- The Gospel Of Nicodemus Online
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- Nicodemus Scriptures In The Bible
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The GOSPEL of NICODEMUS, formerly called the ACTS of PONTIUS PILATE. Although this Gospel is, by some among the learned, supposed to have been really written by Nicodemus, who became a disciple of Jesus Christ, and conversed with him; others conjecture that it was a forgery towards the close of the third century by some zealous believer, who observing that there had been appeals made by the. MEMORIALS OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST DONE IN THE TIME OF PONTIUS PILATE. Prologue (Absent from some manuscripts and versions). I Ananias (Aeneas Copt., Emaus Lat.), the Protector, of praetorian rank, learned in the law, did from the divine scriptures recognize our Lord Jesus Christ and came near to him by faith and was accounted worthy of holy baptism: and I. I'm afraid you're taking that verse and separating it from it's context. That verse is connected to an entire discourse about Christ death which marked the new covenant in His blood with Him becoming our high priest. This in regard to the forgiveness of sin through Christ sacrifice. The paragraph containing this verse ends in saying that without the shedding of blood their is no remission of sins. The Beginning of the New Life – the New Life (John 3:1-16) 1 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. 23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. 24 But Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men, 25 and because He did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man.
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The Gospel of Nicodemus, also known as the Acts of Pilate[1] (Latin: Acta Pilati; Greek: Πράξεις Πιλάτου), is an apocryphalgospel claimed to have been derived from an original Hebrew work written by Nicodemus, who appears in the Gospel of John as an associate of Jesus. The title 'Gospel of Nicodemus' is medieval in origin.[2] The dates of its accreted sections are uncertain, but according to the 1907 edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia scholars agree in assigning the resulting work to the middle of the fourth century AD.[2]
The section about Pilate is an older text found in the Greek Acts of Peter and Paul and, according to the surviving version,[3] is an official document from Pontius Pilate (or composed from reports at the praetorium at Jerusalem) reporting events in Judea to Emperor Tiberius, and referring to the crucifixion of Jesus, as well as his miracles.[4]
History and authenticity[edit]
The oldest sections of the book appear first in Greek. The text contains multiple parts, which are uneven in style and would seem to be by different hands. According to the Acts of Pilate, the original version was preserved in the praetorium at Jerusalem.[3] The question of the original language is debated. Beyond Greek, the versions in Latin, Syriac, Coptic, Georgian, Slavonic, and other languages have survived.[5]
The prevailing view is that the Christian Acts of Pilate were first devised and published as a confutation to the pagan Acts.[4][6] It can be shown, that the work behind the Christian Acts of Pilate must have originated very early.[4]
'The first part of the book, containing the story of the Passion and Resurrection, is not earlier than the fourth century. Its object in the main is to furnish irrefragable testimony to the resurrection. Attempts have been made to show that it is of early date-that it is, for instance, the writing which Justin Martyr meant when in his Apology he referred his heathen readers to the ’Acts’ of Christ’s trial preserved among the archives of Rome. The truth of that matter is that he simply assumed that such records must exist. False ’acts’ of the trial were written in the Pagan interest under Maximin, and introduced into schools early in the fourth century. It is imagined by some that our book was a counterblast to these. The account of the Descent into Hell (Part II) is an addition to the Acta. It does not appear in any Oriental version, and the Greek copies are rare. It is in Latin that it has chiefly flourished, and has been the parent of versions in every European language.'[3]
Core texts[edit]
The main body of the Gospel of Nicodemus is in two parts, with an appendix, Descensus ad Infernos (the Harrowing of Hell).[citation needed] The first part (chapters i–xi) contains the trial of Jesus based upon Luke 23. In addition to the Greek and Latin witnesses of the first part, there are three other notable ancient versions including Syriac or Aramaic, Armenian, and Coptic.[7] The second part (xii–xvi) concerns the Resurrection. In it, Leucius and Charinus, the two souls raised from the dead after the Crucifixion, relate to the Sanhedrin the circumstances of the descent of Christ to Limbo. A literature of miracle-tale romance developed around a conflated 'Leucius Charinus' as an author of further texts. The Harrowing of Hell episode depicts St Dismas accompanying Christ in Hell, and the deliverance of the righteous Old Testamentpatriarchs.
