WHY DIDN’T JESUS WRITE ANY OF THE BOOKS OF THE BIBLE?

[Winken]

Hello?

 

[JackRT]

His ministry was as short as one year or as long as three. He barely had the chance to properly instruct his disciples let alone write anything. Even his followers did not write anything that has come down to us for many years after. We really have no first hand accounts of the life of Jesus.

 

[ewq1938]

God always inspires others to write. God does need to do the literal hand writing of the books.

 

[Tree of Life]

Perhaps if we did then we would value the written words of Jesus over all other Scriptures. And maybe the Lord did not want that.

 

[Radagast]

We really have no first hand accounts of the life of Jesus.

Well, yes, we do, actually.

 

[ewq1938]

His ministry was as short as one year or as long as three. He barely had the chance to properly instruct his disciples let alone write anything. Even his followers did not write anything that has come down to us for many years after. We really have no first hand accounts of the life of Jesus.

I would have to disagree with most of what is in this post. The ministry was 3 years. That's plenty of time to instruct his disciples. Plenty of time for Christ to write had he wanted to. His followers did write of their time and experiences with Christ which are first hand accounts.

 

[JackRT]

Paul started writing in the late 40s and continued into the mid to late 50s. But he never knew the historical person of Jesus and says almost nothing about his life and teaching. His quotations of Jesus amount to less than a hundred words and impart nothing substantial. Mark wrote about AD 70 and there is nothing to indicate that he knew Jesus. Matthew and Luke wrote between 80 and 90 and copied Mark extensively but still nothing to convince us that they knew Jesus. John wrote in the 90s and has a completely different timeline and understanding of Jesus. We cannot even be sure of the names of the actual authors because they were assigned a century later on the basis of legend.

 

[ewq1938]

Paul started writing in the late 40s and continued into the mid to late 50s. But he never knew the historical person of Jesus and says almost nothing about his life and teaching. His quotations of Jesus amount to less than a hundred words and impart nothing substantial. Mark wrote about AD 70 and there is nothing to indicate that he knew Jesus. Matthew and Luke wrote between 80 and 90 and copied Mark extensively but still nothing to convince us that they knew Jesus. John wrote in the 90s and has a completely different timeline and understanding of Jesus. We cannot even be sure of the names of the actual authors because they were assigned a century later on the basis of legend.

No one knows when the gospels were written either. I believe 3 of the gospels written by people that knew Jesus because of the wording and details. Luke seems to have been written by a third party but I still believe they had access to actual people who witnessed Christ.

 

[Radagast]

Mark wrote about AD 70 and there is nothing to indicate that he knew Jesus. Matthew and Luke wrote between 80 and 90 and copied Mark extensively but still nothing to convince us that they knew Jesus. John wrote in the 90s and has a completely different timeline and understanding of Jesus. We cannot even be sure of the names of the actual authors because they were assigned a century later on the basis of legend.

Dates are actually much earlier than you suggest. For example, it's clear that Luke/Acts was written at around the time that the story stops. According to tradition, Mark was based on Peter's oral account, and Matthew was based on written records by Matthew.

And all the earliest manuscripts and discussion of the gospels have the names attached. As far as we can tell, those names are original.

 

[Hank77]

Paul started writing in the late 40s and continued into the mid to late 50s. But he never knew the historical person of Jesus and says almost nothing about his life and teaching. His quotations of Jesus amount to less than a hundred words and impart nothing substantial. Mark wrote about AD 70 and there is nothing to indicate that he knew Jesus. Matthew and Luke wrote between 80 and 90 and copied Mark extensively but still nothing to convince us that they knew Jesus. John wrote in the 90s and has a completely different timeline and understanding of Jesus. We cannot even be sure of the names of the actual authors because they were assigned a century later on the basis of legend.

Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 AD. We know that when Paul, who stated in his epistles that they were from him except Hebrews, the temple was still standing and had not been burned. The walls were still standing, the Counsel of Jerusalem was still meeting with Paul, Timothy, Peter, James, etc. Paul went to the temple for some of the feasts, such as Passover.
I have no reason to believe that the NT was not written before 70AD except possibly Revelation.

