When Seventy Equals Seventy-Two: A Reception-Historical Contribution to the Text-Critical Problem of Luke 10:1, 17

Abstract The question of how many disciples Jesus sends in Luke 10:1—70 or 72—has long brought interpreters to an impasse, with Bruce Metzger concluding that the number is ‘elusive' and ‘cannot be determined with confidence'. However, one simple solution has yet to be considered. Appealing...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Johnson, Nathan C. 19XX- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Oxford University Press [2019]
In: The journal of theological studies
Year: 2019, Volume: 70, Issue: 2, Pages: 633-651
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Bible. Lukasevangelium 10,1 / Bible. Lukasevangelium 10,17 / Disciple / Number / Textual criticism
IxTheo Classification:HC New Testament
HD Early Judaism
Further subjects:B Bible. Lukasevangelium 10,1
B Bible. Lukasevangelium 10,17
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Summary:Abstract The question of how many disciples Jesus sends in Luke 10:1—70 or 72—has long brought interpreters to an impasse, with Bruce Metzger concluding that the number is ‘elusive' and ‘cannot be determined with confidence'. However, one simple solution has yet to be considered. Appealing to ancient number theories, reception history, and Luke's manuscript tradition, this essay maintains that 70 and 72 were often, strangely, the same number in antiquity. A facile solution in isolation, equating 70 and 72 is demonstrated to be a common phenomenon in antique Jewish and Christian literature. The implication of such a finding for the interpretation of Luke is that the numerous intertexts proposed for Luke's 70/72 disciples—the Table of Nations, Moses' elders, the number of languages—are all at least admissible on text-critical grounds.
ISSN:1477-4607
Contains:Enthalten in: The journal of theological studies
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1093/jts/flz084