C H A P T E R SIX

T H E K I N G D O M O F G O D IN T H E APOCRYPHA
AND PSEUDEPIGRAPHA

Kingdom of God does not appear as a standard, fixed expression in

the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha as it does in the Gospels. There
are however various motifs associated with "kingdom" which are
important for establishing the possible range of meaning of the
phrase.

Daniel
We begin our review with the canonical Book of Daniel, which is in
fact a pseudepigraph in chs 7-12, and belongs chronologically with
the Apocrypha. The tales in chs 1-6 are somewhat older than the
apocalyptic visions of the Maccabean era, and, at least in some
cases, are traditional stories which developed over a long period of
time.1 T h e theme of world kingdoms runs throughout these stories as
they trace the career of Daniel under Babylonian, Median, and
finally Persian rule. The inclusion of Darius the Mede in this se-
quence is a notorious problem, since Babylon was never ruled by
Media, and Darius was the name of a later, Persian king. The so-
lution of the problem lies in the discovery that Daniel was adapting
a scheme which was conventional in Near Eastern political propa-
ganda. According to this schema there would be a sequence of four
world kingdoms followed by a fifth, final one. 2 The schema is known
from a Roman chronicler, Aemilius Sura, who wrote about 175 BCE.
Aemilius lists the kingdoms as Assyria, Media, Persia, and Mace-
donia, followed by Rome. The same kingdoms are listed in the
Fourth Sibylline Oracle, a Jewish work from the late first century CE,

1
J.J. Collins, The Apocalyptic Vision of the Book of Daniel (Harvard Semitic Mono-
graphs 16; Missoula: Scholars, 1977) 8-11. The tradition-historical background has
been most vividly illustrated in the case of Dan 4 by the discovery of the Prayer of
Nabonidus at Qpmran.
2
T h e existence of this schema was pointed out by J.W. Swain, "The Theory of
the Four Monarchies: Opposition History Under the Roman Empire," Classical
Philology 35 (1940) 1-21. The most complete discussion is by David Russer, "The
Four Empires in the Fourth Sibyl and in the Book of Daniel," Israel Oriental Studies 2
(1972) 148-75.
which may, however, incorporate an older source. 3 Because of the
inclusion of Media, the schema is thought to have originated in
Persia. Originally, the schema served as propaganda against the
Greek empire of Alexander. The implication was that history had
run its course and that the fourth, Greek, kingdom would soon be
overthrown.
The schema of the four kingdoms is found explicitly in Dan 2 in
the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream, and again in ch 7. It
also informs the structure of the book as a whole. Chapters 1-6
mention Babylonian, Median, and Persian kings. Chapters 7-12
repeat this sequence and anticipate the coming of "the prince of
Greece" (10:20). It is apparent then that Daniel identifies the
kingdoms as Babylon, Media, Persia, and Greece—Babylon is sub-
stituted for Assyria because of its role in the destruction of Jerusalem.
In Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Dan 2 the four world kingdoms
are symbolized as a statue, made of metals of declining value, which
is destroyed by a stone that then becomes a great mountain. 4 Daniel
explains that
in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom
which shall never be destroyed, nor shall its sovereignty be left to
another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring
them to an end, and it shall stand forever (2:44).
This kingdom set up by God is not further described. From the
context we should suppose that it is a Jewish kingdom which will rise
to replace, and destroy, the previous gentile kingdoms. It differs from
other kingdoms insofar as it will not pass away, but it is presumably
a political, earthly kingdom like them. 5
The kingdom set up by God must, however, be distinguished from
the kingdom, or kingship, of God. In Dan 3:33 Nebuchadnezzar
praises God: "His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his
dominion is from generation to generation." Here again there is a
contrast between the transience of human kingdoms, even that of
the mighty Nebuchadnezzar, and the permanence of God's reign.
The kingdom of God here is not an earthly kingdom set up by God,
but the power by which "the Most High rules the kingdom of men
and gives it to whom he will" (Dan 4:29). In these hymnic passages

