Jewish-Christian Gospels

Part of a series on Christianity
Jesus · Christ
Virgin birth · Crucifixion · Resurrection · Easter · Jesus in Christianity
Foundations
Apostles · Church · Creeds · Gospel · Kingdom · New Covenant
Bible
Old Testament · New Testament · Books · Canon · Apocrypha
Theology
Apologetics · Baptism · Christology · Father · Son · Holy Spirit · History of theology · Salvation · Trinity
History and traditions
Timeline · Mary · Peter · Paul · Fathers · Early · Constantine the Great · Ecumenical councils · Missions · East–West Schism · Crusades · Protestant Reformation
Denominations and movements
Western Adventist · Anabaptist · Anglican · Baptist · Calvinism · Evangelicalism · Holiness · Independent Catholic · Lutheran · Methodist · Old Catholic · Protestant · Pentecostal · Roman Catholic Eastern Eastern Orthodox · Eastern Catholic · Oriental Orthodox (Miaphysite) · Assyrian Nontrinitarian Jehovah's Witness · Latter Day Saint · Unitarian · Christadelphian · Oneness Pentecostal
General topics
Art · Criticism · Ecumenism · Liturgical year · Liturgy · Music · Other religions · Prayer · Sermon · Symbolism Christianity Portal

Jewish-Christian Gospels are non-canonical Gospels used by various Jewish Christian groups that were declared heretical by other members of the Early Church. They are mentioned by Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Eusebius, Epiphanius and Jerome. They are to be distinguished from medieval rabbinical translations of Matthew into Hebrew.

None of these Gospels survives today, but attempts have been made to reconstruct them from references in the Church Fathers. The reconstructed texts of the Gospels are usually categorized under New Testament Apocrypha. The standard edition of Schneemelcher arranges the texts as follows:

1) The Gospel of the Nazarenes ("GN") – GN 1 to GN 23 are mainly from Jerome; GN 24 to GN 36 are from medieval sources.

2) The Gospel of the Ebionites ("GE") – 7 quotations by Epiphanius.

3) The Gospel of the Hebrews ("GH") – 1 quotation ascribed to Cyril of Jerusalem, plus GH 2-7 quotations by Jerome.

Contents 1 Several Gospels or one Hebrew Gospel? 1.1 Several Gospels view 1.2 Unified Hebrew Gospel view 2 The Gospel of the Hebrews 3 The Gospel of the Nazarenes 4 The Gospel of the Ebionites 5 The Gospel of the Apostles 6 The Canonical Gospel of Matthew 7 Jerome on the Nazarenes' and Ebionites' "original Matthew" 8 Waitz' division into 3 Jewish Gospels, and Schneemelcher's numbering 9 Other sayings of Christ 9.1 Patristic citations 9.2 The Fayum Fragment 9.3 Sayings recording by Justin Martyr 9.4 The Oxyrhynchus Gospels 9.5 Extra-canonical sayings from Cyril of Jerusalem through the Dark Ages 10 References

Several Gospels or one Hebrew Gospel?

Several Gospels view

The traditional and majority view of critical scholarship has been that there are at least two and possibly three separate Jewish-Christian Gospels, some of them composed in Greek or translated from Greek. This is partly due to the divergence in the texts between Jerome and Epiphanius' Gospel of the Ebionites. Partly it is due the presence of three accounts of Christ's baptism. This is the view of Hans Waitz, Schneemelcher, Vielhauer,^[1] Funk (1999)^[2] and reflected in general reference sources.^[3]

Unified Hebrew Gospel view

Cassels (1877),^[4] Nicholson (1879)^[5] posit that the same Gospel was in use among the Ebionites, and that the Gospel of the Hebrews, under various names, such as the Gospel of Peter, Gospel of the Apostles, Gospel of the Nazarenes, Gospel of the Ebionites, Gospel of the Egyptians was circulated very widely throughout the early Church.^[6] See also Ernest W. Parsons (1914).^[7]

The literary relationship of this Gospel tradition to the Canonical Gospels, particularly the Gospel of Matthew, is also a matter of debate. Parker (1940)^[8] posited that there was only one "Hebrew Gospel" but several "editions" of it in circulation.

