Logos and Law in the Letter of James: The Law of Nature, the Law of Moses, and the Law of Freedom (Supplements to Novum Testamentum)

L O G O S A N D L A W IN T H E L E T T E R O F JAMES

SUPPLEMENTS TO

NOVUM TESTAMENTUM EDITORIAL BOARD

O K . BARRETT, Durham - P. BORGEN, Trondheim J . K . ELLIOTT, Leeds - H J . DEJONGE, Leiden A J. MALHERBE, N e w Haven M . J J . MENKEN, Utrecht - J. SMIT SIBINGA, Amsterdam Executive Editors MM.

MITCHELL, Chicago & D.P. MOESSNER, Dubuque

V O L U M E C

LOGOS AND LAW IN THE LETTER OF JAMES The Law of Nature, the Law of Moses, and the Law of Freedom

BY

M A T T A. J A C K S O N - M c C A B E

BRILL LEIDEN • B O S T O N • K O L N 2001

This book is printed on acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Jackson-McCabe, Matt A . Logos and law in the letter o f James : the law o f nature, the law o f Moses, and the law o f freedom / by Matt A . Jackson-McCabe. p. cm. — (Supplements to Novum Testamentum, ISSN 01679732 ;v. 100) Revision o f the author's thesis—University o f Chicago, 1998. Includes bibliographical references (p.) and index. ISBN 9004119949 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Law (Theology)—Biblical teaching. 2. Bible. N T . James—Criticism, interpretation, etc. I. Title. II. Series. BS2785.6.L34 J33 2000 227'.9106—dc21

00-050733 CIP

Die Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP-Einheitsaufhahme Jackson-McCabe, Matt A.: Logos and law in the letter o f James : the law o f nature, the law o f Moses, and the law o f freedom / by Matt A. Jackson-McCabe.. - Leiden ; Boston; Koln : Brill, 2000 (Supplements to Novum testamentum ; Vol. 100) Zugl. : Chicago, Univ., Diss., 1998 ISBN 90-04-11994-9

ISSN ISBN

0167-9732 90 04 11994 9

© Copyright 2001 by Koninklijke Brill NV,Leiden, The Netherlands All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy itemsfor internal or personal use is granted by Brill provided that the appropriatefees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910 DanversMA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. PRINTED IN THE NETHERLANDS

For A. J. and Jeremy

CONTENTS

Abbreviations

xi

Acknowledgments

xv

Introduction I. I M P L A N T E D LOGOS

1 IN T H E

INTERPRETATION

OF JAMES

7

Jewish C o m p o s i t i o n and Stoic Logos

11

Christian C o m p o s i t i o n and Logos as G o s p e l

16

T h e Thesis o f a Superficial Stoic Influence

17

T h e Rejection o f Stoic Influence L u d w i g ' s Wort als Gesetz T h e P r o b l e m and the Thesis II. L A W A S I M P L A N T E D LOGOS:

20 23 24

CICERO AND

THE STOICS O N NATURAL LAW

29

L a w as Logos

32

Natural L a w as C o s m i c Logos

34

Natural L a w as H u m a n R e a s o n

36

T h e Development o f Human Reason

40

T h e Stoic D o c t r i n e o f Implanted Preconceptions

43

T h e Problem

44

C i c e r o and S e n e c a o n the C o n c e p t o f the G o o d

53

okelcocK; a n d the Implanted Preconceptions

59

Epictetus o n Implanted C o n c e p t s

62

Excursus: Belief in the G o d s as ejjxpDxoc;

67

Conclusions

72

Natural L a w as "Implanted R e a s o n " Implanted Preconceptions, H u m a n R e a s o n ,

73 and

Natural L a w

73

Natural L a w as ratio insita Ratio insita as Xoyoq eiiymoq: o f the De Legibus

75 T h e Greek Source 81

viii

CONTENTS

III. T H E L A W O F M O S E S , T H E T E A C H I N G

OF

JESUS, A N D N A T U R A L L A W

87

Philo o f Alexandria

89

Philo and the Stoics

89

T h e L a w o f Nature and the L a w o f M o s e s

91

T h e Sage as e|i\|n)%oToq A,6yoaiv TCQV ev f||xiv ox>\ior|o*ei tcov dvGpamcov 56£a o f G o d . 2 2 5

2 2 6

2 2 7

80

CHAPTER TWO

as "implanted" direcdy to the "spermatic" reason w h i c h the latter comprise.

