The Torn Veil
The Torn Veil
In this 2006 text, Daniel M. Gurtner examines the meaning of the rending of the veil at the death of Jesus in Matthew 27:51a by considering the functions of the veil in the Old Testament and its symbolism in Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism. Gurtner incorporates these elements into a compositional exegesis of the rending text in Matthew. He concludes that the rending of the veil is an apocalyptic assertion like the opening of heaven revealing, in part, end-time images drawn from Ezekiel 37. Moreover, when the veil is torn Matthew depicts the cessation of its function, articulating the atoning role of Christ's death which gives access to God not simply in the sense of entering the Holy of Holies (as in Hebrews), but in trademark Matthean Emmanuel Christology: 'God with us'. This underscores the significance of Jesus' atoning death in the first gospel.
- Allows readers to consider the historical and literary origins of the veil motif
- Considers the symbolism of the rending of the veil with particular reference to other Jewish texts from antiquity
- Examines the rending of the veil in its particular Matthean context
Reviews & endorsements
"Throughout this very fine study, Gurtner brings fresh data to bear on Matthew's presentation of the death of Jesus, often with illuminating effect. Gurtner's Torn Veil succeeds admirably in pulling back its own curtain--the one that has obscured understanding of Matt:27:51-54 for so many of us." --Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Product details
January 2007Hardback
9780521870641
320 pages
551 × 144 × 27 mm
0.565kg
Available
Table of Contents
- 1. Introduction
- 2. Veils in the Old Testament
- 3. Functionality and identity in the 'veil of the temple'
- 4. The veil in Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism
- 5. Matthew's temple and Jesus' death: hermeneutical keys to the rending of the veil
- 6. Analysis of the Matthean velum scissum pericope
- 7. Conclusion: Matthew's velum scissum - retrospect and prospect.
