The Referent of πνεῦμα in Mark 2:8 and 8:12 in Light of Early Jewish Traditions: A Study in Markan Anthropology

Abstract

Scholarship unanimously asserts that the referent of πνεῦμα in Mark 2:8 and 8:12 is Jesus's human spirit. This study in Markan anthropology examines whether the evidence supports this verdict beyond reasonable doubt. Although a reference to Jesus's human spirit is correct, scholarship has not recognised that the divine spirit is in the background. Both external evidence from early Jewish traditions and internal evidence from Mark's Gospel point to a secondary referent of the divine spirit. The argument is that the "human spirit" is not strictly an anthropological category in Mark, but always related to the divine.