228

In fact, the n u m b e r o f other ancient works w h i c h exhibit similar terminology in analogous contexts confirms this interpretation. T h e s e works will b e considered in detail in the following chapters, but the most striking instances c a n at least b e m e n t i o n e d here. In the Apostolic Constitutions, t o o , G o d ' s initial gift o f a natural l a w to the h u m a n ani­ mal is equated with an e n d o w m e n t o f "the seeds o f divine knowl­ e d g e , " also called "implanted k n o w l e d g e " (euxpuxoq yvtboiq), while the law

itself is described as an euipuxo CMEPFICMKOU Geioi) Xoyov, on which see below, Chapter Three. Cf. on this point, too, the commentaries o f Oecumenius and Theophylactus. 229

81

L A W AS IMPLANTED LOGOS

the m o r e significant for o u r purposes given C i c e r o ' s heavy d e p e n d ­ e n c e u p o n s o m e G r e e k s o u r c e o r sources for the t h e o r y o f law espoused in his De Legibus. It is safe to c o n c l u d e , that is, that C i c e r o ' s source h a d defined natural law in terms o f Xoyoq euxpuxoc;. T h e author o f this source is impossible to identify with any certainty, a n d the question is, fortunately, not crucial for the present study. T h e p r o b ­ l e m is nonetheless o f interest in its o w n right, and merits at least brief consideration.

RATIO INSITA AS Xoyoq e\x Xoyicuoq, and his single goal 22

23

24

25

26

MOSES, JESUS, AND NATURAL L A W

so

to

speak,

"copies"

(q); c o p i e s , that is, o f the

"men

93

"originals"

(foq av

w h o lived g o o d and

blame­

less lives, w h o s e virtues stand p e r m a n e n t l y enshrined in h o l y scriptures . . . for in these m e n and

reason (eu^i/u^oi m i ^ o y i K o i v o u o i ) . "

speaking, identical to the in

contrast to

copy

o f the

the

27

"higher law,"

a\\fx>%oi v o u o i o f all

ejjA|ru%oi v o u o i , the

past: A b r a h a m , Isaac, J a c o b and,

the

most

w e h a v e laws e n d o w e d with life In short, while not, the

law

other p e o p l e s

sages f o u n d

strictly

o f the J e w s stands 28

as

a

written

particularly in

a b o v e all, M o s e s himself.

Israel's 29

The Sage as ejny/vxog vdfioq Philo's n o t i o n that the t h o u g h o b v i o u s l y not m o d e l s o f the One

true law his

right reason o f the

sage—

v i e w that the J e w i s h patriarchs

is the

provide

sage!—is clearly r o o t e d in

the

Stoic t h e o r y o f

o f his m o s t characteristic expressions o f this idea, the

law.

descrip­

tion o f the sage as ejivj/uxoq vojuoq, h o w e v e r , is not typical o f Stoicism. A s several scholars have p o i n t e d out,

this t e r m i n o l o g y seems in

fact

to h a v e b e e n derived f r o m N e o - P y t h a g o r e a n , not Stoic, p h i l o s o p h y .

30

was "the right reason o f nature" (xov opOov xfjq (puceex; Xoyov), which alone is the beginning and font o f the virtues" (Mos 1.48; cf. Abr. 6). Abr. 3 - 6 ; cf. Abr. 275-76; Virt. 194; Mos. 1.162. T h o u g h "right reason" is understood to be the "fountain head o f all other laws" (xoiq aXkoiq Trnyfi vojxok;) in Quod Omn. Prob. Lib. 47, it is nonetheless assumed throughout Philo's writings that Moses's law alone presents the perfect written expres­ sion o f natural law. Cf. in this respect Justin's comparison, to be discussed below, o f the "natural law" promulgated by Jesus with "the laws o f men"; Justin's c o m ­ parison, though, assumes a developmental-historical understanding o f the Xoyoq which would have been alien to Philo. Enos, Enoch and Noah, the first trio o f patriarchs discussed by Philo, are o f a lesser stature and are not called zivyxi%Q\ v6|lioi. So too Joseph, even in the more positive portrayal given him in De Josepho, nonetheless represents, as TtoXmicoq, an "addition" to the natural polity o f the World City and is for this reason never called £|i\|n)%o uexa evXoyiGiiaq ev oroxfi fhovvxeov. All translations o f 4 Maccabees, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from Anderson, "4 Maccabees." T h e early Stoics would not, o f course, have spoken in terms o f "control" o f the passions, but rather in terms o f their elimination; see further Long and Sedley, The Hellenistic Philosophers, 1.410-23. It is to be observed in this connection that the understanding o f the passions in 4 Maccabees is more in line with that o f Posidonius and other detractors o f the monistic psychology o f the earlier Stoics; see, e.g., 4 Mace 3:5 and 2:21. See further Renehan, "The Greek Philosophic Background," 2 2 6 - 2 7 ; deSilva, 4 Maccabees, 5 2 - 5 4 . 4 Mace 5:23-25. For the association o f pleasure and desire with the passions, see the author's discussion o f the latter in 1:20-29. 48

4 9

5 0

5 1

MOSES, JESUS, AND NATURAL LAW

the virtues precisely as d o e s h u m a n r e a s o n .

