3Hje QHnibettfitp of JIltcfiiBan The Combination Theos Soter as Explanation of the Primitive Christian Use of Soter as Title and Name of Jesus Conrad Henry Moehlmann A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the University of Michigan ."/ give thefe ¦ Boohs . WjJ^J&S^.tf a ColU& in. ifa Colony" • iLHiBi^^iEir - Acquired by Exchange \°i*2~ 3H)e ©mbersfitp of iWitfjigan The Combination Theos Soter as Explanation of the Primitive Christian Use of Soter as Title and Name of Jesus Conrad Henry Moehlmann A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the University of Michigan Mfa<87 MIL TO B., S., W., AND W. With gratitude and regard It was my hope to expand the scope of this inquiry. The illness and death of Professor Walter Rauschenbusch, and my appoint ment to the professorship of Church History have prevented its realization. CONTENTS Statement of the problem page I. The failure to employ soter as title of Jesus during the early decades of the existence of Christianity 3-14 1. The personality of Jesus and the title soter 3 2. The principal purpose of Jesus and the title soter 4 3. The primitive Christian church and the title soter S 4. Paul and the title soter 10 5. The primitive Christian environment and the title soter 13 II. The Christian usage of the term soter to the time ofthe early apologists. . . . 15—2 1 6. The term soter as used of God IS 7. The term soter as used of Jesus IS 8. The interpretation of the data 19 III. The sources and history of the soter-idea. 22-39 9. The Jewish scriptures and other Jewish productions as source 22 10. The history of the soter-idea in the Graeco-Roman civilization 25 11. The significance of the soter-idea 37 IV. The explanation of the primitive Christian failure to apply the title soter to Jesus 40-64 12. Christianity and the imperial employment of the title soter 40 13. The expansion of Christianity and the title soter 41 14. The Christology of the primitive Christian church and the title soter. 42 Conclusion 65 The Combination Theos Soter as Explanation of the Primitive Christian Use of Soter as Title and Name of Jesus STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM During its entire history, Christianity has been a religion of re demption. Salvation is a very characteristic word in the Christian vocabulary. The theology of redemption has varied; the proclama tion of salvation has been continuous. The development of the Christian doctrine of salvation has been retarded or deteriorated by a host of faults such as bigoted intolerance, penance and satis faction hypotheses, legalism, the cultivation of superstition and magic; but even these perversions ofthe religion of Jesus desired to be regarded as ways of salvation. To demonstrate the proposition that Christianity from its origin has been a religion of salvation, reference may be made by way of illustration to some of the trends in the primitive era of Christianity. Christian gnosticism, though seeking to separate Christianity from its past, was a plan of salvation.1 Each of the vagrant forms of Christian gnosticism has much to say regarding the "Soter" and salvation. The Naassene hymn illustrates the gnostic emphasis on redemption. "Then Jesus said, Behold, O Father, This being pursued by ills, Wanders about upon the earth Far from thy breath, Seeking to escape from bitter chaos And knows not how to pass through it. Therefore, send me, O Father; Bearing the seals I shall descend, All the aeons I shall pass through All mysteries I shall reveal And the forms of the gods show; And the secrets ofthe holy path, Calling it gnosis, I shall transmit."2 1 Encyclopedia Brittanica, article GnosticismVI; Hasting's Dictionary of Religion and Ethics, article Gnosticism 4, 6. 2 Hippolytus, Philosophumena V, S. 2 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER Likewise, Marcionism and Montanism, though opposed and re jected by nascent Catholicism, never thought of discounting salva tion. And Catholicism which succeeded in maintaining connection between Christianity and its past, developed its "apostolic" creed, its "apostolic" canon and its "apostolic" episcopate primarily in the interest of salvation. Not only was Christianity announcing a gospel of salvation, but the environment of early Christianity was pregnant with manifold varieties of salvation. That was an exceedingly religious epoch, and religious syncretism had for scores of years been making the idea of soter familiar to the peoples of the Graeco-Roman world. Serious quest of salvation and intense expectation of or glorious realization of a soter are outstanding manifestations of the era of Jesus. But Jesus was not called soter from the beginning of Christianity. During the first decades of its life, Christianity promulgated a soter- less soteriology. The earliest strata of Christian literature do not contain the title soter of Jesus and yet make much of the transforma tion of sinners and the destruction of the power of sin through Jesus. All the hope of these humble folks centers in Jesus as bringer of salva tion, but the agent of redemption is not called soter. Christianity at first appears in the soterful Graeco-Roman world as a religion special izing in salvation and with a gospel concerning Jesus without em ploying the title or name soter of its founder. Prior to the eighth decade of the first Christian century, the term soter hardly occurs as title in any of the Christian documents. Indeed, it is the middle of the second century ere soter is found absolutely as the name of Jesus. The problem investigated in this study is the persistent refusal on the part ofthe primitive church, the church to the close ofthe life of Paul, to apply the word soter to Jesus. Further, by tracing the em ployment of the title soter in Christian literature to the age of the early apologists, we desire to discover at what point and with what significance in the developing Christology ofthe church, soter began to be used of Jesus. I. THE FAILURE TO EMPLOY SOTER AS TITLE OF JESUS DURING THE EARLY DECADES OF THE EXISTENCE OF CHRISTIANITY One of the elements of religion is the recognition of personality in .the universe. Prophetism requires its prophets. The prophetic development in Israel is marked by remarkable personalities. Legal ism has its founders. "Allah is great, and Mohammed is his prophet." There have been religions of redemption that sought to disregard the personal factor. They were doomed to lack the approval of the masses. Gautama Buddha failed to dissociate himself from Buddhism.3 Eschatology regards the coming period of bliss as the conferment of a savior-king. The title soter was current in Parsism, in Judaism, in the mystery religions, in the imperial cult, and in the general religious life of the Roman empire. 1. The personality of Jesus and the title soter. Christianity follows the course of religious development in em phasizing the personality of Jesus. Jesus of Nazareth is inextricably woven into the origin and history of Christianity. Jesus placed him self at the converging point of the group organizing about him. The verdict of Jesus set aside the sacred tradition of the Jews. He challenged the hoary past with its Moses and its Ezra with a simple "but I say." A peasant of Galilee dared to repudiate the past and present supreme court of Israel. This astonishing and perplexing self-consciousness of Jesus may be witnessed in such a saying as, "All things have been delivered unto me of my Father; and no one knoweth the Father save the Son; neither doth anyone know the Son, save the Father, and he to whomsoever the Son willeth to reveal himself."4 Jesus compares himself with the men ofthe past and feels his superiority: "greater than Jonah is here."6 Jesus demanded acknowledgment and persecution for his sake: "Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and my words .... of him shall I be ashamed; whosoever shall lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it."8 3 Carpenter, J. E., The Historical Jesus and the Theological Christ. London, 1911 p. 114fF. . ~ 4 Following Weiss, J., in Theologische Studien Heinrici dargebracht p. 120 ff, Mat thew 11:27 ff. 6 Luke 11:29. 6 Mark 8:38. 4 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER He anticipated personal vindication: "the stone rejected by the builders hath become the head of the corner."' He claimed the power on earth to forgive sins.8 He insisted on loyal and immediate obedience: "let the dead bury their dead, follow thou me."' His spoken word should last on though heaven and earth were to pass away. Within a brief time after the humiliating death on the middle tree, hesitating, doubting, despairing fishermen may be seen leaving their nets by the side ofthe Sea of Galilee to return to the city where Jesus had met ignominy and catastrophic defeat to proclaim there that it was not possible for such a one to be held down in the clutch of death.10 The return to Jerusalem is one of the greatest acts of faith in human history. But these plain men believed in the con tinued existence of Jesus only because they first believed in him. Not the third day but the personality of Jesus is the beginning of Christology. The greatest achievement of Jesus was himself. The personality of Jesus accounts for Christianity and is inseparable from Christianity. What title should such a central personality forthwith have received? 2. The principal purpose of Jesus and the title soter. Jesus defined his principal aim in terms of salvation. Our atten tion has been called to a unique group of sayings in the gospels intro duced by the formula "I came to" or its equivalent.11 Two of these utterances characterize the attitude of Jesus: "Do not imagine I came to bring peace on earth; I came not to bring peace but a sword;" "I came to throw fire on the earth. Would it were kindled already." Another of these distinctive sayings is concerned with Jesus' relation to the past: "Do not imagine I came to destroy the law or the prophets; I came not to destroy but to fulfill." The remaining say ings of this special group refer to salvation: "I came not to call just men but sinners;" "the Son of Man himself has not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many;" "for the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost;" "for the Son of Man came not to destroy men's lives but to save them;" "it was only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel that I was sent." To these may be added the sentence in the reply to the query of John 7 Matthew 16:25. 8 Mark 2:10 ff. 9 Mark 12:1 ff. 10 Acts 2:24. ™UPilr?2ck>??tfchrift fuer Theologie and Kirche 1912, p. 1 ff. The nassaees are- il^^k^ofe^^lt^^^ ^ 5:17' ^ L^ '^Shew AS-TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 5 the Baptist," to the poor the gospel is preached." There are also two passages in the Johannine tradition that bear on the matter: "I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me, may not abide in the darkness;"12 "to this end have I been born and to this end am I come into the world that I should bear witness to the truth."13 These sayings offer very valuable data to ascertain Jesus' estimate of his mission. Here is evidence from our oldest narrative source, from the material peculiar to Matthew, from the material peculiar to Luke, with similar material found in the oldest sayings source, and corroborated by the Johannine tradition. The case is the strongest possible. These sayings concisely define Jesus' main pur pose in life. What was it? Tersely and classically put, it was: "I came to save" or I am soter. Why then does Jesus nowhere call himself soter? 3. The primitive Christian church and the title soter. The primitive Christian community, the earliest organized group of followers of Jesus, was deeply interested in the matter of salva tion. It was this group that preserved the narrative of the life of Jesus, that collected the sayings of Jesus, and began to develop a theology of his person. A glance at the frequent employment of the verb "to save" and its cognates in the gospels is sufficient to show their interest in salvation. Moreover, Jesus is often described as providing for physical needs, rescuing from physical dangers, curing physical ills. The recurring summaries of the healing activity of Jesus indicate the impression made by the savior of the body. "Now when evening came, when the sun set, they brought him all who were ill or possessed by daemons — indeed the whole town was gathered at the door and he cured many who were ill with various diseases and cast out many daemons."14 The leprous, palsied, paralytic, blind, deaf, lame, anaemic, insane who felt themselves helped formed centres of ever-enlarging personal groups propagating their faith in Jesus as healer. One who could release and free men from the sway of evil spirits deserved the title of soter. If one recalls how widespread and popular the cult of Asclepius was, it is easy to assume that the reputation of Jesus as healer should have sufficed to fix upon him the title soter.li Even Lucian, the rationalist, does not 12 John 12:46. 13 John 18:37. "Mark 1:32. 15 Cf. Harnack, Expansion of Christianity I p. 127 ff. 6 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER venture to poke fun at Asclepius, though all the high Greek gods and the mystery religions are subjected to his wit. Clement of Alex andria identifies physician and soter. "The all-sufficient physician of humanity, the soter, heals both body and soul."16 In the Acts of John, the Acts of Philip, and the Acts of Thomas, Christ as physician plays an important role.17 Celsus contrasts the soter Asclepius with the soter of the Christians.18 The temples and altars of Asclepius dotted the Graeco-Roman world and they were dedicated to Asclepius Soter." Ignatius describes the "one Physician" in the terminology of soter.20 Evidence like this suggests how immediately and per sistently the existence of the worship of Asclepius Soter would raise the issue of soter with reference to Jesus, the healer. The primitive Christian community also interpreted Jesus as an authority in the realm of thought. It loved to recall how in the marketplace or in the synagogue, the masses had approved the opinions of the Nazarene. The carpenter of Nazareth without intellectual lineage had vanquished in debate the eloquent teachers of the law. Customs handed down from the fathers, practices traced to Moses were abolished with a "verily, verily, I say unto you." His teaching was new and unique and appealed to common folks. He could reduce the cleverest argument of a Pharisee to absurdity and could silence the wily Sadducee as well. The multi tudes were astonished at his teaching. Here was one not shackled by tradition or by nationalism or by eschatological pessimism. With him the inestimable worth of the individual was axiomatic. More over, Jesus had obliterated the ceremonial and the formal, had actually destroyed the law by applying it, had proclaimed the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, had announced an ethical religion of redemption, had fused religion and morality, had promulgated as the general marching orders of his followers: "ye are the light of the world," "be ye therefore perfect even as your Father is perfect," had paid attention to the inside of the cup. 16 Clement, Paedagogi Lib. I, 2. 17 Doelger, Ichthys, Rom, 1910 p. 418, note 4; Acta Philippi 41, 118; Acta Joh. 22, 108; Acta Thom. 10, 37, 143, 156. 18 Origen, contra Celsum III 3. 19 Deissmann, Light from the Ancient East p. 311, 374; Roscher, Ausfuehrlicher Lexikon der griechischen und roemischen Mythologie, under soter; Walton, Cult of Asklepios, Ithaca, N. Y., 1894; G. Dindorfii, Aristides, Leipzig, 1829; Justin, Apology 21,22,25, 54; Tatian, Oratio ad Graec. 21; Clement, Protreptikos II, 26; Origen, contra Celsum III 22, 24, 25. 20 Ignatius, Ephesians 7:2, cf also Harnack, History of Dogma I p. 118, note 1, Ex pansion of Christianity I p. 121-151. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 7 Jesus neither demanded asceticism nor practised sacramentarianism. Jesus emancipated men from nationalism, ceremonialism and legalism. Such a liberator should hardly have escaped the title soter." But Jesus also had much to say concerning the sway, the rule, the sovereignty of God. "Christianity is a religion of salvation in the sense ofthe hope of future salvation and that salvation not only and not in the first place of individual beings but of human society as such, the message of a future salvation, and that, too, to be hoped for in the immediate future, salvation from the present miserable condition of the world — the message of the dawn of a new world, of the coming of the kingdom of God, in which universal peace, happi ness and righteousness shall rule — that was the great message that went forth from Palestine."22 Thus Jesus was entitled to the designation soter for social and eschatological reasons, but was not called soter. The primitiye Christian community could not forget that Jesus had paid attention to the sinner. Jesus sought to understand the problem of the sinner who had experienced the tragedy of acting against his loftiest ideals, of doing what he detested. Jesus was in terested in the hard cases, in the outlawed publican, in the village prostitute, in the despised throngs of Galilee driving aimlessly hither and yon. His laboratory was filled with the potsherds of life. He was the friend of sinners, the associate ofthe ignoble and the base. The followers of Jesus soon acquired a reputation for devotion to the lower classes. Celsus pointed out that the Christian appeal was to the ignorant and wicked: " 'Let no cultured person draw near, none wise, none sensible; for all that kind of thing we count evil; but if any man is ignorant, if any man is wanting in sense and culture, if any is a fool, let him come boldly.' Such people they spontaneously avow to be worthy of their God; and, so doing, they show that it is only the simpletons, the ignoble, the senseless, slaves and women-folk and children, whom they wish to persuade or can persuade— But let us hear what sort these people invite; 'whosoever is a sinner or unin telligent or a fool,' in a word, whosoever is god-forsaken, him the Kingdom of God will receive."23 Jesus' message concerning sin and the sinner may best be studied 21 On SiSaa-KaKos and irpo4>r)T-ris as awT-qp see Reitzenstein, Poimandres 180; cf. the connection of the teacher of righteousness and unique teacher with the Messiah in "Fragments of a Zadokite Work" 1:7, 2:10, 8:10, 9:29, 39, SO, 53, 15:4 (Charles, Apo crypha and Pseudepigrapha, Oxford, 1913, vol. II, p. 799 ff). 22 Pfleiderer, Religion and Historic Faith, New York, 1907, p. 254. 23 Origen, contra Celsum III 44, 59. 