3
J.J. Collins, "The Sibylline Oracles," J H. Charlesworth, ed., The Old Testament
Pesudepigrapha (2 vols; Garden City, New York: Doublcday, 1983) 1:381-89.
4
On the symbolism of the dream sec Collins, The Apocalyptic Vision of the Book of
Daniel, 34-46.
5
It is possible that Daniel was adapting a Babylonian prophecy which predicted
a lasting Babylonian kingdom. Sec Collins, The Apocalyptic Imagination (New York:
Crossroad, 1984) 76-77 and compare the Babylonian Uruk prophecy.
 Daniel draws on the biblical tradition where Yahweh is proclaimed
king in the Psalms.
The four-kingdom schema is taken up again in Dan 7 in the
context of an apocalyptic vision from the time of the persecution of
Antiochus Epiphanes. In this case the four kingdoms are represented
as beasts rising from the sea. T h e dominant imagery of the passage is
drawn from the myth of combat between a god and a sea monster
or dragon, which Israel had adapted from the more ancient Near
Eastern cultures. 6 God, the ancient of days, is depicted as a royal
judge who confers "dominion and glory and kingdom 5 ' on "one like
a son of m a n " (7:13-14). Subsequendy we are told that "the holy
ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the
kingdom for ever" (7:18) and finally that
the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms
under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the holy ones
of the Most High: their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and
all dominions shall serve and obey them (7:27).
T h e interpretation of this chapter, which has had such profound
influence on the Gospels, remains very controversial. There is
evidendy a contrast between the everlasting kingdom conferred by
God and the transient human kingdoms which precede it, as in Dan
2. Further, it is clear that an earthly Jewish kingdom is envisaged,
which will be worldwide and everlasting (7:27). The controversy
concerns the interpretation of the "one like a son of man" and the
"holy ones of the Most High." Some scholars take these expressions
simply as ways of referring to the Jewish people. 7 Against this,
however, is the fact that every undisputed mention of "holy ones" in
Daniel refers to angels, 8 and that figures who appear in human
likeness are also angels.9
If Dan 7 is read in the context of chs 10-12, it is clear that Daniel
envisaged two dimensions in history. The conflict on earth between
Jews and Greeks is only the reflection of the batde between their
angelic patrons. T h e victory of the Jews corresponds to, and depends
6
Collins, The Apocalyptic Vmon of the Book of Daniel, 95-101; The Apocalyptic
Imagination, 79-80. For the background myth see John Day, God's Conflict with the
Dragon and the Sea (Cambridge: Cambridge University, 1985) and Adela Yarbro
Coffins, The Combat Myth in the Book of Revelation (Harvard Dissertations in Religion 9;
Missoula: Scholars, 1976) 57-100.
‫ י‬So, recendy, L.F. Hartman and A.A. DiLella, The Book of Daniel (AB 23;
Garden City: Doubleday, 1978) 85-102; M. Casey, Son of Man: The Interpretation and
Influence of Daniel 7 (London: SPCK, 1979) 7-50; W.S. Towner, Daniel (Inter-
pretation; Adanta:John Knox, 1984) 105-6.
8
Dan 4:10, 14, 20; 8:13. Cf. the angelic "holy ones" in / Enoch 14:22-23.
9
Dan 8:15-16; 9:21; 10:5, 16, 18; 12:6-7. Cf. the Animal Apocalypse in I Enoch 83-
90 where men represent angels, or humans transformed to an angelic state.
on the victory of the archangel Michael. Accordingly it seems most
probable that the "one like a son of man" is Michael, who represents
Israel on the heavenly level. The "holy ones" are the angelic host
and "the people of the holy ones" are the Jews. 10 The kingdom then
is realized on two levels and involves simultaneously an angelic
kingdom and the earthly dominion of the Jewish people. A precise
parallel to this idea is found in the Qumran War Scroll, where God
is said to "raise up the rule of Michael in the midst of the gods and
the realm of Israel in the midst of all flesh" (1QM 17:7)."
The apocalyptic kingdom of Dan 7 is not simply identical with
that envisaged in Dan 2 but involves an otherworldly dimension.
Dan 12 promises that the faithful Jews can share in this dimension
by resurrection, and that the wise teachers will shine like the stars
forever and ever, which in apocalyptic idiom, means to join the
fellowship of the angels.12 The everlasting kingdom thus becomes
accessible not only to future generations but also to the righteous
after death.
On the basis of our examination of Daniel, then, we can
distinguish three aspects of the kingdom motif. First, there is the
hymnic use for the sovereignty of God, by which he disposes of all
kingdoms. Second, there is the earthly dominion of the Jewish
people, which is a kingdom set up by God. Finally, there is the
apocalyptic kingdom of the angels, which involves the exaltation of
righteous human beings after death. These three ideas are not
mutually exclusive. All three are implied in the apocalyptic vision in
Dan 7.

The Sibylline Tradition

The theme of world kingdoms plays a major role in the Sibylline
Oracles from the Jewish Diaspora. The main body of Sib O r 3 was
composed in Egypt around the middle of the second century BCE. 1 3
Sib O r 3:97-161 introduces the theme of kingship and shows that it
was a cause of strife from the beginning. The section concludes with
a list of world kingdoms in 3:156-61. The other main sections of the

