtopi ... 74#p114274 -
Ben C. Smith wrote: Sat Nov 07, 2020 8:37 am
I have long been wary of reading a crucifixion reference into the Odes. The description, on its face, seems to be comparing the orans position for prayer to a tree:

Odes of Solomon 27.1-3: 1 I stretched out my hands and sanctified my Lord, 2 for the extension of my hands is His sign, 3 and my expansion is the upright tree.

Odes of Solomon 42.1-6: 1 I stretched out my hands and approached my Lord, 2 for the stretching of my hands is His sign. 2 My expansion is the outspread tree which was set up on the way of the Righteous One. 4 And I became of no account to those who did not take hold of me and I shall be with those who love me. 5 All my persecutors are dead; and they sought after me who hoped in me, because I was alive. 6 And I rose up and am with them; and I will speak by their mouths.


Orans (Catacomb of Priscilla).png

There is a collocation of elements in these two Odes which merits attention:
  1. I stretched out my hands (A)....
  2. ...and sanctified my Lord (B)....
  3. ...for the extension of my hands is His sign (C)....
  4. ...and my expansion is the upright tree (D).
These four elements appear in overtly Christian texts in various combinations:

Barnabas 12.1-4: 1 In a similar way he makes another declaration about the cross in another prophet, who says, “‘When will these things be fulfilled?’ says the Lord. ‘When a tree falls and rises up, and when blood flows from a tree [ὅταν ξύλον κλιθῇ καὶ ἀναστῇ, καὶ ὅταν ἐκ ξύλου αἷμα στάξῃ]’ (D) (= 4 Ezra 4.33; 5.5).” Again you have a message about the cross [περὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ] (D) and the one who was about to be crucified. 2 And he again tells Moses, when Israel was attacked by a foreign people, to remind those under assault that they were being handed over to death because of their sins. The Spirit speaks to the heart of Moses that he should make a type of the cross (C) and of the one who was about to suffer, that they might realize, he says, that if they refused to hope in him, they would be attacked forever. And so Moses stacked weapons one on the other in the midst of the battle, and standing high above all the people he stretched out his hands [ἐξέτεινεν τὰς χεῖρας] (A); and so Israel again gained the victory. But then, when he lowered his hands, they began to be killed (= Exodus 17.8-13). 3 Why was that? So that they may know that they cannot be saved unless they hope in him. 4 And again in another prophet he says, “All day long I have opened up my hands [διεπέτασα τὰς χεῖράς μου] to a disobedient people that opposes my upright path” (= Isaiah 65.2).

Sibylline Oracles 5.255-258: 255-258 Then there shall come from the sky a certain / Exalted man (B) whose hands he spread out (A) upon the fruitful tree [ξύλου] (D), / The noblest of the Hebrews who caused the sun to stand still / When he cries with fair speech and pure lips.

Hippolytus, On the Antichrist 61, lines 1-31: 1-31 .... the faith of Jesus Christ, who, having stretched forth His holy hands [ἐκτείνας τὰς ἁγίας χεῖρας] (A) upon the tree [ἐπὶ τῷ ξύλῳ] (D), unfolded two wings, the right and the left, and called to Him all who believed upon Him, and covered them as a hen her chickens. For by the mouth of Malachi also He speaks thus, “And unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings” (= Malachi 4.2).

Minucius Felix, Octavius 29: 29 Crosses, moreover, we neither worship nor wish for. You, indeed, who consecrate gods of wood, adore wooden crosses perhaps as parts of your gods. For your very standards, as well as your banners; and flags of your camp, what else are they but crosses glided and adorned? Your victorious trophies not only imitate the appearance of a simple cross, but also that of a man affixed to it. We assuredly see the sign of a cross, naturally, in the ship when it is carried along with swelling sails, when it glides forward with expanded oars; and when the military yoke is lifted up, it is the sign of a cross; and when a man adores God with a pure mind, with hands outstretched (A). Thus the sign (C) of the cross (D) either is sustained by a natural reason, or your own religion is formed with respect to it.
.