An appended text is a written report made by Pontius Pilate to Claudius, containing a description of the crucifixion, as well as an account of the resurrection of Jesus; both are presented as an official report.[8] One series of Latin manuscripts includes as an appendix or continuation, the episode Cura Sanitatis Tiberii ('The Cure of Tiberius'), the oldest form of the Veronica legend, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia, in which Emperor Tiberius is cured of his malady. (Compare the legend of the Image of Edessa.)
Dating and readership[edit]
As the Church historian Eusebius of Caesarea (writing c. 325) shows no acquaintance with this Gospel, historians assume that it postdates this time. Eusebius was aware of related texts: the 'Letters of Pilate' referred to by Justin and Tertullian as well as an anti-Christian text called Acts of Pilate, which was prescribed for reading in schools under the emperor Maximinus during the Diocletianic Persecution.[9] 'We are forced to admit that [the Christian Acts of Pilate] is of later origin, and scholars agree in assigning it to the middle of the fourth century.'[2]Epiphanius refers to an Acta Pilati (c. 376), but the extant Greek texts show evidence of later editing.
Justin Martyr wrote, 'And that these things did happen, you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate.'[10] The Apology letters were written and addressed by name to the Roman Emperor Pius and the Roman Governor Urbicus. All three of these men lived between AD 138 – 161.
The Acta Pilati have had a long history inspiring devotional works. A Meditatione sopra la Passione del nostro signore Iesu Christo, drawing in part on Acta Pilati for its expanded anecdotal elements in the Passion, was printed twenty-eight times in Italy between about 1476 and 1500, and inspired the depiction of Christ before Pilate by Pontormo.[11]
Naming of New Testament figures[edit]
The Gospel of Nicodemus names several minor New Testament figures who were not named in the canonical texts; for example, the soldier who speared Jesus on the cross is named as Longinus and the two criminals crucified beside Jesus are named as Dismas and Gestas.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
The Gospel Of Nicodemus Online
- ^Ehrman, Bart D.; Pleše, Zlatko (2011). 'The Gospel of Nicodemus (The Acts of Pilate) A'. The Apocryphal Gospels: Texts and Translations. Oxford University Press. p. 419. ISBN978-0-19-973210-4.
- ^ abcReid, George (1913). 'Acta Pilati' . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
- ^ abc'The Apocryphal New Testament' ISBN9780198261216https://web.archive.org/web/20150705090754/http://folk.uio.no/lukeb/books/apocrypha/Gospel_of_Nicodemus.pdf
- ^ abcScheidweiler, Felix (2003) [1991]. 'The Gospel of Nicodemus: Acts of Pilate and Christ's Descent into Hell'. In Schneemelcher, Wilhelm; Wilson, Robert McLachlan (eds.). New Testament Apocrypha: Gospels and Related Writings. 1 (Revised ed.). Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press. pp. 501–502. ISBN978-0-664-22721-0.
- ^Irmscher, Johannes; Cutler, Anthony (1991). 'Gospel of Nicodemus'. In Kazhdan, Alexander (ed.). The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. p. 1472. ISBN0-19-504652-8.
- ^Van Voorst, Robert E. (2000). Jesus Outside the New Testament: An Introduction to the Ancient Evidence. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. p. 51. ISBN0-8028-4368-9.
- ^'The Gospel of Nicodemus, or Acts of Pilate - Introduction, Tischendorf in his Evangelia Apocrypha'. Early Christian Writings.
- ^'Report of Pilate'. Early Christian Writings.
- ^Hennecke, Edgar (1963). Schneemelcher, Wilhelm; Wilson, Robert McLachlan (eds.). New Testament Apocrypha: Gospels and related writings. 1. Translated by Higgins, A.J.B. London: Lutterworth Press. p. 445. OCLC7531530.