However in 1998, a study by Peter Lebrecht Schmidt called the standard view into question. Critically assessing the discussion from Schmidtke to Klijn, Schmidt thinks that originally there was only one Hebrew gospel, called the "Gospel according to the Hebrews," which was subsequently translated into Greek and Latin.^[9] More recently Schmidt has been joined by James R. Edwards (2009) who has advanced a unified textual tradition of the Hebrew Gospel,^[10] following the proposal of Nicholson (1879),^[11] who claimed that there was only one such gospel. Edwards and Nicholson argue that the different titles were neologisms. They point to the fact that the Church Fathers only referred to the Gospel of the Hebrews. They further point to the fact that only the Gospel of the Hebrews was ever mentioned in any of the Early Church catalogs.^[12] Schmidt and Edwards are supported by James Tabor and Jeffrey J. Bütz. ^[13]

The Gospel of the Hebrews

Writing in the early second century, Papias of Hierapolis recorded in his Expositions of the Oracles of the Lord that the Apostle Matthew "compiled the logia in the "Hebrew language", and each interpreted them as best he could." ^[14][15] According to this account, Matthew's Gospel was first written in the "Hebrew language" (which at the time was the closely related Aramaic; see also Aramaic of Jesus) and subsequently translated into Koine Greek.^[16][17][18] Irenaeus noted that this translation occurred at the same time as Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome.

Origen wrote that Matthew's Gospel "was published for believers of Jewish origin" and "was composed in Hebrew letters" (at the time both Hebrew and Aramaic were written in the same "square script"). Eusebius adds that the Apostle Bartholomew carried the Hebrew gospel to the Indies.^[19] Jerome (c. 347-420 C.E.) provided the fullest account of this gospel, noting there was a copy in the library at Caesarea.^[16]

It is certain that this document was in circulation in the Early Church.^[20][21] Unlike hypothetical Gospels like Q et al., the Gospel of the Hebrews was known to the Church Fathers and was found in all the Catalogues of the Early Church.^[22]

The Gospel of the Nazarenes

The Gospel of the Nazarenes is a hypothetical gospel which may or may not be the same as, or derived from, the Gospel of the Hebrews. This Gospel was widely used by the Nazarene community of Roman period Palestine, and hence is commonly called the Gospel of the Nazarenes (or "Nazoreans") by modern biblical scholars.^[23] The title, Gospel of the Nazarenes is a neologism as it was not mentioned in the Catalogues of the Early Church, nor by any of the Church Fathers.^[24] Today, all that remains of its original text are notations, quotations, and commentaries from various Church Fathers including Hegesippus (c.180 C.E.), Origen, Eusebius and Jerome.^[25]

The Gospel of the Nazarenes has been the subject of many critical surmises and discussions in the course of the last century, and recent discussions in a growing body of literature have thrown considerable light upon the problems connected with this Gospel. This bears great significance because higher criticism argues that the canonical Gospel of Matthew is not a literal reproduction of Matthew's original autograph, but was rather the production of an unknown redactor, composed in Greek, posthumous to Matthew.^[26] (See the Two-source hypothesis and the Four Document Hypothesis). This hypothesis aligns with Jerome's assessment, in which he stated, "Matthew, also called Levi, apostle and aforetime publican, composed a gospel of Christ at first published in Judea in Hebrew for the sake of those of the circumcision who believed, but this was afterwards translated into Greek though by what author is uncertain."^[27]

The Gospel of the Ebionites

The Ebionites were Jewish Christians who rejected the Apostle Paul, condemning him as "an apostate from the law." (See also: Paul of Tarsus and Judaism) Irenaeus stated that this early Jewish-Christian community used Matthew's gospel exclusively. Eusebius later wrote that they used only the Gospel according to the Hebrews. From this, Edwards and Nicholson claim that there was only one Hebrew gospel. They also note that the title Gospel of the Ebionites, was never used by anyone in the early Church.^[28][29]

Epiphanius contended that the gospel the Ebionites used, was written by Matthew and called the Gospel of the Hebrews.^[30] Because Epiphanius said that it was "not wholly complete, but falsified and mutilated...",^[31] scholars such as Cassels (1877),^[4] Nicholson (1879)^[5] and Parker (1940)^[8] consider it a different "edition" of Matthew's Hebrew Gospel to which the Ebionites added some of their oral tradition Midrash (See Sitz im Leben).

The Jesus Seminar has argued that this work should now be called by the neologism, the Gospel of the Ebionites. This hypothetical term is not mentioned in any catalogs of the Early Church.^[32] The real name is unknown but it could have been the Gospel of the Twelve.^[33][34]

The Gospel of the Apostles

The Gospel of the Apostles, sometimes called the Gospel of the Twelve (not to be confused with the Gospel of the Seventy) was well known to the scholars of the Early Church. The Apostles themselves were said to have written it, and it may have been the basis for future gospel accounts. Jerome wrote that it was also called the Gospel of the Hebrews.^{[8][35][36][37]}