10
Collins, The Apocalyptic Vision of the Book of Darnel, 123-47; The Apocalyptic
Imagination, 78-85. Cf. A. Lacocque: The Book of Daniel (Atlanta: Knox, 1979) 131-34;
C. Rowland, The Open Heaven (New York: Crossroad, 1983) 178-83; Day, God's
Conflict with the Dragon and the Sea, 167-78.
" U.B. Müller, Messias and Menschensohn in jüdischen Apokalypsen und in der
Offenbarung Johannes (Gütersloh: Mohn, 1972) 28.
12
Cf. 1 Enoch 102:2, 6.
13
J J . Collins, The Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian Judaism (SBLDS 13; Missoula:
Scholars Press, 1974) 24-37; "Sibylline Oracles," OTP 1:354-61.
original corpus follow a pattern of sin, followed by tribulation,
followed by the advent of a king or kingdom. In Sib O r 3:196-294
this pattern is demonstrated from Jewish history at the time of the
Babylonian exile. T h e exile comes to an end when God sends a king
(286), who must be identified in this context as Cyrus of Persia.14 In
other passages the focus of the sibyl is on Hellenistic Egypt. In Sib
O r 3:192-93 the time of deliverance will come in "the seventh reign,
when a king of Egypt, who will be of the Greeks by race, will rule."
T h e king in question is either Ptolemy VI Philometor (if Alexander is
counted as the first) or his anticipated successor. Similar references
to the seventh king are found in Sib O r 3:318 and 608. In Sib O r
3:652 "God will send a king from the sun, who will stop the entire
earth from evil war." T h e reference again is to a Ptolemaic king.15
The sibyl looked for a king from the Ptolemaic line who would
mediate deliverance for the Jews as Cyrus of Persia had done at the
end of the Babylonian exile.
In the final section of the book the sibyl speaks of a kingdom
which will be raised up by God (767-795). The temple will be a
center of pilgrimage for all nations; wolves and lambs will feed
together, as envisaged in Isa 11. This eschatological kingdom is
apparendy distinct from the reign of the seventh, Ptolemaic king, but
it is also an earthly kingdom, which will bring to an end the
sequence of world kingdoms. Throughout Sib O r 3 God is "the
great King" (499, 560, 616, 784, 808) who must be worshipped by
all. As in Dan 1-6 the kingship of God is his sovereignty by which he
disposes of all kingdoms.
The Sibylline tradition is continued in additions which were made
to Sib O r 3 in the first century BCE. One of these oracles (3:46-62)
anticipates that after the Roman conquest of Egypt (31 BCE) "the
most great kingdom of the immortal king will become manifest over
men" (Sib O r 3:47-48). This will be a universal kingdom ruled by a
"holy prince.' ‫ י‬This figure is not identified as a Roman or Egyptian
leader and may be a Jewish messiah. The advent of the "kingdom of
God" here is understood primarily as the occasion for "the judgment
of the great king, immortal God" (3:56), executed by means of a
fiery cataract from heaven.
A similar expectation of destructive judgment pervades the fifth

14
Contra J . Nolland, "Sib O r II1. 265-94. An Early Maccabean Messianic Or-
acle," JTS 30 (1979) 158-67, who finds a typological allusion to a Davidic messiah
here.
15
Collins, The Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian Judaism, 40-44. The Egyptian
background of the phrase "king from the sun" is shown by its occurrence in the
Potter's Oracle, col. 3.
book of Sibylline Oracles, composed in Egypt on the eve of the great
Diaspora revolt of 115 CE.16 In V 108 the judgment is brought about
by "a certain king sent from God," about whom we are told no
more. Elsewhere in Sib Or 5 the savior figure is said to come from
heaven. The most explicit passage is found in w 414-28:
For a blessed man came from the expanses of heaven with a scepter in
his hands which God gave him and he gained sway over all things
well, and gave back the wealth to all the good, which previous men
had taken.
He is also said to refashion "the city which God desired" by building
a tower which touches the clouds, (cf. Sib O r 5:252, where the wall
of Jerusalem is said to extend as far as Joppa). Despite the heavenly
origin of the savior king, Sib O r 5 remains true to the Sibylline
tradition. God himself is the king (5:499) who must be worshipped
by all. His kingdom on earth is an eschatological kingdom centered
in Jerusalem but universal in scope. The Egyptian Sibylline tradition
is remarkable for its lack of the otherworldly dimension so
characteristic of the apocalyptic literature. There is no talk of angels
and no expectation of resurrection. The hope is the traditional
Israelite hope for the transformation of the earth.
The fourth book of Sibylline Oracles, which, in its present form
comes from Syria or the Jordan valley (ca. 80 CE), shows more
affinity with apocalyptic eschatology.17 Here again the sequence of
world kingdoms provides the context for the eschatological ex-
pectation. The sibyl, like Daniel, speaks of a sequence of four
kingdoms, over ten generations, ruled in turn by Assyria (six gen-
erations), Media (two generations), Persia and Macedonia (one
each). The rise of Rome follows. Since Rome is not integrated into
the numerical sequence, it appears to have been added to update an
older oracle. The final demise of the world kingdoms does not lead
to a final "kingdom of God" in Sib Or 4. Instead, God will "burn
the whole earth and destroy the whole race of men" (Sib O r 4:176).
This universal destruction is then followed by a resurrection and
final judgment. The resurrection is a restoration on earth: those who
are pious "will live on earth again" (187). This final state is not
called a kingdom in Sib O r 4, but it takes the place of the world
kingdoms.

