The "Johannine Thunderbolt" in Luke 10:22: Toward an Appreciation of Luke's Narrative Sequence

Abstract

Abstract In contrast to a number of studies that examine Luke 10:22 from a source-critical or redactional approach, this essay strives to hear the communicative intent of Luke-Acts. Accordingly, it interprets v. 22 within its cotext and reads 10:17–24 in light of the presupposition pool assumed by the narrative and its model reader. My contention is that, when vv. 17–20 are read in light of the apocalyptic literature of Second Temple Judaism, the result is a new figuration of meaning that suggests an intimate relation between Jesus and God. This figuration of meaning then finds its confirmation and explication in the ensuing revelatory discourse of vv. 21–24. It is not only Jesus' dramatic speech in vv. 21–22, then, that contributes to the development of Jesus' identity. The cohesive sequence of 10:17–24 itself, in concert with Jesus' speech, plays a crucial role. It is only when both facets of Luke's narrative are appreciated that Luke's portrait of Jesus and, thereby, his presentation of God, fully emerge.