Volker Rabens
Pneuma and the Beholding of God: Reading Paul in the Context of Philonic
Mystical Traditions
in:
J. Frey / J.R. Levison (eds.), The Holy Spirit, Inspiration, and the
Cultures of Antiquity: Multidisciplinary Perspectives (Ekstasis 5;
Berlin/New York: De Gruyter, 2014), 293–329
Πνεῦμα Since Philo interprets νοῦς as πνεῦμα in Fug. 1.134 and Somn. 1.30 – 33, he feels
justified to continue his argument that “This pneuma was widely considered to be a divine
substance, which the Stoics called ‘creative fire’ (πῦρ τεχνικόν). This, it appears, is what Moses was turned into. This is what it meant for Moses to be ‘changed into the divine.’”
On Pneuma in Paul and Philo - pdf
AI says:
πνεῦμα(pneuma) is an ancient Greek noun, famously appearing in the New Testament to mean "spirit" (including the Holy Spirit), "wind," or "breath". Derived from pneo ("to breathe/blow"), it often refers to an immaterial, invisible force, or the inner life of a person.Key details about πνεῦμα: : Spirit, breath, wind, mental state, or invisible power. Frequently used for the Holy Spirit (Πνεῦμα Ἅγιον) or to describe spiritual beings.
As the term “substance” is ambiguous, one should rather use “material or physical sub-
stance” in order to indicate that one operates with a concept of the Spirit as Stoff or (fine) matter.... because it suggests that a material πνεῦ-
μα-substance⁵⁴ is like a “fluidum” poured into the believer. On the basis of its
physical nature the Spirit transforms the human soul (which is presupposed to
be physical too) and makes it divine. From this new nature religious-ethical
life flows almost automatically.
According to the teaching of the
Stoics, everything and everyone “possesses” πνεῦμα. This is due to the fact that
πνεῦμα was understood as a physical principle that permeates the entire cosmos
and holds it together. No comparable distinction was made between divine and
human S/spirit⁵⁶ as this seems to be presupposed in Pauline texts like Romans
8:16 (“it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit …”)
Nonetheless, what he says in Rom 8:15 – 16 certainly contradicts the Stoic concept of toning up the soul through philosophy—developing its muscles, assisting its use of its own capabilities more effectively, etc.
(Seneca, Ep. 15; cf. 6.1 where Seneca uses anima, not spiritus). Romans 8:15 – 16 does not depict the human spirit as being “topped up” or “increased”
Diogenes Laertius in which he mentions in passing that the Stoics “consider that the passions are caused by the variations of the vital breath” (αἰτίας δὲ τῶν παθῶν ἀπολείποθσι τὰς περὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τροπάς,7.158)
A number of texts of this tradition show particularly striking parallels to 2Corinthians 3:18—most prominently Philo, De Migratione Abrahami 34– 37; De Legatione ad Gaium 4– 5; and Quaestiones et Solutiones in Exodum 2.7 (see section 1 above).
in 4:4 Paul designates Christ as the image of God (“… seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God [ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ];” cf. 4:6; Col 1:15).
Is this the same as Plato claiming "Time is the Image of Eternity" (as Apeiron equaling irrational magnitude)?
For example, in Romans 8:29 Paul says that believers are “conformed to the image [or: like-ness] of his Son” (συμμόρφους τῆς εἰκόνος τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ). As in 2Corinthians ....This conclusion can be easily applied to 2Corinthians 3:18: believers
are changed into the same image (likeness), that is Christ (δόξα θεοῦ, 3:18;
εἰκών τοῦ θεοῦ, 4:4), but they are not changed “into God,” becoming qualitatively identical with God.
........................
a transformation of ‘our’ bodies as wholes from being infused with a certain amount of pneuma—and the glory that corresponds with that—into a more
extensive infusion with more pneuma and more glory.
Mystical transformation in 3:18 is further elucidated by the ancient concept of “transformation through contemplation.” 3)
Philo is part of the same tradition. He provides a number of significant parallels
to Paul’s interpretation of the pentateuchal narrative of Moses’ transformation
through contemplation. Also for Philo, the Spirit plays a significant role in this
context. 4) As far as the Sitz im Leben of 2Corinthians 3:18 is concerned, Paul’s
letters suggest that the Spirit’s work of enabling mystical beholding of the divine
was experienced in the context of Paul’s ministry to his church and in the richness of communal Christian life.