52

99

In fact, he claims, just

as the creator gave humanity an intellect as its "sacred g u i d e , " so too

did he give a law to the intellect; thus, he says with a distinctly

Stoic ring, the o n e w h o lives in a c c o r d with this law "shall reign o v e r a k i n g d o m that is temperate a n d just a n d g o o d a n d b r a v e . " The

"divine l a w " protects reason in its struggle to maintain

n a n c e o v e r the passions;

54

reason, in fact, dominates the

precisely "through the law" (8ioc xov v o u o v ) .

55

5 3

domi­

passions

T h e correlation o f reason

a n d law is such that the author c a n simply pass from 6 A,oyia|Li6(; to 6 vouoc; as t h o u g h the t w o are simply s y n o n y m o u s . 20:17

56

Indeed, E x o d

c a n b e cited as p r o o f o f reason's ability to d o m i n a t e the pas­

sions: "Surely, then, since the L a w tells us not to c o v e t

(JLLT|

e7ri0u|Li£iv),

I should the m u c h m o r e readily persuade y o u that reason has the p o w e r to c o n t r o l the desires (xcov £7ti0ujLua>v)." The out

57

relationship b e t w e e n h u m a n reason a n d the T o r a h is spelled

systematically in

1 : 1 5 - 1 7 ,

w h e r e Xoyxa\i6q is defined.

XoyiajLioq, I suggest, is intellect selecting with right reason (vovq fiexa opOov X6yox> TtpoTijicav) the life o f wisdom. Wisdom, I submit, is knowl­ edge o f things divine and human, and o f their causes. And this wis­ dom, I assume, is the culture we acquire from the Law (f| zox> vo\iox> TiaiSem) through which we learn the things o f G o d reverently and the things o f men to our worldly advantage. 58

In 4 Maccabees's usage, therefore, son," 5 2

but particularly

A,OYIO|J,6 xfi (puoei KocTa|3A,r|9£VTa 7iaaiv dv9pc&7toi Koci xo i8iov ovoua eyicaxeGexo, xeXeiov, aveAAeutfj, 8eK(x Xoyicov 7tA,T|pT| . . .; cf. Didascalia 6.15. AC 6.20.10: xi\q KOXVQEOV nXavr\q; cf. 8.12.25: xr|v rcoMGeov rctaxvriv. Note, however, that the "polytheistic error" o f 6.20, given the context, concerns Israel's worship o f Baal, while that o f 8.12 alludes to Greek philosophical doctrine. 1 3 6

137

138

139

140

117

MOSES, JESUS, AND NATURAL L A W

ship b e t w e e n the understanding o f the law o f M o s e s f o u n d in b o o k s 1-6, which relies o n the Didascalia, and that found in books 7 - 8 , which is m o r e indicative o f the compiler's o w n thought, whether from a prior source o r n o t .

141

derived

Sufficiendy clear in any case is the

fact that the redactor, similarly to Philo and the author o f 4 Maccabees, understands M o s e s ' s law, h o w e v e r precisely interpreted, to b e a writ­ ten f o r m o f the implanted law given b y G o d to all h u m a n beings. Implanted Law as Human Reason T h e Apostolic Constitutions' association o f biblical law with a natural law innate in the h u m a n animal, as for b o t h 4 Maccabees a n d Philo, is ultimately r o o t e d in the Stoic philosophy o f law. A n u m b e r o f points o f contact at the level o f detail were pointed out already in the footnotes to the translation o f 8.12.16—18 given a b o v e . A fur­ ther hint o f such influence is f o u n d in a redactional passage from b o o k 6 where, in c o n n e c t i o n with a discussion o f the natural law, the c o m p i l e r , again like b o t h the author o f 4 Maccabees a n d Philo, interacts with a decidedly Stoic idea in his assertion that G o d " m a d e laws to cut out not the natural passions [themselves], but rather their excess."

142

Stoic influence emerges m o s t clearly, h o w e v e r , in

the

prayers o f b o o k s 7 and 8. T h e a c c o u n t o f the creation o f the h u m a n animal found in the l o n g prayer o f 8.12 begins with the description o f the h u m a n as " w o r l d citizen" (AC 8.12.16, KoouoTtoXvxnq), a tide repeated in sev­ eral o f the prayers. T h i s description o f the h u m a n animal is b y n o w quite familiar from o u r earlier discussions o f the Stoics a n d Philo: the h u m a n is a " w o r l d citizen" b y virtue o f his o r her possession o f logos w h i c h , in its ideal f o r m as "right reason," constitutes the law o f the great C o s m i c City. T h a t the use o f this designation in the Apostolic Constitutions, t o o , bespeaks a similar set o f assumptions can­ not b e d o u b t e d . In t w o o f the three passages where the title " w o r l d citizen" appears, it occurs in apposition to the characterization