Now, Justin Martyr's First Apology 35 -


Christ after He was born was to escape the notice of other men until He grew to man's estate, which also came to pass, hear what was foretold regarding this. There are the following predictions: — ''Unto us a child is born, and unto us a young man is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulders'' [Isaiah 9:6]

And again the same prophet Isaiah, being inspired by the prophetic Spirit, said, ''I have spread out my hands to a disobedient and gainsaying people, to those who walk in a way that is not good. They now ask of me judgment, and dare to draw near to God'' [Isaiah 58:2 and Isa. 65:2], And again in other words, through another prophet, He says, 'They pierced My hands and My feet' [Psalm 22:16], and ''for My vesture they cast lots'' [Ps. 22:18].

And indeed David, the king and prophet, who uttered these things, suffered none of them; but Jesus Christ stretched forth His hands, being crucified by the Jews speaking against Him, and denying that He was the Christ. And as the prophet spoke, they tormented Him, and set Him on the judgment-seat, and said, Judge us. And the expression, ''They pierced my hands and my feet'' [Ps. 22:16], was used in reference to the nails of the cross which were fixed in His hands and feet. And after He was crucified they cast lots upon His vesture, and they that crucified Him parted it among them. And that these things did happen, you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate.

And we will cite the prophetic utterances of another prophet, Zephaniah, to the effect that He was foretold expressly as to sit upon the foal of an ass and to enter Jerusalem. The words are these: ''Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, your King comes unto you; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass'' [Zechariah 9:9].

The Acti Pilati is said to have been preserved as chapters 1 to 11 of the Gospel According to Nicomedus. See http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/actspilate.html.
J. Quasten writes (Patrology, v. 1, pp. 115-116):
... Into this narrative have been incorporated the so-called Acts of Pilate, a supposed official report of the procurator concerning Jesus. Some Acts of Pilate, it seems, were known as early as the second century. Justin Martyr remarks in his first Apology (35) after he has mentioned the passion and crucifixion of Jesus: 'And that these things happened you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate.'
... It is possible that the material in the Gospel of Nicodemus was written to refute pagan Acts of Pilate created in 311, mentioned by Eusebius:
Having forged, to be sure, Memoirs of Pilate and Our Saviour, full of every kind of blasphemy against Christ, with the approval of their chief they sent them round to every part of his dominions, with edicts that they should be exhibited openly for everyone to see in every place, both town and country, and that the primary teachers should give them to the children, instead of lessons, for study and committal to memory. (H. E. 9.5.1)
Two translations are
  • http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/t ... berts.html, and
  • http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/t ... demus.html
    • according to M.R. James -
      The first part of the book, containing the story of the Passion and Resurrection, is not earlier than the fourth century. Its object in the main is to furnish irrefragable testimony to the resurrection. Attempts have been made to show that it is of early date-that it is, for instance, the writing which Justin Martyr meant when in his Apology he referred his heathen readers to the 'Acts' of Christ's trial preserved among the archives of Rome. The truth of that matter is that he simply assumed that such records must exist. False 'acts' of the trial were written in the Pagan interest under Maximin, and introduced into schools early in the fourth century. http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/t ... demus.html
    Both these translations have, at the end of a prologue, either
    These be the things which after the cross and passion of the Lord Nicodemus recorded and delivered unto the high priest and the rest of the Jews: and the same Nicodemus set them forth in Hebrew (letters). -- M.R. James
    or
    The account that Nicodemus wrote in Hebrew, after the cross and passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour God, and left to those that came after him, is as follows ... -- Roberts-Donaldson
I can't see anything in chapters 1-11 that show anything that might have contributed to Martyr's chapter 35.