16
Collins, The Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian Judaism, 73-95; "Sibylline Oracles,"
1:390-2. O n the historical setting see also M. Hengel, "Messianischc Hoffnung und
politischer 'Radikalismus' in der jüdisch-hellenistischcn Diaspora," in D. Hellholm,
ed., Apocalyptyicvm in the Mediterranean World and the Near East (Tübingen: Mohr, 1983)
653-84.
» Collins, "Sibylline Oracles," OTP 1:381-83.
 Other Diaspora Usage
The Sibylline Oracles, with their focus on the succession of world
empires, are an important, but somewhat atypical, strand of
Diaspora Judaism. 18 The idea of the sovereignty of God is the
common denominator of all references to the kingdom, including
those of the Sibyllines. This idea did not necessarily entail the
expectation of an eschatological kingdom. 19 For 2 Maccabees, God
is the "King of Kings" who controls the course of history (13:4). The
revolt ofJason, the Hellenizer, is a revolt against "the holy land and
the kingdom" (1:7). Kingdom here can only mean the sovereignty of
God, perhaps as expressed through the law.20 The second letter pre-
fixed to 2 Macc declares that God "has saved all his people, and has
returned the inheritance to all, and the kingship and priesthood and
consecration" (2:17). Whether the "kingship" here refers to the
Hasmonean dynasty 21 or whether it is meant as equivalent to
consecration in a spiritual sense, it is certainly conceived as present
after the re-consecration of the temple.
In the philosophical circles of Diaspora Judaism the "kingdom"
took on a more spiritual, or ethical sense. The Wisdom of Solomon
declares that "there is no dominion (basileion) of Hades on earth, for
righteousness is immortal" (1:14-15). Even though the righteous
"seemed to have died" (3:2), they will judge nations and rule over
peoples and the Lord will reign over them forever (3:8). Here the
kingdom is something that the righteous enjoy after death: "But the
righteous live forever, and their reward is with the Lord...therefore
they will receive majestic royalty" (5:16). In this sense we can
understand how "the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom" (6:20).
Finally we are told that wisdom guided the righteous man and
"showed him the kingdom of God and gave him knowledge of
angels" (10:10). T h e reference is to Jacob. The apparent equation of

18
For a survey of Jewish Hellenistic literature apart from Pliilo see J . J. Collins,
Between Athens and Jerusalem. Jewish Identity in the Hellenistic Diaspora (New York:
Crossroad, 1983).
19
The most complete survey of references to the kingdom of God and related
concepts in the "intertestamental" literature is that of Odo Camponovo, Königtum,
Königsherrschafl und Reich Gottes in den Jriihjiidischen Schriften (OBO 58; Göttingen:
Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1984). See also M. Lattke, "On the Jewish Background
of the Synopric Concept 'The Kingdom of God,"' in B. Chilton, ed., The Kingdom of
God (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1984) 72-91.
20
So Componovo, Königtum, 187.
21
So J.A. Goldstein, "How the Authors in I and II Maccabees treated the "Mes-
sianic Prophecies," i n j . Neusner et al., ed., Judaisms and Their Messiahs (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1987) 83-84.
the "kingdom of God" with the world of the angels is reminiscent of
Daniel, and indeed the Wisdom of Solomon is influenced at many
points by apocalyptic traditions. 22 It does not, however, retain the
expectation of a kingdom on earth, and there is a tendency to
identify the kingdom with wisdom and righteousness which are the
root of immortality (Wis 15:3).
Other writings of the Diaspora go further in spiritualizing the
"kingdom." 23 For 4 Macc 2:23 the mind which follows the law will
rule a kingdom characterized by the four cardinal virtues. The idea
found in Stoicism that the wise man is a king is also in Philo (e.g.
Migr Abr 197; Abr 261; De Somniis (2:244). For Philo, kingdom
(basileia) is the rule of the wise man, and it is established by God (Abr
261). "Kingdom" (basileia) can even be defined as wisdom (Migr Abr
197) or as virtue (De Somniis 2:244).

The Apocalyptic Kingdom

The apocalyptic idea of the kingdom, developed in Dan 7-12, figures
more prominently in the Judaism of the land of Israel, although even
there it is not as prevalent as we might expect. The kingdom is not a
prominent motif in the early Enoch literature. 24 In the Book of the
Watchers (1 Enoch 1-36) God is called the eternal king (9:4; 12:3; 25:3-
5,7; 27:3). When he "comes down to visit the earth for good" (25:3)
his throne will be established on a mountain. Then "the chosen" will
receive life from the fruit of a tree, "and they will live a long life on
earth, as your (Enoch's) fathers lived, and in their days sorrow and
pain and toil and punishment will not touch them" (25:6). The reign
of God, then, will finally involve a return to a paradisiac state. In
view of ch 22 we must assume that the spirits of the dead can also
participate in this state, even though it is located on earth. However,
the Book of the Watchers does not refer to this eschatological state as
"the kingdom of God." God is king of all eternity.
Again in the Book of Dreams (1 Enoch 83-90), God is hailed by
prayer as "Lord King, great and powerful in your majesty, Lord of
the whole creation of heaven, King of Kings and God of the whole
world" (84:2). In the Animal Apocalypse (1 Enoch 90:20) the Lord takes

