Toledot Yeshu
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(, ''The Book of the Generations/History/Life of Jesus''), often abbreviated as ''Toledot Yeshu'', is an early
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
text taken to be an alternative biography of
Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
. It exists in a number of different versions, none of which is considered either
canonical The adjective canonical is applied in many contexts to mean "according to the canon" the standard, rule or primary source that is accepted as authoritative for the body of knowledge or literature in that context. In mathematics, "canonical example ...
or normative within
Rabbinic literature Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. However, the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writ ...
, but which appear to have been widely circulated in Europe and the Middle East in the
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
period. A 15th-century Yemenite version of the text was titled , or the " Episode of Jesus", in which Jesus is described either as being the son of Joseph or the son of
Pandera Yeshu (Hebrew: ''Yēšū'') is the name of an individual or individuals mentioned in rabbinic literature, which historically has been assumed to be a reference to Jesus when used in the Talmud. The name ''Yeshu'' is also used in other sources ...
. The account portrays Jesus as an impostor. The Toledot portrays Jesus (known as by the author) as an
illegitimate child Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...
who practiced sorcery, taught a heretical Judaism, seduced women, and died a shameful death. Interestingly, the author also shows a paradoxical respect for Jesus. As Joseph Dan notes in the ''
Encyclopedia Judaica The ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' is a 22-volume English-language encyclopedia of the Jewish people, Judaism, and Israel. It covers diverse areas of the Jewish world and civilization, including Jewish history of all eras, culture, holidays, langua ...
'', "The narrative in all versions treats Jesus as an exceptional person who, from his youth, demonstrated unusual wit and wisdom, but disrespect toward his elders and the sages of his age."Dan, Joseph, "Toledot Yeshu" in ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'', 2nd ed. (2007)
Robert Van Voorst Robert E. Van Voorst (born June 5, 1952) is an American theologian and educator. He retired in 2018 as a Professor of New Testament Studies at Western Theological Seminary, in Holland, Michigan, and has published scholarly works in early Christ ...
calls the a record of popular
polemic Polemic () is contentious rhetoric intended to support a specific position by forthright claims and to undermine the opposing position. The practice of such argumentation is called ''polemics'', which are seen in arguments on controversial topics ...
"run wild." The 's profane portrayal of the person Christians consider
divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...
has provided fodder for
Christian antisemitism Antisemitism in Christianity, a form of religious antisemitism, is the feeling of hostility which some Christian Churches, Christian groups, and ordinary Christians have towards the Jewish religion and the Jewish people. Antisemitic Christian rh ...
and
anti-Judaism Anti-Judaism is the "total or partial opposition to Judaism as a religion—and the total or partial opposition to Jews as adherents of it—by persons who accept a competing system of beliefs and practices and consider certain genuine Judai ...
. Until the early 21st century (with few exceptions), mainstream Jewish and Christian scholars paid little attention to the . The opinion of noted advocate of Christian-Jewish reconciliation, Father Edward H. Flannery, is representative: This disregard has recently shifted towards a growing level of discussion on the text's possible scholarly use as a window into the early history of
Jewish-Christian relations Christianity began as a movement within Second Temple Judaism, but the two religions gradually diverged over the first few centuries of the Christian Era. Differences of opinion vary between denominations in both religions, but the most importa ...
.