... continued ...
Last edited by MrMacSon on Mon May 16, 2022 12:18 am, edited 2 times in total.
User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

I think there's some interesting aspects to the key part of Justin's First Apology 35 -

... David, the king and prophet, who uttered these things, suffered none of them; but Jesus Christ stretched forth His hands,1 being crucified by the Jews speaking against Him, and denying that He was the Christ. And as the prophet spoke,2 they tormented Him, and set Him on the judgment-seat, and said, Judge us. And the expression,3 ''They pierced my hands and my feet'' [Ps. 22:16], was used in reference to the nails of the cross which were fixed in His hands and feet. And after He was crucified they cast lots upon His vesture, and they that crucified Him parted it among them. And that these things did happen, you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate.


. 1 Jesus Christ stretched forth His hands, being crucified by the Jews speaking against Him and denying that He was the Christ

'stretched forth his hands' suggests they're stretched forward, not laterally out.

And he is said to be being crucified by the Jews speaking against him. The Greek or Latin might be interesting here ...


. 2 And as the prophet spoke, they tormented Him, and set Him on the judgment-seat, and said, Judge us.

'the prophet' is said to have spoken: David?

He is set on the judgement seat after he was being crucified ...


. 3 the expression, ''They pierced my hands and my feet'', was used in reference to the nails of the cross which were fixed in His hands and feet.

That comes across as Psalm 22:16 being used to create the narrative ie. it's not a true account.

.
Last edited by MrMacSon on Mon Nov 08, 2021 1:13 am, edited 2 times in total.
User avatar
GakuseiDon
Posts: 2295
Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2013 5:10 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by GakuseiDon »

Maybe not relevant to your point, but M Felix (and Tertullian as well) also noted that wooden god statues, Roman banners and ships with "swelling sails" naturally form the shape of the cross.

Minucius Felix, Octavius 29: 29 Crosses, moreover, we neither worship nor wish for. You, indeed, who consecrate gods of wood, adore wooden crosses perhaps as parts of your gods. For your very standards, as well as your banners; and flags of your camp, what else are they but crosses glided and adorned? Your victorious trophies not only imitate the appearance of a simple cross, but also that of a man affixed to it. We assuredly see the sign of a cross, naturally, in the ship when it is carried along with swelling sails, when it glides forward with expanded oars; and when the military yoke is lifted up, it is the sign of a cross

Roman banner:

Image

Roman ship:

Image

Tertullian writes about the shape of the Christian cross and how images of gods start with the shape of a cross. From "Ad nationes":
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/t ... ian06.html

Every piece of timber which is fixed in the ground in an erect position is a part of a cross, and indeed the greater portion of its mass. But an entire cross is attributed to us, with its transverse beam, of course, and its projecting seat...

Now, every image, whether carved out of wood or stone, or molten in metal, or produced out of any other richer material, must needs have had plastic hands engaged in its formation. Well, then, this modeller, before he did anything else, hit upon the form of a wooden cross, because even our own body assumes as its natural position the latent and concealed outline of a cross. Since the head rises upwards, and the back takes a straight direction, and the shoulders project laterally, if you simply place a man with his arms and hands outstretched, you will make the general outline of a cross. Starting, then, from this rudimental form and prop, as it were, he applies a covering of clay, and so gradually completes the limbs, and forms the body, and covers the cross within with the shape which he meant to impress upon the clay; then from this design, with the help of compasses and leaden moulds, he has got all ready for his image which is to be brought out into marble, or clay, or whatever the material be of which he has determined to make his god. (This, then, is the process:) after the cross-shaped frame, the clay; after the clay, the god. In a well-understood routine, the cross passes into a god through the clayey medium. The cross then you consecrate, and from it the consecrated (deity) begins to derive his origin.