The Canonical Gospel of Matthew

Though a minority of scholars^[38] have argued that all or part of Matthew was based on Aramaic originals, most scholars consider that the Gospel of Matthew was composed in Greek and not translated from Aramaic.^[39] Early composition of the Greek gospel is supported by quotation in the Epistle of Barnabas and by Ignatius (Matt 3:15 in Smyrneans 1:1; Matt 10:16b in Polycarp 2:2; Matt 2:1?2 in Ephesians 19:2).^[40]

According to Papias, Matthew authored his Gospel in Hebrew as a written testimony to the Hebrew-speaking Jewish converts to Christianity. Jerome in regard to the Hebrew Gospel of Matthew in his possession, today known as the Gospel of the Nazarenes, states that, "It is to be noted that wherever the Evangelist, whether on his own account or in the person of our Lord the Saviour, quotes the testimony of the Old Testament he does not follow the authority of the translators of the Septuagint, but the Hebrew." (Lives of Illustrious Men),^[27] Meanwhile, the canonical Gospel of Matthew does often utilize the Septuagint when paraphrasing Old Testament Scripture.^[41] Eugène-Jacques Jacquier^[42] in the Catholic Encyclopedia (1911) remarks "When the First Gospel is compared with books translated from the Hebrew, such as those of the Septuagint, a marked difference is at once apparent. The original Hebrew shines through every line of the latter, whereas, in the First Gospel Hebraisms are comparatively rare, and are merely such as might be looked for in a book written by a Jew and reproducing Jewish teaching. However, these observations are not conclusive in favour of a Greek original."^{[41] [43]}

Jerome on the Nazarenes' and Ebionites' "original Matthew"

Jerome (in Mattheum 12,13) refers to "the Gospel which the Nazarenes and the Ebionites use" which he had translated from Hebrew into Greek, and which was called by many (of them) the original Gospel of Matthew (Latin: quod vocatur a plerisque Mathei authenticum).^[44]

Some claim that the Gospel of the Hebrews is the true gospel of Matthew while the Gospel of Matthew found in the Bible was written by an unknown redactor. E. Byron Nicholson (1889)^[45] and James Edwards read Jerome's "most" not to mean "most of them" but "most non-Ebionites" as well, so that in the time of Jerome most orthodox Christians believed that the Gospel of the Hebrews was the authentic Gospel of Matthew. They claim that study of the external evidence regarding this gospel shows that there existed among the Nazarenes and Ebionites one gospel commonly called the Gospel of the Hebrews. And that it was written in Aramaic with Hebrew letters. Its authorship was attributed to St. Matthew. Indeed the Fathers of the Church, while the Gospel of the Hebrews was still being circulated and read, referred to it always with respect, often with reverence: they accepted it as being the work of Matthew. This applies tenfold to Jerome.^[28]

The position of Pierson Parker (1940) is that all the extra-canonical sayings attributed to Jewish-Christian Gospels are from the Gospel of the Hebrews but that there were several editions of this one gospel in the Early Church.^[46][47]

Waitz' division into 3 Jewish Gospels, and Schneemelcher's numbering

The standard collection of the Jewish-Christian Gospels is found in Schneemelcher's New Testament Apocrypha.^[48] Scheemelcher, following Johannes Waitz etc., groups extant sayings into three lost Gospels:

• Gospel of the Nazoreans, consisting of citations and marginal notes by Jerome and others GN-1 to GN-36
• Gospel of the Ebionites, consisting of seven citations by Epiphanius, GE-1 to GE-7
• Gospel of the Hebrews consists of seven verses. These are numbered GH-1 to GH-7,^[49] although sometimes cited as GHeb-1 to 7 in other academic works.

Robert Funk and other scholars of the Jesus Seminar^[50] share the conclusion that there are three distinct Jewish Gospels:

1) The Gospel of the Nazarenes, which was read in Semitic speech and used among the Nazarenes and was similar to canonical Matthew;

2) The Gospel of the Ebionites, which was used by heretical Jewish Christians;

3) The Gospel of the Hebrews, which has no special relationship to any one of the canonical gospels, but contains syncretistic elements, and shows the heretical character of the Jewish Christian.