Like Paul, Philo interprets the pentateuchal narrative of Moses’ meeting with God
on Mount Horeb. He describes it as a transformation through contemplation.
Strikingly, Philo uses in this context the same key term for the beholding (as in a mirror) as employed by Paul, κατοπτρίζω, which is a biblical hapax legomenon.
Pauline parallel passages that speak about
being transformed into the image of Christ (e. g., Rom 8:29: Christians are “pre-
destined to be conformed to the image of his Son”). The fact that ethical results
of mystical beholding of the divine abound in Philo’s writings provides further
evidence for this line of reasoning. However, also in this regard (as in the case
of the im/material nature of πνεῦμα), Philo offers more specific philosophical re-
flection by employing the concept of deification. For instance, he says in Quaes-
tiones et Solutiones in Exodum 2.29, that the inspired “come near God in a kind of
family relation, … [and] become kin to God and truly divine.” In the introduction
to this article I have drawn attention to the fact that both Philo and Paul describe
the divine-human relationship of those whom God has chosen as that of “adoption as God’s sons.”
Philo's attraction to Greek culture
For many Jews like Philo, Hellenism did not constitute a threat
to be rebuffed or something alien. Greek was their mother tongue, and
Hellenistic categories of thought, as components of the dominant culture,
provided ideas and models that allowed for creative interpretation of the
Jewish tradition.3
However, this dynamic of attraction was not a one-way street. Rather,
there was a strong element of reciprocity. People of non-Jewish back-
ground became interested in Judaism............
For example, Cassius Dio records that in 19 c.e. the emperor............
Tiberius banished most Jews from Rome because “the Jews had flocked
to Rome in great numbers and were converting many of the natives to
their ways” (Roman History 57.18.5a; also Tacitus, Ann. 2.85; Josephus,
Ant. 18.83–84). Evidence also suggests that Jews made room in their syna-
gogues for Gentiles who had a curiosity and interest in their ways and
worship.9
The God of the Bible
hence turns into the somewhat abstract “Existent One” (τὸ ὄν) and “the
Cause” (τὸ αἴτιον). God has universal attributes—he is Father of all, Ruler
of all and Saviour of all humanity (e.g. Opif. 72, 78, 169). The goodness and
generosity of God, which are among Philo’s favourite themes, are always
universal in scope: God loves to give his gifts to all, including the imper-
fect (e.g. Leg. 1.34). Accordingly, Philo is concerned about human piety in
general, not just Jewish religion. In Philonic allegory there is neither Jew
nor Greek.
.........................
The Stoics believed that a physical tension is at...............................
the basis of all human emotion and virtue. It is clear that this tension
is related to the spirit (πνεῦμα) that indwells the entire universe. Πνεῦμα
plays an important role in Stoic cosmology. No other ancient philosophic
school has written as much about πνεῦμα as Stoicism. Interestingly, no
other early Jewish writer has written as much about πνεῦμα as Philo.
However, in contrast to Philo, πνεῦμα plays an important role in Stoic
physics but not in their ethics.32 With regard to Stoic ethics, it seems that
it is mainly human effort that brings about moral change (with a potential change also in the “tension” of the soul).
“Now the thing shewn is the thing worthy to be
seen, contemplated, loved, the perfect good, whose nature it is to change
all that is bitter in the soul and make it sweet, fairest seasoning of all spices,
turning into salutary nourishment even foods that do not nourish . . . (Ex.
xv. 25)” (Migr. 36; cf. 37 on the explicitly ethical aspect of the transforma-
tion). Numerous further passages could be discussed as evidence of the
sometimes overlooked fact that for Philo an intimate relationship with
the divine empowers religious-ethical life ................