Last edited by GakuseiDon on Sat Jan 30, 2021 3:33 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

Aspects of Barnabas 12.1-4 are interesting too -

Barnabas 12.1-4: 1 In like manner again He defineth concerning the cross in another prophet, who saith; And when shall these things be accomplished? saith the Lord. Whenever a tree shall be bended and stand upright, and whensoever blood shall drop from a tree [4 Ezra 4.33; 5.5]. Again thou art taught concerning the cross [περὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ], and Him that was to be crucified. 2 And He saith again in Moses, when war was waged against Israel by men of another nation, and that He might remind them when the war was waged against them that for their sins they were delivered unto death; the Spirit saith to the heart of Moses, that he should make a type of the cross and of Him that was to suffer, that unless, saith He, they shall set their hope on Him, war shall be waged against them for ever. Moses therefore pileth arms one upon another in the midst of the encounter, and standing on higher ground than any he stretched out his hands, and so Israel was again victorious. Then, whenever he lowered them, they were slain with the sword Exodus 17.8-13]. 3 Wherefore was this? That they might learn that they cannot be saved, unless they should set their hope on Him. 4 And again in another prophet He saith; ''The whole day long have I stretched out My hands to a disobedient people that did gainsay My righteous way'' [Isaiah 65.2].

The highlighted passages might reflect reflection on one or more of the Roman-Jewish Wars

FWIW, ''The whole day long have I stretched out My hands to a disobedient people that did gainsay My righteous way'' -- Isaiah 65.2 -- is also repeated in Romans 10:21.

As even more of an aside, a lot of Romans 10 is LXX quotes.

Romans 10:15 has ''And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”, Isaiah 52:7.
Last edited by MrMacSon on Sat Jan 30, 2021 12:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

GakuseiDon wrote: Sat Jan 30, 2021 3:22 am Maybe not relevant to your point, but M Felix (and Tertullian as well) also noted that wooden god statues, Roman banners and ships with "swelling sails" naturally form the shape of the cross.
They're later than I wanted to focus on, though admittedly I left Minucius Felix's Octavius 29 in my quote of Ben's second post.

Minucius Felix's Octavius is a dialogue between a pagan, Caecilius Natalis, and the Christian Octavius Januarius, a provincial lawyer, the friend and fellow-student of the author, Minucius of course, who plays the part of umpire. The discussion is represented as arising out of the homage paid by Caecilius, in passing, to the Cult image of Serapis. His arguments for paganism (possibly modelled on those of Celsus) are taken up one at a time by Octavius, with the result that the assailant is convinced. The form of the dialogue is modelled on the De natura deorum and De divinatione of Cicero and its style is both vigorous and elegant if at times reflecting 'the affectation' of the age. If the doctrines of the Divine unity, the resurrection, and future rewards and punishments are left out of the account, the work has less the character of an exposition of Christianity than of a philosophical and ethical polemic against absurdities of polytheism.

I'd highlight it thus -

Octavius 29: '' ... For in that you attribute to our religion the worship of a criminal and his cross, you wander far from the neighbourhood of the truth, in thinking either that a criminal deserved, or that an earthly being was able, to be believed God.[/highlight] Miserable indeed is that man whose whole hope is dependent on mortal man, for all his help is put an end to with the extinction of the man. The Egyptians certainly choose out a man for themselves whom they may worship; him alone they propitiate; him they consult about all things; to him they slaughter victims; and he who to others is a god, to himself is certainly a man whether he will or no, for he does not deceive his own consciousness, if he deceives that of others." Moreover, a false flattery disgracefully caresses princes and kings, not as great and chosen men, as is just, but as gods; whereas honour is more truly rendered to an illustrious man, and love is more pleasantly given to a very good man. Thus they invoke their deity, they supplicate their images, they implore their Genius, that is, their demon; and it is safer to swear falsely by the genius of Jupiter than by that of a king. Crosses, moreover, we neither worship nor wish for. You, indeed, who consecrate gods of wood, adore wooden crosses perhaps as parts of your gods. For your very standards, as well as your banners; and flags of your camp, what else are they but crosses glided and adorned? Your victorious trophies not only imitate the appearance of a simple cross, but also that of a man affixed to it. We assuredly see the sign of a cross, naturally, in the ship when it is carried along with swelling sails, when it glides forward with expanded oars; and when the military yoke is lifted up, it is the sign of a cross; and when a man adores God with a pure mind, with hands outstretched. Thus the sign of the cross either is sustained by a natural reason, or your own religion is formed with respect to it. http://www.tertullian.org/fathers2/ANF- ... 769_940054
.