Other sayings of Christ

Biblical scholars have recovered gospel fragments as well as annotations to early texts.^[51] Also many of the Church Fathers—Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, and Jerome in particular—refer to a "Hebrew Gospel", or a gospel used by the Ebionites or the Nazaraeans. These citations (or the Hebrew paralipomena) may be from one or from several Jewish Gospels. They are considered important because they may give us insight into the Historical Jesus. Some were counted among the other sayings of Jesus by Bernhard Pick (1908).^[52][53]

Patristic citations

The Early Church Fathers frequently paraphrase, cite from memory, or misquote, familiar sayings of Jesus from the New Testament:^[54]

• Clement of Rome (b. 31 C.E.) The words of the Lord Jesus, which He spoke, “The measure you use, it will be measured against you.” (First Clement, 13.12, cf. Matthew 7:2)
• Clement of Rome Remember the words of our Lord Jesus who said, “Woe to whoever causes my chosen to fall. It would be good for him not to have been born. It would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened about his neck and be cast into the sea, than that he should cause one of my chosen to sin.” (First Clement, 46.14, cf. Luke 17:1-2)

• Didache The Lord commanded in his Gospel to pray like this: “Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name. Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our bread for tomorrow and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For yours is the power and the glory, for ever.”(Didache, 8.2)

• Ignatius (b. 43 C.E.) When He came to those with Peter, Jesus said to them, “Take hold of me, handle me, and see that I am not a bodiless demon.” (Ignatius' Epistle to the Smyrneans 3, and Jerome, who quotes it from the Nazarene Gospel in De viris illustribus 16, cf. Luke 24:39)

• Papias (b. 63 C.E.) "this has been related by Papias regarding Mark, and regarding Matthew he has spoken as follows: "Now Matthew collected the oracles (ta logia) in the Hebrew language and each one interpreted them as he was able.... and he (Papias) has set forth another story about a woman accused of many sins before the Lord, which is contained in the Gospel of the Hebrews."

(Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 39.16)^[55]

• Polycarp (b. 68 C.E.) The Lord said in His teaching, “The measure you use, it will be measured against you.” (Polycarp's letter to the Philippians 2.18, cf. Matthew 7:2)
• Polycarp The Lord said in His teaching, “Blessed are the poor and those who are persecuted after righteousness sake, for yours is the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Polycarp ?, cf. Luke 6:20; Matthew 5:3,10)

• Barnabas The Lord said, “Behold I make last things as the first.” (Epistle of Barnabas, 6.13, cf. Revelation 21:5)

• Justin (b. 100 C.E.) When Jesus went down into the water, fire was kindled in the Jordan, and when he came up from the water, the Holy Spirit came upon Him. The apostles of our Christ wrote this.(Justin, Dialogue, 88)
• Justin The voice spoke to him, saying, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You”. This is recorded in the Gospel of the apostles.(Justin, Dialogue, 103, cf. Luke 3:22)

• Irenaeus (b. 114 C.E.) Those who are called Ebionites accept that God made the world. However their opinions with respect to the Lord are quite similar to those of Cerinthus and Carpocrates. They use Matthew's gospel only, and repudiate the Apostle Paul, maintaining that he was an apostate from the Law. As to the prophetical writings, they expound them in a singular manner. They practice circumcision, observe of those customs that are enjoined by the Law, and are so very Judaic in their customs, they even adore Jerusalem as if it were the house of God.(Irenaeus, Against Heresies 1.26.2)

• Irenaeus Matthew also issued a written Gospel of the Hebrews in their own language while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome and laying the foundations of the Church.(Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.1.1)
• Irenaeus For the Ebionites, who use only Matthew's gospel, are convicted out of that very book as not holding right views about the Lord.(Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.11.7)

• Pantaenus the Philosopher "Pantaenus was one of those, and is said to have gone to India. It is reported that among the Christians there that he had found Matthew's gospel. This had anticipated his own arrival, for Bartholomew, one of the apostles, had preached to them, and left with them the writings of Matthew in Hebrew, which they had preserved till that time. After many good deeds, Pantaenus finally became the head of the School in Alexandria, and expounded the treasures of divine doctrine both orally and in writing."(Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 5.10.3)

• Tertullian (b. 150 C.E.) "Jesus said, “When you have seen your brother, you have seen the Lord.”

(Tertullian, On Prayer 26)

• Hegesippus “… And from the Syriac Gospel of the Hebrews he quotes some passages in Hebrew …”(Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 3.22.6)

• Clement of Alexandria (b. 150 C.E.) Jesus said, “When you have seen your brother, you have seen your Lord.” (Clement of Alexandria, Stromateis 1.19)
• Clement Also in the Gospel of the Hebrews it is written, the saying, “He that is amazed will prevail, and he that prevails shall rest in peace.”(Clement of Alexandria, Stromateis [Miscellanies] 2.9)
• Clement He who seeks will not give up until he finds; and having found he will be amazed; and having been amazed, he shall prevail and having prevailed, he shall rest in peace.(Stromateis [Miscellanies] 5.14)