22
G.W. Nickelsburg, Resurrection, Immortality and Eternal Life in Intertestamental
Judaism (Cambridge: Harvard, 1972) 68-82; J . J . Collins, "Cosmos and Salvation.
Jewish Wisdom and Apocalyptic in the Hellenistic Age." History of Religions 17 (1977)
121-42.
23
K.L. Schmidt, basileia (tou theou) in Hellenistic Judaism," 7ZWT(1964) 1:574-
24
Camponovo, Königtum, 257.
his seat for judgment on a throne "in the pleasant land" (Israel). The
transformation that follows the judgment is again located on earth,
although it apparendy involves a resurrection of the dead. In the
Apocalypse of Weeks (1 Enoch 93:1-10; 91:11-17) both the historical
temple and the eschatological one are associated with the kingship of
God. T h e final consummation is an exercise of divine sovereignty,
but it cannot be equated with the kingdom of God.
The Enochic writing which bears closest resemblance to Daniel is
the Book of Similitudes (1 Enoch 37-71), a document of disputed date
which most probably comes from around the time of Christ. 25 The
expression "kingdom of God" is not used, and God is called king in
only one passage (1 Enoch 63:2-4). However, the theme of kingship is
more important than a purely terminological inquiry might suggest.
At the center of the Similitudes are God, the "Lord of Spirits5' or
"Head of Days,55 and the exalted angelic figure called "that Son of
Man.5526 T h e main function of the Son of Man figure is to judge and
destroy the kings and the powerful.
And this Son of Man whom you have seen will rouse the kings and
the powerful from their resting places, and the strong from their
thrones, and will loose the reins of the strong.. .and he will cast down
kings from their thrones and from their kingdoms (/ Enoch 46:4-5).
The Lord of Spirits is ultimately the one "who is king over all kings55
(63:4, cf. Dan 4:29), but he sets the Son of Man on his throne of
glory (61:8; 62:5) to function as royal judge. The Similitudes do not
speak of an earthly kingdom to replace that of "the kings of the
mighty.55 T h e emphasis is rather on the resting places of the
righteous with the angels and holy ones (39:5; cf. 51:4). The kingship
of God is viewed primarily in its negative aspect, in the destruction
of the kings of the earth. T h e Son of Man is also called "messiah 5 '
(48:10; 52:4) and takes over traditional kingly functions, 27 but his
kingdom has an otherworldly character.

The Testament of Moses

Perhaps the clearest example of an "apocalyptic55 kingdom of God is
found in the Testament of Moses, which is not formally an apocalypse,
but is closely related to the "historical" apocalypses in form and

25
D.W. Suter, Tradition and Composition in the Parables of Enoch (SBLDS 47;
Missoula: Scholars Press, 1979) 11-38.
26
See Collins, The Apocalyptic Imagination, 142-54.
27
J . Theisohn, Der auserwählte Richter (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,
1975) 98-99.
theme. In its present form the Testament dates from about the turn of
the eras. It is probable, however, that the original document dates
from the Maccabean period. 28 The redacted Testament is one of the
few compositions that can be dated with confidence to the first half
of the first century CE, and so it is of considerable interest for the
context in which Jesus lived.
The Testament of Moses reviews the history of Israel so as to demon-
strate a pattern of sin and punishment. In ch 8:
there will come upon them punishment and wrath such as has never
happened to them from the creation till that time.

The punishment in question looks very much like the persecution of

Antiochus Epiphanes. The Testament goes on to tell of a man named
Taxo who takes his seven sons and resolves to fast for three days, go
into a cave in the open country and die rather than transgress the
commandments, "for if we do this and do die, our blood will be
avenged before the Lord" (9:7). There follows directly the an-
nouncement that "then his kingdom will appear throughout his
whole creation" (10:1). The manifestation of the kingdom will be the
vengeance of God on his enemies, through the hands of an angel.
Israel will be raised up to the heaven of the stars and see her
enemies from on high.
As in Daniel and the Similitudes of Enoch, the kingdom here has a
strongly destructive aspect. The statement in 10:8 that Israel will
mount up above the necks and wings of the eagle breaks the metrical
pattern, and so can be shown to involve a redactional change from
the Roman period, when the eagle symbolized Rome. 29 The
Testament does not speak of a Jewish kingdom to replace the Roman.
The exaltation to the stars (10:9) should probably be understood, by
analogy with Dan 12, to imply immortality. Otherwise we are given
no positive description of the kingdom. Perhaps the most important
point to note is that the kingdom is ushered in with no human
agency. The contribution of the human Taxo is to purify himself and
die—a course of action very similar to the maskîlîm, or wise teachers
in Dan 11. In the Testament, as in Daniel and the Similitudes of Enoch,
the kingdom of God is brought about by the transcendent power of

2
" For the debate on the provenance of the Testament see the essays, in G. W.
Nickelsburg, ed., Studies on the Testament of Moses ( Missoula: Scholars Press, 1973).
For its relation to the apocalypses see Collins, The Apocalyptic Imagination, 102-6.
29
Adela Yarbro Collins, "Composition and Redaction of the Testament of
Moses 10," HTR 69 (1976) 179-86. Cf. the incident in 4 BCE when two doctors of
the law incited some youths to pull down the golden eagle from the temple
(Josephus, JW 1.33.2-4 [648-55]; Λη/ 17.6.2-3 [149-63]).
God and his angels. It is not to be attained by human revolution and
does not even involve the earthly career of a messiah.