Philo mentions the divine
πνεῦμα as the rational aspect of the human soul breathed into humankind
at creation, and then at Moses’ endowment with the prophetic Spirit.4
Pneuma and logos are essentially the same. Logos is technically the purest, highest order form of pneuma
https://www.reddit.com/r/Stoicism/comments/p7gjdd/difference_between_pneuma_and_logos/
s it accurate to say that the "divine reason" uses the pneuma (fire and air) to act upon the passive matter (earth and water)? think that's a decent characterization of the relationship, but consider that the pneuma is like a physical manifestation of the logos/divine reason. Despite their rather specific semantics, Stoics used multiple words to describe the same thing in a cosmological sense. By my read, Pneuma, Logos, Nature, and God are essentially interchangeable.
the logos, or divine reason, which is active and organizing.[15] The 3rd-century BC Stoic Chrysippus regarded pneuma as the vehicle of logos in structuring matter, both in animals and in the physical worl
In his exegesis of Genesis 2:7, Philo explains that God inbreathes his
Spirit into the mind of man. He says that a union of God, πνεῦμα and mind comes about as “God projects the power that proceeds from Himself
through the mediant breath till it reaches the subject” (Leg. 1.37). The rea-
son for this endowment with πνεῦμα is that “we may obtain a conception
of Him,” for this is possible only by the Spirit
the inbreathing of πνεῦμα demonstrates the exceeding greatness of
God’s own wealth and goodness. The second, related reason is that the
human soul needs an experience of this divine goodness and virtue in
order to live a virtuous life. This experience of the overflowing goodness
of God is conveyed through the impartation of πνεῦμα.
Philo mentions the divine
πνεῦμα as the rational aspect of the human soul breathed into humankind
at creation, and then at Moses’ endowment with the prophetic Spirit.4
In any case, it is a paradox that Philo was neglected by his own people,
to whose cause he had shown such strong devotion, and he was rescued
from oblivion through the attentions of a group of people of whom he had
most likely never heard, and who would later to a certain extent oppose
his own Jewish religion, namely, the Christian church.4
In the climactic verse at the
end of Paul’s treatment of Moses and the Law in 2 Corinthians 3, Paul
says: “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord as
in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one glory
to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:18). Against
the background of our discussion in the last section, it seems that Philo is
part of the ancient tradition of “transformation through contemplation”
that we ijind here in 2 Corinthians 3.50 This is suggested, for example, on
the basis of Philo’s explanation that “just as one who comes near the light
is straightaway illumined, so also is ijilled the entire soul of him to whom
God has appeared” (QE 2.7).
Moses is enabled by the Spirit to “come near God in a kind of fam-
ily relation” and is consequently “changed into the divine;” cf. Gig. 54–55).
It is this tradition—alongside the pentateuchal narrative of Moses’ trans-
formation—that is most prominently in the background of the concept of
“transformation through contemplation” in 2 Corinthians 3:18 because it
not only describes transformation as a consequence of encountering God
and receiving divine revelation, but it also attributes an important role of
the Spirit in this process (attributed to κυρίου πνεύματος in 3:18).
This example shows that Philo was engaged in an ethical discourse that
was not only relevant in his Diaspora community in Alexandria, but also
in a “parallel world” in the Christian church in Corinth and elsewhere.
https://www.academia.edu/99473590/How_did_the_Spirit_become_a_Person
In biblical Hebrew (and Aramaic), ‘spirit’ (רוח) is no less an umbrella term than is its common rendering with πȞİῦȝα in Greek. The notions include11 the physical dimension of air in motion, the anthropological dimension of the human disposition or – in a holistic concept – ‘spirit’ as the place where human feelings and emotions, but also insight and spiritual disposition are located, and, finally, the theological notion of a divine spirit or the spirit from God, the Holy Spirit. But only one third of the instances in which רוח is used refers to a divine spirit, e.g., the spirit of the creator in Gen 1 or the spirit that empowers the judges or that is bestowed upon prophets. σotably, the term ‘holy spirit’ is used only twice in Hebrew, in Isa 63:10-11 and Ps 51:13, in two relatively late texts, and twice in
Aramaic, in two passages in Daniel (Dan 5:12; 6:4). Thus, the notion of the Holy Spirit was by no means common in biblical times.
this usage is adopted in the New Testament with regard to “unclean” (Mark 1:23, 26-7; 3:11) or “evil” (Luke 7:21) spirits, the spirits of deceased (1 Petr γμ1λ) or heavenly ‘spirits’ (Heb 1μι, 1ζν Rev 1μζν γμ1 etc.).