• Origen (b. 184 C.E.) The very first Gospel to be written was by Matthew, once a tax collector but later an apostle of Jesus Christ. Matthew published it for the converts from Judaism and composed it in Hebrew letters.(Eusebius, ''Ecclesiastical History, 6.25.4.)
• Origen And Jesus said, “Because of the weak, I was weak, and because of the hungry I was hungry, and because of the thirsty I was thirsty.” (Origen, Commentary on Matthew 13:2)
• Origen It is written in a certain Gospel that is called of the Hebrews: The second rich youth said to him, “Rabbi, what good thing can I do and live?” Jesus replied, “Fulfill the law and the prophets.” “I have,” was the response. Jesus said, “Go, sell all that you have and distribute to the poor; and come, follow me.” The youth began to fidget, for it did not please him. And the Lord said, “How can you say, I have fulfilled the law and the prophets, when it is written in the law: You shall love your neighbor as yourself and many of your brothers, sons of Abraham, are covered with filth, dying of hunger, and your house is full of many good things, none of which goes out to them?” And he turned and said to Simon, his disciple, who was sitting by Him, “Simon, son of Jonah, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for the rich to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”(Origen, Commentary on Matthew 15.14)
• (GH 3)^[56] Origen "And if any accept the Gospel of the Hebrews, here the Savior says: “Even so did my mother, the Holy Spirit, take me by one of my hairs, and carry me to the great mountain Tabor.” (Origen, Commentary on John 2.12)^[57]

• (GN 18)^[58] Eusebius, (b. 260 C.E.) But the Gospel written in Hebrew script which has reached our hands turns the threat not against the man who had hid the talent, but against him who has lived dissolutely – for it told of three: one wasted his master’s possessions with harlots and flute-girls, one multiplied his gains, and one hid the talent. Accordingly, one was accepted, one was only rebuked, and one was shut up in prison. (Eusebius, Theophany on Matthew 22)
• Eusebius "They (the Apostles) were led to write only under the pressure of necessity. For Matthew, who had first preached to the Hebrews, when he was about to go among others, by committing the Gospel according to himself to writings in his native language, compensated by his writing for the lack of his presence those from whom he was being sent. And Mark and Luke had already given out the Gospels according to themselves..." (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 3.24.6)^[59]
• Eusebius “… which some reject, but which others class with the accepted books. And among these some have also placed the Gospel of the Hebrews, with which those of the Hebrews that have accepted Christ are especially delighted. All these may be reckoned among the disputed books.(Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 3.25.5)^[60][61]
• Eusebius “These men thought that it was necessary to reject all the epistles of the apostle, whom they called an apostate from the Law and they used only the so-called Gospel of the Hebrews making little account of the others. The Sabbath and the rest of the Law of the Jews they observed just like them, but like us, they celebrated the Lord’s Day as a memorial of the Resurrection of the Savior. Therefore, in consequence of such a course they received the name of Ebionites.”(Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 3.27.4)
• Eusebius They went to all nations, teaching their message in the power of Christ, for He had commanded, saying, “Go and make disciples of all nations in My name.”(Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 3.5.2.)
• Eusebius Christ himself taught the reason for the separations of souls that take lace in houses, as we have found in the Gospel that is spread among those of circumcision in Hebrew script in which He said, “I choose for Myself the most worthy. The most worthy are those My Father in Heaven has given Me.” (Eusebius, Theophania 4.12)

• Didymus There are many people with two names. Scripture calls Matthew “Levi” in the Gospel of Luke, but they are not the same person. Rather Matthias who replaced Judas, and Levi are the same man with a double name. This is obvious in the Gospel of the Hebrews.(Didymus, Commentary on Psalm)