Composition and dating

Recent scholarship has drawn attention to the date of origin of the . The earliest layers are considered to have been manufactured orally, and written source material of the is much older than the work itself. As Flannery states: The first textual evidence consists of fragments of
Aramaic The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...
manuscripts discovered in Cairo. A recent study reports that more than 100 manuscripts of the exist, almost all of them late medieval (the oldest manuscript being from the 11th century).Ben Ezra, Daniel Stokl, ''An Ancient List of Christian Festivals in Toledot Yeshu'', Harvard Theological Review, vol. 102, nr. 4 (Oct. 2009) pages 483-484. The earliest stratum of composition was probably in Aramaic. There are
recension Recension is the practice of editing or revising a text based on critical analysis. When referring to manuscripts, this may be a revision by another author. The term is derived from Latin ''recensio'' ("review, analysis"). In textual criticism (as ...
s extant in
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
, and later versions in
Judeo-Persian Judeo-Persian refers to both a group of Jewish dialects spoken by the Jews living in Iran and Judeo-Persian texts (written in Hebrew alphabet). As a collective term, Judeo-Persian refers to a number of Judeo-Iranian languages spoken by Jewish com ...
and
Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
, as well as in
Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
and
Ladino Ladino, derived from Latin, may refer to: * The register of Judaeo-Spanish used in the translation of religious texts, such as the Ferrara Bible *Ladino people, a socio-ethnic category of Mestizo or Hispanicized people in Central America especi ...
(Judeo-Spanish). The date of composition cannot be ascertained with certainty and there are conflicting views as to what markers denote dates. For instance, some manuscripts of the (called the Helena-recension and unattested before the 13th century) refer to Christian festivals and observances that only originated after the 4th century. This does not account for all of the manuscripts and those that were created earlier do not mention the festivals. In
Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...
's (likely written in the 3rd century AD), Origen quotes Celsus as calling Jesus " son of Pantera," which would point to Celsus' knowledge of the or its source material. In his ''Incredible Shrinking Son of Man'',
Robert M. Price Robert McNair Price (born July 7, 1954) is an American New Testament scholar. His most notable stance is arguing in favor of the Christ myth theorythe claim that a historical Jesus did not exist. Price is the author of a number of books on bi ...
states that the Toledot Yeshu is "dependent on second-century Jewish-Christian gospel", and Alexander argues that the oral traditions behind the written versions of the might go all the way back to the formation of the canonical narratives themselves. It is unlikely that one person is the author, since the narrative itself has a number of different versions, which differ in terms of the story details and the attitude towards the central characters. Even individual versions seem to come from a number of storytellers. Some scholars assert that the source material is no earlier than the 6th century, and the compilation no earlier than the 9th century. Although individual anecdotes that make up the may all come from sources dating before the sixth century, there is no evidence that their gathering into a single narrative is that early. Some scholars, like Jeffrey Rubenstein, favour a later composition date, after the 7th century. The earliest known mention is an oblique mention by
Agobard Agobard of Lyon (–840) was a Spanish-born priest and archbishop of Lyon, during the Carolingian Renaissance. The author of multiple treatises, ranging in subject matter from the iconoclast controversy to Spanish Adoptionism to critiques of th ...
,
archbishop of Lyon The Archdiocese of Lyon (Latin: ''Archidiœcesis Lugdunensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Lyon''), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Church metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The Archbishops ...
, , and then another mention by his successor, Amulo, . However, since Agobard does not refer to the source by name it cannot be certain that this is the . The source material for the can be said to derive from four sources: # Jewish rabbinic literature # canonical Christian scriptures; # noncanonical Christian writings; # pagan anti-Christian writings of the Roman period. The largest source of input to the seems to be anecdotes gathered from various parts of the
Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
and
Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''.
he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...
. These appear to be popular adaptations of material aimed against two Christian doctrines: the virgin birth and the ascension. Some of the Talmudic anecdotes are clearly fictitious or absurd, and some seem incompatible with each other or with known historical fact. In some instances, the Talmudic source of the is very obscure or of doubtful authenticity, and may not originally have been relevant to Jesus. Significantly, the seems to know (although sometimes only superficially) of the miracles of the canonical Gospels, and does not deny their occurrence, but instead attributes them to Yeshu's use of Egyptian magic, or his appropriation of the Ineffable Name (the
Divine Name The Tetragrammaton (; ), or Tetragram, is the four-letter Hebrew theonym (transliterated as YHWH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four letters, written and read from right to left (in Hebrew), are ''yodh'', '' he'', '' waw'', and ' ...
), but not to diabolical incantations. Some of the anecdotes recounted in the seem to have been drawn from non-canonical early Christian writings known as apocryphal gospels, datable to the 4th–6th centuries AD. The attribution of Yeshu's paternity to a soldier named Pandera or
Pantera Pantera () is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-kn ...
can be traced to the second-century Greek philosopher
Celsus Celsus (; grc-x-hellen, Κέλσος, ''Kélsos''; ) was a 2nd-century Greek philosopher and opponent of early Christianity. His literary work, ''The True Word'' (also ''Account'', ''Doctrine'' or ''Discourse''; Greek: grc-x-hellen, Λόγ ...
, although Celsus himself was citing a Jewish contemporary in his account. Jews apparently polemicised actively against the new Christian religion, as can be inferred from the 2nd century Christian writer
Justin Martyr Justin Martyr ( el, Ἰουστῖνος ὁ μάρτυς, Ioustinos ho martys; c. AD 100 – c. AD 165), also known as Justin the Philosopher, was an early Christian apologist and philosopher. Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and ...
's ''
Dialogue with Trypho The ''Dialogue with Trypho,'' along with the First and Second Apologies, is a second-century Christian apologetic text, usually agreed to be dated in between AD 155-160. It is seen as documenting the attempts by theologian Justin Martyr to show t ...
'', a fictional dialogue between a Christian and a Jew. In chapter 17 Justin claims that the Jews had sent out "chosen men" throughout the Roman Empire to polemicize against Christianity, calling it a "godless heresy". One early version of the gave a milder description of Christianity. It did not cast aspersions on the characters of
Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
and Jesus, instead it sought to undermine the tenets of the Christian faith. The goal was to seek the return of
apostates Apostasy (; grc-gre, ἀποστασία , 'a defection or revolt') is the formal disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that ...
to the Jewish fold. In keeping with this, Paola Tartakoff believes that the Toledot may have been modified by Jews to fit into specific situations.


