Feeding the Five Thousand: Studies in the Judaic Background of Mark 6:30-44 Par. and John 6:1-15

"In Feeding the Five Thousand, Roger Aus not only presents the broad background of rabbinic and Hellenistic traditions in respect to this episode, he also examines its historical setting and how each of the four Gospels incorporates it. An impressive presentation of the narrative thus comes about, including an analysis of its motifs, as well as its intention to describe Jesus as him who surpasses all other miracle-workers in the Israelite-Jewish tradition."---Jens Schroter, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany

"A model of exegetical analysis that places Jesus' feeding of the five thousand, the only miracle reported by all four Gospels, primarily within the historical-literary tradition of Rabbinic Judaism. Otherwise ordinary details of the story come to life when seen alongside a rich array of comparative Jewish texts spanning the Hellenistic and Roman periods. This study especially illuminates how interpretive traditions relating to Elisha influenced early Christian understanding of Jesus."---Carl Holladay, Emory University, U.S.A.

"Feeding the Five Thousand is an outstanding study which should now become the definitive work on this intriguing narrative."---Maurice Casey, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom

The story of Jesus feeding the five thousand is found in all four Gospels, and is told in two of them twice. Roger David Aus primarily explores the many facets of early Palestinian Judaism which inform the story, especially in regard to the miracle-worker Elisha. He describes four major motifs in the narrative, as well as the Markan and Johannine redaction. In addition, he analyzes the account's Semitic background, genre and historicity, and its part in a miracle collection.

Roger David Aus, Ph.D., is pastor emeritus of the Evangelische Luther-Kirchengemeinde Alt-Reinickendorf in Berlin, Germany. He is the author of eleven other books on the New Testament and a member of the Society of New Testament Studies, the Society of Biblical Literature, and the Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft fur Theologie.