• Epiphanius (b. 309 C.E. - Bishop of Salamis) They have Matthew's gospel complete in Hebrew, for this gospel was preserved among them as it was first written in Hebrew script.(Epiphanius, Panarion 29.9.4)
• Epiphanius They too accept Matthew's gospel, and like the followers of Cerinthus and Merinthus, they use it alone. They call it the Gospel of the Hebrews, for in truth Matthew alone in the New Testament expounded and declared the Gospel in Hebrew using Hebrew script.(Epiphanius, Panarion 30.3.7)^[62]
• (GE 1) Epiphanius Their Gospel commences as follows: “In the days of King Herod of Judea, a certain man named John came baptizing with a baptism of repentance in the river Jordan. He was said to be of the family of Aaron the priest, son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, and all went out to him.” There is no genealogy [nor virgin birth] in their version of Matthew's gospel, which commences as already stated: “In the days of King Herod of Judea, during the high-priesthood of Caiaphas.”Their gospel says, “This man named John came baptizing with a baptism of repentance in the Jordan River, et cetera.” (Epiphanius, Panarion 30.13.6)
• Epiphanius In the Gospel called of Matthew which they call the Hebrew Gospel is written the following: “There was a certain man named Jesus, about thirty years old, who chose us. Coming to Capernaum, He entered the house of Simon, who is called Peter, and said, ‘As I passed by the Sea of Galilee, I chose John and James, sons of Zebedee, and Simon, and Andrew, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot, Judas Iscariot; and you Matthew, sitting at the tax office, I called and you followed me. You therefore, I want to be the Twelve, to symbolize Israel.’” And “It so happened that John came baptizing, and Pharisees and all Jerusalem came out to him to get baptized. And John wore clothing made of camel hair and had a leather belt about his waist. His food,” it continues, “consisted of wild honey that tasted like manna, like sweet cake cooked in oil.” (Epiphanius, Panarion 30.13.2)
• Epiphanius After saying many things, this Gospel continues: “After the people were baptized, Jesus also came and was baptized by John. And as Jesus came up from the water, Heaven was opened, and He saw the Holy Spirit descend in the form of a dove and enter into Him. And a voice from Heaven said, ‘You are my beloved Son; with You I am well pleased.’ And again, ‘Today I have begotten You.’ “Immediately a great light shone around the place; and John, seeing it, said to Him, ‘Who are you, Lord? And again a voice from Heaven said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.’ Then John, falling down before Him, said, ‘I beseech You, Lord, baptize me!’ But He forbade him saying, ‘Let it be so; for thus it is fitting that all things be fulfilled.’”(Epiphanius, Panarion 30.13.7)
• Epiphanius Moreover, they deny that He was a man, apparently on the basis of the word which the Savior spoke when it was announced to Him, “Behold, your mother and your brothers stand outside.” “Who are My mother and brothers?” And stretching out His hand toward his disciples He continued, “These who do the will of My Father are my brothers and sisters.” (Epiphanius, Panarion 30.14.5)
• Epiphanius Jesus came and announced, as it says in the Gospel, the one called ‘of the Hebrews’, “I have come to destroy sacrifices; and if you do not stop making sacrifices, the wrath of God will not leave you.”(Epiphanius, Panarion 30.16.5)
• Epiphanius The disciples said, “Where will You have us prepare for You to eat the Passover?” Jesus replies, “Have I earnestly desired to eat this Passover meat with you?”

(Epiphanius, Panarion 30.22.4)