Christian response

From the 9th through the 20th centuries, the has inflamed Christian hostility towards Jews. In 1405, the was banned by Church authorities. A book under this title was strongly condemned by
Francesc Eiximenis Francesc Eiximenis (; died 1409) was a Franciscan Catalan writer who lived in the 14th-century Crown of Aragon. He was possibly one of the more successful medieval Catalan writers since his works were widely read, copied, published and translated ...
( 1409) in his , but in 1614 it was largely reprinted by a Jewish convert to Christianity,
Samuel Friedrich Brenz Samuel Friedrich Brenz (born in Osterburg, in the latter half of the 16th century; date and place of death unknown) was an anti-Judaism writer, himself born Jewish. He converted to Christianity in 1601 in Feuchtwangen, and wrote ''Jüdischer Ab ...
, in Nuremberg, as part of his book vilifying his former religion, titled ''Skin Shed by the Jewish Snake''. An indirect witness to the Christian condemnation of the book can be found in one manuscript of the , which has this cautionary note in its introduction:
Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Reformation, Protestant Refo ...
quoted the Toledot (evidently the Strassburg version) at length in his general condemnation of Jews in his book in 1543. In the two centuries after Luther, the reached the height of its fame and was well sought after by scholars and travelers alike. In 1681 Professor
Johann Christoph Wagenseil Johann Christoph Wagenseil (26 November 1633 - 9 October 1705) was a German historian, Orientalist, jurist and Christian Hebraist. Life and career Wagenseil was born in Nuremberg on 26 November 1633. As a youth he was educated at Stockholm, Gre ...
published an entire volume devoted to refuting the Toledot. Attitudes towards the work became more diversified during the
Age of Enlightenment The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment; german: Aufklärung, "Enlightenment"; it, L'Illuminismo, "Enlightenment"; pl, Oświecenie, "Enlightenment"; pt, Iluminismo, "Enlightenment"; es, La Ilustración, "Enlightenment" was an intel ...
.


Historiography


Ramón Martí version, 13th century

Long unknown to Christians, the was first translated into
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
by
Ramón Martí Raymond Martini, also called Ramon Martí in Catalan, was a 13th-century Dominican friar and theologian. He is remembered for his polemic work ''Pugio Fidei'' (c. 1270). In 1250 he was one of eight friars appointed to make a study of oriental lan ...
, a Dominican
friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ol ...
, toward the end of the 13th century.


