The Messianic Jesus in Paul’s Christology

Originally posted on Larry Hurtado's Blog:

Some time back, in a posting over on the blog site of our Centre for the Study of Christian Origins, I drew attention here to Matt Novenson’s book, Christ Among the Messiahs:  Christ Language in Paul and Messiah Language in Ancient Judaism (Oxford University Press, 2012).  Having re-read it as part of my preparation for a paper on “Paul’s Messianic Christology” for a conference in Rome in late June, I’m again impressed with the book, and want to reiterate my commendation of it.

Over against what has been the “majority position,” that “Christ” (Greek:  χριστος) in Paul’s usage is essentially a colorless name, merely designating Jesus but not really carrying any connotative emphasis, Novenson lodges what I regard as a convincing counter-case.

Part of his case is to show that previous scholars have tended to work with only two “onomastic” categories:  “Christ” in Paul is either a “title” (having strong connotative…

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