Journal: Tyndale Bulletin
Volume: TYNBUL 59:1 (NA 2008)
Article: Expulsion From The Synagogue?
Author: Edward W. Klink III

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TynBull 59:1 (2008) p. 99

Expulsion From The Synagogue?

Rethinking A Johannine Anachronism

Edward W. Klink III

Summary

The ‘expulsion from the synagogue’ in John 9 has been dominated for nearly four decades by reconstructed ‘glimpses’ popularized in the two-level reading of the Fourth Gospel by J. Louis Martyn. The key insight Martyn provided the last generation of students of John is the anachronism in 9:22, an insight that although it has been criticized at the level of historical reconstruction (the official edict of the Jamnia Academy and the Birkat-ha-Minim), has dominated nearly every reading of the gospel. But Martyn has guided us to an exaggerated reading of the ‘expulsion from the synagogue’ passages, and his focus on the situation behind John has minimized the Gospel’s explicit interest in the past. Even the term ἀποσυνάγωγος, the key evidence for Martyn, reflects a historicity that has been too easily suppressed. This paper will argue that a fresh examination of the historical reflections in the ‘expulsion of the synagogue’ passage in John 9 reveals not only John’s theological interest in the past, but also some potential ‘glimpses’ on the life and ministry of the historical Jesus.

1. Introduction: J. L. Martyn And The ‘Expulsion From The Synagogue’

Every student of the Gospel of John since the late 1960’s has been greatly advantaged in their reading of the gospel by the reading strategy of J. Louis Martyn. It was the seminal work by Martyn1 that

TynBull 59:1 (2008) p. 100

popularized the two-level reading of the Fourth Gospel. Martyn did not create the two-level reading of the FG without warrant. The clues he has found in the healing of the blind man in John 92 have made the pericope famous, for it is the entry point from which Martyn sees the two-level drama. When reading John 9 Martyn finds as blatantly anachronistic a key term in 9:22, ἀποσυνάγωγος (‘expelled from the synagogue’). Although in the narrative this term describes an event during Jesus’ earthly ministry, for Martyn it is most certainly dealing with an event that could not have occurred until decades after Jesus’ life. Even more, rather than just a vague reference to something during the time of the evangelist, Martyn is convinced that the ‘expulsion’ term ‘refers to the action ...

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