Strassburg Manuscript

In the
Strassburg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label= Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label= Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the E ...
Manuscript, Mary was seduced by a soldier called Ben Pandera. The child Jesus shows great impudence by appearing bareheaded and disputing the
Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
with teachers. The miracle working powers of Jesus are attributed to having stolen the
Name of God There are various names of God, many of which enumerate the various qualities of a Supreme Being. The English word ''god'' (and its equivalent in other languages) is used by multiple religions as a noun to refer to different deities, or speci ...
from the
Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
. Jesus claims messianic dignity and is accused of
sorcery Sorcery may refer to: * Magic (supernatural), the application of beliefs, rituals or actions employed to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces ** Witchcraft, the practice of magical skills and abilities * Magic in fiction, ...
by the Jews in front of Queen Helena of Jerusalem, but Jesus raises a man from the dead in front of the Queen's eyes and is released. Jesus goes to
Galilee Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Galil ...
where he brings clay birds to life and makes a millstone float. (Klausner notes that the scarcely ever denies Gospel miracles, but merely changes good to evil.)
Judas Iscariot Judas Iscariot (; grc-x-biblical, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης; syc, ܝܗܘܕܐ ܣܟܪܝܘܛܐ; died AD) was a disciple and one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. According to all four canonical gospels, Judas betraye ...
, the hero of the tale, learns the Divine Name as well, and Jesus and Judas fly through the sky engaged in aerial combat, with Judas victorious. The now powerless Jesus is arrested and put to death by being hung upon a
carob The carob ( ; ''Ceratonia siliqua'') is a flowering evergreen tree or shrub in the Caesalpinioideae sub-family of the legume family, Fabaceae. It is widely cultivated for its edible fruit pods, and as an ornamental tree in gardens and landscap ...
tree, and buried. The body is taken away and his ascension is claimed by his apostles on the basis of the empty tomb. However, Jesus's body is found hidden in a garden and is dragged back to Jerusalem and shown to Queen Helena.


Wagenseil version, 1681

Among the versions of the , the version published by Johann Christian Wagenseil is perhaps the most prominent. In 1681, Wagenseil, a professor at the
University of Altdorf The University of Altdorf () was a university in Altdorf bei Nürnberg, a small town outside the Free Imperial City of Nuremberg. It was founded in 1578 and received university privileges in 1622 and was closed in 1809 by Maximilian I Joseph of Ba ...
, published a Hebrew text of the with a Latin translation, in a book titled "Satan's Flaming Arrow" (). The first section treats Jesus's life; later sections deal with the exploits of his apostles. Supplementary chapters tell of
Nestorius Nestorius (; in grc, Νεστόριος; 386 – 451) was the Archbishop of Constantinople from 10 April 428 to August 431. A Christian theologian, several of his teachings in the fields of Christology and Mariology were seen as controve ...
and his attempts to keep Christians obeying Jewish custom, and the story of Simeon Kepha who is construed to be the
Apostle Peter An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...
or Paul. Jesus is portrayed as a deceiver and a
heretic Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...
, showing a connection to the traditions in
Celsus Celsus (; grc-x-hellen, Κέλσος, ''Kélsos''; ) was a 2nd-century Greek philosopher and opponent of early Christianity. His literary work, ''The True Word'' (also ''Account'', ''Doctrine'' or ''Discourse''; Greek: grc-x-hellen, Λόγ ...
and
Justin Martyr Justin Martyr ( el, Ἰουστῖνος ὁ μάρτυς, Ioustinos ho martys; c. AD 100 – c. AD 165), also known as Justin the Philosopher, was an early Christian apologist and philosopher. Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and ...
(see above).


