Program / Course 16: Historical Defense / Lesson 5.2
What you will learn
- Read 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 closely and identify the creedal tradition within it.
- Explain why scholars date the tradition to within a few years of the crucifixion.
- Describe what the passage does and does not claim about the appearances.
- State the main objections to using the passage as evidence for a bodily resurrection.
The big idea
In 1 Corinthians 15, written about AD 54 or 55, Paul reminds his readers of a message he received and passed on: Christ died for our sins, was buried, was raised on the third day, and appeared to Cephas, the Twelve and others. Most scholars think that the core of this passage is an older tradition, going back to the first years of the church in Jerusalem. That makes it the earliest surviving statement of the resurrection claim and an important piece of evidence. It is testimony that the disciples said they saw Jesus alive. What the experiences were is a separate question on which scholars divide.
Key terms
- Creed (in this context)
- A short, fixed statement of belief, memorized and handed on. Scholars find such formulas in Paul’s letters.
- Received and delivered
- Technical terms for passing on a tradition. Paul uses them in 1 Corinthians 15:3 to show that the content was not his own invention.
- Cephas
- The Aramaic name for Peter, used by Paul. It means rock, as Petros does in Greek.
- Appearance
- The word used for the experiences in which the risen Jesus was seen. The Greek verb ophthe can mean he appeared or he was seen.
- Apostle
- A messenger sent by Christ. Paul uses it for the Twelve and for a wider group, including himself.
- Corinthian church
- The congregation Paul founded in Corinth in Greece, to which he wrote at least two letters preserved in the New Testament.
Background
The first letter to the Corinthians is one of the letters whose authorship by Paul is not seriously disputed. It was written from Ephesus, most scholars think around AD 54 or 55, about twenty-five years after the crucifixion. In chapter 15 Paul answers some in Corinth who say there is no resurrection of the dead. To show that this is wrong, he begins with what the whole church agrees on.
He starts with the message he first preached to them, and says that he is passing on what he received. This phrase is the basis for the claim that the following lines are older than the letter. This lesson reads the text closely and then sets out the arguments for and against treating it as strong evidence.
Step-by-step explanation
Step 1: The text
Paul writes that he delivered to them first of all that which he also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; that he was buried; that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures; and that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve (1 Corinthians 15:3-5). He continues that after that he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remained alive to the time of writing, though some had died, then of James, then of all the apostles, and last of all of himself, as of one born out of due time (verses 6-8).
Scholars generally find a first unit in verses 3-5, built in parallel lines with four statements introduced by that, and a second list of further appearances in verses 6-8. How much is pre-Pauline is debated, but verses 3-5 are widely accepted as tradition.
Step 2: Why it is considered early
Several features suggest an earlier origin. Paul’s verbs received and delivered match the technical language for passing on a tradition. The style is compact and rhythmic, apt for memorization. It uses Cephas, the Aramaic form of Peter’s name, and it contains words that Paul does not use elsewhere in this way.
Paul himself indicates when he could have received it. In Galatians 1:18 he says that three years after his conversion he went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days, and saw James. If his conversion was within a few years of the crucifixion, the tradition goes back to about AD 33 to 38 at the latest. Many scholars, including skeptics such as Gerd Lüdemann, date the formula to within two to five years of Jesus’ death.
Step 3: What it shows
Taken at its face value the passage shows three things. First, within a very few years of Jesus’ death the church was already saying that he had been raised and had appeared to named individuals and groups. Second, Paul could expect his readers to accept this as common ground, since he says that whether it was he or the others, so they preach (verse 11). Third, he invites checking: most of the five hundred were still alive, so the claim could be tested by asking them.
It also shows that Paul had met some of the persons named. In Galatians 2 he describes a later meeting with James, Cephas and John, who recognized his mission. So he knew the main witnesses personally, and could tell what they claimed.
Step 4: What it does not show
The passage does not describe the appearances. It does not say whether they were seen with the eyes, in a vision or in some other way, and the Greek verb is open to either. It does not mention the empty tomb, the women or the places. Paul puts his own experience on the road to Damascus in the same list as the others, and he describes it as God revealing his Son in him (Galatians 1:16), which some scholars take to mean that all the appearances were of the same visionary kind. Others argue that Paul regarded his experience as the last of a special series, different from later visions (verse 8).
The passage is also testimony, not independent confirmation. It records what the early Christians reported. It does not show that what they reported happened as they believed. A skeptic can accept the passage as proof that the disciples sincerely believed they saw Jesus, and look for another explanation of why.
Step 5: The wider chapter
Paul argues in the rest of the chapter that if Christ has not been raised then their preaching and faith are in vain (verse 14), that Christ is the firstfruits of those who sleep (verse 20), and that the dead will be raised with a spiritual body, as a seed becomes a plant (verses 35-49). This gives the evidence its meaning: the resurrection of Jesus is the beginning of a general resurrection.
The passage therefore connects history and theology. It ties the faith to an event, and at the same time interprets the event through Jewish ideas of the end of the age. Both aspects should be kept in view.
- Which lines does Paul say he received, and how do we know they are older than the letter?
- How early could the tradition have reached Paul?
- Whom did Paul know among the persons named in the list?
