Michael F. Bird, Jesus among the gods: early Christology in the Greco-Roman world. Waco: Baylor University Press, 2022. Pp. xi, 480. ISBN 9781481316750.Review by
Riemer Roukema, Protestant Theological University. rroukema@pthu.nl... To Bird, the similarities between portrayals of Jesus and various intermediary figures are undeniable, as well as the differences. He notes that no single figure can be regarded as a progenitor of early christology or can be considered the hermeneutic key that explains its development. He sees early christology as innovative since it puts Jesus on the level of the god of Israel. Provocatively he calls Jesus “a Jewish deity of the Greco-Roman world,” or more precisely, “an embodiment and expression of the God of Israel’s person and power.” ...
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