- ^Justin Martyr (1870). 'The First Apology of Justin'. In Roberts, Alexander; Donaldson, James (eds.). Ante-Nicene Christian Library: Translations of the Writings of the Fathers down to A.D. 325. 2. Translated by Marcus Dods. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark. p. 37 – via Wikisource. [scan]
- ^Giles, Laura M. (1991). 'Christ before Pilate: a major composition study by Pontormo'. Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies. 17 (1): 34–51. doi:10.2307/4101546. JSTOR4101546.
External links[edit]
| Wikisource has original text related to this article: |
- The Report of Pilate to the Emperor Claudius e-text, M.R. James, translator
- Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). 'Acta Pilati' . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
- 'Gospel of Nicodemus, or Acts of Pilate'(PDF). The Apocryphal New Testament. Translated by James, M.R. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1924. Archived from the original(PDF) on 5 July 2015.
- Simmons, Austin (2010). 'The Cipherment of the Franks Casket'(PDF). Archived from the original(PDF) on 3 March 2012. An apocryphal tradition reflected in the Vindicta Salvatoris (see Old English literature) very likely influenced the art carved into the back of the Franks Casket; this article argues that the Descensus ad Infernos is alluded to on the casket's ill-understood right side.
Nicodemusvictory of the people
(conqueror of the people), a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews and a teacher of Israel, (John 3:1,10) whose secret visit to our Lord was the occasion of the discourse recorded only by St. John. In Nicodemus a noble candor and a simple love of truth shine out in the midst of hesitation and fear of man. He finally became a follower of Christ, and came with Joseph of Arimathaea to take down and embalm the body of Jesus.
NicodemusA member of the Jewish Sanhedrin, at first a Pharisee, and afterwards a disciple of Jesus. He was early convinced that Christ came from God, but was not ready at once to rank himself among His followers. In John 3:1-20, he first appears as a timid inquirer after the truth, learning the great doctrines of regeneration and atonement. In John 7:45-52, we see him cautiously defending the Savior before the Sanhedrin. At last, in the trying scene of the crucifixion, he avowed himself a believer, and came with Joseph of Arimathea to pay the last duties to the body of Christ, which they took down from the cross, embalmed, and laid in the sepulchre, John 19:39.
Gospel Of Nicodemus Summary
NICODEMUSnik-o-de'-mus (Nikodemos): A Pharisee and a 'ruler of the Jews,' mentioned only by John. He
(1) interviewed Christ at Jerusalem and was taught by Him the doctrine of the New Birth (John 3:1-15),
(2) defended Him before the Sanhedrin (John 7:50-52), and
(3) assisted at His burial (John 19:39-42).
1. The Interview:
This meeting, which it has been surmised took place in the house of John (John 3:1-15), was one of the results of our Lord's ministry at Jerusalem during the first Passover (compare John 3:2 with John 2:23). Although Nicodemus had been thus won to believe in the divine nature of Christ's mission, his faith was yet very incomplete in that he believed Him to be inspired only after the fashion of the Old Testament prophets. To this faint-hearted faith corresponded his timidity of action, which displayed itself in his coming 'by night,' lest he should offend his colleagues in the Sanhedrin and the other hostile Jews (John 3:2). In answer to the veiled question which the words of Nicodemus implied, and to convince him of the inadequacy of mere intellectual belief, Christ proclaimed to him the necessity for a spiritual regeneration: 'Except one be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God' (John 3:3). This was interpreted by Nicodemus only in its materialistic sense, and therefore caused him bewilderment and confusion (John 3:4). But Christ, as on another occasion when dealing with His questioners on a similar point of doctrine (compare John 6:52, 53), answered his perplexity only by repeating His previous statement (John 3:5). He then proceeded to give further explanation. The re-birth is not outward but inward, it is not of the body but of the soul (John 3:6). Just as God is the real agent in the birth of the body, so also is He the Creator of the New Spirit; and just as no one knoweth whence cometh the wind, or 'whither it goeth,' yet all can feel its effects who come under its influence, so is it with the rebirth. Only those who have experienced it as a change in themselves, wrought by the Divine Power, are qualified to judge either of its reality or of its effects (John 3:7, 8). But Nicodemus, since such experience had not yet been his, remained still unenlightened (John 3:9). Christ therefore condemned such blindness in one who yet professed to be a teacher of spiritual things (John 3:10), and emphasized the reality in His own life of those truths which He had been expounding (John 3:11). With this, Christ returned to the problem underlying the first statement of Nicodemus. If Nicodemus cannot believe in 'earthly things,' i.e. in the New Birth, which, though coming from above, is yet realized in this world, how can he hope to understand 'heavenly things,' i.e. the deeper mysteries of God's purpose in sending Christ into the world (John 3:12), of Christ's Divine sonship (John 3:13), of His relationship to the atonement and the salvation of man (John 3:14), and of how a living acceptance of and feeding upon Him is in itself Divine life (John 3:15; compare John 6:25-65)?