The Psalms of Solomon

Messianic expectations did persist throughout this period, however. 30
Apart from the Qumran scrolls, the major witness is found in the
Psalms of Solomon, from the mid-first century BCE These Psalms were
written after the violation of Jerusalem by Pompey in 63 BCE The
Psalmist takes the subsequent death of Pompey in Egypt as evidence
"that it is God who is great, powerful in his great strength. He is
king over the heavens, judging even kings and rulers" (Pss Sol 2:29-
30). As in Dan 4, God is the king who disposes of all kingdoms.
The Psalms' theology of kingship is most fully laid out in Pss Sol
17. After an initial declaration that "you, Lord, are our king
forevermore" (v 1) and that "the kingdom of our God is forever over
the nations in judgment 1 ' (v 3), the psalm recalls how God chose
David as king. "Those to whom you did not make the promise" (the
Hasmoneans) set up a kingdom because of their arrogance, and
provoked the punishment of God through the hand of the lawless
one (Pompey). Now the psalmist prays, "See, Lord, and raise up for
them their king, the son of David, to rule over your servant Israel"
(Pss Sol 17:21). The kingdom ruled by this messiah is essentially the
restoration of a national Jewish kingdom. He will "purge Jerusalem
from gentiles" (17:22); and "he will have gentile nations serving him
under his yoke" (v 30); and "there will be no unrighteousness among
them in his days, for all shall be holy, and their king shall be the
Lord Messiah (v 32).31
The Psalms of Solomon show the influence of apocalypticism in one
important respect: the belief that "those who fear the Lord shall rise
up to eternal life" (3:12; cf. 13:11 ; 14:3; 15:13). The dominant
emphasis, however, is on the restoration of a national kingdom
where the kingship of God is mediated by a Davidic messiah.

The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs

Messianic expression about the turn of the era is not well docu-
mented, apart from the Dead Sea Scrolls. That is due, at least in
30
J.H. Charlesworth, "The Concept of the Messiah in the Pseudepigrapha,"
ANRW 2.19 (ed. W. H. Haase; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1979) 188-218.
31
See further Camponovo, Königtum, 200-228; G. Davenport, "The 'Anointed of
the Lord' in Psalms of Solomon 17," in G.W. Nickelsburg and J.J. Collins, ed., Ideal
Figures in Ancient Judaism (Missoula: Scholars Press, 1980) 67-92.
part, to the limitation of our sources. The Testaments of the Twelve
Patriarchs are widely believed to preserve Jewish material from the
second century BCE forward. Perhaps the most notable of these
traditions is the association of the messiah with both Levi and Judah.
In the present form of the Testaments, one messiah, Christ, is both
priest and king, but it is very probable that the earlier tradition
envisaged a dual messiahship as we also find at Qumran. According
to Test Dan 13:10-13, salvation will arise from Levi and Judah and
defeat Beliar. Then the souls of the saints will rest in Eden and
rejoice in the new Jerusalem and "the Holy One of Israel will reign
over them. 5 ' The kingdom of God here has a distinctly apocalyptic
character insofar as it involves victory over Beliar, resurrection, and
a new, rather than restored, Jerusalem. It is also Christian in its
present form. Unfortunately, the Testaments do not provide in-
dependent evidence of Jewish beliefs but need corroboration from
other sources.32

Messianic Movements in the First Century

We know from Josephus that there were messianic movements in the
first century CE which did not leave written records of their
ideology.33 A number of these movements developed after the death
of Herod, led by such figures as Judas of Galilee, Simon, a servant of
Herod, and Athronges, a shepherd. 34 At the time of the first Jewish
revolt against Rome further messianic pretenders appeared—
Menahem, son of Judas, and most notably Simon Bar Giora. 35 In
the early second century the great Diaspora revolt centered on the
messianic figure Andreas (Lukuas) and of course Bar Kochba was
also a messianic figure. In all of these cases the messianic movements
were actively and violently revolutionary, and the objective was to
replace Roman rule with a native Jewish kingdom.
Josephus distinguishes these violent revolutionaries from