8 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER in Luke vii and xv. The despised prostitute is renewed by a diagnosis of what has gone on within her. Jesus explains her manifestation of love as evidence that God has pardoned her sin. The son who de parted from home to enjoy his inheritance and who squandered all is given a regal welcome in spite of the anticipated protest of the elder brother. For God always rejoices over the lost who return. Without the slightest hesitation, without a moral criticism of his previous career, without the demand of reparation or the assignment of penalty, God's forgiving love recognizes the return itself as evidence of a good disposition. Deliverance from brooding fear because of sin, certainty of sonship to God, joy, hope, confidence, a new God, a new man, a new world are here. God's nature is grace. This is the watershed in ethical religious development. This is the culmination of the ethical religion of redemption. Forgiveness of sins plus the new creation of ethical personality — this is the supreme contribution of Christianity to the religious development of man. At once the answer is made, precisely so and therefore the primi tive Christian church had no need of a soter. God desires freely to forgive. This is the perfect ethical religion of redemption. By his own view of God, Jesus eliminated himself. The conclusion is er roneous. For he who announced such a revolutionary and such a liberating view of God by his proclamation created himself soter. Moreover, the immediate followers of Jesus had experienced his death. It was an experience at the focusing point of conviction and of feeling. Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah and yet Jesus of Nazareth had been nailed to the cross. Such a Messiah was a con tradiction of Jewish eschatology.24 The Jew of the time of Jesus did not interpret the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah of the Messiah. The documents of Christianity demonstrate in many concrete instances that such a construction was not contemplated. The disciples had to be taught the necessity of the death of Jesus.23 Paul's problem could have been far more easily resolved, if the rabbis had known of a suffering and dying Messiah. It never occurs to Trypho the Jew to discount the claims of Justin by pointing to such a Jewish dogma! The Messiah of IV. Ezra dies, but after holding sway four hundred years and not alone but with all humanity and not catas- 24 Charles R. H., Religious Development between the O T ,„A .u i\t t w ,, . p. 77: "Indeed, prior to the advent of Christianity W i, „ *' N' T" New X0rk' apprehended the messianic significance of the suffWino Q exeSetfe* s?em never to have a crucified Messiah was an impossible ^conception o fhe Tmh"' °f Yfahuweh' The i°ea of 26 Mark 8:31, 9:12, 31; Luke 24:20 ff P he Juda,sm of that period." AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS y trophically in connection with suffering but naturally.26 The Samaritan Messiah also dies a natural death. He dies because he is mortal. The rabbis are familiar with a Messiah ben Joseph and a Messiah ben David, a suffering Messiah. But the rabbinical Messiah ben Joseph does not come into existence until the period of Hadrian, and it is the seventeenth century before his death is regarded as propitiatory. Moreover, his ministry is political. The doctrine of a suffering Messiah as far as the Jewish rabbis are concerned originated between the third and sixth centuries of our era.27 Consequently, the early Christians were compelled to develop a philosophy of the death of Jesus. And thus the gospel oj Jesus became a gospel concerning Jesus. Jesus of Nazareth had died on the cross. Forthwith the Deuteronomic curse challenged his life: "Cursed be everyone hanged on a gibbet." The message of Christ, the crucified, had to prove a stumbling block to the Jews.28 Now how should the death of Jesus be explained? Part of the explanation evolved was that the Jewish leaders had killed Jesus on account of enmity: "the God of our fathers raised Jesus whom you murdered by hanging him on a gibbet;"29 "which of the prophets did your fathers fail to persecute? They killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Just One and here you have betrayed him and murdered him."30 The violent death of Jesus was also accounted for by means of Jewish determinism: "And he proceeded to teach them that the Son of Man had to endure great suffering, to be rejected by the elders and the high priests and scribes;"31 "He said to them, 'O foolish men, with hearts so slow to believe, after all the prophets declared ! Had not the Christ to suffer thus and so enter his glory?"32 "This Jesus betrayed in the predestined course of God's deliberate purpose, you got wicked men to nail to the cross and murder."33 Further, the forgiveness of sins is associated with Jesus in several passages: "Repent, let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins;"34 "There is no salvation by anyone else, nor even a second name under 26 IV Ezra 7:28 ff. 27 Dalman, Derleidende und der sterbende Messias der Synagoge, Berlin, 1888, p. 16 ff, 88ff91. 28 I Corinthians 1:23. 29 Acts 5:30 cf. 2:36, 3:17, 4:10, 10:39; Mark 9:31; Matthew 17:12, 22. 30 Acts 7:52. 31 Mark 8:31 cf. 14:21. 32 Luke 22:76 f. 33 Acts 2:23. "Acts 2:38. 10 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER heaven appointed for us men and our salvation;"35 "All the prophets testify that everyone who believes in him is to receive remission ot sins through his Name."38 The bestowal of the title soter on Jesus the Messiah should have resulted from such convictions as these. And the evidence is not yet exhausted. For there is a peculiar phrase found in Acts, in I Peter, and in Galatians which merits attention. It constitutes a connecting link. It is "on a gibbet" or "hanging him on a gibbet" or "cursed be everyone who hangs on a gibbet."37 In the context where this phrase occurs, forgiveness of sins is always in the background. Is the conclusion therefore warranted that the primi tive Christian church related the forgiveness of sins to the death of Jesus? The question might be seriously debated, if Paul did not himself affirm that the primitive church prior to his conversion possessed a definite soteriology making Jesus soter from sin: "first and foremost I transmitted to you what had been transmitted to me, namely, that Christ died for our sins."38 Is it not passing strange then that the most thoroughgoing search of the vocabulary and ter minology of the primitive church prior to Paul does not discover a single instance of the employment of the word soter? 4. Paul and the title soter. An investigation ofthe Pauline gospel yields a result similar to that ascertained for the primitive Christian church. The usual approach to the Pauline religion has been by way ofthe epistle to the Romans. It is not difficult to see that for Paul there are only two fundamental types of men, those who support their claim to salvation by appeal to achievement and those who unreservedly trust in God. Religion based on the fulfillment of the law was demonstrated to be a tragic failure. For obedience to the law is not within the ability of man. Hence the law cannot absolve man from guilt but merely discloses the true nature of sin. Under a moral government, man is a transgressor, is hostile to God, is involved in sin and guilt and subject to condemna tion. What is the outcome for all men ? "No person will be acquitted in his sight on the score of obedience to law. What the law imparts is the consciousness of sin."39 There is only one way to righteousness and life. It is God's way. Man imperatively needs a divine release. 35 Acts 4:12. 36 Acts 10:43. 37 Acts 5:30, 10:39; I Peter 2:24, Galatians 3:13, cf. Feine, Neutestamentliche Theologie under passages quoted. 38 1 Corinthians 15:3. 39 Romans 3 :20. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 11 Because God's nature is grace, God intervened. The redeemer descended. The death and the resurrection of Christ made justifica tion, reconciliation and life available for man. Those who believe this announcement are men ofthe faith type. To observe how necessary a soter is to this outline of the apostle's religion, consider Romans 3:21-26. We have here a series of contrasts between the former status and the present status, between man guilty, an enemy of God and dying and man justified, reconciled, living; between man under legalism and man under faith. To bring about the new condition of things, a deliverance was necessary. And Jesus is described as the selected or manifested propitiation. The propitiatory transaction is efficient through a sacrificed life, operative through faith, designed to demonstrate that God's character is just and that justification is through faith. But who accomplished this deliverance? The one word most needed to complete this comprehensive description of the righteousness of God is soter. But that precisely is the word omitted. Had the title soter not been in existence, the apostle should have coined it to meet this emergency. What perplexes is that with the title soter in most ordinary use, Paul should have avoided it. Paul's religion may also be approached from the angle of his Christology.40 The apostle's message is the gospel of the son of God.41 "Son of God" in case of Paul has metaphysical significance. Jesus was a heavenly, pre-existent being, creator and soul ofthe world, who became incarnate, won a victory over the power of sin and was appointed reigning sovereign.42 The incarnation of the heavenly one is described as a great condescension, a becoming poor for man's sake. But what was the basic reason for the incarnation? Apocalyp ticism expected the heavenly man to appear in glory, sit at the great assize, establish the eschatological Kingdom of God. With that hypothesis Paul had long been familiar. His pre-Christian problem was to bring the life and death of Jesus into harmony with the pre existent heavenly man. The humanity of Jesus was on record. The idea of a glorious pre-existence was inviolable dogma. Why need the pre-existent one abandon the former glory and live such a limited and circumscribed human career? The answer finally given by Paul's experience was that the Messiah was destined to die for man's sin and on account of the power of sin. Sin was reigning in the flesh and 40 See especially Weiss, J., Christ, the Beginnings of Dogma and Bousset, W., Kyrios Christos, Goettingen, 1913. 41 Romans 1:3 ff Galatians 2:20, 4:4; Romans 8:32. 42 Philippians 2:7 ff Colossians 1:15-17; I Corinthians 15:45 ff. 12 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER resulting in death. The law could not overcome its sway. Con sequently, God intervened. God sent his son to win the great victory over sin and its sway.43 Evidently, Paul is describing the son of God as soter but again disappoints us by his failure to employ the title soter. , . f i • The religion of Paul may also be viewed from the angle of his cosmology.44 To the apostle the history of the world was continuous and a terrific conflict between two kingdoms, the kingdom ot the Messiah and the kingdom of Satan. There are two world periods, the present evil world and the coming aeon. The present aeon is marked by three ellipses with one common focus. Their independent foci are the fall of Adam, or the beginning of sin and death in the world; the promise to Abraham; and the law. Their common focus is Christ. There are, then, the Adam-Christ ellipse, the Abraham- Christ ellipse, and the law-Christ ellipse:43 "as all die in Adam, so shall all be made alive in Christ;"46 "for in him is the 'yes' that affirms the promises of God;"47 "now Christ is an end to law, so as to let every believer have righteousness."48 The coming age which began with the victorious death of Christ49 will witness the overthrow of all opposition, the utter destruction of Satan and his cohorts, and the establishment of the complete sovereignty of God.60 Even in this cosmic salvation the death of Christ is a very concrete thing. Not an intellectual victory but a moral religious victory is pictured. Jesus Christ released and delivered humanity from the turbulent and wicked cosmic spirits: "the Lord -Jesus Christ gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil world;"49 "sin's wage is death but God's gift is life eternal in Christ Jesus our Lord;"51 "one man's obedience will make all the rest righteous;"62 "for God destined us not for wrath but to gain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us."63 It was this cosmic interpretation of redemption which attracted Gnosticism with its soter to Paulinism. But nowhere in this cosmic philosophy does Paul grant Jesus the title soter. 43 Romans 8:3,4. 44 Carre, H..B., Paul's Doctrine of Redemption, New York, 1914. 45 Following Weinel, H., Biblische Theologie des N.T., Tuebingen, 1913, p. 412 ff. 46 1 Corinthians 15:22. 17 II Corinthians 1:20. 48 Romans 10:4. 49 Galatians 1 -A. 60 1 Corinthians 15:23-28. 61 Romans 6:23. 52 Romans 5:19. 53 I Thessalonians 5:9. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 13 Our study of the Pauline gospel in its varied aspects has shown Paul's primary question to be, "What must I do to be saved." The noun "salvation" and the verb "to save" occur again and again in the Pauline correspondence, but the title soter is not used. 5. The primitive Christian environment and the title soter.™ Thus far our attention has centered upon the Christian community. Internal reasons for the bestowal ofthe title or name soter upon Jesus have been discussed. There are also reasons for the employment of the title soter of Jesus growing out of the environment of Christianity. During the past quarter of a century much time has been devoted to the genetic study of the entire religious situation which resulted in Christianity. It is now granted that Christianity was not produced within a few months in Galilee. It developed in a larger area than that of Palestine. The only adequate background for the study of Christianity is the civilization ofthe Mediterranean world during the two centuries preceding and following the origin of Christianity. The Christian religion grew in the soil of a vast syncretistic process. Eschatology was not a phenomenon characterizing the religious development of merely one nation. Before the time of Jesus the religious currents had merged in two principal streams, in religions of attainment where man attempts to do something for himself and religions of redemption where the major weight of emphasis is thrown upon the deity. The problem of sorrow and suffering was before the human race. Religion was becoming the concern of the individual rather than of the state. Like-minded individuals were organizing groups, religious communities, churches, where they might give social expression to their opinions and their experiences. The answers given to the problem of suffering and life varied from those of the mystery religions, mysticism, gnosticism, eschatology to those of orthodox Judaism and Stoicism. Salvation might be regarded as outward success and deliverance, as physical union with the deity by means of degraded rites; as likeness to God, spiritual union, devotion, prayer, ethical purity, consecration by voluntary death in the mysteries, entering the Kingdom of God, attainment of the blessed life; as the exercise of the ethical will, the escape from suffering by the suppression or annihilation of experience; or as the longing for a golden age, the expectation of a savior-god or a savior-king. How- 54 This section attempts to summarize the results of recent comparative study, follow ing Weinel, H„ Biblische Theologie des Neuen Testaments, introductory chapter; cf also Case, S. J., The Evolution of Early Christianity, Chicago, 1914. 14 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER ever defined, there was well-nigh universal hope of deliverance salvation.56 But when the expected deliverance did not materia rze, when the conviction that all had sinned became more and mo oppressive, when conscience refused to be silenced by theorie practices ever so involved, when the golden expectations of the ne age faded away before the experience of sorrow, when man toun he could not, then there was presented an opportunity for another religion of redemption. Here in the Graeco-Roman world there was a longing for salvation and an appreciation of the idea ot soter and dissatisfaction because of failure to attain the ideal.66 Chris tianity had another gospel, another explanation of salvation, and another agent of salvation. But Christianity failed to employ the title soter of Jesus— the very title the world of that day most needed and should have most appreciated. In spite of the internal and external reasons for the employment of the title soter with reference to Jesus, we do not find Jesus calling himself soter. Nowhere did the synoptic tradition coin the formula,- "the soter said" or even add the title to the name of Jesus. The late Johannine tradition merely permits the Samaritans to confess that Jesus is the soter ofthe world.67 The fourth evangelist avoids the title and does not even introduce it into the controversies with the Jews. To appreciate the situation, it will be necessary to outline the usage ofthe term soter within the period of primitive Christianity. 65 Cf Seneca's "Where shall he be found, whom we have been seeking so many cen turies?" "The soul, God, knowledge, expiation, asceticism, redemption, eternal life with individualism and with humanity substituted for nationality — these were the sub lime thoughts which were living and operating . . . during the imperial age," Harnack, Expansion I p. 36. 66 "Eine alte, reiche Kulturwelt im Sterben und in der Agonie, im Sehnen nach einer Neuschoepfung und Wiedergeburt, in einer nicht zum Ziele kommenden Unruhe des Gottsuchens— so stellt sich uns das niedergehende Heidentum dar," Wendland, J., Hellemstischeroemische Kultur, Tuebingen, 1912 p. 186. "John 4:42. II. THE CHRISTIAN USAGE OF THE TERM SOTER TO THE TIME OF THE EARLY APOLOGISTS68 The usage of the term soter in primitive Christian literature is limited to God and Jesus. 6. The term soter as used of God. In case of God, soter occurs once in an Old Testament quotation. Thus in Luke 1:47 "and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my soter." Soter is employed in I Clement 59:3 in a prayer to God, "thou art the helper of those in danger, the soter of those in despair" with the ordinary literal significance of rescue, aid, deliverance. The formula "God our Soter" occurs six times in the later writings of the New Testament. I Timothy 1:1 "Paul an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Soter and Jesus Christ our hope." I Timothy 2:3 "This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Soter." Titus 1:3 "according to the commandment of God our Soter." Titus 2:10 "that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Soter in all things." Titus 3 :4 " But when the kindness of God our Soter." Jude 25 "to the only God our Soter through Jesus Christ our Lord." In I Timothy 4:10 this formula is expanded to include all men: "For to this end we labor and suffer reproach because we trust in the living God, who is the Soter of all men."59 7. The term soter as used of Jesus. In case of Jesus, soter also occurs in Old Testament quotations. In his Dialogue with Trypho 26:3, Justin has "behold thy soter cometh." The immediate context does not indicate the precise nature of the reference. But Justin's custom of appropriating all such Old Testament passages for Jesus supports our interpretation. In the Dialogue 36:4 "mercy from God his soter" is certainly of Christ, for Christ is here called God, Lord of Hosts, and Jacob. A further attempt is made by Justin to discover Jesus our soter' in the Old Testament in the Dialogue 72:1 "And Esdras said to the people, 'this passover is our soter and our refuge.' " Justin is accusing the Jews of mutilating the scriptures by removing references to Jesus. 58 No New Testament book was born canonical. All the Christian productions of the pre-Irenaean epoch should be considered adequately to appreciate the New Testament. The early apologists are near the borderline of Old Catholic Christianity. 