Such a development in reading Ezekiel’s vision is also fundamental for the concept of the Spirit as the power of the resurrection of the dead and, particularly, for the early understanding of the resurrection of Jesus. This concept is presupposed in the confession formula in Rom 1:3-4, which probably derives from a Semitic language milieu and thus originates in the early Palestinian community. So we can see that the
resurrection of Jesus (as Davidic Messiah) was attributed to the power of the ‘Spirit of Holiness’. With the Spirit acting in Jesus’ resurrection, this event could therefore be considered the beginning of a new period of the manifestation of the Spirit of the end times and of eschatological fulfulment.
The so-called ‘messianic Apocalypse’ from the Qumran corpus (4Q521) shows, how the good news to the poor, comfort for the weeping, healing of the blind and the proclamation of divine remission could be viewed as eschatological works of God.30
The "Messianic Apocalypse" (4Q521), a Dead Sea Scroll text written before Jesus' birth, shares striking thematic, linguistic, and messianic parallels with the New Testament, notably the Gospel of Luke. The text describes a Messiah who heals, raises the dead, and brings good news to the poor, mirroring Jesus' actions and strengthening the view of early Christianity's deep roots in sectarian Jewish apocalypticism
- The "Hidden" Messiah: The Qumran texts suggest a messianic figure hidden in heaven until an appointed time, reflecting the "messianic secret" motif in the Gospel of Mark and the timing of Jesus' revelation.
While 4Q521 does not mention Jesus specifically, it provides crucial evidence that the theological, prophetic, and messianic framework of early Christianity existed in1st-century Judaism, particularly within communities like those at Qumran.
The ‘enthusiasm’ of the primitive community could grow on this
soil. There are no compelling reasons to limit this awareness of the Spirit to the Hellenistic part of the primitive community or even to deny it with respect to Palestinian Judaism,33 because central aspects of the concept of the spirit as the power of resurrection and also the concept of the bestowal of the spirit on the community are well attested in the Qumran corpus, so that also the latter cannot be attributed only to Hellenistic influence.....
The Spirit that had empowered the Messiah Jesus, now becomes a gift for his disciples that
empowers them and ‘dwells’ among and within them. These phrases probably go back to pre-Pauline communities, not only to Antioch, but – at least partly – to the earliest Jesus movement in Palestine or even Jerusalem, where the earliest followers of the Messiah Jesus were aware of the continuing eschatological activity of the Spirit
...............
In a very early Jewish-Christian confession formula, Jesus’ resurrection is attributed to the power of the “Spirit of Holiness” (Rom 1,4), in reception of the tradition from Ezek 37:5, 9-10 where the eschatological resurrection of the dead – which was later understood in terms of an individual, bodily resurrection40 – is attributed to the power of the divine Spirit.
.......................
The Hodayot, or Thanksgiving Hymns (1QHa–f, 4QHa–f), are a collection of poetic, personal prayers of gratitude and praise discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls. They reflect the theology and piety of the Qumran community, highlighting themes of divine grace, human frailty, and salvation, often featuring the phrase "I give thanks to You, O Lord
A distinctive function of the spirit, which goes back to Ezekiel 37, is that it brings life or brings to life (πȞİῦȝα ȗῳȠπȠȚȠῦȞ).50 Based on the conviction that God raised Jesus from the dead through the spirit, it is the spirit which warrants the future resurrection of the believers (Rom 8:11), so the spirit can be called ἀȡȡαȕώȞ (“first installment”: 2 Cor 1:22; 5:5) or ἀπαȡχ (“first born” or “first fruit”: Rom 8:23; 1 Cor 15:20, 23), i.e. guarantee of future fulfilment.
......................
The ‘personal’ elements of the Spirit are thus ‘borrowed’ from Christ
the work of the Spirit is set in an analogy with the
work of the exalted Christ: God has sent the Spirit (Gal 4:6), as had sent his Son (Gal 4:4). The Spirit dwells in the believers (Rom 8:9, 11) as Christ dwells in them (Rom 8:10; Gal 2:22). The Spirit represents those who believe and pray in God’s realm, as also the exalted Christ represents them and intercedes for them (Rom 8:34; cf. 1 John 2:1). It is striking that Paul articulates these parallels in relatively narrow textual units, esp. Gal 4 and Rom 8.