- What does the verb for appearance leave open?
- Why does Paul say that most of the five hundred were still alive?
- What can the passage prove, and what must be argued from other evidence?
Examples
Fifteen days with Peter
Galatians 1:18 records that Paul stayed with Peter in Jerusalem for fifteen days within about three years of his conversion. Historians point out that this gave Paul direct access to a main witness, and it is the likely occasion for him to receive the tradition, though he does not say so.
Checking the witnesses
In verse 6 Paul says that most of the five hundred were still alive. A writer who wished to fabricate would not likely invite inquiry. Skeptics reply that Paul may have cited a group whom the Corinthians could not easily reach, and that the appearance to five hundred is not described elsewhere.
Paul’s own experience
Paul counts himself last in the list. In Acts, the story of the road to Damascus is told three times with differences (Acts 9, 22, 26). In his letters he says only that he has seen Jesus our Lord (1 Corinthians 9:1). Whether his experience was the same as the others is much debated.
Different perspectives
Most critical scholars
They accept that 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 contains an early tradition, probably formed in Jerusalem within a few years of the crucifixion, and that it shows the disciples believed they had seen Jesus risen. They disagree about what these experiences were.
Evangelical and Catholic apologists
They use the passage as the earliest, most reliable evidence and argue that the physical language in the rest of the chapter, along with the Gospels, supports an objective appearance of the risen body. They often present it as one of a few well attested facts.
Orthodox
Orthodox tradition receives Paul’s witness as part of the apostolic message that is proclaimed at Pascha, and reads 1 Corinthians 15 in the liturgy at funerals and feasts. The accent is on the transformation of the faithful in the risen Christ.
Skeptical interpreters
Some, like Lüdemann, argue that Paul’s list records visionary experiences produced by grief and guilt, and that Paul’s own experience is the model for the rest. Others, such as Dale Allison, accept the experiences and keep the question of cause open.
Critics of the early dating
A few scholars warn that the claim of a formula within two to five years is an inference, that Paul may have modified the tradition, and that knowledge of the first years is thin. They urge caution in building on it.
Why it matters
This passage is the single most important text in the historical argument. A student who has read it closely, and who knows its strengths and limits, will be able to see what the argument for the resurrection really rests on, and what critics can and cannot reasonably say in reply.
Common misunderstandings
Misunderstanding: Paul invented the resurrection message.
Correction: Paul says he received it from others, and the content is shared by the leaders he met. Nearly all scholars treat it as older than Paul.
Misunderstanding: The passage proves that five hundred people saw Jesus in a physical body.
Correction: It says that he was seen by them at once. It does not describe how. It is testimony that needs to be weighed.
Misunderstanding: Because Paul does not mention the empty tomb, there was none.
Correction: Paul says that Christ was buried and raised, which may imply the tomb. His silence is not decisive, and the question is debated.
Misunderstanding: The passage is irrelevant because it was written decades later.
Correction: It was written about twenty-five years after the death of Jesus, and it quotes a tradition much earlier. That is early in the context of ancient history.
Knowledge check
Why do scholars think verses 3-5 are older than Paul’s letter?
Paul says he received and delivered them, using the language of handing on tradition. The lines are compact and parallel, suited to memory, and use the Aramaic name Cephas. Paul’s visit to Peter in Jerusalem within about three years of his conversion gives a likely occasion for receiving it.
What does the list of appearances claim?
It claims that the risen Christ was seen by Cephas, the Twelve, more than five hundred at once, James, all the apostles, and finally Paul. It does not describe the circumstances or nature of the experiences, which the Greek verb leaves open, and it does not mention the empty tomb.
What objection do skeptics raise about Paul’s own experience?
Paul puts his appearance in the same list as the others, yet he describes it as a revelation of the Son within him. Some take this to mean that all the appearances were visions. Others reply that Paul saw his experience as the last of a special group, and that he knew the earlier witnesses claimed more.
What can this passage prove, and what can it not?
It shows that very early the church was saying Jesus had been raised and had appeared, and that Paul knew the leaders who said so. It does not prove what caused their experiences, or that the event occurred as they believed. It is testimony that calls for explanation, and the next lessons weigh explanations.
Think it through
- How much weight should one give a claim that can be traced to within a few years of the event?
- What would you do if a letter invited you to ask witnesses who could still be found?
- Why might Paul have thought it important to include his own experience in the list?
- How would you describe the difference between testimony and proof?
Independent assignment
A close reading
In your own notebook, copy 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 from a King James Bible. Underline every verb. Write 300 to 500 words on what the passage says, what it implies, what it leaves unsaid, and one objection with a reply. Do not send this to anyone.
Further study
- N. T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God Read the chapters on Paul and the resurrection.
- William Lane Craig, Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics Read his use of the passage and compare it with Wright.
- Clement of Rome, Letter to the Corinthians (1 Clement) Read how a Roman Christian wrote to the same church a generation later.
- Richard Bauckham, Jesus and the Eyewitnesses Read for the role of named witnesses in early tradition.
- 1 Corinthians 15:3 That which I also received.
- Galatians 1:18 Paul visits Cephas in Jerusalem.
- Galatians 2:9 James, Cephas and John give Paul the right hand of fellowship.