69 Compare the Odes of Solomon 5:9 "Because the Lord is my salvation'' where the Coptic has the equivalent of "quia tu es deus meus, salvator meus." 16 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER This otherwise unknown passage is cited to establish is P Justin plainly identifies Jesus with "our soter" of the assume Testament reference. , i Justin has two passages that deal with the explanation of the wor soter. One is found in Justin's Apology 33 :7 "And the namejesus in the Hebrew language means soter in the Greek language. Here Justin referring to Matthew 1:21 affirms that the title soter is simply Greek for the Hebrew Jesus and his point rests on the literal signifi cance of the words involved. Jesus is the equivalent of soter. Some what similar usage is met with in the Appendix 6:4 "But Jesus, his name as man and soter, has also significance. For he was made man for the sake of believing men and for the destruction of the daemons." In another group of instances, soter is used as a descriptive term. It is always indefinite, always accompanied by another term. Ihe background in this type of usage is Jewish messianism, and the literal significance of soter is felt. The instances are four in number. Luke 2:11 "For unto you hath been born this day in the city of David, a soter, who is the Lord Christ," Acts 5:31 "Him did God exalt to be a prince and a soter." Acts 13:23 "Of this man's seed God, according to promise, brought unto Israel a soter, even Jesus."60 Philippians 3:20 "For our commonwealth is in heaven, whence also we' wait for a soter, the Lord Jesus Christ." In a further group of instances relating to Jesus, soter has title value and is definite. Two kinds of usage are here observable. In the first of these soter is definite and accompanies or is accompanied by an additional title. Thus, Justin in his Dialogue with Trypho 110:4 "For the vine planted by God and Christ the soter is his people." Ignatius in his epistle to the Philippians 9:2 "the coming of the soter, our Lord Jesus Christ." II Timothy 1:10 "the appearing of our soter Jesus Christ." The Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrneans 7:1, Justin's Apology 33:5, 61: 3 "our soter Jesus Christ." Titus 1:4, Ignatius to the Magnesians Introduction, Ephesians 1:1 "Christ Jesus our soter." The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians Intro duction "mercy and peace from God Almighty and Jesus Christ our soter." Titus 3:6, Justin's Apology 66:2, 67:7 "Jesus Christ r'° Luke 2:11 is from a " Palestinian Jewish-Christian Greek or Aramaic source which Luke revised and incorporated" (Moffatt, Introduction to the Literature ofthe New Testament New York, 1911, p. 267); Acts 5:31, 13:23 shows the redactor's presence. 43 17* lT t16 r 1 R0VT S --iV1* qde7toward the theos question, see, e. g., Luke 9:35, 8:39, 9:20, AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 17 our soter." II Peter 1:11, 2:20, 3:18, Dialogue with Trypho 93:2 "our Lord and soter Jesus Christ." Ephesians 5:23 "as Christ also is the head of the church autos soter tou somatos.""1 The phrase is puzzling. Chrysostom and others referred soter to the husband. The words are in any case parenthetical and may be a later addition. The Johannine literature twice employs the formula, "soter of the world." One instance is in the gospel, John 4:42, "this is indeed the soter of the world;" the other instance is in I John 4:14 "the father hath sent the son, the soter of the world." The Gospel of Peter 4:13 has "the soter of men." The Martyrdom of Polycarp 19:2 reads "he is blessing our Lord Jesus Christ, the soter of our souls." The church at Alexandria, in the second century, used in worship a hymn con taining the expression, "Jesus soter of all the world."62 In the second group of instances where soter has title value, it is associated with God. Thus, Titus 2:13 "Looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and soter Jesus Christ."83 The second instance of this noteworthy combination occurs in II Peter 1:1 "the righteousness of our God and soter Jesus Christ." The following evolution is traceable in the Pastoral Epistles and II Peter: God our soter, Jesus Christ our soter, Our Lord and soter Jesus Christ, our God and soter Jesus Christ. Recall in this connec tion how Old Testament passages involving Kyrios originally applied to Yahweh are in the New Testament referred to both God and Christ. Isaiah 40:13 is in Romans 11:34 applied to God and in I Corinthians 2:16 applied to Christ; Isaiah 45:23 is in Romans 14:11 applied to God and in Philippians 2:11 applied to Christ. Observe the analogy: God is soter, Jesus Christ is soter, Jesus Christ is God and soter. And God is Kyrios; Jesus is Kyrios; Jesus Christ is God and Kyrios. John 20:28, "Thomas answered and said unto him, My Kyrios and my God." Thus the correct rendering of I Timothy 5:21 may be, "In the presence of Jesus Christ, God and Lord, and the elect angels I adjure thee." In the final stage of the development of soter as applied to Jesus, it has evolved into a name. If the Odes of Solomon are to be assigned to the neighborhood of A. D. 100, they furnish the earliest instance of soter as name employed of Jesus. Thus in the Odes of Solomon 41:12, the poet says: "From another race am I: for the Father of truth 61 soter cum Alephc B D E etc; ho soter Aleph* As etc; Ks I. soter I 3 56. 62 Clement Paedagogi Lib. Ill 12, 1013. 63 Versus Abbot, Journal of the Society of Biblical Literature and Exegesis, 1881 (June) p. 3 f and others; cum Moulton, Prolegomena p. 84, Winer-Schmiedel p. 158. 18 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER remembered me. He who possessed me from the beginning: oris bounty begot me, and the thought of His heart; and His word is wi us in all our way; 12. the soter who makes alive and does not reject our souls." Quadratus has "the works of our soter. « Justin dia logue with Trypho 18:1 reads "taught by our soter. bo -called i Clement 20:5 contains the doxology "to the only invjsible Uod, the father of truth, who sent forth to us the soter and prince of immortal ity." II Peter 3:2 refers to "the commandment ofthe Lord and [soter through your apostles." Justin's Dialogue with Trypho 8:2 has "words of the soter." Melito, according to a fragment preserved by Eusebius, said "since thou hast often expressed the wish to have extracts made from the law and prophets concerning the soter. 65 Tatian wrote a treatise "Concerning Perfection according to the Soter."™ An Oxyrhynchus papyrus assigned to the latter part of the second century of our era by Grenfell and Hunt contains the absolute ho soter repeatedly. "And a certain Pharisee, a chief priest, whose name was Levi, met them and said to the Soter, who gave thee leave ... . And the Soter straightway stood still and his disciples and answered . . . The Soter answered." The fragment consistently refers to Jesus as "the Soter."67 Irenaeus states that the Valentinians called Jesus soter rather than kyrios. "And for this reason they affirm it was that the Soter, for they do not please to call him Lord, did no work in public during the space of thirty years."68 The important letter on the Christian attitude toward the Old Testa ment which Ptolemy wrote to Flora, in the neighborhood of A. D. 160, employs soter as name sixteen times, and twelve of these instances are absolute. And this letter covers only six pages in Harnack's edition.69 The Valentinian sacred canon was in two parts of which one was known as ho soter and the other as ho apostolos.™ The Excerpta ex Theodoto have the following usage: ho Soter in 1:1,2:2 (twice); 3:1, 44:2, 46:2; ho soter in 5:2,8:2,9:1,18:1,19:2,51:3,52:1 (twice); 61:7, 66:1, 67:2, 75:3; 64 Eusebius, H. E. 4:3, 2. 65 Eusebius, H. E. 4:26, 13. 66 Clement, Stromateis III, 12, 8. 67 Oxyrhynchus Papyri V, No. 840. 68 Irenaeus adv. omnes haer. I 1:3, 5:3. 69 6 aoir-hp 1, 5 II 1, 3, 4, 10 III 1(3 instances), 2, 11, IV 1, 2; 6 o-uriip i,yG>!> 5, 9 V 4, 10, cf Sitzungsberichte der koeniglichen Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. 1902, I p. 505 ff. 70 Excerpta ex Theodoto 22, 48, 49, etc. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JFoSUS 19 tou Soteros in 45:2, 59:2; tou soteros in 5:3, 18:2, 61:6, 68, 76:1; ton soter a \n 23:3, 33:2 and quote Philippians 2:11: Kupioj rrjs 56£t;s 'Ijjo-oDs Xptoros o-oittip71 The Valentinian Heracleon wrote a commentary on the fourth gospel in the latter part of the second century. Fragments of this com mentary survive in Origen. The following instances of the absolute ho soter or its equivalent occur: VI. 12 p. 56, p. 57 (twice); p. 58 (twice) X. 9 p. 66, 67 (once); 14 p. 67 (twice); 19 p. 69; 22 p. 71 XIII. 10 p. 72 (twice); 11 p. 73, 74 (three times); 30 p. 82 (twice); p. 83 (four times); 38 p. 84, 85 (three times); 44 p. 86; 46 p. 87 (twice); 48 p. 88; 52 p. 91 (twice); 59 p. 92, p. 93 (three times); p. 94 XIX. 4 p. 96 (four times) XX. 8 p. 97 (three times); 30 p. 10172 Here are forty-six instances of soter as name and twenty-nine of them must be credited to Heracleon. Hegesippus in his narrative of the death of James the Just has "Jesus was the Soter."''3 The Epistle to Diognetus, probably to be assigned to the third century, contains this sentence: "Having convinced us then ofthe inability of our natures to attain life in time past and now having shown the Soter who is able to save."74 We have now examined all the types of usage of soter during the primitive Christian period. Our next task is to interpret the data. 8. Interpretation of the data. Our study ofthe usage of soter in the primitive period of Christianity reveals an interesting situation. Soter occurs twenty-four times in the New Testament. In eight instances the reference is to God, in sixteen instances the reference is to Jesus. Soter has more than descriptive function in only twelve instances where employed of Jesus. One of these twelve instances is the somewhat doubtful case in Ephesians. Eleven of the instances where soter has title value or is a name are found in the late writings of the New Testament, in the 71 Excerpta 43 A; quotations from Staehlin's edition of Clement, Leipzig 1909, volume 3; what is Valentinian gnosticism and what hails from Clement is not as yet precisely determined, see Otto Dibelius in Zeitschrift fuer die N. T. Wissenschaft 1908, p. 230 ff. 72 Citations from edition of Brooke, A. E., Texts and Studies, Cambridge, 1891, volume I #4. 73 Eusebius H. E. II, 23. 74 Epistle to Diognetus 9:6. 20 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER pastoral epistles, in the Johannine literature and in Second Peter. e twice met with the expression "our God and soter Jesus ^nnst. There is but one instance in the entire New Testament where soter has become a name and even here it accompanies another title. ne earlier strata of the New Testament do not at all contain the term soter whether with literal or technical significance. Ihe Markan narrative, the Q source, the material peculiar to Matthew, the material peculiar to Luke with the exception of the infancy section do not record a single instance of the employment of soter. Soter is not to be discovered in the sayings of Jesus or among the titles appropriated by him or assigned to him by his immediate interpreters. Soter with more than descriptive force is lacking in the entire Pauline corres pondence unless the doubtful case in Ephesians is assigned to him.76 The search for the word soter in the Epistle to the Hebrews, the Epistle of James, I Peter, the Didache, the Epistle of Barnabas, and the Shepherd of Hermas would be fruitless. Further I Clement has only one instance of soter and even here the reference is not to Jesus. For some three decades or more of its history, the primitive Christian community consistently refrained from calling Jesus who was the Christ, the Son of Man, the Lord, who had come to save, soter. To appreciate the meaning of all this, consider the frequency with which Jesus is called the Christ or Son of Man or Lord and recall how appro priate and essential the title soter would have been. In the corres pondence of Paul there are "nearly 350 occurrences of Christos."'1'' Kyrios is applied to Jesus 400 times within the pages of the New Testament. Son of Man, a title which practically disappears after the gospels, is used of Jesus more than four score times. But soter as a definite title enters Christian literature in the pastoral epistles. The absolute ho soter without accompanying genitive or additional title is not attested until about the middle of the second century. At that time it is the favorite name for Jesus among the Gnostics, although more orthodox groups of Christians also frequently employ it and apparently feel no repugnance toward it. There are some Christian communities which even about A. D. 150 do not make use ofthe name soter. From Irenaeus onward soter as a name is general. 75 II Peter 3:2. 76 The instance in Philippians 3 :20 is descriptive, indefinite and accompanied by ex planatory phrase. Moreover it has no title value and implies a contrast with the soteres ofthe Graeco-Roman civilization and refers to the parousia of the reigning and exalted second man." Is it original? Is Paul making use of one ofthe inferior meanings at taching occasionally to theos-soter in the Graeco-Roman usage (see Harnack, History of Dogma I, 119 note 2) ? For Paul's own feeling, compare part IV, 14 (2) of this study. Case, b. J., in Journal of Biblical Literature 1907 p. 153. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 21 Merely for the sake of completeness, we may add that the tendency to employ soter as title or name for Jesus was retarded among the Latin Christian writers because soter had no Latin equivalent and modified because the Latin word chosen to represent soter had no historical background. Martianus Capella states that Cicero refused to call soter, salvator but used as circumlocution "who provided deliverance." In this way the Latin stylist avoided an unusual word.78 Augustine commenting on the text, "faithful is the saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am the chief"79 remarks that Christ Jesus denotes Christ the soter, that the Latin equivalent for Jesus is salvator, that the scruples of the grammarians are overcome by the Christian fact of salvation, that salus is a Latin word, that salvare and salvator were not Latin until the Salvator came, that his coming made these words Latin.80 Tertullian wrestles with the same problem because salvator is not for him the actual equivalent of soter. Hence he usually em ploys circumlocutions, although salvator also occurs.81 Tertullian has I Thessalonians 5:23 in the "Lord and soter" form, using salutifica- toris for soter.m Cyprian has salvator at least twice.83 Salvator is also Jerome's choice for soter. 84 With the exception of Luke 1 :47 where it has salutari, the Vulgate employs salvator for soter. It is interesting to note that Beza's Latin New Testament uses servator for soter with the exception of Ephesians 5:23, where he reads "is est qui salutem dat" and I Timothy 4:10 where he reads conservator. The data, then, in case of the primitive Christian usage of soter show that soter is a term at first deliberately avoided by the church and only very gradually appropriated by the church as a title and name for Jesus. The remainder of this investigation will seek to ascertain the reasons for this development. 78 De Nupt. Phil, et Merc. V, 510. 79 1 Timothy l.:15. 80 Augustine Sermo 299, 6. 81 Adversus Marc. Ill, 18. 82 Adv. Marc. V, IS cf also IV, 23 salus. 83Treatise XII 2:7, 3:11, Migne Pat. Lat. 4 col. 731, 769. 84 Migne Pat. Lat. 26 col. 18, 34, 36, etc. III. THE SOURCES AND HISTORY OF THE SOTER IDEA The primitive Christian met the soter terminology in two principal sources. One of these was the Jewish scriptures and connected literature; the other was the religious life ofthe Roman empire. 9. The Jewish scriptures and other Jewish productions as the source of the soter terminology. When the Jewish or Gentile primitive Christian read the scriptures, he came upon the word soter. Heroic men are styled mosi occa sionally in the literature of the Old Testament.85 But mosi is far more frequently employed of Yahweh. Thus Isaiah 43:3 "For I am Yahweh, thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior;" Isaiah 43:11 "I even I am Yahweh; and besides me there is no Savior;" Micah 7:7 " But as for me I will look unto Yahweh ; I will wait for the God of my salvation."86 The Greek Old Testament translates mosi by sozon or eis soterian, rarely by soter. On the other hand it prevailingly renders yifi with pronominal suffix by soter. The phrase "God our Savior" is found in the prophets87 and far more frequently in the psalter.88 In the extra-canonical Jewish literature such as Ecclesiasticus, Macca bees, Psalms of Solomon, Wisdom, soter also occurs.89 The usage ofthe Psalms of Solomon indicates not only the popularity of soter as a religious term, but also its restriction to God: "the stability ofthe righteous is from God their soter; and we will not depart from thee for thy judgments are good; upon us and our children is thy good will forever, O Lord God, our soter, and we shall not be shaken again for ever; when Israel went forth into captivity to a strange land because they departed from the Lord their soter; he pricked me, like the spur of the horseman, according to his watchfulness: my soter and my helper at all times is he; he saved me: I will praise thee, O God because thou hast helped me with thy salvation: and has not reckoned me with sinners for destruction; O Lord, thou art our king, now and for ever: for in thee, O God, our soul shall glory. And what is the life of man upon the earth? for according to his time, so also is his hope. 85 Judges 3:9, IS; II Kings 13:5; Neh. 9-27 87 S^7:^iS1^ Wfc"1,^ " SamUd ^ H-b. 3:18. 88 Psalm 24:5, 25:5, 27:1, 9, 62:37, 65.*, 79* 95-1 89 Eccles. 51:1, I Maccabees 4:30, III Mac' 6:29,' 32, 7:16; Wisdom 16:7. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 23 But we hope in God our soter."m We may conclude that the idea which the primitive Christian from his perusal of the holy literature of Judaism usually associated with soter was theos. The vast body of extra-canonical Jewish literature known as the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha contains a great variety of titles for the Messiah, such as Son of Man, Elect One, the Righteous, the Lord's Annointed, the Holy Prince, my Son, the Coming One, the Sprout, and even the Leper.91 But in the entire Jewish literature kyrios as title for Messiah does not appear.92 The same reserve would seem to hold with reference to soter as title for Messiah.93 This avoidance of the title soter is very noticeable in the thirteenth chapter of IV Ezra where the context demands the title "soter of the world": "Whereas thou didst see a man coming up from the heart of the sea: this is he whom the Most High is keeping many ages and through whom he will redeem his creation Behold, the days come when the Most High is about to redeem them that are upon the earth. . . But the survivors of the people, even those who are found within my holy border shall be saved." It should also be recalled that the Messiah is not an essential ele ment ofthe eschatology of Israel and Judaism. Writings like Isaiah 24—27, Daniel, Enoch 1-36, Jubilees, and others fail to mention him. Yahweh is soter. "In the Old Testament it is God who is for Israel redeemer, liberator, Savior, deliverer and never the Messiah; and no similar agency is there ascribed to the latter."94 In the later development of Jewish eschatology, the Messiah is sometimes described not only as prince of a redeemed people but also as a redeemer. Passages like Sibylline Oracles III 652 ff., Baruch 39:7, 40:1 ff., 70:9, 72:2-6; IV Ezra 12:32 ff. depict the Messiah as participating in the redemptive program but do not call him soter. For Testament of Levi 2:10, Charles prefers the reading "and shall proclaim concerning the redemption of Israel."95 And the other reading "concerning him who shall redeem Israel" {tou mellontos lutrousthat) would not furnish an instance of soter. As far as the Shemoneh Esreh is concerned, the first petition employs go'el (lu- 90 Psalms of Solomon 3:6, 8:39, 9:1, 16:4, 17:2. 