 

[Radagast]

I have no reason to believe that the NT was not written before 70AD except possibly Revelation.

There are people who, for reasons of ideology, believe that Jesus was unable to prophesy. Those people believe that the prophecies concerning the Temple were written after 70 AD.

 

[Radagast]

Mind you, I can't fill in this poll, because all the options are wrong, and some are completely silly.

For a start, the entire Old Testament was written before Jesus was born. And most of the New Testament books come with a specific author's name attached. They were not written by "the 12" as a group, or by "angels," or by "scholars."

 

[JackRT]

John Dominic Crossan has provided a detailed classification of our sources for the historical Jesus according to the chronological stratification of the traditions. For a brief discussion of each source, including the reasons for its proposed dating, see John Dominic Crossan, The Historical Jesus (HarperCollins, 1991) Appendix 1, pp. 427-50. All dates shown are C.E. (Common Era).

First Stratum [30 to 60 C.E.]

1. First Letter of Paul to the Thessalonians (late 40s)

2. Letter of Paul to the Galatians (winter of 52/53)

3. First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians (winter of 53/54.)

4. Letter of Paul to the Romans (winter of 55/56)

5. Gospel of Thomas I (earliest layer of Thomas, composed in 50s)

6. Egerton Gospel (50s)

7. P. Vienna G. 2325 (50s)

8. P. Oxyrhynchus 1224 (50s)

9. Gospel of the Hebrews (Egypt, 50s)

10. Sayings Gospel Q (50s)

11. Miracles Collection (50s)

12. Apocalyptic Scenario (50s)

13. Cross Gospel (50s)

Second Stratum [60 to 80 C.E.]

14. Gospel of the Egyptians (60s)

15. Secret Gospel of Mark (early 70s)

16. Gospel of Mark (late 70s)

17. P. Oxyrhynchus 840 (?80s)

18. Gospel of Thomas II (later layers, 70s)

19. Dialogue Collection (70s)

20. Signs Gospel, or Book of Signs (70s)

21. Letter to the Colossians (70s)

Third Stratum [80 to 120 C.E.]

22. Gospel of Matthew (90)

23. Gospel of Luke (90s)

24. Revelation/Apocalypse of John (late 90s)

25. First Letter of Clement (late 90s)

26. Epistle of Barnabas (end first century)

27. Didache (other than 1:3b2:1, 16:35) (end first century)

28. Shepherd of Hermas (100)

29. Letter of James (100)

30. Gospel of John I (early second century)

31. Letter of Ignatius, To the Ephesians (110)

32. Letter of Ignatius, To the Magnesians (110)

33. Letter of Ignatius, To the Trallians (110)

34. Letter of Ignatius, To the Romans (110)

35. Letter of Ignatius, To the Philadelphians (110)

36. Letter of Ignatius, To the Smyrneans (110)

37. Letter of Ignatius, To Polycarp (110)

38. First Letter of Peter (112)

39. Letter of Polycarp, To the Philippians, 1314 (115)

40. First Letter of John (115)

Fourth Stratum [120 to 150 C.E.]

41. Gospel of John II (after 120)

42. Acts of the Apostles (after 120)

43. Apocryphon of James (before 150)

44. First Letter to Timothy (after 120)

45. Second Letter to Timothy (after 120)

46. Letter to Titus (after 120)

47. Second Letter of Peter (between 125 and 150)

48. Letter of Polycarp to the Philippians, 112 (140)

49. Second Letter of Clement (150)

50. Gospel of the Nazoreans (middle second century)

51. Gospel of the Ebionites (middle second century)

52. Didache, 1:3b2:1 (middle second century)

53. Gospel of Peter (middle second century)

 

[Brotherly Spirit]

I guess he was both busy fulfilling the Old Testament which was written, and left it to witnesses to verify his work.

 

[JackRT]

A good deal of the Gospels were written in the Hebrew/Jewish literary tradition of haggadic midrash. They do not present history prophesized, they present prophesy historicized.

 

[UnseenSaviour]

B4 he was born others wrote about his coming - When he arrived he just lived his life & left it to others to write about him.