J. Frey, “Flesh and Spirit in the Palestinian Jewish Sapiential
Tradition and in the Qumran Texts: An Inquiry into the Background of Pauline Usage,” in The Wisdom
Texts from Qumran and the Development of Sapiential Thought: Studies in Wisdom at Qumran and its
Relationship to Sapiential Thought in the Ancient Near East, the Hebrew Bible, Ancient Judaism and the New Testament (ed. C. Hempel, A. Lange and H. Lichtenberger; BETL 159; Leuven: Peeters, 2002), 367-404.
thus in two corresponding phrases, Rom κμλ can speak of “God’s Spirit” and “Christ’s Spirit”. The acting of God himself, of the exalted Christ and of the Spirit are thus considered in one line, so that Paul can attribute the “graceful gifts” (χαȡȓıȝαIJα the “ministries” (įȚαțȠȞȓαȚ and the “powerful acts” (ἐȞİȡȖȒȝαIJα experienced within the community to the one Spirit, the one Lord and the one God in a triadic sequence.
Paul does not declare that the Spirit has been sent or given by Christ. This is not stated before the Johannine writings (John 15:26; 16:7; 20:22). For Paul it is still God alone who gives the Spirit (1 Cor 6:1λν β Cor 1μββν ημην Gal ζμθν 1 Thess ζμκ), but in spite of that the Spirit is also “the Spirit of his Son” (Gal ζμθ), “the Spirit of (Jesus) Christ” (Rom κμλν Phil 1μ1λ) or “the Spirit of the δord” (β Cor 3:18). The much debated phrase ὁ į țύȡȚȠȢ IJઁ πȞİῦȝ ἐıIJȚȞ (2 Cor 3:17a) could even suggest an identification between the exalted Christ and the Spirit, were there not the immediate continuation “where the Spirit of the Lord (IJઁ πȞİῦȝα țυȡȠυ is, there is freedom,” which marks the ‘subordination’ of the Spirit under the ‘δord’ (the exalted Christ) and thus the clear distinction between the two.................
Jesus followers at a very early stage came to a
veneration of Christ that saw him in a very close relation to God – a “binitarian monotheism,” in the words of Larry Hurtado61 – this texture is further developed and widened by the beginning ‘personalization’ of the Spirit in Pauline thought, so that – only in retrospect, of course – we can see already here a very cautious step towards the Trinitarian concept as developed much late
But in spite of the fact that the Spirit is always and clearly God’s Spirit, it is Jesus himself who, after his departure to heaven and his exaltation to the right hand of God, equips his followers with the power from above. Acts 2:33 states that Jesus himself has received the promise of the Spirit from the father and poured it out over his disciples.
In the story of the baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8, there is a remarkable change
of the agents: Philip is first called by an “angel of the δord” (κμβθ), then he is commissioned by the Spirit (8:29), and finally it is also the Spirit that takes him away in a miraculous manner (8:39). This is also a hint at a growing independence of the Spirit, which is, however, less clearly related to Christ than in Paul.
in the Fourth Gospel, the theological reflection about the work of the Spirit is entirely
focused on its verbal effects, the ‘logos function’.... Thus, the Spirit shall be with the disciples, in the place of Jesus, after his departure, in order to comfort and teach them, as Jesus himself had taught them, or even beyond the teachings of the earthly Jesus.75 Thus, the Spirit is focused on the ‘logos’, i.e., on Jesus, and his activities are almost completely word-related: reminding, teaching, guiding
John 4:24, stating "God ispneuma" (spirit), indicates that God's nature is immaterial, invisible, and not restricted to a single location. This contrasts with physical, corruptible sarx (flesh), defining God as a pervasive, life-giving presence (wind/breath).
Ruach in Hebrew was translated as Pneuma...
The Use and Non-Use of Pneuma By Josephus 1)
In: Novum Testamentum
Author:
Ernest Best
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