32
For an overview of the debate about the Testaments see J J . Collins,
"Testaments," in M.E. Stone, ed., Jewish Writings of the Second Temple Period
(Philadelphia: Fortress, 1984) 325-44; "The Testamentary Literature in Recent
Scholarship," in G.W. Nickelsburg and R.A. Kraft, ed., Early Judaism and its Modern
Interpreters (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986) 268-78.
33
The best account of these movements can be found in R.A. Horsley and J .
Hanson, Bandits, Prophets and Messiahs (Minneapolis: Winston/Seabury, 1986) ch 3.
34
Judas: Ant 17.10.5. (271-72); Simon: Ant 17.10.6 (273-76); Athronges: Ant
17.10.7 (278-85).
35
Menahem: JW 2.17.8-9 (433-48). On the mcssianic character of Simon see
Horsley and Hanson, Bandits, 120-27.
 another group of scoundrels, in act less criminal but in intention more
evil...Cheats and deceivers, claiming inspiration, they schemed to
bring about revolutionary changes by inducing the mob to act as if
possessed and by leading them out into the wild country on the
pretence that there God would give them signs of approaching
freedom. 36
The best known examples of this type, Theudas and the Egyptian, 37
did not claim to be messiahs and are not said by Josephus to have
spoken of a kingdom; but, we simply do not know how they
conceived their actions. They bear enough similarity to Taxo in the
Testament of Moses to merit mention here. 38

Messianism in the Apocalypses

Messianic expectations were integrated into an apocalyptic schema
in the great apocalypses from the end of the first century CE, 4 Ezra
and 2 Baruch.39 Fourth Ezra draws on the four-kingdom schema of
Daniel in the vision of the lion and the eagle in chs 11-12. The eagle
symbolizes Rome, "the fourth kingdom which appeared in a vision
to your brother Daniel'' (12:11). The lion is "the Messiah whom the
Most High has kept until the end of days, who will arise from the
posterity of David" (12:32). The function of this messiah is to rebuke
and destroy the nations, especially Rome, and to deliver "the
remnant of my people" (12:34). In 4 Ezra 13, the messiah, identified
as "he whom the Most High has been keeping for many ages"
(12:26) and "my son" (13:32, 37) rises from the sea on a cloud. He
destroys the nations with the breath of his mouth and gathers the
lost tribes of Israel.
According to 4 Ezra 7:28-30 the messiah will reign on earth for
400 years, and then die. There will follow seven days of primeval si-
lence, a new creation, and the resurrection of the dead. The trad-
itional hope for a messianic kingdom is thus given a place in the
schema, but it is not the ultimate focus of hope.
Second Baruch operates with a similar schema. Here again we find
the four-kingdom sequence, in ch 39. The messiah will uproot the
fourth kingdom, and "his dominion will last forever until the world

36
JW 2.13.4 (258-60).
37
Theudas: Ant 20.5.1 (97-99); Acts 5:36. The Egyptian: JW 2.13.5 (261-63);
Acts 21:38.
38
On the relevance of these figures to discussions of "the kingdom" see E.P.
Sanders, Jesus and Judaism (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1985) 138.
39
See M. E. Stone, "The Concept of the Messiah in II Ezra," J . Neusner, ed.,
Religions in Antiquity, Essays in Memory of E.R. Goodenough (Leiden: Brill, 1968) 295-312;
Müller, Messias und Menschensohn, 83-154.
of corruption has ended and until the times which have been
mentioned before have heen fulfilled" (40:3). His reign is nonetheless
temporary. The description of his reign in ch 29 is followed by the
prediction that
it will happen after these things when the time of the appearance of
the Anointed One has been fulfilled and he returns with glory, that
then all who sleep in hope of him will rise (30:1-2).

The reign of the messiah marks the end of gentile dominion and
brings about the transformation of the earth (cf. chs 72-74), but
again the focus of the apocalyptic hope lies beyond the messianic
reign in the new age of the resurrection. Neither 2 Baruch nor 4 Ezra
uses the expression "kingdom of God" for the messianic age, but
their conceptions are evidently of relevance here, especially in view
of their use of the four kingdom schema.

The Targums to the Prophets

T h e Targumic and Rabbinic literature lie outside the scope of this
survey. Yet the Targum Jonathan to the Prophets requires some
comment, since a number of recent studies have argued that its
"kingdom theology may represent first century thinking." 40 The
difficulty of dating the Targumic material is notorious. At most,
particular exegetical traditions can be shown to be early by
comparison with other, dateable material. 41 The motif of the
"kingdom of God" has attracted attention because the phrase is used
in a set, standard way, as it also is in Gospels, but not in the
Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, and because the Targumic use of
the phrase contrasts with the Rabbinic use of "the kingdom of
heaven" for the rule of the law.
In the Targum of Isaiah the phrase "kingdom of God" or "king-
dom of the Lord" is used in place of a reference to God himself: e.g.
at Isa 24:23 the M T "because the Lord of hosts will reign on Mt.
Zion" is rendered "because the kingdom of the Lord of hosts will be
revealed on Mt. Zion." 42 We should not conclude that the kingdom