91 Enoch 37-71; IV Ezra 7:13; Ps. of Solomon, Sibylline Oracles III 49; IV Ezra 7:21 ff, 13:32, 37, 52, 14:9, etc., see Bousset, Religion des Judentums p. 305. 92 Boehlig, H., Zum Begriff Kyrios bei Paulus, Zeitschrift fuer N. T. Wissenschaft 1913 p. 27. 93 No reference in either the Oxford or Kautzsch index. 94 Dalman, Words of Jesus, Edinburgh, 1902, p. 295. 95 Charles, Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, London, 1908, p. 30. 24 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER trotes) of the one who is to redeem posterity, while God is called most (salvator, soter). Indeed the seventh petition plainly states that God and God alone is Israel's redeemer. The reason for the omission of the title soter in case ofthe Messiah appears to be that it came to be reserved for God. Attention should now be given to the usage of Josephus and Philo in order to ascertain whether it confirms or contradicts the result thus far obtained. An original and independent examination of the Niese text ofthe twenty books ofthe "Antiquities ofthe Jews" by Josephus shows that the verb sozo with its compounds and cognates occurs over 215 times. The noun soter appears seven times. In five of these seven instances soter is to be capitalized because title. Thus in XII 3, "and the cities were sufferers, and lost a great many of their inhab itants in these times of distress, insomuch that all Syria, by the means of Ptolemy, the son of Lagus, underwent the reverse of that title of Soter, which he then had." XII 11, "When Alexander had reigned twelve years and after him Ptolemy Soter forty years;" XII 223 "at this time Seleucus who was called Soter reigned over Asia;" XIII 222 "But Antiochus, the brother of Demetrius, who was called Soter, wandered about and was not admitted to any ofthe cities on account of Trypho;" XIII 271 "He was the son of Antiochus that was called Soter, who died in Parthia." In only two instances does soter occur with other than title value. One of these is VI 240 "So David ap peared and fell at Jonathan's feet and bowed down to him and called him the soter of his soul-" Here soter obviously is employed with merely literal significance and is limited by a definite genitive. The remaining instance of soter in the "Antiquities ofthe Jews" is found in XIV 444 "and these called Herod their soter and protector." Herod on his way to join Antony then besieging Samosata on the Euphrates arrives at Antioch. Considerable forces are assembled there with the purpose of reaching Antony but afraid to venture forth because the barbarians are in possession of the roads. Herod assumes the leader ship. Two days march from Samosata, the barbarians suddenly attack and succeed in routing the advance guards of Herod. But Herod riding hard arrives in time to instill courage into the defeated troops, drives back the barbarians, rescues the baggage, and puts the main body of the enemy to flight. For thus clearing the roads and rescuing a considerable portion ofthe forces intent on aiding Antony, Herod was called "their soter and protector." This survey of the usage of the "Antiquities of the Jews" with AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 25 reference to the word soter proves that the Jewish historian does not have a single instance of the absolute use of soter and that he himself refrains entirely from employing soter. To his own vocabulary soter is alien. It is only in those instances where as historian he considers himself to be relating what took place that he employs soter at all. In asmuch as the history of Israel abounds with experience upon experi ence of rescue by Yahweh and those sent by Yahweh and further in asmuch as there are sections in the history of Josephus where sozo and its cognates occur repeatedly in rapid succession,36 his failure to employ soter can be explained only on the ground of intention . We might expect the usage of Philo to be at variance with what has thus far been noted. Philo as pre-eminent allegorist should hardly be expected to conform. Philo could have filled soter with another, a deeper significance. But Philo reserves soter for God. Soter occurs once in the treatise "About the Contemplative Life,"97 once in that "On the Creation of the World,"98 once in that "On the Migration of Abraham";99 twice in "Why God is Unchangeable."100 In all of these instances the reference is to God. Our investigation has proceeded far enough to indicate that Philo is acquainted with the combina tion theos soter and that he therefore restricts soter to God.101 Hence our conclusion regarding the usage of soter in the Jewish scriptures and Jewish productions in general should be that it is usually associated with and generally restricted to God. 10. The history of the soter idea in the Graeco-Roman civilization.102 The second way in which the primitive Christian became familiar with the soter idea was through contact with the religious life of the Roman empire. Before proceeding to examine the content of the idea in the civilization of the Graeco-Roman world in the time of Paul it 96 e. g., II 134-147 covering little more than a solid page and one-half of Niese, con cerning the finding ofthe cup in Benjamin's bag, sozo and cognates occur eight times but soter not once. 97 Mangey II, 485. 98 Ibid. I, 41. 99 Ibid. I, 455, while sozo and cognates occur nine times, Mangey I 436, 438, 440, 455 (five times) 461. 100 Ibid. I, 293, 296, while sozo and its cognates occur nine times (Mangey I, 275, 283 (twice) 284, 291, 292 (twice), 293, 296). ¦ 101 Madden, F. W., Coins ofthe Jews, Boston, 1881, has no instance of soter. 102 This section is based on: Lietzmann, Der Weltheiland, Bonn, 1909; Roscher under soter; Bousset, Kyrios Christos, Goettingen, 1913, Hauptprobleme der Gnosis, Goet- tingen, 1907, Theologischer Rundschau, 1912, p. 41 (F251 ff, Gnosticism in Encyclopedia Brittanica; Wendland in Zeitschrift fuer die N. T. Wissenschaft 1904 p. 335 ff; Harnack, Reden und Aufsaetze, Giessen, 1904, I 307 ff; Wobbermin, Religioese Studien, Berlin, 1896; Wagner, Zeitschrift fuer die N. T. Wissenschaft, 1905, p. 205 ff; Case, Evolution of Early Christianity, Chicago, 1914; k. t. c. 26 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER will be worth-while to consider the usual objection that primitive Christianity was in no wise subject to such an influence. One of the comfortable axioms of yesterday when there was no science of the his tory of religion to raise perplexing questions of origin, when there was no psychology of religion to focus attention on mental processes and the religious phenomena ofthe race, when the sands of Egypt and the mounds ofthe Euphrates valley had not yielded their treasures, was that Christianity had been planted in a special area and was averse to amalgamation with Hellenism. It is even now dogmatically stated that Paul owes nothing to Graeco-Roman culture.103 But long since the comparativist has disproved this assumption. Today there is insistence on relativity, subjectivity, development. The New Testament is understood to be a documentary deposit of primitive Christianity laid down in a definite environment. Long before the period of the New Testament, Judaism, in spite of the Maccabean particularism, had been modified by Greek ideas, as during the pre vious centuries by Babylonian, Egyptian and Persian ideas.104 A sig nificant stratum of Hellenism had been laid over Semitic civilization. Such a chapter as the seventeenth chapter of Acts with his recognition of the religion of Greece, with its allusion to the unknown God, with its emphasis on the divine descent of the human race and the unity of humanity simply compels the assumption of syncretistic influence. Had not the Old Testament been translated into Greek and thereby opened Judaism to the powerful modification of the Greek religious terminology? A few years ago it was still being asserted that over five hundred words of the New Testament vocabulary of some five thousand words were "biblical." At present there are less than fifty words of the New Testament vocabulary not attested in the common or literary language of the Greeks. It must now be granted that there was pre-Christian gnosticism, that gnostic opposition to the God of the Old Testament implies contact with the religion of the synagogue. Paul was by birth an Aramaic-speaking Jew. He received the training of a rabbi. But Paul was also a child of the diaspora. Dur ing the most impressionable years of his life, he lived at Tarsus. The second half of his career was passed in the Graeco-Roman world. 103 < ' See, e. g., Headlam, St. Paul and Christianity, p. IX. 104 Cf Ezekiel 8:14, 16; Jer. 44:24; Skinner on Genesis p. 85; Barton in Studies in the History of Religion presented to C. H. Toy, New York, 1912, p. 187 ff; Wendland, Kultur p. 293; Isaiah 10:4, 17:10, 11, I Kings 12:24 according to LXX; Jerome, letter 58 section 3. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 27 Paul learned and employed the Greek language. The acquisition of a language is never a purely formal and external affair. A new language mediates new ideas. Paul prevailingly quotes from the Greek Old Testament. Paul was familiar with the Greek book of Wisdom and with the syncretistic Jewish eschatology. The analogy of the body found in Paul occurs also in Cicero, Livy, Seneca, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius. The various sin catalogues that feature the Pauline cor respondence have parallels among the Stoics. Such words as law, works, propitiation, faith, man's "righteousness," "God's righteous ness," reveal the Jew. But such words as spirit, flesh, death of Christ, union of all Christians in the pneumatic Christ, gnosis, ecstacy require Greek connections. Paulinism is an amalgam of Pharisaic juristic elements and Hellenistic mystical elements. "Mys ticism did not grow on Jewish soil." Paul's content of salvation was largely Hellenistic. Jewish monotheism did not give birth to Paul's idea of son of God. An illustration or two should show Paul's indebt edness to Hellenism. Take such a verse as I Corinthians 15:22, "For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive." What is involved? All that participate in the death of Adam die, all that participate in the life of Christ live. The beginning of a series in cludes the succession. The idea contains the individual object. The first series connects with its head, the second series connects with its head. This is the logical, mystical, metaphysical background of the argument. But the metaphysical and mystical approach is Greek. Or take the preceding section, I Corinthians 15:12-19, where Paul mentions the five-fold consequences of denying the resurrection of the dead. If we do not arise, Christ did not. What is the underlying assumption? The Christian proclamation is that Christ arose from the dead. But we are one with him. Therefore his resurrection signifies our resurrection. Some say we shall not arise. But Christ is one with us. Therefore Christ did not arise. Who can read the verses without recalling how intimately the mystery religions con nect the idea of the death and resurrection of the initiate with the death and resurrection of the god-savior. Again in I Corinthians 15:44, Paul almost identifies psychikon with sarkikon. Elsewhere he practically equates psychikon and pneumatikon. How may this difficulty be overcome? The answer is furnished by the mystery religions: "where the psyche is, there the pneuma may not be." It may therefore no longer be asserted that primitive Christianity was not influenced by contact with Hellenism. Indeed, the religious 28 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER views of the Graeco-Roman world must be ascertained before one may be certain what is original and what is derived in Christianity.105 The association of the title soter with the Roman emperors brought it vividly to the attention of the early adherent of Jesus. Augustus was often called soter in inscription, public proclamation, epic poem. Thus a dozen years before the beginning of the Christian era, a temple on the island of Philae was consecrated to Augustus with the official inscription: khroKpLropi. Ka.io-a.pt. Se/3atrTijt Scorijpi /cat EvepyeTrji.. Soter as title of Augustus occurs in Greece, Southern Russia, Asia Minor, Egypt. Land in the vicinity of Ptolemais was dedicated to Augustus the great god and soter. The Egyptian month Payni was called Soter in his honor.106 It might seem that a review ofthe pre ceding century of Roman history would amply justify the bestowal of the title soter on Augustus. There had been civil wars to the number of twelve. Panics, famines, plundering by soldiers, betrayals of fathers by sons and husbands by wives, taxes imposed on women had kept things in ferment at Rome. There were deliberate legalized proscriptions from the three thousand reputed followers of Gracchus to those caught in the net of Antony. Political assassinations had begun with the Gracchi and included Caesar and Cicero ere they were done. The road from Capua to Rome had looked on the six thousand cruci fied survivors of the insurrection managed by Spartacus. Militarism was running riot; Italy was being depopulated; economic distress was becoming unbearable. The proscription of the triumvirs invited to wholesale frameups: "those who kill the proscribed and bring us their heads shall receive the following rewards: to a freeman 25,000 Attic drachmas per head, to a slave his freedom and 10,000 Attic drachmas and his master's right of citizenship. Informers shall re ceive the same reward."107 The imposition of taxes on women called forth the opposition and the eloquence of Hortensia: "Why should we pay taxes when we have no part in the honors, the commands, the statecraft, for which you contend against each other with such harm ful results? 'Because this is a time of war' do you say? When have 106 For all references to the epistle to the Corinthians, see Weiss, J., in Meyer series on Corinthians, cf Reitzenstein, R Die hellemstische Mysterienreligionen, Leipzig, 1910, p. 43 f, 136 f especially 154, 169 f, 172; on the question at issue see fnrtW A™.r£,n Journal of Theology 1914, p 497 ff, 1917 p. 358 ff; Matthews I J. Th ^Jewd Apolo getic to the Graeco-Roman World in the Apocryphal and PseudepigWphicalL tera?u e C I G 2122. LMttenDerger, Unent Inscript. II 4S8; '107 Appian, The Civil Wars IV, §11. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 29 there not been wars?"108 Augustus had finally succeeded in abolish ing civil wars and insurrections, had established law and order, and had brought the long desired golden peace. Is it any wonder that he should be called "soter of the Greeks and of the whole world ?"109 Horace gives beautiful expression to the reaction of the common man when peace finally came: "From gods benign descended, thou Best guardian of the fates of Rome . . . For safe the herds range field and fen Full-headed stand the shocks of grain Our sailors sweep the peaceful main And man can trust his fellow men."110 "Long, long to heaven be thy return delayed."111 Virgil voices a similar sentiment: "Turn, turn thine eyes! see here thy race divine, Behold thy own imperial Roman line: Caesar with -all the Julian name survey, See where the glorious ranks ascend today! This, this is he! the chief so long foretold To bless the land where Saturn ruled of old, And give the Latian realm a second age of gold ! The promised prince, Augustus the divine, Of Caesar's race and Jove's immortal line! This mighty chief his empire shall extend O'er India's realms to earth's remotest end."112 But the hypothesis that the title soter as employed of Augustus developed spontaneously out of the experience of deliverance from the confusion and chaos ofthe preceding century cannot be sustained. For the same title is used of Tiberius, Claudius, Nero, Vespasian, Titus, Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius and others. Moreover, we observed such expressions as "a second age of gold," "Augustus the divine," "Jove's immortal line." There is an eschatological back ground here and the God-King and God-Savior conception as well. A few lines from the fourth Eclogue of Virgil will emphasize the point. 108 Ibid. §32. 109 Inscript. Olymp. 366. 110OdesIV5:lff.111 Odes I 2:41. 112 Aeneid 6:787 ff. 30 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER "Lo the last age of Cumae's seer has come! Again the great millenial aeon dawns .... E'en now thy brother, Lord of Light and Healing, Apollo, rules and ends the older day .... The goats shall come uncalled, weighed down with milk Nor lion's roar affright the laboring kine .... The treacherous snake and deadly herb shall die, And Syrian spikenard grow on every bark . . . Nature shall give new colors to the fleece, Soft blushing glow of crimson, gold of crocus, And lambs be clothed in scarlet as they feed."113 Such views of the new age are not peculiar to Roman literature, as we well know and as a few illustrations will show.114 "And there shall come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesse And a branch out of his roots shall bear fruit . . . And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, And the leopard shall lie down with the kid, .... And the lion shall eat straw like the ox."115 "For the age is hastening fast to its end . . Then shall the sun suddenly shine forth by night and the moon by day; And blood shall trickle forth from the wood, and the stone shall utter its voice The peoples shall be in consummation, the outgoings ofthe stars shall change."116 "And it shall come to pass, when he has brought low everything that is in the world, And has sat down in peace for the age on the throne of his kingdom That joy shall be revealed, 113 Horace in his Carmen Saeculare manifests the same hope; his sixteenth epode is pessimistic: " Back unrepentant we will veer the sail When Po shall lave the summits of Matinus; When into ocean juts the Apennine; When herds no longer fear the tawny lion; When nature's self becomes unnatural." 114 Compare Bousset, Religion des Judentums p. 258 ff; Oesterley, W. 0. E., The Evolution of the Messianic Idea, London, 1908. 116 Isaiah 11. 116 IV Ezra 4:26, 50 f, 5:4 f. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 31 And rest shall appear, And then shall healing descend in dew, And disease shall withdraw And anxiety and anguish and lamentation pass from among men .... And wild beasts shall come forth from their holes and submit themselves to the little child And the reapers shall not grow weary Nor those that build be toilworn . . . ,"117 "Therefore at that time the retribution of the sinful shall be . . . And so may we be such as make the world renewed For at the dispensation the blow of the annihilation of falsehood shall fall."118 The eschatological emphasis ofthe Roman poets urged us to enter the syncretistic area ofthe Graeco-Roman civilization. The reference to the God-Savior idea and the God-king idea also forces us to con sider the wider history of the soter concept. For the God-king idea is of Oriental. ancestry119 and the God-Savior idea is of Greek origin. The epithets soter and soteira were applied to numerous Greek and non-Greek gods and goddesses. More than two score gods and goddesses are thus described. Among the goddesses were Aphrodite, Artemis, Athena, Demeter, Hecate, Hera, Hygieia, Kore, Nike, Roma, Themis, Tyche; among the gods were Apollo, Asclepius, Dionysus, Hades, Helios, Hermes, Poseidon, Telesphorus, and Zeus.120 Thirty- five columns in Roscher are devoted to the mere cataloging in fine print #of attestations of soter. Practically every country of the Mediterranean world has yielded coin or votive tablet or altar in scription or some other evidence of soter. One living in the time of Paul could hardly escape acquaintance with some theos soter. Some four score localities, dotting the Roman empire, furnish eloquent evi- 117 II Baruch 73, 74. 118 Avesta Yasht 30:8 f; Carpenter, J. E., The Historical Jesus, p. 64: "But even the old Avesta announces the advent of a Savior (Saoshyant) who should be the helper or agent in the great consummation." 119 See, e. g., Breasted, Development of Religion and Thought in Ancient Egypt, New York, 1912", p. 15ff, 328, 331, 336, 367; Reitzenstein, Poimandres 309 ff; Case, Evolution of Early Christianity 197 ff. 120 For the best recent list, see Roscher (Hoefer), Ausfuehrlicher Lex. der griech. und roem. Mythologie 1913, Lieferung 66/7 col. 1236 ff; earlier lists in Preller, Griech. Mythologie Berlin, 1894, see index; Dittenberger, Sylloge Reg. IV 1; the Harvard Col lection of Coins, Period III A(B. C. 400-336) #8 Cyzicus soteira of Demeter or Per sephone period VI (B. C. 190-100) B #6 Thasos Herakleous soteros Thasion, #7 Thrace Herakleous soteros Thrakon. 32 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER dence of the widespread popularity ofthe soter title for Zeus. The next most popular theos soter was Asclepius. From its ancient seat in Thessaly, this cult had spread to Boeotia, Epidaurus, Achaia, Arcadia, the islands, Asia Minor and the West. Hundreds of Asklepieia are attested in epigraphical and in literary sources.121 The localities ofthe Asclepius cult include such towns as Athens, Pergamum, Rome, Smyrna, Thyatira, Tralles. The possibility of Christian involvement is at once noticeable. Eusebius pays special attention to the destruc tion of the temple of Asclepius in Cilicia, describing the god of heal ing as the "demon worshipped in Cilicia whom thousands regarded with reverence as the possessor of saving and healing power, who drew his worshippers from the true Savior."122 On the coins that passed from hand to hand, on statue in marketplace or along the roadside, in local cults, in mystery religion convocations, on altar and on temple the inhabitant of the Graeco-Roman world beheld soter. That world was filled with known and unknown theoi soteres. No living person coiild escape contact with some theos soter. A very complicated soteriology characterizes gnosticism and the mystery religions. In both a soter appears somewhere. Recent in vestigation has shown that gnosticism can no longer be regarded as the "acute hellenization of Christianity." -Christian gnosticism is merely the amalgamation of existing gnosticism with Christian con ceptions. "The actual ancestry of gnosticism is now understood to be pre-Christian Oriental mysticism." Gnosis is not intellectual knowing, but marvellous, revealed wisdom communicated and re ceived in ecstasy or in connection with the ritual. Gnosticism is theosophy rather than philosophy. The goal in gnosticism is salva tion. The gnostic systems tell in detail how the deity grants salva tion to the individual. The Valentinian system illustrates how the his torical Jesus was simply grafted upon an already existing complicated theology. There was a myth relating to the holy wedding of the two deities, the Soter and Sophia; this union was typical ofthe anticipated union of the immortal being of the gnostic with heavenly spiritual powers. In the primitive gnostic soteriology, the divine Soter de scends to Hades to release the fallen and imprisoned Sophia. In the later, historical redemption through Jesus, this ancient Soter is merely brought into relation with Jesus. The point we are at present inter- t T R°icn7 -1' *' 62° ff (c' 1886) had catalogued 320; Walton, Cult of Asklepios, Ithaca, 1894 is not at all complete; cf also Preller, 52S, note 1; Harnack, Expansion of Christianity I 121-151. 122 Eusebius Vita Const. 3, 56. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 33 ested in observing is that gnosticism prior to merging with Christian ity makes use ofa primitive, heavenly, divine Soter."3 The recent extensive study of the various mystery religions has demonstrated that the end in view is salvation.124 The mystery religions were religions of redemption. The method of obtaining 123 Bousset, Hauptprobleme der Gnosis 263 ff, Theolog. Rundschau, 1912, p. 41 ff, 251 ff, article Gnosticism, Encyl. Brittanica. 124Asterius, Hom. X (Migne 40:324): ho polus kai anarilhmos demos ten soter ian auton einai nomizousi ta en to skoto para ton duo prattomena; Firmicus Maternus de errore pr. rei. XXII, 1 : tharreite mustai estai gar hemin ek ponou soteria; cf Tertullian de haer. 40; Reitzenstein, Poimandres p. 178, etc. We must content ourselves with the description of but one of these religions of re demption and select the Isis-Serapis mystery religion for which there is somewhat abundant material. About the middle of the second pre-Christian century, the Isis re ligion appears in Italy. A hundred years later it is established at Rome. It was A. D. 560 before Christianity with imperial assistance finally triumphed over it. In the eleventh book of the Metamorphoses of Apuleius there is a record of the experience of Apuleius in becoming an adherent of the Isis religion. Apuleius conceals his experience by a literary device in which Lucius, the hero of the romance, is turned into an ass be cause of a careless magical experiment. After a series of extraordinary adventures, he finally manages to escape and finds himself on the strand of Cenchreae. As he beholds the moon in the evening sky, he prays to the goddess ofthe sky for help. A form of won derful beauty appears to him and reveals herself as Isis. She directs him to approach her high-priest at the festival in her honor and to steal a few roses from the wreath in the priest's hand. These are to enable him to become himself again. An impressive descrip tion of the procession of the Isis community follows. Lucius does as instructed and is restored to human shape. He thereupon dedicates his life to the service of the goddess. He becomes a novice and passes through the various grades of initiation into the mysteries. The process of initiation begins with the mention of the name of the candi date who desires to affiliate with the movement. The novitiate dedicates himself to the holy militant service of the goddess, pledging unconditioned obedience and service to her. He is thenceforward in the douleia of the goddess. He remains for some time in the temple of Isis. The duration ofthe novitiate is determined by the goddess herself. She must appear in a dream to the candidate informing him that the time for consecra tion has come and must likewise reveal herself to the priest who is to officiate. Only at great risk may the unsummoned approach the goddess. Anyone who without being elected views the goddess must die. During this interval from the mention of the name until the consecration, the initiate is called the katochos of the goddess. After the two fold summons, the consecration occurs, accompanied by elaborate ceremonies. It begins with a baptism followed by an esoteric description of the experiences awaiting the neophyte. After ten days of severe asceticism, the moment of consecration approaches. The rest ofthe mystics give parting dedicatory gifts to the initiate. For in the mystery, the old man dies and a new man is born. Then the act of consecration takes place. The initiate must pass through all the terrors of the underworld. And now at midnight, he beholds a great light. He sees the gods face to face. This beholding of deity signifies exaltation to the divine plane. The holy beholding signifies deification. At the conclusion of the ritual, the neophyte is clothed in holy raiment and finally in a heavenly dress, with a wreath on his head and a flaming torch in his hand. This takes place on a post- ament before the assembled church, after which the consecrated is greeted and wor shipped as a god. The divine raiment and the wreath of the sungod have transformed the candidate into a god. The purpose of all this ritualism is to secure salvation for the initiate. He shares the life of the god to attain the eternal life— following analysis of Bousset; cf also Apuleius, Metamorphoses XI, Plutarch de Iside et Osir. c 66 ff, Pausanias X 32, 13, Herodotus II 170ff, Wendland, Kultur.Tafel 8, Clement, Stromat. VI 4:35-37, Athenagoras, Suppl. pro Christ, c 22, Tertullian de monog. 17; valuable bibliography in Case, Evolution of Early Christianity, p. 315, note 1. 34 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER salvation is union with the deity. This union may be conceived of in very crass, crude, physical, sensual, passionate fashion or in a more ethical spiritual manner as likeness to the god or as the indwelling of the god. Salvation has to do with the maintenance of the earthly life, success, protection from disease, deliverance from danger and cul minates in the conferment of a new higher life, in the entering of the kingdom of God, in the attainment ofthe blessed life, in escape from judgment. To put it briefly, in the mysteries the deity aids man in procuring salvation. And the helping god was called soter. Of this there should be no longer any doubt. An inscription of the time of Ptolemy IV. found in the vicinity of Alexandria reads: 'T7rep /3aaiXecos HroXefialou (Cat fiao-ikLoo-ris ' h.paivbrq$ 6ewv cpi\o7rar6pcoi' 7ja.pa-iri.5t. /cai "Io-lSl TjWTrjpotv 'ApxeTroXw Koapjov Aeovvanvs m An inscription found at Abydos and belonging to the time of Ptolemy IV. contains Zapdfl-iSi 'OcreipiSi M«7io-TCdi Scorijpt.126 An inscription of the time of Ptolemy Epiphanes found at Akoris contains "IcrtSi McoxiaSt 2 cot eipq..1" The following three statements are from inscriptions found at Philae and of the time of Ptolemy Auletes, ttjv neytorqv Btav Kvplav Xuireipav 'Io-ip;128 ti)v Otav HwTeipav^lcnvp-9 iravvo&Tupav "'loivP" These inscriptions ofthe pre-Christian era prove that the gods ofthe mystery religions were soteres. There is a number of inscriptions of unknown date which support this conclusion. On an altar at Lindos: o-apa.-jrt.os crwrTjpos. m I26 Brescia Bulletin de la SociSte archeologique d'Alexandria #10. Nouvelle Sene lome II, 2me fascicule. Alexandria 1908, p. 170; Doelger, Ichthys, Rom. 1910, p 420 126 Journal of Hellenic Studies 22 (1902) p. 377. 127 C. I. G. 3, 4703 c. 128 C. I. G. 3 add 4930 b p. 122S. 129 C. I. G. 3 add 4930 d p. 1229. 130 C. I. G. 3 add 490 p. 1221. 131 1. G. 12, 1 No. 932. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 35 At Alexandria, Delos, Talmis, in Nubia similar inscriptions occur.'32 Thus far our study has shown that soter was employed of numerous Greek gods, that gnosticism and the mystery religions emphasized the god-soter idea. In the further development of the soter usage, the Dioscuri,133 and Heracles134 and the good daemons 136 are called soter. Oedipus is soter for Attica,136 and Eurystheus for Athens.137 The earliest known instance in which the title soter is applied to historical persons is that of the Spartan Brasidas. The occasion was the costly victory over the Athenians at Amphipolis, when Brasidas was fatally wounded and lived only long enough to hear that his side had been victorious. Thereupon he was buried "at public expense within the city in front of the present marketplace; and from that day forth the men of Amphipolis, having fenced his tomb, sacrifice to him as a hero . . . and honor him with games and sacrifices every year. They even adopted him founder of the city and called him soter."133 Agesilaus was called soter by his soldiers.139 Dio was likewise called theos and soter by the people of Syracuse.140 Demosthenes accuses the Thessalonians and Thebans as regarding Philip as friend, euergetes and soter. Ul The career of Alexander the Great added another element to the Greek soter conception. Alexander had swept down from the North and with titanic strength and with bewildering speed had moved through the Orient, subduing his opponents, settling the quarrels of countless princelets, establishing order, wedding Greek culture to Oriental life. This succession of events was so out of the ordinary that it was looked upon as beyond the achievement of mortal man. Here was the realization of the Oriental conception of the king as the 132 For Alexandria, Strack, Die Dynastie der Ptolemaeer p. 239 nr. 66, Sarapidos Cha Isdos Theon Soteron; for Delos, Dittenberger Sylloge 22761, 764, p. 618, 619, the former of Isis and Serapis, the latter of Isis, Astarte, Aphrodite, etc; for Talmis, C. I. G., 3 #5041 Isin Sarapin tous megistous ton theon soleras agathous. In the Orphic hymns, the deities are often called soteres cf 2:14, 9:12, 14:8, 12, 27:12, 36:13, 38:3, 24, 67:8, 74:7, 9, 75:5, 85:10, see Wobbermin, Religionsgeschicht. Studien 1896 p. 58 ff, Dieterich, Deut. Literatuzeitung 1892, s 1644. 133 Homeric Hymn 33, 6, Theoc. 22:6, Luc. Alex. 4, Pausanias 2, 1:9, Eur. Hel. 1664, Clement of Alexandria Protrep. 22, C. I. G. 3, 4042 (Ancyra), C. I. G. 1, 1261 (Sparta). 134 1. G. 14, 1001 (Rome); Thasos, Head, Hist. num. 229, etc. 135 Roscher, 1913, soter, column 1253. 136 O. C. 460, 463 cf Oed. R. 480. 137 Eur. Heracl. 1032. 138 Thucydides 5, 11,2. 139 Xenophon, Ages, 11, 13. 140 Plut. Dio 46. 141 Demosth. de corona 43, cf further Wendland, Kultur, p. 124. 36 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER incarnation of the deity. The hymn of Ikhnaton is the classic expres sion of this Oriental conception : "Thou art in my heart There is no other that knoweth thee, Save thy son Ikhnaton .... Since thou (Aton) didst establish the earth Thou hast raised them up for thy son, Who came forth from thy limbs, The king, living in truth .... The son of Re, living in truth, lord of diadems Ikhnaton whose life is long."142 Alexander was not slow to grasp the significance of this religious sentiment and therefore personally encouraged this dogma of his divine kingdom. Alexander was granted divine honors by Asiatic and European Greeks, was known as the son of Ammon, and his last desire was to be buried in the oasis of Zeus Ammon. Thus was the Oriental view of a god-king inaugurating a new aeon fused with the Greek god-soter idea.143 The successors of Alexander divided his empire and appropriated the Oriental god-king conception.144 In 307 the Athenians voted divine honors to Antigonus and Demetrius Poliorketes, calling them god- saviors and electing a priest for the new cult.145 The Ptolemies perfected the union of the Greek and Oriental ideas of soter.113 The cult of the Oeoi &5eXc/>ot introduced by Philadelphus certainly proves the existence of the cult of the reigning sovereign. And it would even seem that Ptolemy I. and Berenice were wor shipped as soter while reigning. The Rosetta stone provides indubit able evidence for the completed union of the god-savior and god-king ideas. The inscription directs that statues of Ptolemy as soter of Egypt be made and that one be set up in every temple of Egypt for the priests and the people to worship. Figures of Ptolemy in gold are to 142 Breasted, A History of the Ancient Egyptians, N. Y., 1911, p. 276 f. 143 Breasted, Development of Religion and Thought in Ancient Egypt p. 16; Maspero, Comment Alexandre devint dieu en Egypte, ficole des Hautes fitudes annuaire 1897; Lucian, Dialogues of the Dead XIV; Lietzmann, Der Weltheiland; Reitzenstein, Poimandres 308 ff, Case Evolution of Early Christianity, pp. 195-238. 144 The Harvard Collection of Coins supplies the following data: Period VA (B. C. 280-190) #26 Bactria: Diodotou soteros; #27 Euthudemou theon. Period VII A (B. C. 100-1) #14 basilissa Kleopatra thea neotera; #20 Bactria: basileos megalou soterou kai philopatoros Apollodotou; #21, Hermaeus: basileos soteros Hermaiou. 146 Plutarch, Demet. 10. 146 Dittenberger, Sylloge #202, Diodor. XX, 10, Pausanias I 8:6, Wendland, Kul- turgesch Beilage 1. Deissmann Light from the Ancient East 349. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 37 be made and placed in gold shrines which are to be set side by side with the shrines of the gods and carried about in procession with them. The priests are to be known as the "priests of the beneficent god Ptolemy Epiphanes who appeareth on earth." Soldiers may borrow the shrines with the figure of Ptolemy inside of them and a copy ofthe decree is to be set up in certain temples "side by side with the statue of Ptolemy the ever living god." Ptolemy is described as the "living image of Zeus, God of God, descended from God, son of Isis." Henceforth the soter title occurs constantly.147 It is attested for' Antiochus,148 Mithridates,149 Antiochus IV,160 Antiochus I. Com- magene,161 Pompey,162 Verres,163 Marcus Agrippa,164 Julius Caesar163 and many others. Plutarch relates how Camillus, Pelopidas, Sulla, Cato the Younger were called soter. If the historian is guilty of read ing back the usage of his own time, we at least may observe how very frequent the employment of soter then was.156 11. The significance ofthe soter-idea. We have briefly traced the history of the soter-idea in the Graeco- Roman civilization and may now summarize the acknowledged results ofthe study ofthe jo/ifr-problem. The underlying idea in soter is that of helper in time of need. The deliverance may involve protection on some dangerous journey, escape from shipwreck, rescue in battle, removal of economic distress, banishment of pest or plague or the doing away with any kind of ob struction. Further an eschatological emphasis developed about the idea because of its connection with the mystery religions. But the principal point is that the idea of soter involves the god-idea. When the delivered person was unfamiliar with the name of the god who had come to his assistance, he called the unknown god soter. If the deliverance occurred in such a way as to be associated with the func tion of any known god, soter would immediately become a temporary title ofthe god in question. A series of rescues by the same god would inevitably cause the temporary title to become a permanent title. 147 See especially Wendland, Zeitschrift fuer die N. T. Wissenschaft 1904, 335 ff. 148 Kornemann, Zur Geschichte des antiken Herrscherkultes I 68-78 ff. 149 Cicero pro Flacco 60. 150 Dittenberger, Orient Inscrip. 253. 151 Dittenberger, Or. Gr. Inscrip. Selectae I, 383. 152 Dittenberger, Sylloge I 337-40. 153 Verres, Act II 2, 1S4. 