Summary of Wagenseil version

A great misfortune struck Israel in the year 3651 (). A man of the tribe of Judah, Joseph
Pandera Yeshu (Hebrew: ''Yēšū'') is the name of an individual or individuals mentioned in rabbinic literature, which historically has been assumed to be a reference to Jesus when used in the Talmud. The name ''Yeshu'' is also used in other sources ...
, lived near a widow who had a daughter called Miriam. This virgin was betrothed to Yohanan, a Torah-learned and God-fearing man of the house of
David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
. Before the end of a certain
Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...
, Joseph looked lustfully at Miriam, knocked on her door and pretended to be her husband, but she only submitted against her will. When Yohanan came later to see her, she was surprised how strange his behavior was. Thus they both knew of Pandera's crime and Miriam's fault. Without witnesses to punish Pandera, Yohanan left for Babylonia. Miriam gave birth to
Yeshua Yeshua or Y'shua (; with vowel pointing he, יֵשׁוּעַ, Yēšūaʿ, labels=no) was a common alternative form of the name Yehoshua ( he, יְהוֹשֻׁעַ, Yəhōšūaʿ, Joshua, labels=no) in later books of the Hebrew Bible and among Jew ...
, whose name later depreciated to
Yeshu Yeshu (Hebrew: ''Yēšū'') is the name of an individual or individuals mentioned in rabbinic literature, which historically has been assumed to be a reference to Jesus when used in the Talmud. The name ''Yeshu'' is also used in other sources ...
. When he was old enough, she took him to study the Jewish tradition. One day he walked with his head uncovered, showing disrespect, in front of the sages. This betrayed his illegitimacy and Miriam admitted him as Pandera's son. Scandalised, he fled to
Upper Galilee The Upper Galilee ( he, הגליל העליון, ''HaGalil Ha'Elyon''; ar, الجليل الأعلى, ''Al Jaleel Al A'alaa'') is a geographical-political term in use since the end of the Second Temple period. It originally referred to a mountai ...
. Yeshu later went to the
Jerusalem Temple The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusa ...
and learned the letters of God's ineffable name (one could do anything desired by them). He gathered 310 young men and proclaimed himself the
Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...
, claiming
Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...
's "a virgin shall conceive and bear a son" and other prophets prophesied about him. Using God's name he healed a lame man, they worshipped him as the Messiah. The
Sanhedrin The Sanhedrin (Hebrew and Aramaic: סַנְהֶדְרִין; Greek: , ''synedrion'', 'sitting together,' hence 'assembly' or 'council') was an assembly of either 23 or 71 elders (known as "rabbis" after the destruction of the Second Temple), ap ...
decided to arrest him, and sent messengers to invite him to Jerusalem. They pretended to be his disciples to trick him. When he was brought, bound, before Queen Helen, the sages accused him of
sorcery Sorcery may refer to: * Magic (supernatural), the application of beliefs, rituals or actions employed to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces ** Witchcraft, the practice of magical skills and abilities * Magic in fiction, ...
. When he brought a corpse to life, she released him. Accused again, the queen sent for his arrest. He asked his disciples not to resist. Using God's name he made birds of clay and caused them to fly. The sages then got Judah Iskarioto to learn the name. At a contest of miracles between the two, they both lost knowledge of the name. Yeshu was arrested and beaten with pomegranate staves. He was taken to
Tiberias Tiberias ( ; he, טְבֶרְיָה, ; ar, طبريا, Ṭabariyyā) is an Israeli city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Fo ...
and bound to a synagogue pillar. Vinegar was given to him to drink and a
crown of thorns According to the New Testament, a woven crown of thorns ( or grc, ἀκάνθινος στέφανος, akanthinos stephanos, label=none) was placed on the head of Jesus during the events leading up to his crucifixion. It was one of the instru ...
was put on his head. An argument broke out between the elders and Yeshu followers resulting in their escape to
Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ ...
(or Egypt). On the day before the
Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday that celebrates the The Exodus, Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Ancient Egypt, Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew calendar, He ...
, Yeshu decided to go to the Temple and recover the secret name. He entered Jerusalem riding on an ass, but one of his followers, Judah Iskarioto, told the sages he was in the Temple. On a day before the Passover, they tried to hang him on a tree; using the name, he caused it (and any tree they should use) to break. A cabbage stalk, not being a tree, was used successfully to hang him on, and he was buried. His followers on Sunday told the queen that he was not in his grave, that he ascended to heaven as he had prophesied. As a gardener took him from the grave, they searched it and could not find him. But the gardener confessed he had taken it to prevent his followers from stealing his body and claiming his ascension to heaven. Recovering the body, the sages tied it to a horse's tail and took it to the queen. Convinced he was a
false prophet In religion, a false prophet is a person who falsely claims the gift of prophecy or divine inspiration, or to speak for God, or who makes such claims for evil ends. Often, someone who is considered a "true prophet" by some people is simultaneou ...
, she ridiculed his followers and commended the sages.


Huldreich version, 1705

A third major recension was published by Johann Jacob Huldreich (or Huldrich) in Leyden, Holland, in 1705, with a Latin translation, as by "Johannes Jocabus Huldricus". This was based on a Hebrew manuscript, now lost, and has its own unique variants. A summary of it is presented by Rev. Sabine Baring-Gould, ''The Lost and Hostile Gospels'' (1874, London) pages 102–115, who surmised (because of some of the errors and anecdotes) that it was of medieval German origin, perhaps not even predating Martin Luther (page 115). Baring-Gould noted (pages 69–71) that the Wagenseil version contains historical references that place its 'Yeshu' at least a century the Jesus and
Pontius Pilate Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of J ...
of the New Testament, and the Huldrich version contains references that place its 'Yeshu' at least a full century the time of the Gospels.