141

of

This is clear from the fact that the redactor repeatedly attempts to integrate into books 1-6 the natural law theory which he presents most fully in books 7-8, while, conversely, the law/deuterosis distinction, so prominent in books 1-6 as a result o f his dependence upon the Didascalia, is not at all incorporated into books 7-8. 6.23.2: oike 8e xa (puouca n6Br\ 8 K K 6 J I T £ I V evouoGeTnaev, dAAa TTIV T O W C O V ajieipiav. This statement is only intelligible as a rejection o f the early Stoic understanding o f the passions. 142

118

CHAPTER THREE

the h u m a n as "the rational animal" (TO AoyiKov £fi>ov).

143

It is in fact

emphasized repeatedly throughout the Apostolic Constitutions, a n d par­ ticularly in b o o k s 7 a n d 8, that the h u m a n animal is ^ o y i K o v .

1 4 4

Thus

w h e n it is stated in the third passage containing this title that o n e who

wishes to b e initiated into the g r o u p must first

understand,

a m o n g other things, " w h y the h u m a n b e i n g was a p p o i n t e d w o r l d citizen" as well as " h i s / h e r o w n nature, o f what sort it is," it is al­ most certainly the case that the "nature" intended here is the rational h u m a n nature.

145

T h e c o n n e c t i o n is further attested b y the repeated

characterization, in these same passages, o f the h u m a n as KOGUOD K o c u o q , an a m b i g u o u s tide that seems in any case to b e related to the h u m a n animal's rational The to

nature.

146

c o m p i l e r never states categorically that the implanted law is

b e identified with the h u m a n logos. Perhaps o w i n g to the c e n -

trality o f M o s e s ' s l a w t o his p u r p o s e , he speaks directly o f an Ejicpuxoc;

vojLioq

rather than o f an euxpuToq Aoyoq w h i c h is vojioq, as in

the s o u r c e o f C i c e r o ' s De Legibus a n d the Letter o f J a m e s . It is nonetheless quite clear that he understands the relationship b e t w e e n the t w o as b e i n g o f the most intimate order; indeed, so m u c h is already suggested b y his characterization o f the h u m a n animal as " w o r l d citizen." M o r e o v e r , the close association o f h u m a n reason with b o t h the implanted a n d the M o s a i c law b e c o m e s quite explicit w h e n it said that G o d "raised u p the h u m a n

[to b e ] the KOOUOU

K o o u o q through Christ, a n d gave to it an implanted a n d written law so that it might live lawfully, as a rational [ a n i m a l ] " (Kai vouov 8our|0£v) to us" by means o f logos—a birth which he has just mentioned in 1:18—it might be taken more literally as "the face o f one's birth," and thus as an allusion to the fact that the law reflects the logos that was was involved in "our" birth. Cf. in this respect Hort, Epistle of St. James, 39: "The yeveaiq is his birth strictly, in antithesis to his later degeneracy; but the face is the invisible face, the reflexion o f God's image in humanity"; cf. Sidebottom, James, Jude and 2 Peter, 35. Note also in this connection Jas 3:9: xoox; dcvGpamoix; xoix; Ka0' ouoicooiv Oeoft yeyovoxocq. If this is in fact the case, then 6rcoio0£p{a is nearly always used in the L X X with reference to a social state of individuals, whether with reference to nobility (e.g., 1 Kgdms 17:25; 3 Kgdms 20:8, 11; 2 Esdr 23:17) or, most often, in opposition to literal slavery (e.g., Exod 21:2, 5, 26, 27; Lev 19:20; Deut 15:12, 13, 18; 21:14). It is telling in this connec­ tion that, in contrast to the usual format for entries in TDJVT, Schlier's article on eXet)0£poxe, with 3:14 and 3:16, £fjAxx;. See further on a m i c c o xocoioc below, pp. 229ff. Note also in this connection the author's assumption o f a sort o f "unity o f vices" in 3:16: where there is £fjA,o sind" (Ein vollkommenes Werk, 200). See the works listed in the immediately preceding note, and esp. Luedemann, Opposition to Paul, 145 and 287 n. 21. Lindemann reports that the view that the author opposes "eine 'entartete' paulinische Tradition" is "die in der Forschung iiberwiegend vertretene Annahme" (Paulus im altesten Christentum, 243 and n. 71). Lindemann himself, however, is rightly critical o f this view, arguing not only that the author o f James engages directly with Paul, but that "[d]er V f des Jak hat Paulus durchaus verstanden" (ibid., 250); cf. with this last remark, however, his c o m ­ ment regarding the absence o f the phrase epya vojioi) in James on pp. 248f. 5

6

7

8

CONCLUSION

245

a 7uoir|Tf|jLi£voi, \u\ A,6yoie£po