154 Collitz, Dialekinscrip. I 219. 165 Dittenberger, Or. Ins. 346 f, Sylloge I, 347. 166 Camillus 11, Pelopidas 12, Sulla 34, Cato Minor 71. 38 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER Originally soter was a title limited to the gods. The god's employ ment of some person as agent and the heroising of the conspicuous and powerful dead promoted the attachment of soter to heroes, and then to men who had in some extraordinary manner demonstrated themselves deliverers. Thereupon, during the period of the hellenization of the East, the Oriental god-king idea plus an eschatological emphasis fused with the Greek jofer-conception. Hence, in the religious vocabulary of the ordinary man in the first century, soter was a term of very complex content. But the one ele ment practically universally present in soter was theos. Alexander, the Ptolemies, the Seleucids, Pompey, Verres, Agrippa, Julius Caesar, Augustus are theos as well as soter. When we are near soter, we are also near theos. And it should be borne in mind that a great variety of significance attaches to theos.137 An exception to this rule of theos- soter would be the employment of soter as descriptive term without title value. Honors equal to those of the gods are bestowed on the Ptolemies. The Rosetta stone inscription is filled with the idea of deity. Antiochus IV. is epiphanes, ktistes, as well as soter. The world is described as full of temples to Pompey. Julius Caesar is the god epiphanes, the offspring of Ares and Aphrodite as well as the common savior of humanity.158 Augustus is divine, son of Jupiter, god. After B. C. 40, Augustus called himself divi filius. After the battle of Actium, Octavius was associated with the gods in hymns of praise. In B. C. 7, the genius of Augustus was added to the cult of the Lares compitales. "The whole world regarded Augustus as equal to the Olympians" is the judgment of Philo. "You (Augustus), while in life, are honored as divine, and vows and oaths are taken at your shrine."169 "Who is the god this people shall invoke to save a realm that rushes to its fall?"160 "Toa godlowethis blest repose; to him as god I bow."161 The inscription of Priene puts it: "Providence has sent this man to us and to coming generations as a soter, he will make an end to all struggle and mould things gloriously . . . the birthday 167 For a most valuable summary on the usage of theos, see Harnack, History of Dogma I, 119, note 2. 168 Inscription from Ephesus, B. C. 48, Dittenberger Sylloge 347; statue in the temple of Quirinus in honor of Caesar inscribed "to the invisible god," cf Angus, Environment of Early Christianity, 1915, p. 86 f. 169 Horace, Epistles II, 1, IS (Conington). 160 Horace, Odes I 2, 25 cf IV 5, 31 f. 161 Virgil, Eclog. I, 7. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 39 of the god has led the world to the messages of joy."162 The gods of the mystery cults are called soteres. The holy scriptures of the Jews tended to restrict soter to Yahweh. To put it tersely, to say soter was to say theos. When the author of the epistle to Titus says, "looking for the blessed hope and epiphany of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,"163 he summarizes the ordinary content of the soter-idea in the culture of his day. Theos soter is a rather fixed, inseparable religious combination in the civilization of the Roman empire. "No one could be a god any longer unless he was also a savior" had its complement in no one could be a savior without being a god.164 162 cfDia de patroon kai sotera tou koinou tou anthropou genous, number 894 of in scriptions from Halicarnassus in British Museum, Wendland, Kulturges. 410. 163 Titus 2:13. 164 The Harvard Collection of Coins supplies the following data: Period V A (B. C. 280:190) # 26 Diodotou soteros; #27 Euthudemou theou; Period VII A (B. C. 100-1) #14 basilissa Kleopatra thea neotera. IV. THE EXPLANATION OF THE PRIMITIVE CHRISTIAN FAILURE TO APPLY THE TITLE SOTER TO JESUS Our study has shown that primitive Christianity needed a soter, that the early church to the time of Paul avoided calling Jesus soter, that the idea of soter in the religious vocabulary ofthe Graeco-Roman world was bound up with the idea of theos. We should now seek the explanation of this manifest failure to apply the title soter to Jesus. 12. Christianity and the imperial employment of the title soter. It might be plausibly argued that the appropriation of the title soter by the Roman emperors sufficiently accounts for its avoidance by the primitive Christian community. Whatever may be affirmed of various groups of Christians, this reason would not account for the universal omission of the title soter. The favorite Pauline title kyrios was also employed of the Roman emperors. Moreover, the title soter was by no means restricted to the Roman emperors. It was em ployed by the Jews, in gnosticism, in the mystery religions, in case of numerous Greek gods and especially in the cult of the god of healing. But the fallacy lies deeper. The argument for the avoidance of soter because of opposition to the Roman empire presupposes that Christianity entered the Graeco-Roman civilization as a world religion, challenging publicly all existing cults. Whereas, the evolu tion of the distinctiveness of Christianity was very gradual. For decades the Roman empire identified Christianity with Judaism. It required the fire at Rome and the missionary propaganda and death of Paul as well as the Jewish insurrection of the seventh decade of the first Christian century to make the empire conscious of the separateness of Christianity. Within Christianity soter could have been used of Jesus for many years without in any way coming to the knowledge of the empire and without causing conscientious objections on the part ofthe followers of Jesus, for the holy scriptures of the Jews had employed the term soter. Again, it is after the menace of Christianity has been recognized by the empire that the title soter appears in Christian compositions. It is after A. D. 70, that soter becomes frequent. The situation really is that at the beginning when the Christian movement was little or- AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 41 ganized and insignificant, when no problem of attitude toward the overshadowing empire presented itself, the title soter is avoided by Christians, whereas at a time when it might have proved dangerous to employ the title or when there might have been scruples against its employment, Christians are using it. There is opposition to the imperial religion with the cult ofthe liv ing emperor in the revolutionary apocalypse of the New Testament. The decisive world-battle is the conflict between Christians and the cult of the emperor. The kyrios and his church in the end win the victory.166 The Johannine apocalypse avoids the title soter and this attitude of opposition to the empire is probably a contributing factor. Yet in other Christian circles the title soter puts in an appearance at just the time when the Johannine apocalypse reaches a larger audi ence. Finally, the path ofthe New Testament apocalypse to a secure place in the canon was by no means smooth. 13. The expansion of Christianity and the title soter. It has been suggested that the use of the Christian title soter runs parallel to the separation of Christianity from its original soil and its syncretism with hellenic culture. Jewish messianism and the title "Christ," it is said, were strange to the Gentiles and hence soter was employed to enable the Gentiles to appreciate Christianity.166 But soter was used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament and Christianity was on Gentile territory within a few years after the death of Jesus. Further "Christ" occurs some 350 times in Paul.167 All of his surviving letters are addressed to Gentile Christian churches. Yet soter with title value seems not to occur in the Pauline correspond ence. Moreover, soter is absent from the Epistle of Clement, the Epistle of Barnabas, the Shepherd of Hermas and the apologies of Aristides, Tatian, and Athenagoras. Barnabas avowedly allegorizes the holy scriptures of the Jews and completely appropriates them for Christianity. He should have given particular attention to the usage of soter in the Greek Old Testament. The Shepherd of Hermas has been shown to be acquainted with and dependent upon Poimandres.168 And no one would affirm that the Greek apologists with their numer ous allusions to Greek religion are unfamiliar with the terminology of the Greek religion. 166 Revelation 14:1, 5:12, 7:12. 166 Wendland, Kulturgeschichte 221; Wobbermin, Mysterienreligionen IOS ff. 167 On Paul's employment of Christ, see Case, Evolution of Early Christianity, 112 ff. 168 Reitzenstein, Poimandres 11 ff, 32 ff. 42 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER 14. The Christology of the primitive Christian church and the title soter. The only adequate explanation of the primitive Christian rejection of soter as title for Jesus is supplied by the Christology ofthe primitive church. (1) The Christology of the church prior to Paul and the title soter. One of the earliest titles applied to Jesus was son of God. Did this title prior to Paul possess ethical-religious, theocratic or metaphysical significance? The answer to our question is furnished by the narrative ofthe baptism and the temptation of Jesus.169 The description ofthe experience of Jesus at his baptism is very varied. It has been pointed out that the baptism of Jesus constituted a problem for Matthew and Luke and the primitive church in general.170 The fourth evangelist so modified it as to transform it. The "Western" form of Luke, attested also by Clement of Alexandria, adds "this day have I begotten thee." This was most inconvenient for Christians of the second century. Indeed, this form of text disappears after 400 A. D. The "this day" proved the significance of sonship to be ethical-religious: God loved Jesus in a special way and gave him a special work to do and therefore called him son.171 In the temptation narrative Jesus meets the tempta tions of the Messiah. The interpretation of the narrative of the temptation yields this precipitate: the early church regarded Jesus as Messiah in spite of his natural life because he submitted to the method of God and refused to enter into any coalition with the power of evil. The term "son of God" for the very primitive church had historical, ethical-religious connotation and not metaphysical value. Another title applied to Jesus by the primitive church was "Son of Man." But this title does not involve the equation Jesus is God. We shall pause only to recapitulate recent historical investigation of the complicated "Son of Man" question.172 The earlier study ofthe "Son of Man" problem was principally an exegetical evaluation of the passages ofthe New Testament concerned. The usual conclusion was that Jesus by its employment desired to indicate that he was human ity's ideal. About 1880, the historical method of study began to call attention to the phenomena of Daniel and related Jewish literature. 169 Mark 1:1 Iff; Luke 3:21ff; Matt. 3:16 ff; John 1:31 ff; gospel according to the Hebrews, Ebionite Gospel. 170 Harnack, Sprueche und Reden, Leipzig, 1907, p. 216. 171 Cf Acts 13:33, Hebr. 1:5. 172 Based on Theolog. Rundschau 1900, p. 201 ff, Bousset, Kyrios Christos 6-27, Religion des Judentums (revised edition) p. 297 ff (305 note 1, 307 note 2). AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 43 ror various reasons it seemed unwarranted to let Jesus employ the title heavenly Son of Man of himself. Consequently, the interpreta tion varied between temporary messianic existence, anticipatory em ployment, and humanity's ideal. As soon as it was conceded that Jesus spoke Aramaic, a new period in the interpretation of the title "Son of Man" began, for its Aramaic equivalent must be discovered. In 1894 bar 'nasa' was assumed to be the underlying Aramaic equiva lent ofthe odd expression "the Son of Man." But as this Aramaic ex pression was assumed to signify "the man," messianic significance was denied the title. Somewhat later it was argued that the title "Son of Man" never existed in the Aramaic and therefore Jesus did not apply such a title to himself. But the data of Enoch soon compelled the definite acknowledgment that "Son of Man" does occur in Enoch. The only point remaining subject to debate as far as Enoch was con cerned was whether "Son of Man" in Enoch had technical significance. In 1898 it was pointed out that the Jerusalem-Palestinian Aramaic of the period of Jesus had 'nas for man, that the singular bar 'nas was of rare occurrence and only found in imitation of the Hebrew Old Testa ment. It was only later that bar 'nas became the customary ex pression for man. To put it another way, in the time of Jesus bar 'nas was felt to be an archaic, poetical expression. Further, the definite, determined bar 'nasa' is not to be discovered in the Aramaic. Thus it might be granted that bar 'nasa' could develop technical meaning, title significance. And because Jewish apocalypticism was fond of mysterious terms, it was all the more probable that "the man" should become a messianic title. The outcome of the long controversy was to locate "Son of Man" within the terminology of Jewish apocalypti cism. It was recognized that the idea of pre-existence attaches to the title "Son of Man." "Son of Man" is the transcendent, pre existent Messiah, "the primitive man," "the second man," who ap pears in the clouds of heaven, who participates in the world assize. But never does "Son of Man" signify God. Therefore the primitive church by employing the title "Son of Man" is not calling Jesus theos. The primitive church also called Jesus kyrios. The origin of this title is not clear. The usual interpretation traces it to the Aramaic Christian community, especially because Paul taught his Gentile converts the phrase maran atha.173 A very recent view isthatthe title 173 Case, Journal of Biblical Literature, 1907, p. 153 ff. 44 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER kyrios originated in the church at Antioch.174 Whatever the origin of the title kyrios, did it signify to the primitive Christian that Jesus was theos^ To anticipate a possible objection that the employment ofthe title ho kyrios of Jesus demonstrates that for the early Christians, Christ was theos, we must briefly consider the usage of kyrios. It is well known that a number of Greek gods and goddesses were called kyrios or kyria. The list includes Artemis, Atargatis, Athena, Hecate, Isis, Apollo, Asclepius, Dionysus, Hades, Hermes, Osiris, Sabazius and Zeus.176 Moreover, although the Rosetta stone does not contain an absolute ho kyrios, Ptolemy XIII. is called "the lord, king, and god" and Ptolemy XIV. and Cleopatra "the lords, the most great gods." Further, the native heath ofthe title kyrios is Asia Minor, Egypt, and Syria. It apparently played no important role in the national Greek religion. Caligula, Claudius, and Nero were called kyrios and Domi tian was called dominus et deus noster.173 The earlier strata of New Testament material seem to avoid kyrios as title of Christ. Thus, Q has no instance and Mark but one instance in the author's narrative of the use of kyrios as title of Christ.177 Mat thew likewise has kyrios but once or twice.178 There is no altogether certain instance of kyrios as title of Christ in the first nineteen chap ters of Johannine gospel. Luke, however, has the title more than a dozen times. And in the Pauline correspondence and the rest of the New Testament, the title kyrios dominates. Another dissimilarity between the New Testament usage of soter and kyrios is the great variety of significance attaching to kyrios and also the unusually large number of occurrences of kyrios. Whereas soter occurs but twenty-four times in the entire New Testament, kyrios occurs hundreds of times. Whereas soter is restricted to God and Christ, kyrios is employed of any insignificant or significant lord ship. Whereas soter theos is an inseparable combination, kyrios may not be thus limited. The Greek writers employ kyrios not only of the gods but of the master of the house, the head of the family, the guardian of children, 174 Bousset, Kyrios Christos p. 108 ff. 176 For complete list and attestation, see Drexler in Roscher II, 1 col. 1755 ff; Harnack History of Dogma I 119 note 1. 176 Bousset, Kyrios Christos 113 ff, Deissmann Light from the Ancient East p. 353 ff. 177 Mark 11:3. F 178 Matt. 21:3, 28:6. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 45 any trustee. The Greek Old Testament employs kyrios of Abraham, Esau, Joseph, the king of Egypt, the king of Israel, Nebuchadrezzar, Eglon of the Moabites, overlords in general, not to mention the uni versal use of the vocative.179 The New Testament continues the same broad usage of kyrios. "And when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the laborers and pay them their hire."180 "Watch therefore: for ye know not when the lord of the house cometh."181 "And as they were loosing the colt, the lords thereof said unto them. Why loose ye the colt?"182 "The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expecteth not."183 "What shall I do seeing that my lord taketh away the stewardship from me?"184 "A certain maid having a spirit, a Python, met us, who brought her lords much gain by her soothsaying."185 "But I say that so long as the heir is a child, he suffereth nothing from a bond-servant though he is lord of all."186 "As Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord."187 "As there are gods many and lords many."188 These instances which could be greatly extended and which make no use ofthe vocative are sufficient to emphasize the wide range of meaning attaching to kyrios as well as its constant em ployment apart from theos. A quotation from the Old Testament found at Mark 1 :3, Matthew 3 :3, Luke 3 :4 finely illustrates how the writers of the New Testament discriminate between kyrios and theos.139 In Isaiah 40:3, the prophet says: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ready the way kyriou Make straight the paths tou theou hemon. In the New Testament this has become: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ye ready the way kyriou Make his paths straight!" Christ was kyrios and the kyriou of the Old Testament is retained. 179 Gen. 18:12, 32:4, 5, 44:8, 45:8, 40:1; Daniel 4:21; Judges 3:25;Isa. 26:13, etc. 180 Matt. 20:28. 181 Mark 13:35. 182 Luke 19:33. 183 Luke 12:46. 184 Luke 16:3. 185 Acts 16:16. 186 Gal. 4:1. 187 1 Pet. 3:6. 188 1 Cor. 8:5. 