eta:

Octavius 2
Caecilius, observing an image of Serapis, raised his hand to his mouth, as is the custom of the superstitious common people, and pressed a kiss on it with his lips.

Octavius 11
"Read the writings of the Stoics, or the writings of wise men, you will acknowledge these facts with me. On account of the merits of their virtue or of some gift, Euhemerus asserts that they were esteemed gods; and he enumerates their birthdays, their countries, their places of sepulture, and throughout various provinces points out these circumstances of the Dictaean Jupiter, and of the Delphic Apollo, and of the Pharian Isis, and of the Eleusinian Ceres. Prodicus speaks of men who were taken up among the gods, because they were helpful to the uses of men in their wanderings, by the discovery of new kinds of produce. Persaeus philosophizes also to the same result; and he adds thereto, that the fruits discovered, and the discoverers of those same fruits, were called by the same names; as the passage of the comic writer runs, that Venus freezes without Bacchus and Ceres. Alexander the Great, the celebrated Macedonian, wrote in a remarkable document addressed to his mother, that under fear of his power there had been betrayed to him by the priest the secret of the gods having been men: to her he makes Vulcan the original of all, and then the race of Jupiter.

And you behold the swallow and the cymbal of Isis, and the tomb of your Serapis or Osiris empty, with his limbs scattered about. Then consider the sacred rites themselves, and their very mysteries: you will find mournful deaths, misfortunes, and funerals, and the griefs and wailings of the miserable gods. Isis bewails, laments, and seeks after her lost son, with her Cynocephalus and her bald priests; and the wretched Isiacs beat their breasts, and imitate the grief of the most unhappy mother. By and by, when the little boy is found, Isis rejoices, and the priests exult, Cynocephalus the discoverer boasts, and they do not cease year by year either to lose what they find, or to find what they lose. Is it not ridiculous either to grieve for what you worship, or to worship that over which you grieve? Yet these were formerly Egyptian rites, and now are Roman ones.

User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

The key part of Justin's First Apology 35 -

... David, the king and prophet, who uttered these things, suffered none of them; but Jesus Christ stretched forth His hands, being crucified by the Jews speaking against Him, and denying that He was the Christ. And as the prophet spoke, they tormented Him, and set Him on the judgment-seat, and said, Judge us. And the expression, ''They pierced my hands and my feet'', was used in reference to the nails of the cross which were fixed in His hands and feet. And after He was crucified they cast lots upon His vesture, and they that crucified Him parted it among them. And that these things did happen, you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate.


Psalm 22:1-2, 6-8, 15-18, -

.
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?
2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer; and by night, but find no rest.
...---
6 But I am a worm, and not human; scorned by others, and despised by the people.
7 All who see me mock at me; they make mouths at me, they shake their heads;
8 ‘Commit your cause to the Lord; let him deliver-let him rescue the one in whom he delights!’
...---
15 My mouth is dried up like a potsherd,
.....and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
.....you lay me in the dust of death.
16 Dogs surround me,
.....a pack of villains encircles me;
......they pierce my hands and my feet.
17 I can count all my bones. They stare and gloat over me;
18 they divide my clothes among themselves, and for my clothing they cast lots
.


The crucifixion passage in Mark 15:24-39, uses lines from Psalm 22 in reverse order -

.
23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh; but he did not take it.

