- Theudas is also the name of a follower of Paul of Tarsus, who taught
Valentinius, for more information, see Theudas (teacher of Valentinius)
Theudas (thyū'dăs) (died c. 46 AD) was a Jewish rebel who probably claimed to be the
Messiah. His name, if a Greek compound, may mean "gift of
God", although other scholars believe its etymology is Semitic.[1] Other scholars claim the name means “flowing with water”.[2]At some point between 44 and
46 AD, Theudas led his followers in a short-lived revolt.
The revolt
Our principal source for the story is Josephus, who wrote:
It came to pass, while Cuspius Fadus was procurator of Judea, that a certain
charlatan, whose name was Theudas, persuaded a great part of the people to take their effects
with them, and follow him to the Jordan river; for he told them he was a prophet, and that he would, by his own command, divide the river, and afford them an easy passage over it. Many
were deluded by his words. However, Fadus did not permit them to make any advantage of his wild attempt, but sent a troop of
horsemen out against them. After falling upon them unexpectedly, they slew many of them, and took many of them alive. They also
took Theudas alive, cut off his head, and carried it to Jerusalem. (Jewish Antiquities 20.97-98)
The movement was dispersed, and was never heard of again.
Josephus does not specifically state that Theudas claimed to be the Messiah, but this is likely in view of his journey into
the wilderness and claim to be able to divide the river.[3]
Josephus also does not provide a number for Theudas' followers, but the Acts of the
Apostles, if it is referring to the same Theudas (see below), reports that they numbered about 400. The ease with which
they were overcome suggests that they were unarmed, unlike many other Messianic insurgents of the period.[4]
The Theudas problem
In Bible scholarship, the sole reference to Theudas presents a problem of chronology. In
Acts of the Apostles, Gamaliel, a member of the
sanhedrin, defends the apostles by referring to Theudas:
"Men of Israel, be cautious in deciding what to do with these men. Some time ago, Theudas came forward, claiming to be
somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. But he was killed and his whole following was broken up and
disappeared. After him came Judas the Galilean at the time of the census; he induced
some people to revolt under his leadership, but he too perished and his whole following was scattered." (NEB, Acts
5:36-8)
The difficulty is that the rising of Theudas is here given as before that of Judas of Galilee, which is itself dated to the
time of the taxation (c. 6-7 AD). Josephus, on the other hand, says that
Theudas was 45 or 46, which is after Gamaliel is speaking, and long after Judas the Galilean.
There are several arguments put forward to solve this problem. One is that Luke,
the author of the Book of Acts, makes a mistake in his reading of Josephus, and
takes a later reference in Josephus to the execution of the sons of Judas the Galilean after the rebellion of Theudas as
saying that the rebellion of Judas was later. However, this argument requires both that Acts have been written after
Josephus and that Luke have read this one particular work and derived his knowledge of the rebellions solely from it. Another
possibility advanced by scholars is that Luke used a different, inaccurate source (possibly one that Josephus also used when he
compiled his history). Finally, it is possible that Josephus has his chronology out of order or that there were multiple
"Judases" or "Theudases".[5]
Sources
References
- ^ Emil Schürer (1973). The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ, Volume I, revised
and edited by Geza Vermes, Fergus Millar and
Matthew Black, revised English edition, Edinburgh: T&T Clark, p. 456, n. 6. ISBN
0-567-02242-0.
- ^ Hitchcock, Roswell D. (1874). Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary.
A.J. Johnson. Retrieved on 2007-04-16.
- ^ Jona Lendering. Theudas.
Livius. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
- ^ W. J. Heard (1992). "Revolutionary
Movements, 3.1.2: Theudas". Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Ed. Joel B. Green, Scot McKnight and I. Howard Marshall. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press. ISBN 0-8308-1777-8.
- ^ G. J. Goldberg. New Testament Parallels to the
Works of Josephus: Theudas, and Judas the Galilean. Flavius Josephus Home Page. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
External links
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