189 On the following quotation and statistics, see Case in Journal of Bibl. Lit. 1907, p. 151 ff; Sanders in Bibl. Sacra, April, 1914, p. 275 ff. 46 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER But kyrios is not the equivalent of theos and therefore tou theou of the Greek Old Testament is transformed into "his" in the New Testament. New Testament statistics regarding the usage of theos and kyrios con firm this inference. Theos is used of God some thirteen hundred times in the New Testament. Kyrios is used of Christ some four hundred times. Outside of quotations from the Old Testament, the writers tend to restrict kyrios to Christ. Christ is called theos at the very most only a few times in the later strata of the New Testament. If kyrios signified theos, how comes it that with such frequency of employment of theos in the New Testament, theos should only so late and so rarely have been applied to Christ? Moreover, inasmuch as the primitive Christians worshipped Christ190 and applied Old Testament scripture originally employed of Yahweh to him, it is all the more remarkable that they do not call Christ theos and that kyrios did not soon become the equivalent of God. The three representative answers regarding the original significance of kyrios are: "Kyrios does not imply that Christ is elevated to the place of Yahweh but is descriptive of his heavenly authority over the community in the spiritual sphere;"191 "by kyrios the early Christians meant the complete lordship of Jesus. He directed and controlled the entire life ofthe Christian. It meant that God had given to Christ the sovereignty of the world. It denoted that Christ shared the sovereignty with God;"192 "kyrios denoted that Jesus was Lord of the life ofthe Christian community especially as this life manifested itself in worship; denoted Jesus Christ as worshipped by the Christian community."193 There is agreement here that kyrios is not to be equated with theos. The primitive church preserved a number of sayings of Jesus which beyond question subordinate Christ to God. In the controversy with the Pharisees regarding the secret of his power over daemons and in refutation of the Pharisaic hypothesis that Jesus cast out daemons by Beelzebul, the prince of daemons, Jesus states, "Whosoever says a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whosoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven neither in this world nor in the world to come."194 Jesus here clearly discriminates between him self and the higher power under whose sway he feels himself to be. 190 II Cor. 1:20, 12:8; Col. 3:16 f. 191 Case, ibid, p. 160. 192 Lietzmann on Romans 10:9. 193 Bousset, Kyrios Christos, p. 105. 194 Matt. 12:32. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 47 The fourth evangelist preserves the tradition that "even his brothers did not believe in him."195 Mark records that the family of Jesus "set out to get hold of him, for what they said was, 'He is out of his mind.' "199 In the eschatological discourse, Jesus says, "Now no one knows any thing about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, not even the Son, but only the Father."197 The knowledge ofthe son is limited. He shares the counsels of God as no other, but the time of the end he does not know. There is another passage which should be taken at its face value. "As he went out on the road a man ran up and knelt down before him. 'Good teacher,' he asked, 'what must I do to in herit life eternal?' Jesus said to him, 'Why call me good ? No one is good, no one but God.' "198 Our examination ofthe documents ofthe primitive church prior to Paul has shown the absence of the proposition Jesus is soter and also the absence of the proposition Jesus is theos. (2) The Christology of Paul and the title soter.™ Paul's view of the Son of God involves a relation between two persons, a relation not due to appointment but originating in God. This Son of God was pre-existent and of the Davidic line when he ap peared in the flesh. He was established reigning Son of God in con nection with his resurrection from the dead.200 The pre-existent one though possessing the mode of being characteristic of God did not seize equality with God but became incarnate. Even prior to the incarnation, Christ was not metaphysically identical with God. He was like God yet other than God.201 He was the second man, the heavenly man.202 Christ reveals to men the otherwise incomprehensible God. Christ outranks every creature, because everything in heaven and on earth, the seen and the unseen, thrones, sovereignties, powers, mights were created in him; everything came into being through him and is limited by him. Christ heads everything and the cosmos is grounded in him.203 But nowhere does the apostle equate the Son of God with theos. 195 John 7:5. 196 Mark 3:21. 197 Mark 13:32. 198 10:17, 18 cf also Mark 15:34; Luke 11:29, 7:23; Matt. 13:58. 199 See on this section, Weiss, Christ, the Beginnings of Dogma, Boston, 1911; Bousset, Kyrios Christos; Weinel, Bibl. Theologie des N. T., Granbery, Outlines of N. T. Christology, Chicago, 1909. 200 Rom. 1:1 ff, 8:3; Gal. 4:4; Phil. 2:6ff; Col. 1:15 ff. 201 Phil. 2:5 ff. 202 1 Cor 15:47. 203 Col. 1:15-17. 48 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER There is a Christ mysticism in Paul.204 The mysticism ofthe mystery religions issues in identity with God. There men cease to exist as men. They are god. But Paul never says, "I am Christ." In spite of all mysticism Paul preserves his own individuality. Christ remains transcendent, and Paul remains practical.206 In the same way even in the Pauline mysticism Christ does not merge with theos.203 In II Corinthians 3 :17 the apostle says, "the Lord is the Spirit."207 And "Lord" here equals Christ. This identification of Christ and the Spirit occurs in cosmological speculation. The Christian is in Christ as in the Spirit.208 Christ is in the Christian as the Spirit is in the Christian.209 There are other similar comparisons.210 Christ is a heavenly power, a cosmic personal energy in which the Christian is and lives. On the other hand, Paul discriminates between the Spirit and Christ. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty."211 "Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are diversities of ministrations and the same Lord."212 Though Paul equates the Lord and the Spirit, he nowhere equates the Lord and theos. Moreover, there is very positive evidence that Paul both discrim inated between Christ and God and also subordinated Christ to God. The Christian belongs to Christ, but Christ belongs to God: "ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's."213 The Christian confession is not that Jesus is theos but that Jesus is kyrios: " Because if thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus as kyrios and shall believe in thy heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."214 The majestic name conferred upon the obedient one was not theos or soter but kyrios: "Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name . . . that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is kyrios to the glory of God the Father."216 For Paul there is but one God: "For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or on earth; as there are gods many, and lords 204 1 Cor. 6:17; Gal 3:27; Col. 1:27, 2:6, 3:3, etc. 205 II Cor. 5:14 ff, Gal. 3:28. 206 Col. 3:3, Rom. 6:10, Phil. 2:13, I Cor. 3:16. 207 Cf Bousset's interesting discussion in Kyrois Christos, p. 126 ff. 208 Rom. 8:9, II Cor. 5:17. 209 1 Cor. 3:16, Rom. 8:9. 210 I Cor. 16:24, Col. 1:8; Rom. 14:17, II Cor. 5:21, I Cor. 6:11, Gal 2:17. 211 II Cor. 3:17. 212 1 Cor. 12:4 ff. 213 1 Cor. 3:23. 214 Rom. 10:9. 216 PhiL 2:9-11; on Rom. 9:5, see Sanday-Headlam commentary in loco and Bousset, Kyrios Christos, p. 185. ' AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 49 many; yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things and we unto him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and we through him."216 In I Corinthians 15:23-28, Paul out lines the cosmic program, narrating the resurrection, the overthrow of all the opposing powers. Finally, the kingdom is delivered to God and the Son himself is subjected to God, that "God may be all in all." Jewish monotheism survives in Paul the Christian with noteworthy persistence. Paul nowhere sustains the equation, Christ equals theos. (3) The Christology of various primitive Christian documents omitting the title soter.217 The subordination of Jesus to God appears throughout I Peter.218 Christ is kyrios: "But sanctify in your hearts Christ as kyrios."219 The author's Christology is epitomized in these words: "if any man speaketh, speaking as it were oracles of God; if any man ministeretrh, ministering as ofthe strength which God supplieth: that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, whose is the glory and the dominion forever and ever."220 The word soter does not occur in I Peter and Jesus is not called theos. In the epistle of James, God is clearly supreme. Prayer is addressed to God: "But if any of you lacketh wisdom, let him ask of God;" "therewith bless we the Lord and Father."221 The believer draws nigh to God and is subject to him.222 God tempts no man but as Father bestows good and perfect gifts.223 God is one. The parousia of Christ is mentioned in passing.224 Christ is kyrios but not theos.223 There is not the slightest trace of the equation, Christ equals theos and soter is not employed. The socalled Epistle to the Hebrews emphasizes the idea of salva tion. Testament, priesthood, sacrifice of Christ, death of Christ, shedding of blood are primary words of his theological vocabulary. Jesus became incarnate to die and thus "bring to naught him that had power of death, that is, the devil."226 "And apart from the shedding 216 1 Cor. 8:5, 6. 217 The earlier strata of synoptic material have been examined under 14 (1) (2). To raise the question ofthe authors' personal Christology is not pertinent to this investiga tion. 218 1 Pet. 1:3,2:5,3:22. 219 3:15. 220 4:11. 221 James 1:5,3:9. 222 4:7, 8. 223 1:13, 17, 27; 3:9. 224 2:19. 226 5 :7. 226 Hebrews 2:14. 50 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER of blood there is no remission."227 "But now once at the consumma tion of the ages hath he been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself."228 " But he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins, forever sat down on the right hand of God."229 "So Christ also, having been once offered to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time, apart from sin, to them that wait for him unto salva tion."230 Jesus is the author of eternal salvation. Jesus is the high- priest, one of the author's favorite terms.231 With such an emphasis on salvation, soter would almost seem essential to the complete descrip tion of Jesus. But soter nowhere appears. The humanity of Jesus is one of the chief interests of the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews. "We have a high-priest that hath been in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin;" "who in the days of* his flesh offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying unto him that was able to save him from death;" "for in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted"232— passages like these show how the synoptic picture of Jesus had made a permanent impression on the author of Hebrews. There is constant discrimination in Hebrews between God and Christ. God is supreme. Christ is subordinated to God. God made Jesus a little lower than the angels,233 made Jesus perfect through suffering.234 God appointed Jesus son and high-priest.235 Christ learned obedience through the things which he suffered.236 Christ came to do God's will.237 God is the judge of all.238 Indeed, terminology reminis cent of an adoptive sonship of Christ is found. Thus in Hebrews 1 :5, "for unto which ofthe angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I- begotten thee ? I will be to him a Father, And he shall be to me a Son."239 Just so Christ was constituted high-priest.240 It may be difficult to ascertain when Jesus was appointed son or high- priest, but the appointive, declarative, acclaiming, constituting ele- 227 9:22. 228 9:26. 229 10:12. 230 9:28. 231 4:14, 7:25 f, 9:24, 10:12. 232 4:15, 5:7 ff, 2:10 f, 18. 233 2 :9. 234 2:10. 235 1:5, 5:5, 10. 236 5:8. 237 10:7. 238 12:2, 23. 239 cf 5:5. 240 5:6, 10. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 51 ment may not be obliterated from the idea of sonship. This is deci sively settled by Hebrews 7:28, where for the fourth time the ap pointive element is emphasized : " For the law appoints human beings in their weakness to the priesthood; but the word of the oath which was after the law appoints a Son who is made perfect forever."241 The idea of the eternity of Christ does not at all exclude the idea of ap pointment to sonship. And at the close ofthe incarnate period, Christ merely sits down " at the right hand of the throne of God."242 Finally, the eleventh chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews indicates how everything centers in God. Favorite titles of Christ in Hebrews are Son, High-priest, and Lord.243 Christ's pre-existence is assumed.244 Through Christ God made the cosmos: "through whom he also made the worlds;" "thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foundation of the earth. And the heavens are the works of thy hands: They shall perish; but thou continu- est: . . . thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail."246 All the angels ofthe Lord are summoned to the worship ofthe firstborn.246 The Son is superior to the angels and Moses and Melchizedek.247 The only verse in the Epistle to the Hebrews that could be cited to establish the equation, Christ equals theos is found in the first chapter: "but ofthe Son, he saith, thy throne,0 God, is forever and ever"248 — provided this is the correct translation. The context makes it plain that the emphasis is on the eternal sway of the Son and not on the ad dress. In verse five of this same first chapter occur words reminiscent of the adoptive stage of Christology. Further, it is difficult to under stand how God, who is the speaker, should say to his chosen Son, "thy throne, 0 God, is forever and ever." This would be a dualism not elsewhere discernible in our homily. This confusion becomes more confounded in verse nine, for we should be compelled to inquire what relation the speaker (God) sustains to the two gods here mentioned. Westcott proposed, "God is thy throne forever and ever" as the proper rendering of our verse and as the way out ofthe dilemma. The problem is more easily solved by recalling that verse eight of the first chapter of Hebrews is a quotation from the Old Testament. Even in 241 cf 1:2. 242 J2'2 243 1:5, 5:5, 7:28, 4:14, 7:27, 2:3, 7:14, 13:20, 1:10. 244 1:6, 10:5 ff, 2:14. 245 1 :2, 10 ff. 246 1:6. 247 1:4, 4:14— 10:18. 246 1:8. 52 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER the Old Testament passage the first "O God" is troublesome and is regarded as an insertion.249 Whatever difficulty is present in the Epistle to the Hebrews is due to the preacher's straight quotation from the Greek Old Testament. He did not pause to make any necessary ad justments because he was emphasizing the eternal sway of the Son and because according to his exegesis the quotation did not mean that Christ was theos. The remainder of the homily demonstrates that the "writer did not advance to the idea of an essential divinity of the Son in the sense of identity with God."250 The opposition of the Johannine apocalypse to the Roman empire might sufficiently account for its avoidance ofthe title or name soter. But even here it is nowhere affirmed that Christ is God. The author is at great pains to discriminate between God and Christ: "And he made us to be a kingdom, to be priests unto his God and Father;" "the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him;" "I have found no works of thine perfected before my God;" "he that overcometh I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God;" "and they cry with a great voice, saying, salvation unto our God who sitteth on the throne and unto the lamb;" "now is come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ;" "that keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus;" "to gather them together unto the war of the great day of God, the Almighty;" "but they shall be priests of God and of Christ."261 Moreover, Christ is subordinated to God. God is the God of Jesus.262 The believer is to share the sovereignty with Christ, as Christ shares the sovereignty with God.263 Christ is Son.264 God not Christ is the judge of the world.266 Usuallyit is God who is worshipped. "And they fell before the throne on their faces and worshipped God;" "and he said with a great voice, Fear God, and give him glory, for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made the heaven and and the earth and the sea and fountains of waters;" "and the four and twenty elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshipped God that sitteth on the throne, saying, Amen, Hallelujah;" "and I fell down before his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See 249 ct Kautzsch on Psalm 45:7. 260 Mac Neill, H. L.. The Christology of the Epistle to the Hebrews, Chicago, 1914, p. 102. aiRev.l:l,6;2:18;3:2,5, 12;7:10, 11, 17; 9:13;11:15;12:10, 17; 14:4,12^16:14,20:6. 252 1:6;2:7;3:2, 12. 253 3 -21 ^i'-.sM; 14:1. 265 3:5. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 53 thou do it not: I am a fellow servant with thee and with thy brethren that hold the testimony of Jesus: worship God;" "and he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am a fellow servant with thee and thy brethren the prophets and with them that keep the words of this book: worship God."266 There are other passages in the Johannine apocalypse where the Lamb is associated with God in worship; just as we previously ob served the primitive church worshipping Christ. The fifth chapter provides a good illustration. The Lamb has taken the "book written within and on the back, close sealed with seven seals." Thereupon the four living creatures and the four and twenty elders fall down before the Lamb. They have harps and the golden bowls of the prayers ofthe saints. They sing a new song. The chorus is continued by many angels and finally every created thing in heaven and on earth and on the sea says, "Unto him that sitteth on the throne, and unto the Lamb, be the blessing and the honor and the glory and the dominion forever and ever. And the four living creatures said, Amen. And the elders fell down and worshipped."257 Again, the innumerable multitude arrayed in white robes with palms in their hands, cry: "Salvation unto God who sitteth on the throne and unto the Lamb."258 In the first chapter the LivingOne has the keys of death and Hades,269 a power associated with God in apocalyptic tradition. The name of the one on the white horse is Logos of God, but the term here has to do with the judgment and conflict and is not used with the significance given it in the fourth gospel. Christ is also Lord of Lords, and King of Kings but Christ is not theos. Whether the Johannine apocalypse avoids soter because of opposition to the imperial cult may be debated. But the passage remains to be discovered in which Christ is equated with theos.230 In the Epistle of Clement there appears to be deliberate avoidance of the word soter. "This is the way, beloved, in which we found our salvation, Jesus Christ, the high-priest of our offerings, the defender helper (0ot]d6v) of our weakness;" "O thou who alone art able to do these things and far better things for us, we praise thee through Jesus 256 7:11, 11:17, 14:7, 19:4 f 10, 22:9. 267 5:8, 13 ff. 258 7.9 f 259 1:18 cf 3:7. 260 Even Buechsel, Die Christologie der Offenbarung Johannis, Halle, 1907, admits that he has not found such a verse. 