24 And they crucified him, and divided his clothes among them, casting lots to decide what each should take

25 It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him. 26 The inscription of the charge against him read, ‘The King of the Jews.’
27 And with him they crucified two bandits, one on his right and one on his left. 28 [Some manuscripts include here words similar to Luke 22:37].

29 Those who passed by mocked him, shaking their heads and saying,
......‘Aha! You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days,
30... save yourself, and come down from the cross!’

31 In the same way the chief priests, along with the scribes, were also mocking him among themselves and saying,
.....‘He saved others; he cannot save himself.

32.. ‘Let the Messiah, the King of Israel, come down from the cross now, so that we may see and believe.’

......Those who were crucified with him also taunted him.

33 When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.

34 At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud voice,
.....‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’

35 When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, ‘Listen, he is calling for Elijah.’
36 And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying,
.....‘Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.’

37 Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
39 Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, ‘Truly this man was the son of God!’

User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

MrMacSon wrote: Sat Jan 30, 2021 3:33 am Aspects of Barnabas 12.1-4 are interesting too -

Barnabas 12.1-4: 1 In like manner again He defineth concerning the cross in another prophet, who saith; And when shall these things be accomplished? Saith the Lord, Whenever a tree shall be bended and stand upright, and whensoever blood shall drop from a tree [4 Ezra 4.33; 5.5]. Again thou art taught concerning the cross [περὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ], and Him that was to be crucified. 2 And He saith again in Moses, when war was waged against Israel by men of another nation, and that He might remind them when the war was waged against them that for their sins they were delivered unto death; the Spirit saith to the heart of Moses, that he should make a type of the cross and of Him that was to suffer, that unless, saith He, they shall set their hope on Him, war shall be waged against them for ever. Moses therefore pileth arms one upon another in the midst of the encounter, and standing on higher ground than any he stretched out his hands, and so Israel was again victorious. Then, whenever he lowered them, they were slain with the sword Exodus 17.8-13]. 3 Wherefore was this? That they might learn that they cannot be saved, unless they should set their hope on Him. 4 And again in another prophet He saith; ''The whole day long have I stretched out My hands to a disobedient people that did gainsay My righteous way'' [Isaiah 65.2].

The highlighted passages might reflect reflection on one or more of the Roman-Jewish Wars
.

The foremost notion of outstretched hands and arms would be Moses doing so to rescue the Israelites in Exodus 14 and many note Barnabas 12:2 as the foremost Christian period reflection of it.


Exodus 14 in part

15 Then the Lord said to Moses, “... 16 Pick up your staff and raise your hand over the sea. Divide the water so the Israelites can walk through the middle of the sea on dry ground.''

21 Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the Lord opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind.

26 When all the Israelites had reached the other side, the Lord said to Moses, “Raise your hand over the sea again. Then the waters will rush back and cover the Egyptians and their chariots and charioteers.” 27 So as the sun began to rise, Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the water rushed back into its usual place. The Egyptians tried to escape, but the Lord swept them into the sea.

Of course Exodus 17 recounts

8 While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them. 9 Moses commanded Joshua, “Choose some men to go out and fight the army of Amalek for us. Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.”

10 So Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought the army of Amalek. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and Hur climbed to the top of a nearby hill. 11 As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand[s], the Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his hand[s], the Amalekites gained the advantage. 12 Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron [Ἀαρὼν; Alpaha] and Hur [Ὢρ; Omega] found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset. 13 As a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek in battle.

14 After the victory, the Lord instructed Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a permanent reminder, and read it aloud to Joshua: I will erase the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” 15 Moses built an altar there and named it Yahweh-Nissi (which means “the Lord is my banner”). 16 He said, “Hands have been lifted up to the Lord’s throne, and now the Lord will be at war with Amalek generation after generation.”


Isaiah 65.2, ''The whole day long have I stretched out My hands to a disobedient people that did gainsay My righteous way,'' is part of a general rant -

Isaiah 65 in part

1 “I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me;
......I was found by those who did not seek me.
....To a nation that did not call on my name,
......I said, ‘Here am I, here am I.’