Krauss compilation, 1902

Samuel Krauss Samuel Krauss ( Ukk, 18 February 1866 - Cambridge, 4 June 1948) was professor at the Jewish Teachers' Seminary, Budapest, 1894–1906, and at the Jewish Theological Seminary, Vienna, 1906–1938. He moved to England as a refugee and spent his last y ...
reprinted a version recounting that
Miriam Miriam ( he, מִרְיָם ''Mīryām'', lit. 'Rebellion') is described in the Hebrew Bible as the daughter of Amram and Jochebed, and the older sister of Moses and Aaron. She was a prophetess and first appears in the Book of Exodus. The Tor ...
had been betrothed to a nobleman by the name of Yochanan, who was both a descendant of the House of David, and a God-fearing
Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the s ...
scholar. In Yochanan's absence her neighbor, Yosef ben
Pandera Yeshu (Hebrew: ''Yēšū'') is the name of an individual or individuals mentioned in rabbinic literature, which historically has been assumed to be a reference to Jesus when used in the Talmud. The name ''Yeshu'' is also used in other sources ...
forced himself upon her, coercing her into an act of
sexual intercourse Sexual intercourse (or coitus or copulation) is a sexual activity typically involving the insertion and thrusting of the penis into the vagina for sexual pleasure or reproduction.Sexual intercourse most commonly means penile–vaginal penetrat ...
during her
Niddah Niddah (or nidah; he, נִדָּה), in traditional Judaism, describes a woman who has experienced a uterine discharge of blood (most commonly during menstruation), or a woman who has menstruated and not yet completed the associated requirem ...
(i.e., menstruation, a period of ritual impurity during which relations are forbidden according to
Jewish Law ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also Romanization of Hebrew, transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Judaism, Jewish religious laws which is derived from the Torah, written and Oral Tora ...
). The fruit of the affair was a son she named Yeshu, "the bastard son of a menstruate woman." Krauss's book, , published in Berlin in 1902, contained a study of nine different versions of the , and remains the leading scholarly work in the field (but has not yet been translated into English). Krauss's work has been joined by '': The life story of Jesus'', which contains English translations of several versions of the and lists all of the known manuscripts ().


English versions

The first translation into English seems to date from 1874, when
Sabine Baring-Gould Sabine Baring-Gould ( ; 28 January 1834 – 2 January 1924) of Lew Trenchard in Devon, England, was an Anglican priest, hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist, folk song collector and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1,240 ...
published ''The Lost and Hostile Gospels'', which included lengthy summaries of two versions of the – one called the Wagenseil and one called the Huldreich (so named from the editor of a 1705 Latin edition) – as well as quotations and descriptions of apocryphal and lost gospels of early Christian history. He regarded the as being a kind of early anti-Christian folklore, largely motivated by the oppression suffered by Jews. In 1903,
G.R.S. Mead George Robert Stow Mead (22 March 1863 in Peckham, Surrey – 28 September 1933 in London) was an English historian, writer, editor, translator, and an influential member of the Theosophical Society, as well as the founder of the Quest Society ...
, a well known Theosophy (Blavatskian), Theosophist, published ''Did Jesus Live 100 BC?'', which treated the as sufficiently authentic and reliable to postulate, on the basis of its mention of historic figures such as Queen Helene, that Jesus actually lived a century earlier than commonly believed. Baring-Gould (page 71) notes that, although the Wagenseil version named the Queen as Helene, she is also expressly described as the widow of Alexander Jannaeus, who died BC 76, and whose widow was named Salome Alexandra and she died in BC 67. In 1937, the Jewish New Testament scholar Hugh J. Schonfield published ''According to the Hebrews'', which theorized that the was considerably more ancient than commonly thought and may have originally been derived from the Gospel of the Hebrews, a lost (and presumably heretical) book mentioned by name, but not otherwise described, in some early Christian literature. However, scholarly consensus generally sees the as an unreliable source for the historical Jesus. These books provided translations of the . Mead included some indelicate verses which Schonfield edited out, but Schonfield was the more erudite scholar, and he identified Talmudic and Islamic passages that may have supplied the content of the .