• Jerome ( b. 331 C.E.) “In the Hebrew Gospel of Matthew it states, ‘Give us this day our bread for tomorrow.” (Jerome, On Psalms 135)
• Jerome In the Gospel written in the Hebrew script that the Nazarenes read, he whole fount of the Holy Spirit descends upon Him, for God is Spirit and where the Spirit resides, there is freedom. Further in the Gospel which we have just mentioned we find the following written: “When the Lord came up out of the water the whole fount of the Holy Spirit descended upon Him and rested on Him saying, ‘My Son, in all the prophets was I waiting for You that You should come and I might rest in You. For You are My rest. You are My first begotten Son that prevails forever.’ ” (Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah 4)
• Jerome “My mother the Holy Spirit.” (Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah 11.9)
• Jerome For when the apostles thought Him to be a spirit, or in the words of the Gospel of the Hebrews, which the Nazarenes read, “A bodiless demon” (Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah, Preface to Book 18, cf. Luke 24:39)
• Jerome In the Gospel of the Hebrews that the Nazarenes read, it says, “Even now my mother the Holy Spirit carried me away.” This should upset no one because “spirit” in Hebrew is feminine, while in our language it is masculine and in Greek it is neuter. In divinity there is no gender.(Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah 40.9)
• Jerome In the Book of Judges we read “Deborah”, which means “honeybee”. Her prophecies are the sweetest honey and refer to the Holy Spirit, who is called in Hebrew by a feminine noun. In the Gospel of the Hebrews that the Nazarenes read, the Saviour indicates this by saying, “Even now my mother, the Holy Spirit, carried me away.” (Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel 16.3)
• Jerome In the Gospel of the Hebrews that the Nazarenes read there is counted among the most serious offenses, "He that has grieved the spirit of his brother."(Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel 6)
• Jerome Whoever has read the Song of Songs knows that the Word of God is also the bridegroom of the soul. And whoever accepts the Gospel circulating under the title ‘Gospel of the Hebrews,’ which we most recently translated, in which it is said by the Saviour, “Even now my mother, the Holy Spirit, carried me away by one of my hairs,” will not hesitate to say that the Word of God proceeds from the Spirit, and that the soul, which is the bride of the Word, has the Holy Spirit" (Jerome, Commentary on Micah 7.6)
• Jerome In the so-called Gospel of the Hebrews, for “bread essential to existence,” I found “mahar”, which means “of tomorrow”; so the sense is: our bread for tomorrow, that is, of the future, give us this day.(Jerome, Commentary on Matthew 1)
• Jerome In the Gospel which the Nazarenes and the Ebionites use which we have recently translated from Hebrew to Greek, and which most people call The Authentic Gospel of Matthew, the man who had the withered hand is described as a mason who begged for help in the following words: “I was a mason, earning a living with my hands. I beg you, Jesus, restore my health to me, so that I need not beg for my food in shame.” (Jerome, Commentary on Matthew 2)
• Jerome “Matthew, who wrote his Gospel in Hebrew speech, put it thus, ‘Osanna barrama.’” (Jerome’s Letter to Damascus 20 on Matthew 21.9)
• Jerome In the Gospel that the Nazarenes use, for “son of Barachiah” we find written “son of Johoiada.” ^[63]
• Jerome In the Gospel of the Hebrews, Barabbas is interpreted as “son of their master”. He was condemned because of insurrection and murder.(Jerome, Commentary on Matthew 4)
• Jerome In the Gospel I so often mention we read, “A lintel of the Temple of immense size was broken.”(Jerome, On Matthew 27)
• Jerome In the Gospel written in Hebrew script we read not that the curtain of the temple was torn, but that the astonishingly large lintel of the temple collapsed.(Jerome, Letter 120 to Hedibia, cf. Epist. 20.5)
• Jerome As we have read in the Hebrew Gospel, the Lord says to his disciples: ”And never be you joyful, except when you behold your brother with love.” (Jerome, Commentary on Ephesians 3)
• Jerome In the Gospel of the Hebrews, written in the Chaldee and Syriac language but in Hebrew script, and used by the Nazarenes to this day (I mean the Gospel of the Apostles, or, as it is generally maintained, Matthew's gospel, a copy of which is in the library at Caesarea), we find, “Behold the mother of the Lord and his brothers said to him, ‘John the Baptist baptizes for the forgiveness of sins. Let us go and be baptized by him.’ But Jesus said to them, ‘in what way have I sinned that I should go and be baptized by him?Unless perhaps, what I have just said is a sin of ignorance.’” And in the same volume, “‘If your brother sins against you in word, and makes amends, receive him seven times a day.’ Simon, His disciple, said to Him, ‘Seven times in a day!’ The Lord answered and said to him, ‘I say unto thee, until seventy times seven.’ ”(Jerome, Against Pelagius 3.2)
• Jerome Also, the Gospel called of the Hebrews, recently translated by me into Greek and Latin, which Origen often uses, states, after the Resurrection of the Saviour: “Now the Lord, after he had given His grave clothes to the servant of the priest, appeared to James, for James had sworn that he would not eat bread from that hour in which he had drunk the Lord’s cup until he should see Him risen from the dead.” And a little further on the Lord says, “‘bring a table and bread.’” And immediately it is added, “He took bread and blessed and broke and gave it to James the Just and said to him, ‘My brother, eat your bread, for the Son of Man is risen from the dead.’” ^[64]
• Jerome Matthew, also called Levi, who used to be a tax collector and later an apostle, composed the Gospel of Christ, which was first published in Judea in Hebrew script for the sake of those of the circumcision who believed. This Gospel was afterwards translated into Greek (and the Greek has been lost) though by what author uncertain. The Hebrew original has been preserved to this present day in the library of Caesarea, which Pamphilus diligently gathered. I have also had the opportunity of having this volume transcribed for me by the Nazarenes of Beroea, Syria, who use it. It should be noted that wherever the Evangelist (whether on his own account or in the person of our Lord and Saviour) quotes the testimony of the Old Testament he does not follow the authority of the language of the Septuagint but the Hebrew. Therefore these two forms exist, “Out of Egypt have I called my Son,” and, “For He will be called a Nazarene.”(Jerome, On Illustrious Men 3)^[65]
• Jerome “In this last he bore witness to the Gospel which I have recently translated.” (Jerome, On Illustrious Men 16)

The Fayum Fragment

The Fayum Fragment is the oldest fragment of a non-canonical gospel to date. [2] Harnack believed that the fragment may belong to the Gospel of the Hebrews a suggestion made earlier by Chiapelli and others. [3]

• Before I must depart, you all like . . . will be offended in this night according to the Scripture : " I will smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered; but Peter said, Although even all, yet not I, and Jesus said, Before the cock crow twice you shall deny me three times. ...^[66]

Sayings recording by Justin Martyr

A soldier in the British Army in India Arthur Lillie (1893)^[67] argued that when Justin Martyr is quoting from the Memoirs of the Apostles these sayings are really from the Gospel of the Hebrews^[68][69] However this theory has not found academic support.

