Jesus across the religions
Jesus in Judaism
Jesus was, unmistakably, a first-century Jew: born to a Jewish mother, circumcised, Torah-observant, a teacher called Rabbi whose earliest followers were all Jewish. Traditional Judaism does not accept him as the Messiah, because the visible marks of the messianic age, world peace, the rebuilt Temple, the ingathering of Israel, have not yet come, and because Judaism's strict monotheism does not expect a divine Messiah. These are sincere, reasonable objections. Christians believe the Messiah comes in two stages, first as the suffering servant who saves and then to reign, and that he is also God with us.
What the tradition claims
Jesus (Hebrew Yeshua) was a Jew of Roman Judea: circumcised on the eighth day, presented in the Temple, keeping Passover and the Sabbath, reading the prophet Isaiah in the synagogue, called Rabbi by his hearers. Judaism and Christianity agree entirely that Jesus was Jewish. But traditional Judaism does not accept him as the Messiah. By the classic criteria set out by the sage Maimonides (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Kings 11), the Messiah, a descendant of David, will rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem, gather the exiles of Israel, restore Torah observance, and bring an age of world peace and the knowledge of God. Because the world is plainly not yet at peace and these visible things have not happened, the traditional Jewish position is that the Messiah has not yet come. We state that plainly and with respect.
What Christians believe
Christians read the same Hebrew Scriptures and see a Messiah who is more than a human king and whose work comes in two comings: first as the suffering servant of Isaiah 53 who dies and rises to save, and then returning to reign and complete the age of peace. This is a Christian reading of a shared text, offered as such.
A word we must say plainly
Because the faith that worships a Jewish Messiah has too often, and shamefully, mistreated his own people, we say it clearly: Christianity has no room for contempt of the Jewish people. The apostle Paul, himself a Jew, wrote that Israel remains beloved of God.
Where the positions differ
Both faiths await a Messiah from David’s line who brings God’s peace to the earth. Judaism expects one coming of a human king who visibly brings the messianic age; Christianity confesses a Messiah who comes twice and is also divine. The honest Jewish objection, that the age of peace has not arrived, deserves to be heard; the Christian answer is the two comings and the resurrection. The question was never whether Jesus was Jewish, he was, but who he is.
Frequently asked questions
- How is Jesus understood in Judaism?
- Judaism holds that Jesus was a real first-century Jewish teacher, but traditional Judaism does not accept him as the Messiah, because the visible marks of the messianic age (world peace, the rebuilt Temple, the ingathering of Israel) have not come, and because it does not expect a divine Messiah.
- Why don't Jews accept Jesus as the Messiah?
- Because the visible messianic age foretold in the criteria of Maimonides, world peace, the rebuilt Temple, the regathering of Israel, has not arrived, and because Judaism's strict monotheism does not expect a divine Messiah. These are sincere, reasonable objections.
- Was Jesus Jewish?
- Yes, unmistakably. Jesus was a first-century Jew, born to a Jewish mother, circumcised, keeping the Torah's feasts and the Sabbath, teaching in synagogues. His disciples and earliest followers were all Jewish.
Read the Gospel yourself
Do not take anyone’s word for it, including ours. The clearest way to know Jesus is to read his own words and watch what he does, and then decide for yourself who he is.
Read the Gospel of MatthewWho is Jesus?Why Jesus?