40
B. Chilton, The Kingdom of God, 22. Sec also his The Glory of Israel, The Theology
and Provenance of the Isaiah Targum (Sheffield: J S O T , 1982). The relevance of the
Targums for the teaching of Jesus is also urged by Klaus Koch, "Offenbaren wird
sich das Reich Gottes." NTS 25(1979)158-65.
41
See Chilton, The Glory of Israel, 4-12.
42
The references to the kingdom of God, or of the Lord, are laid out clcarly by
Camponovo, Königtum, 419-28.
is simply a periphrasis for God himself.43 The phrase is used in
contexts where the M T is already eschatological. The characteristic
Targumic phrase "the kingdom of the Lord will be revealed" puts
the emphasis on the expectation of an eschatological event. The idea
of the "revelation" of the kingdom has its closest parallel in Test
Moses 10:1, and the very fact that it is revealed gives it an
"apocalyptic 5 ' character. Yet the Targum does not show the interest
in an angelic transcendent world, characteristic of Daniel or the
Similitudes of Enoch. Rather, the kingdom is associated with Mt.
Zion. 44 The Targum shows a developed interest in the Davidic
messiah, and also associates him with Zion (Targum Isaiah 16:1,
5).45 In general the eschatology of the Targum looks for a Jewish
restoration, but it also includes the resurrection of the dead (Targum
Isaiah 26:19). In all of this the "kingdom theology" of the Targum
may be compatible with that of the Psalms of Solomon or perhaps
(but less clearly) of 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch. As in all of this literature
there is a sharp antithesis between the fate of Jerusalem and that of
Rome (e.g. Targum Isaiah 54:1). The kingdom of God is, of course,
based on the idea of divine sovereignty, but it would seem to imply
the expectation of an earthly kingdom too. Klaus Koch is probably
right when he concludes: the kingdom of God, the kingdom of the
messiah and the dominion of Israel (over the nations) belong
together for the Targum. 46

Conclusion
We have seen that the motif of the kingdom of God was a complex
one in Judaism in the period 200 BCE-100 CE The basic underlying

« So Chilton, The Glory of Israel, 77. Cf. his article "Regnum Dei Deus Est." SJT
31 (1978) 261-70. He qualifies the identification however by saying that the
periphrasis is "employed in respect of divine and saving revelation, particularly on
Mt. Zion." Cf. his clarification of his view in The Kingdom of God, 23: "I have
suggested that the future oriented eschatological aspect of the kingdom is to be
acknowledged, but that it stems from Jesus' view of God, and not from a particular
expectation of the future."
44
Chilton (The Glory of Israel, 78) finds a discrepancy between an exclusively
Zion-associated kingdom in Targum Isaiah and a more universal one in Targum
Zechariah, but the biblical Isaiah already conceives of a universal kingdom centered
on Zion.
45
The references to the messiah in the Isaiah Targum are collected by Chilton,
The Glory of Israel, 86-96. In an appendix, 112-17, he concludes that "the other
Latter Prophets Targums appear to reflect messianic teaching consistent with that
represented in the Isaiah Targum, but not so fully," and that the Jeremiah and
Ezekiel targum are closest to that of Isaiah. In Targum Micah 4:7-8 the revelation
of the kingdom is explicidy associated with the messiah.
46
Koch, "Offenbaren," 164.
idea of all conceptions of the kingdom was that God is king of the
universe, past, present, and future. In some contexts the kingdom
could be understood in a moral or spiritual way, especially in the
Hellenistic Diaspora. In the great majority of cases, however,
especially in the land of Israel, in the first centuries BCE and CE, it
was expected that the "kingship" of God would be manifested in an
eschatological kingdom.
The eschatological kingdom could still be conceived in various
ways. We may contrast the apocalyptic kingdom of Dan 7-12 or
Test Moses 10, which would be brought about by angels, with the
more traditional messianic kingdom of Pss Sol 17. These two types
however do not remain pure and separate:47 in 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch
the messianic kingdom is accommodated as a transitory stage within
an apocalyptic framework. Even the earthly kingdom of the Psalms of
Solomon involved the resurrection of the dead, but this belief was not
taken up in the Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian Judaism (i.e. Sib Or 3
and 5). Finally we lack direct information about the ideology of the
various messianic and prophetic movements mentioned by Josephus,
which left no records of their own, but which apparently aimed at
the restoration of the Jewish nation. The common denominator of
all eschatological formulations of the kingdom, however, in addition
to the postulate of divine sovereignty, was rejection of foreign rule.
The implementation of the kingdom of God, whether by a messiah
or a direct heavenly intervention, implied the destruction of the
kings and the mighty of this world.
The material we have reviewed here illustrates the associations
which would have been attached to the proclamation of the
kingdom of God in the first century. It is of course possible that Jesus
departed radically from these ways of understanding the kingdom,
but at the very least they provide the context within which his
proclamation would have been understood.

47
Cf. the classic typology of Jewish eschatology proposed by Sigmund Mowin-
ckel, He That Cometh (Nashville: Abingdon, 1955) 281.