54 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER Christ, the high-priest and guardian of our souls."261 Further, God is universally supreme and Christ is subordinated to him. We cite but one of a host of instances. "All who believe and hope on God shall have redemption through the blood of the Lord."262 The doxologies are in honor of God: "to glorify the name ofthe true and only God, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen."263 Christ is to be rever enced and God is to be worshipped.264 Three words are reserved for God: Oeos, deaworris, S-qp-tovpyos265 The unity of God is affirmed: "to glorify the name of the true and only God;" "have we not one God."266 The absolute monotheism of the author ofthe Epistle of Clement is illustrated in his prayer: "let all nations know thee, that thou art God alone and that Jesus Christ is thy child."267 Nowhere in this long letter to the church at Corinth is soter employed of Christ and nowhere is the equation Christ is theos found. In the Did ache, kyrios is the favorite title of Christ.268 Other titles employed are "Son," "Child," "Jesus Christ."269 The trinitarian for mula occurs: "baptize, in the Name ofthe Father and ofthe Son and ofthe Holy Spirit."270 Chapters 9 and lOemphasize the supremacy of God. Prayer is offered to the Father. In chapter 16:7, we read: "but not of all thedead, but as it was said, 'The Lord shall comeand allhis saints with him.' " Here language originally applied to Yahweh is used of Christ. Yet this is far removed from the proposition that Christ is God, as the passages in the New Testament involving a similar employment of Old Testament statements abundantly demonstrate. Thus once more we find the omission of soter coupled with data that Christ is not theos. In considering the Epistle of Barnabas, we must remember that the author was a stalwart among the allegorists and that the composition was "intended for some community, in which Alexandrian ideas pre- 261 36:1, 61 :3, 64:1, see further Stark, A. R., The Christology in the Apostolic Fathers, Chicago, 1912. 262 12:7 cf 7:4; 20:11; 26:1; 1:1, 3; 2:3, 8; 3:4; 8:1; 14:1; 19:2; 21:7; 24:1; 26:7; 30:3, 6; 33:2; 35:1, 6, 12; 4:1; 43:3; 50:3; 56:1; 65:2. 26343:6cf58:2, 61:3, 20:12, 50:7. 264 21:6; 38:2; 48:1, 50. 265 8:2; 11:1; 20:11; 33:1, 2; 20:11; 33:2; 35:3, etc. 266 43:6, 46:6, 58:2, 49:5 f. 267 59 :4 268 Didache 4:1, 12, 13; 6:2; 8:2; 9:5; 10:5; 11:2, 4, 8, etc. 269 9:2, 3, 4; 10:2; 7:1, 3; 9:4; 12:5. 270 7:1, 3. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS SS vailed."271 The allegorist is always in quest ofthe deeper meaning of an Old Testament statement. One illustration must suffice. "Learn fully then, children of love, concerning all things, for ' Abraham, who first circumcised, did so looking forward in the spirit of Jesus, and had received the doctrines of three letters. For it says, 'And Abraham circumcised from his household eighteen men and three hundred.' What then was the knowledge that was given to him? Notice that he first mentions the eighteen and after a pause the three hundred. The eighteen is I (ten) and H (eight) — you have Jesus — and because the cross was destined to have grace, in the T he says 'and three hundred.' So he indicates Jesus in the two letters and the cross in the other."272 By this method of interpreting the Old Testament, Barnabas is able to confiscate the Jewish scriptures for the Christian church: "It is ours: but in this way did they finally lose it when Moses had just received it."273 Barnabas has a broad view ofthe holy scriptures, deny ing the literal significance to the law and regarding the ceremonial en actments as the device ofa deceiving evil angel. He quotes Enoch as scripture274 and calls the apocalyptist Ezra prophet. Barnabas ascribes pre-existence to the kyrios.273 He discriminates between God and Christ.276 The subordination of Christ to the Father is clearly asserted, when the author remarks: "For it is written that the Father enjoins on him that he should redeem us from darkness and prepare holy people for himself."277 The only statement that could be quoted to vindicate the proposition that Christ is theos is, "thou shalt not com mand in bitterness thy slave or handmaid who hope on the same God, lest they cease to fear the God who is over you both; for he comes not to call men with respect of persons, but those whom the Spirit pre pared."278 The last statement is reminiscent of a saying of Jesus. Does Barnabas then assert that God is Christ? Recall, first of all, that our quotation appears in the portion of the Epistle of Barnabas which makes use of the document known as "the Two Ways," and the affirmation may be due to the document and not to the allegorist. The clause may also be a careless addition to the source. It is at any 271 Lake, Apostolic Fathers, New York, 1912, I 337. 272 Barnabas 9:7 f cf 6; 8:4 f; 10:1 ff; 11:1 ff; 12:1 ff; 14:1 ff. 273 4:6 f, 13:1 ff. 274 4:3. 275 5:5. 276 5:9; 7:2,9; 12:8 ff; 14:5. 277 14:6 cf chapter 16. 278 19-.7. 56 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER rate puzzling that "he" should be used when in the immediate context "God" has so repeatedly appeared. It may be that the author by employing "he" has in mind God in Christ. Possibly too the alle gorist has omitted the intervening link and has passed directly to his symbol. One who could say, "God says," "the prophet says," "the scripture says"279 without intending that we should conclude that he identifies "God" and "the scripture" could easily assign a saying of Christ to God without feeling that he was thereby affirming that Christ is identical with God. Indeed, the monotheism of "now may God, who is the Lord over all the world, give you wisdom, under standing, prudence, knowledge of his ordinances, patience. And be taught of God"280 cannot be discounted, and this quotation is from the same section ofthe Epistle of Barnabas. Hence, our conclusion is that the Epistle of Barnabas does not assert that Christ is theos and soter does not occur. The Shepherd of Hermas contains a rather perplexing Christology. The glorious angel is Michael; the glorious angel is the Son of God; the Son is the Spirit; the Spirit is the Church.281 Throughout this apocalypse, the author discriminates between God and Christ. God is very much in the foreground of the description. Christians pray to God, propitiate God, confess their sins to God, love God, serve God, fear God, obey the commandments of God, live to God, are saints of God, have been chosen of God — the entire Christian life and worship center on God.252 God is supreme: "the Holy Spirit which goes forth, which created all creation, did God make to dwell in the flesh which he willed." 2U The pre-existence and cosmic significance ofthe Son of God are affirmed in Similitude IX 12:1-3, 14:5. Two quotations will show that Hermas does not identify Christ with God-: "For the former ignorances,' said he, 'it is possible for God alone to give healing, for 'he has all power;' " "first of all believe that God is one, 'who made all things and perfected them .... and contains all things and is himself alone uncontained.' "284 And the Shepherd of Hermas does not contain the word soter. (4.) The Christology of primitive Christian documents containing the title soter. 279 2:4, 7, 10; 3:1; 4:11; 14:4. 280 21:5 f. 281 Sim. VIII 3:3, 1X8, 1:1. 282 Vis. I 1:9, II 1:2, 2:1; Sim. II, 6; Vis. I 2:1, 3:1; Vis. Ill 1:6, 8:8, 9:2; Mand. V 1:1. 283 Sim. V 6:5. 284 Sim. V 7:3, Mand. I. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 57 Thus far our study of the documents omitting soter has shown that they do not support the equation that Christ is theos. We should now examine the documents that contain the title soter to ascertain whether they also support the proposition that Christ is theos. The Pastoral Epistles furnish instances of soter as title both of God and of Jesus. The instances where soter is used of God confirm our previous conclusion that soter in the religious vocabulary of the first century was associated with theos. The other member of our equation is also sustained for Christ is here called theos. Thus, in the Epistle to Titus 2:13, "looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ." In the Johannine literature the title "Savior of the world" was twice employed of Christ. The Johannine gospel is a philosophical poem whose hero is Jesus the incarnate God and whose theme is salva tion. From those earliest moments near Jordan, at the very dawn of the new time, Jesus is the lamb of God bearing the sin of the whole world. The elaborate description of the trial and crucifixion forms the necessary sequel to the confession of the Baptist, "Behold, the lamb of God."285 Statements like "God sent not the Son into the world to judge the world but that the world should be saved through him;" "I am the resurrection and the life;" "And who is he that overcometh the world but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God" reveal the principal subject ofthe evangelist. Even the Samaritans so hated by the orthodox Jews make the great discovery that this one is the Savior of the world. The man born blind concludes that this is the Son of God. Jesus goes forth to meet death as a conqueror and not as the trembling man of Gethsemane. Jesus was sent to be the light and life ofthe world, to bestow life eternal, indestructible, the opposite of all dying and weakness. The fourth gospel definitely acclaims Jesus God. Jesus was the Logos. "And the Logos was God."286 "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom ofthe Father, he hath declared him."287 "For this cause there fore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but also called God his own Father making himself equal with God."288 "Not that any man hath seen the Father, only he who is 285 Cf. Heitmueller on the Gospel of John in Weiss' Die Schriften des N. T., Goet- tingen, 1907, 8. 286 1:1. 287 1:18. 288 5:18. 58 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER from God, he hath seen the Father."289 "And he said, 'Lord, I believe.' And he worshipped him."290 "The Jews answered him, 'For a good work we stone thee not but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.' "291 "And this is life eternal, that they should know thee, the only true God, and him thou didst send Jesus Christ" (how? "as the true God?").292 "Thomas answered and said unto him, 'my Lord and my God.' "293 "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life."294 In the Johan nine literature Christ is theos soter. Second Peter provided five instances of soter with reference to Jesus. Three times the expression "our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ," once the expression "the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ," once the expression "the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles" occurred. We observe, then, that Second Peter has theos soter. It is exceedingly difficult to draw the line between kyrios equivalent to God and kyrios equivalent to Christ in Second Peter. For example, in II Peter 3:10, "day ofthe Lord" is "day of Christ," but in II Peter 3:8-9 "the Lord" is clearly God. Are we to conclude from this that Christ is God? There are only two instances in II Peter in which kyrios certainly refers to God.295 There are eight instances in which kyrios certainly refers to Christ. The others are doubtful. However, the case may finally stand with reference to kyrios, we have one instance in which the author says "our God and Savior Jesus Christ." Therefore, II Peter sustains our thesis that where soter appears, there theos is also found. The Ignatian epistles contained four instances ofthe use of soter as title of Jesus.296 To answer our question whether Ignatius identifies Jesus with God, consider the following quotations from the genuine epistles. "I became acquainted through God with your much beloved name which you have obtained by your righteous nature according to faith and love in Christ Jesus our Savior. You are imitators of God 289 6:46. 290 9:38. 291 10:33. 292 J7:3_ 293 20:28. 294 1 John 5:20. 295 2:9, 11. 296 Ephes. 1:1, Magn. Intro. Phil. 9:2, Smyr. 7:1. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 59 and, having kindled your brotherly task by the blood of God, you com pleted it perfectly."297 "By the will ofthe Father and Jesus Christ our God."298 "There is one Physician who is both flesh and spirit, born and yet not born, who is God in man."299 "Let us therefore do all things as though he were dwelling in us, that we may be his temples and that hemay be our God in us."300 "For our God, Jesus the Christ, was conceived by Mary by the dispensation of God."301 "Beware therefore of such men; and this will be possible for you, if you are not puffed up, and are inseparable from our God Jesus Christ."302 "Abund ant greeting in Jesus Christ, our God."303 "Nothingvisible is good, for our God Jesus Christ being now in the Father is more plainly visible."304 "Suffer me to follow the passion ofmy God."305 "I give glory to Jesus Christ the God who has thus given you wisdom."306 "You did well to receive as deacons of Christ God, Philo and Rheus Agathopous who followed me in the cause of God."307 " I bid you farewell always in our God, Jesus Christ; you may remain in him in the unity and care of God."308 Evidently for Ignatius, Christ is theos soter. The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians contained "mercy and peace from God Almighty and Jesus Christ our Savior" and the martyrdom of Polycarp reads, "he is blessing our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of our souls."309 Both the epistle and the narrative are very practical in aim. The former is largely composed of New Testament quotations, while the latter is evidently modeled on the passion of Christ and the Acts of the Apostles. The intimate relation between Ignatius and Polycarp would presuppose acquaintance on the part of Polycarp with the Ignatian theory that Christ is God. But we need not depend on assumption. The letter of Polycarp states that its author is familiar with the Ignatian correspondence.310 Indeed, Poly carp transmits with approval Ignatian letters. And Ignatius writing 297 Ephes. 1:1. 298 Ephes. Introd. 299 7. 2 30015.3..301 18:2. 302 Trail. 7:1; "A" omits theou; text in doubt. 303 Romans Introd. 304 3.3. 305 6-3! 306 Smyrn. 1:1. 307 10:1 according to G (L); "deacons of God" according to BA. 308 Polycarp 8:3. 309 Martyrdom of Polyc. 19:2. 3i»13:2. 60 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER to Polycarp, bids him "farewell always in our God Jesus Christ."811 Hence in such a letter as that of Polycarp to the Philippians, we are not surprised to discover, "qui credituri sunt in dominum nostrum et deum Jesum Christum."312 And the Martyrdom of Polycarp, orig inating in the same vicinity some four decades later than the epistle to the Philippians would also formally sustain the equation that Christ is God, were it not so fundamentally biographical and modelled on the New Testament. The author's theology is obvious, for Polycarp when exhorted to "swear by the genius (tuchen) of Caesar" and to say, "away with the atheists (tous atheous)313 is represented as replying, "How can I blaspheme my king who saved me?" Christ is the Christian imperator in antithesis to Caesar the god and Christ is also savior. This is the significance ofthe answer of Polycarp, if we recall that the scene takes place in the East, where the emperors had long been equated with gods.314 The homily known as II Clement furnishes one instance of soter with reference to Jesus: "To the only invisible God, the father of truth, who sent forth to us the Savior and prince of immortality."316 And this sermon begins, "Brethren, we must think of Jesus Christ as of God."316 "And another scripture also says, T come not to call the righteous but sinners.' "317 The words of Jesus are scripture. "And he (i. e. Christ) says also in Isaiah, "This people honoreth me with their lips but their heart is far from me"318 — the Old Testament speaking is Christ speaking. "Let us then wait for the Kingdom of God from hour to hour in love and righteousness seeing that we know not the day of the appearing of God. For when the Lord himself was asked by some one when his kingdom would come, he said; When the two shall be one and the outside as the inside, and the male with the female, neither male nor female."319 "For when they hear from us that God says: 'It is no credit to you if ye love them that love you, but it is a credit to you if ye love your enemies and those who hate you"320 — Jesus speak ing is God speaking. "Let us then remain righteous and holy in our 311 8:3. 312 12:2 "et deum is omitted by some of the manuscripts of L." 313 9:2, 10:1. 314 See Wendland, Kulturgeschichte 149 ff and compare Pliny's "Carmen dicere Christo quasi deo" and especially Reitzenstein, Poimandres p. 176 ff on basileus soter. 315 II Clement 20:5. 316 1:1. 317 2:4. 318 3 .5 319 12:1 ffcf 17:4. 320 13:4. AS TITLE AND NAME OF JESUS 61 faith, that we may pray with confidence to God, who says, 'While thou art speaking, I will say, Behold here am I.' For this saying is the sign of a great promise; for the Lord says that he is more ready to give than we to ask."321 It would seem that the author of II Clement knows Christ as both soter and theos. The writings of Justin the Martyr contained numerous instances of soter employed of Jesus. Justin appropriated Old Testament passages involving God for Jesus. His view of the Old Testament permits him to assert that Christ is there called both God and Lord of Hosts and Jacob.322 "Moreover in the 'diapsalm' of the forty-sixth psalm refer ence is thus made to Christ: God went up with a shout . sing ye to our God."323 "Accordingly in the forty-fourth psalm, these words are in like manner referred to Christ .... thy throne, O God, is forever and ever."324 In the forty-eighth chapter of the Dialogue with Trypho, the Jewish opponent says: "When you say that this Christ existed as God before the ages . . . this appears to me to be not merely paradoxical but also foolish.' Justin replies: "Now assuredly, Trypho, the proof that this man is the Christ of God does not fail, though I be unable to prove that he existed formerly as Son of the Maker of all things, being God, and was born a man by the virgin."325 "Therefore these words (Ps. 45:7ff) testify explicitly that He is witnessed to by Him who established these things as deserving to be worshipped as God and as Christ."326 "Some scriptures . . . expressly show Christ as suffering, as to be worshipped and as God."327 "For if you had understood what has been written by the prophets, you would not have denied that He was God, son of the only, unbe gotten, unalterable God."328 "Christ being Lord and God, the Son of God."329 This evidence from the writings of Justin could be extend ed.330 But we should then only know what is already plain that Jus tin subscribes to the formula theos soter for Jesus. Melito, bishop of Sardis, refers to Christ as soter.331 Only fragments 321 15:3 f. 322 Dial 36:2. 323 37:1. 324 38:4. 326 48:1, 2. 326 63:5. 327 68:9. 328 126:2. 329 128:1. 330 See, e. g., Apol. 63, Dial 34, 115, 127. 331 Eusebius H. E. 4, 26, 13. 62 THE COMBINATION THEOS SOTER of his numerous treatises are extant. Yet they are sufficient to permit us to conclude that Christ was theos for Melito. Ovk kop.ev Xiduv ov8tp.lav alo-Qqaiv kxovruiv depairevrai, ctXXd p.6vov deov tov irpb iravroiv /cat eirt iravriav /cat tov Xpto-7-oD avrov ovtos deov \6yov ¦wpo ai&vosv ko-p.lv dprjo-KtvTai, Kai to. kl-fjs.m . . . Qtos yap &v 6p.ov Tt /cat ixvOpoj-rros reXetos 6 aii-rds rds Silo avrov ovaias hnaruo-aTO -qp.lv, Tt)v fiiv Oeor-qra avrov 5td t&v o-qpeiuv kv rrj rptertp Ty ptra to fiaTTio-pa, rr)v 8£ avdpic-iroT-riTa avTov kv rots rpta/coira XP°V0^ T0's tp° t°v /3a7TTto-/*aros, iv ots 5td to dreXes to Kara,