2. The Defense:
The above interview, though apparently fruitless at the time, was not without its effect upon Nicodemus. At the Feast of Tabernacles, when the Sanhedrin was enraged at Christ's proclamation of Himself as the 'living water' (John 7:37, 38), Nicodemus was emboldened to stand up in His defense. Yet here also he showed his natural timidity. He made no personal testimony of his faith in Christ, but sought rather to defend Him on a point of Jewish law (John 7:50-52; compare Exodus 23:1Deuteronomy 1:16, 17; Deuteronomy 17:6; Deuteronomy 19:15).
3. The Burial:
By this open act of reverence Nicodemus at last made public profession of his being of the following of Christ. His wealth enabled him to provide the 'mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds,' with which the body of Jesus was embalmed (John 19:39).
The Gospel of Nicodemus and other apocryphal works narrate that Nicodemus gave evidence in favor of Christ at the trial before Pilate, that he was deprived of office and banished from Jerusalem by the hostile Jews, and that he was baptized by Peter and John. His remains were said to have been found in a common grave along with those of Gamaliel and Stephen.
Nicodemus is a type of the 'well-instructed and thoughtful Jew who looked for the consummation of national hope to follow in the line along which he had himself gone, as being a continuation and not a new beginning' (Westcott). The manner in which the Gospel narrative traces the overcoming of his natural timidity and reluctant faith is in itself a beautiful illustration of the working of the Spirit, of how belief in the Son of Man is in truth a new birth, and the entrance into eternal life.
C. M. Kerr
NICODEMUS, GOSPEL OF
See APOCRYPHAL GOSPELS, III, 3, (b).
...Nicodemus, an Israelite. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: Nikodemos
Phonetic Spelling: (nik-od'-ay-mos) Short Definition:
Nicodemus Definition ...//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3530.htm - 6k
The Gospel of Nicodemus.
The Gospel of Nicodemus. . The Gospel of Nicodemus. Unknown. Alexander
Walker, Esq. (Translator) Table of Contents. Title Page. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/unknown/the gospel of nicodemus /
Nicodemus.
... VII. NICODEMUS. ...Nicodemus saith unto Him, How can a man be born when he is old?
can he enter a second time into his mother's womb, and be born? ...
/.../dods/the expositors bible the gospel of st john vol i/vii nicodemus.htm
Christ and Nicodemus.
... Chapter III. Christ and Nicodemus. This ... kingdom. (John 3:1) 1. There was a
man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. ...
/.../johnson/the new testament commentary vol iii john/christ and nicodemus.htm
Joseph and Nicodemus
... JOSEPH AND NICODEMUS. 'And ... Jesus; ... And there came also Nicodemus which
at the first came to Jesus by night.'John 19:38, 39. ...
/.../expositions of holy scripture st john chaps xv to xxi/joseph and nicodemus.htm
Nicodemus
... The DESIRE of AGES Chapter 17 Nicodemus. [This chapter is based on John 3:1-17.]
