The Jewish Targums and John's Logos Theology

The Jewish Targums and John’s Logos Theology
By John Ronning
Reviewed by Jim West
John Ronning has done us all a real service by presenting his thesis in a sensible and
coherent manner. At first I was quite skeptical of his program but as I made way through his
detailed argument I came to the conclusion that he is probably correct: the Targums do indeed
illuminate John’s theological purpose, and John was obviously thoroughly steeped in them.
Ronning’s volume unfolds in 12 chapters and concludes with a summation. 1- Why John
Calls Jesus ‘the Word’. 2- The Old Testament Background to John 1:14-18. 3- The Name of the
Father and the Mission of Jesus. 4- The Son of Man Came Down from Heaven. 5- Jesus of
Nazareth, Man of War. 6- Jesus the Bridegroom of His People. 7- Jesus the Lawgiver of His
People. 8- Jesus as the One in Whom We Must Believe. 9- The ‘I Am He’ Sayings. 10- Unwitting
Prophecies in the Targums. 11- ‘The Word Became Flesh’ Elsewhere in the New Testament.
12- The Superiority of the Targum View.
The strongest chapters are 1 and 2, 5 and 12. The weakest, in my estimation, is 10.
Chapter 12 is very well done and Ronning wisely anticipates many objections and answers them
quite cogently.
Ronning’s method is simple- to cite a passage from John and then to illuminate that
passage from the Targums. And having done so, quite thoroughly, Ronning observes ‘… the
cumulative weight of evidence strongly supports the conclusion that the Logos title is adapted
from the Targums’ (p. 271).
What does all this imply about the date of John’s Gospel and its audience? Wouldn’t
persons reading John’s Targum laced Gospel be expected to ‘hear’ those allusions? I posed that
question to the author- and he replied
-- yes I agree [that only Jews Only Jews steeped in their own Targumic and
Biblical traditions would catch his many allusions] but I also think John was
expecting these Jews (following his own example) to explain to the Gentile
Christians how to get the full meaning out of his Gospel. John himself shows the
way by translating the most basic of things like Rabbi, Messiah.
And wouldn’t John, by the very nature of the case, be the earliest Gospel in this view
since, as time went on, the Church became less Jewish and more Gentile?
Ronning replied
As for date, as I say in the book, I do think John assumes the Synoptic tradition at
many points and I think the 70AD fate of Jerusalem colors much of John's
thinking.
But my primary concern was the lateness of the Targums and hence the fact that their
use of ‘Memra’ is likewise post first century and therefore not necessarily a term John would
have used in the same sense as the Targumists.
I asked Ronning about this and he replied
I would say that for any particular Targum passage, one would have to be wary
of saying we "know" that it was extant in the 1st century. The primary reason for
thinking that the extant Targums preserve a good deal of 1st century readings is
the fit with NT passages. In connection with the Word (Memra/Dibbura)
theology, a great deal of sense is made by seeing John's Logos theology as being
based in the Targums. Outside the NT, seeing conceptual similarities between
the targumic Word and Philo's Logos, as well as some apparent connections
between intertestamental wisdom literature and the Targums shows the
plausibility of a pre-NT date for the Memra/Dibbura theology preserved in the
Targums (conversely, in my opinion it's difficult to see the Memra theology
developing in rabbinic Judaism post ad70, since there is no trace of it there.
Some of these issues are discussed in chapter 12 of my book, whereas the whole
book supports the argument by showing potential connections between John
and the Targums.
And indeed, Ronning writes, quite concisely, in connection with the supposed ‘lateness’
of the use of ‘Memra’ – ‘… John’s Gospel itself constitutes compelling evidence that Memra was
used in a particular way in the first century’ (p. 267).
Ronning’s mustering of the evidence which precedes this statement makes it irrefutable.
My various objections having been answered, I can heartily commend this volume to
interested readers.
That doesn’t mean, however, that there are not problems with it. As mentioned in
passing above, Chapter 10 is a bit weak as it describes ‘unwitting prophecies’ in the Targum.
The intention here, it seems to me, is just a tad too apologetic in nature. The volume would not
at all be poorer if the 10th chapter had not been included.
Next, a consideration of Mogens Muller’s ‘Son of Man’ would have enriched the Fourth
Chapter immensely. Yet Ronning’s concluding remark of Chapter Four, ‘…what God did in OT
times from heaven, the Son now does as a person…’ (p. 115) is very commendable.
And finally, so as to end on a positive note, I simply cannot laud the Fifth Chapter highly
enough. Ronning’s ‘Jesus of Nazareth, Man of War’ is incredibly engaging and filled to
overflowing with insight. ‘Jesus came down from heaven to wage war, to defeat Satan, to save
his people in a way he could not save them without the incarnation- to save them eternally’ (p.
116). And, in examining John 14:2-3, he collects a fascinating array of Targumic materials which
really do illustrate John’s meaning in a way that a failure to take them into account simply
cannot match.
Enjoy this volume. It’s more than enjoyable.

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What is the author's overall assessment of Ronning's volume?

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The Jewish Targums and John’s Logos Theology

Reviewed by Jim West

I asked Ronning about this and he replied

Enjoy this volume. It’s more than enjoyable.

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