Parallels

Other Jewish polemic or apologetic sources: * Jesus in the Talmud * or ''The Book of Nestor the Priest'' * of Jacob Ben Reuben, 12th century * or Nizzahon vetus, 13th century * of R. Joseph hen R. Nathan l'official, 13th century (Paris MS) * ''The Touchstone'' of Ibn Shaprut * Hasdai Crescas * Leon of Modena The works bear striking resemblance to Christian legends regarding Simon Magus, and to 12th-century Christian portrayals of Muhammad.


Mentions in modern literature

The book is mentioned in the poem ''The Ring and the Book'' by Robert Browning. It is also mentioned in Mitchell James Kaplan's historical novel, "By Fire By Water." In Umberto Eco's ''Baudolino'', set in the XII century, the character Rabbi Solomon is introduced translating the for the curiosity of a Christian cleric.


See also

* Apocalypse of Zerubbabel *
Celsus Celsus (; grc-x-hellen, Κέλσος, ''Kélsos''; ) was a 2nd-century Greek philosopher and opponent of early Christianity. His literary work, ''The True Word'' (also ''Account'', ''Doctrine'' or ''Discourse''; Greek: grc-x-hellen, Λόγ ...
, 2nd century philosopher, author of ''The True Word'' * Marcello Craveri, historian and author of the similarly titled ''The Life of Jesus'' * Gospel of Barnabas * Historical Jesus * Historicity of Jesus * Historicity of the Gospels * Jesus in the Talmud * Jewish humor * Paul of Tarsus and Judaism * Tiberius Julius Abdes Pantera


Notes


References


Further reading


ספר תולדות ישו
The Gospel according to the Jews, called Toldoth Jesu ... Now first translated from the Hebrew, R. Carlile, London, 1823
Sefer Toledot Yeshu: sive Liber de ortu et origine Jesu ex editione wagenseiliana transcriptus et explicatus
(''Sefer Toledot Yeshu: or The Book of the rising and origin of Jesus from the Wagenseiliana edition: Transcription and Explanation'')

English translation * Sabine Baring-Gould
''The Lost and Hostile Gospels''
(1874, London), a study of the Toledot with summaries of both the Wagenseil and Huldreich versions. * Samuel Krauss
''Das Leben Jesu nach juedischen Quellen''
(1902, Berlin; reprinted by Hildesheim, 1977 & 1994), the most thorough study, of nine versions of the Toledoth (in Hebrew and German). * G.R.S. Mead
Jesus live 100 B.C.?
* George William Foote, G.W. Foote & J.M. Wheeler
''The Jewish Life of Christ being the Sepher Toldoth Jeshu''
(1885, London), an English translation of the Toledot, of unknown provenance, with an introduction and notes of Freethinker inclination - "We venture to think that the Christian legend of Jesus may have originated with the Jewish story of Jeshu." This 1885 booklet was retyped (badly, with many proper names uncapitalized) and reprinted, with an introduction by Madalyn Murray O'Hair, by the American Atheist Press, Austin, Texas, in 1982. * Peter Schäfer, Michael Meerson, Yaacov Deutsch (eds.): ''Toledot Yeshu ("The Life Story of Jesus") Revisited: A Princeton Conference.'' Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen (Germany) 2011. . [Table of Contents: http://scans.hebis.de/HEBCGI/show.pl?27602087_toc.pdf] * Meerson, Michael, and Peter Schäfer. ''Toledot Yeshu : The life story of Jesus.'' Texts and Studies in Ancient Judaism; 159. Tubinger: Mohr Siebeck, 2014. Contents: Vol.1, Introduction and translation; Vol.2, Critical edition; Supplementary material, Database of all Tolodot Yeshu manuscripts: www.toledot-yeshu.net


External links


Toledot YeshuThe account of the son of Joseph Pandera and how he abused the Beit Hamikdash to become a ‘powerful’ magician
{{Authority control Anti-Christian sentiment Books about Jesus Christianity and Judaism related controversies Jesus in Judaism Jewish apologetics Jewish medieval literature Obscenity controversies in literature Virgin birth of Jesus