Nicodemus held a high position of trust in the Jewish nation. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/white/the desire of ages/chapter 17 nicodemus.htm
And one Nicodemus, a Jew, Stood Before the Procurator...
The Gospel of Nicodemus. . ... Part I.'The Acts of Pilate. First Greek Form. Chapter
5. And one Nicodemus, a Jew, stood before the procurator? ...
/.../unknown/the gospel of nicodemus /chapter 5 and one nicodemus.htm
And Having Summoned Nicodemus and the Twelve Men that Said He was ...
The Gospel of Nicodemus. . ... First Greek Form. Chapter 9. And having summoned
Nicodemus and the twelve men that said He was not born of? ...
/.../unknown/the gospel of nicodemus /chapter 9 and having summoned.htm
And Pilate, Calling Nicodemus and the Twelve Men who Said that He ...
The Gospel of Nicodemus. . ... Latin Form. Chapter 9. And Pilate, calling
Nicodemus and the twelve men who said that He was not born? ...
/.../unknown/the gospel of nicodemus /chapter 9 and pilate calling.htm
But one Nicodemus, a Jew, Stood Before the Governor...
The Gospel of Nicodemus. . ... Part I.'The Acts of Pilate. Latin Form. Chapter
5. But one Nicodemus, a Jew, stood before the governor? ...
/.../unknown/the gospel of nicodemus /chapter 5 but one nicodemus.htm
And when Nicodemus had Thus Spoken, Another Hebrew Rose Up...
The Gospel of Nicodemus. . ... Second Greek Form. Chapter 6. And when
Nicodemus had thus spoken, another Hebrew rose up? ...
/.../unknown/the gospel of nicodemus /chapter 6 and when nicodemus.htm
Nicodemus Scriptures In The Bible
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. NICODEMUS. nik-o-de'-mus (Nikodemos): A
Pharisee and a 'ruler of the Jews,' mentioned only by John. ...
/n/nicodemus.htm - 14k
Nicode'mus (5 Occurrences)
Nicode'mus. Nicodemus, Nicode'mus. Nicolaitanes . ... John 3:1 And there was a man
of the Pharisees, Nicodemus his name, a ruler of the Jews, (See RSV). ...
/n/nicode'mus.htm - 7k
Aloes (5 Occurrences)
...Nicodemus brought it (pounded aloe-wood) to embalm the body of Christ (John 19:39);
but whether this was the same as that mentioned elsewhere is uncertain. ...
/a/aloes.htm - 12k
Earlier (48 Occurrences)
... forefathers) (WEY). John 7:50 Nicodemus (he who came to him by night, being
one of them) said to them, (See NIV). John 19:39 and Nicodemus...
/e/earlier.htm - 21k
Possible (133 Occurrences)
... (BBE). John 3:4 'How is it possible,' Nicodemus asked, 'for a man to be born when
he is old? ... (BBE). John 3:9 'How is all this possible?' asked Nicodemus. ...
/p/possible.htm - 36k
Myrrh (22 Occurrences)
... it is offered mingled with wine as an anesthetic to the suffering Redeemer, and
in John 19:39 a 'mixture of myrrh and aloes' is brought by Nicodemus to embalm ...
/m/myrrh.htm - 18k
Pontius (4 Occurrences)
... In the so-called Gospel of Nicodemus, which belongs to the 4th or 5th century, we
find in the first part, called the Acts of Pilate, a long account of the ...
/p/pontius.htm - 36k
Pilate (60 Occurrences)
... In the so-called Gospel of Nicodemus, which belongs to the 4th or 5th century, we
find in the first part, called the Acts of Pilate, a long account of the ...
/p/pilate.htm - 53k
Visited (40 Occurrences)
... John 19:39 Nicodemus too--he who at first had visited Jesus by night--came bringing
a mixture of myrrh and aloes, in weight about seventy or eighty pounds. ...
/v/visited.htm - 18k
Nice (1 Occurrence)
/n/nice.htm - 7k
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