Did Jesus Think He Was the Messiah?

Episode Outline:
0:00 What did “Messiah” actually mean in Jesus’ own time?
1:07 Bart and Megan on busyness, New Year’s resolutions, and trying to slow down
4:30 Why modern Christians often misunderstand what “Messiah” meant in antiquity
6:48 How different Jewish groups imagined the future messianic figure
8:51 Why no Jewish source before Christianity expects a Messiah to die and rise again
10:20 Did Jesus’ followers think he was the Messiah before his death?
12:35 Do Old Testament passages that Christians cite as a suffering Messiah actually refer to the Messiah?
15:48 Why the disciples’ idea of messiahship had to shift so radically after Jesus’ death
18:50 How the idea of a suffering Messiah became a Christian innovation
20:04 Does Jesus ever identify himself as Messiah in the Gospels?
22:18 Why the Gospels’ picture of Jesus as a suffering Messiah must be separated from the historical question
23:35 Why Bart thinks Jesus expected to be the future king of Israel
27:27 Did Jesus think he was the Son of God, and what would that have meant historically?
31:26 Bart’s general course promo: online classes and discount code
32:16 Weekly Update: free live lecture series, Did Peter Hate Paul?
36:02 Listener Q&A: Q source leftovers, Greek and Roman influence, Gehenna vs. hell, and Luke’s census
46:42 Final summary: Christianity transformed the meaning of Messiah after Jesus’ death and resurrection

Episode Description
Megan asks Bart:

-What did the word “messiah” mean?

-Did it mean different things to different Jewish groups in antiquity?

-Do we know of any Jewish groups that thought the future messiah would die for the sins of others, and be raised from the dead?

-We’ve covered several times on the podcast that Jesus definitely did not fit the expected role, so most people didn’t think he was the messiah…did his followers view him as the messiah during his lifetime, or simply a particularly convincing prophet?

-Are the OT passages used to talk about a suffering and dying messiah actually talking about the messiah, or are they being taken out of conte-t?

-Why would their understanding of a “messiah” change so radically after his death?

-Did the followers of Jesus invent the idea of a suffering messiah?

-How do we begin to find out how Jesus saw himself? Does Jesus ever self-identify as a messiah in the gospels?

-When Jesus talks about being a messiah, is he being depicted as meaning a suffering messiah, or was he anticipating leading a military revolution?

-If Jesus thought he was the messiah…did he also think he was the son of god?

Also watch these episodes:
Why Did Paul Hate Jesus and His Followers?
Why Did Paul Hate Jesus and His Followers?

Why Did Paul Convert? Did He Convert?
Why Did Paul Convert? Did He Convert?

Was Luke Written by Luke? And Why Should We Care?
Was Luke Written by Luke? And Why Should We Care?