2 All day long I have held out my hands
......to an obstinate people,
....who walk in ways not good,
......pursuing their own imaginations—

3 a people who continually provoke me
......to my very face,
....offering sacrifices in gardens
......and burning incense on altars of brick;
4 who sit among the graves
......and spend their nights keeping secret vigil;
....who eat the flesh of pigs,
...... and whose pots hold broth of impure meat

9 I will bring forth descendants from Jacob,
......and from Judah those who will possess my mountains;
....my chosen people will inherit them,
......and there will my servants live.
10 Sharon will become a pasture for flocks,
......and the Valley of Achor a resting place for herds,
......for my people who seek me.

16 Whoever invokes a blessing in the land
......will do so by the one true God;
....whoever takes an oath in the land
......will swear by the one true God.
....For the past troubles will be forgotten
......and hidden from my eyes.

19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem
......and take delight in my people;
....the sound of weeping and of crying
......will be heard in it no more.

User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

The commentary about the cross and crucifixion in the Pauline epistles seems quite esoteric

Gal 2:19-20
19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; 20 and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.

1 Cor 1:17-18
Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God

Colossians 1:19
making peace through the blood of his cross

Ephesians 2:15-16
15 He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, 16 and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death hostility through it.

User avatar
GakuseiDon
Posts: 2295
Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2013 5:10 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by GakuseiDon »

There's also the Gospel of John:

3.13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:


This comes from Numbers 29.9:

"And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon the pole; and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked unto the serpent of brass, he lived."

The pole with the brass serpent that Moses lifted up, called "Nehushtan", is often depicted as a cross probably because of gJohn:

Image
User avatar
MrMacSon
Posts: 8798
Joined: Sat Oct 05, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Outstretched hands and The Cross

Post by MrMacSon »

GakuseiDon wrote: Sat Jan 30, 2021 2:55 pm
... from Numbers 29.9:

"And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon the pole; and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked unto the serpent of brass, he lived."

The pole with the brass serpent that Moses lifted up, called "Nehushtan", is often depicted as a cross probably because of gJohn

I would say the Christian and post-Christian depiction on a cross is probably as much b/c of Moses; and subsequent Christian tropes, of course.*


Which I think evolved as I've outlined above: via readings of Psalm 22, and perhaps Isaiah 65.2, such as those reflected in Barnabas; perhaps via Paul (though he, like most if not all NT texts, only uses stauros, ie. stake or a variation or derivative of it); and the likes of Justin Martyr.

Mark 15 simply says they ''crucified him'' -

.
22 They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 23 Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And having crucified him - σταυροῦσιν, staurousin - they divided up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.

25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified him : ἐσταύρωσαν αὐτόν, estaurōsan auton
.


No account of how or what they did when they crucified him. And crucified is based on the word for stake: they staked him (as has been discussed here recently). Perhaps they thought He, ''stretched out [His] hands to a disobedient people that did gainsay [His] righteous way'', per Isaiah 65.2.


Immediately before, Mark 15:21 says Simone of Cyrene came so, '' ἄρῃ τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ '', ie. 'he might carry the staruon of him.'


Some English versions of Mark 15:19 refer to Jesus being struck on the head with a staff, but the Greek often has the weapon as a reed, καλάμῳ.


* A serpent entwined around a pole was long known as the Rod or Staff of Asclepius, the Greek god associated with healing and medicine. Temples of Asclepius - asclepieia - usually contained non-venomous snakes which crawled around freely among the sick and injured.

The original Hippocratic Oath began with, ''I swear by Apollo the Healer and by Asclepius and by Hygiea and Panacea and by all the gods ...''.

There are various theories about how the serpent entwined on a pole or stick came about including it being a depiction of the treatment of Guinea worm disease - a worm buried in human flesh which came out when a patient was immersed in cold water: people would wind slowly emerging worms around a stick.
Post Reply