The Oxyrhynchus Gospels

Oxyrhynchus (Greek: Ὀξύρρυγχος; "sharp-nosed"; ancient Egyptian Pr-Medjed; Coptic Pemdje; modern Egyptian Arabic el-Bahnasa) is a city in Upper Egypt, located about 160 km south-southwest of Cairo, in the governorate of Al Minya. It is also an archaeological site, considered one of the most important ever discovered. For the past century, the area around Oxyrhynchus has been continually excavated, yielding an enormous collection of papyrus texts dating from the time of the Early Church.

The Oxyrhynchus Gospels are two fragmentary manuscripts (British Library (accession numbers 840 and 1224), discovered among the rich finds of discarded papyri at Oxyrhynchus in Egypt. They throw considerable light on early non-canonical Gospel traditions.

Oxyrhynchus 840, is a single small vellum parchment leaf with 45 lines of text written on both sides. The text probably dates from before 200, but no more is determinable from this evidence. The fragment begins with a warning to an evildoer who plans ahead, but who doesn't take the next life into account. There follow sections of a narrative unparalleled in any other known gospel tradition.^[71]

Jesus is called "Savior" (Greek: Σωτήρ), which is rare in the New Testament, but not unparalleled.^[72] The absence of connections in this piece to special interests within the early Christian community as well as the presence of both numerous semitisms and an informed view on Temple matters lead naturally to a high estimate of this text as a virtual companion piece to the Synoptic Gospel accounts. Further, it is likely that the original document was composed at least by the early 2nd century, since it shares none of the uncontrolled fantasies about Jesus and the disciples that 2nd and 3rd century apocryphal accounts typically exhibit.:^[73]

Oxyrhynchus 1224 consists of two small papyrus fragments. It contains six passages, each about a sentence. Two of the longer ones are parallel to Mark 2:17 and Luke 9:50, but the differences in phrasing show they are textually independent of the Gospels. A precise date for composition is unknown; 50 A.D. is possible but they do not seem to be dependent on the New Testament gospels. The following are the surviving extra-canonical sayings pertaining to Jesus.

Scholars have linked these papyri to the Gospel of the Hebrews. [4]

• Jesus said, "The Pharisee plans in advance, before doing wrong, he slyly reasons everything out. Be careful that you do not end up suffering the same fate as them. For the wicked of humanity receive retribution not only among the living, but they will also undergo punishment and much suffering later."

Leading them, he went into the place of purification itself and walked about in the Temple. Then Levi, a High Priest of the Pharisees came toward them and said to the Savior, "Who permitted you to wander in this place of purification and to see these holy vessels, even though you have not bathed and the feet of your disciples are unwashed? And now that you have defiled it, you walk around in this pure area of the Temple where only a man who has bathed and changed his clothes can walk, and even such a person does not dare to look upon these holy vessels."

Standing nearby with his disciples, the Savior replied, "Since you are here in the Temple too, are you clean?"

The Pharisee answered him saying, "I am clean. For I bathed in the Pool of David. I went down into the pool by one set of stairs and came back up by another. Then I dressed in white clothes and they were clean. Only then did I come and look at these holy vessels."

And the Savior said to him, "Woe to you blind guides who can not see! You have washed in the running waters that dogs and swine are cast into day and night. And when you washed yourself, you scrubbed the outer layer of skin, the layer of skin that whores and flute-girls anoint with oil and wash and wipe and beautify for the lust of men; but within they are full of scorpions and all wickedness. But I and my disciples, who you say have not bathed, have been dipped in the waters of eternal life which come from . . . But woe unto the . . .

• Jesus taught saying, “A city on a hill shall neither fall nor be hidden.”
• Jesus taught saying, “If you do not fast, you will not find the Kingdom of Heaven. And if you do not remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy, you shall never see your Heavenly Father.”
• Jesus continued to teach saying, “Then and only then will you will see more clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
• Jesus taught saying, “Do not worry all day or all night about your food, wondering what you will eat, or your clothes, wondering what you will wear. You are worth far more than the lilies that grow but do not spin. If you have one garment, what do you lack? Who can add years to your life? He, Himself will provide you with clothing!”
• Jesus taught saying, “Pray for those who persecute you.”
• Jesus taught saying, “Everything that is not obvious, indeed all that is hidden from you shall be revealed. In truth, there is nothing closed that will not be revealed, nor is there anything which is buried, which will not be uncovered.”
• Jesus taught saying, “He who seeks will find, he who finds will be surprised. He who is surprised will prevail and he who prevails will find peace.”
• Jesus taught saying, “For many who are first shall be last, and those who are last shall be first. However, only a

few truly find the Kingdom of Heaven.”

• Jesus taught saying, “Just as a doctor does not treat his own, neither is a prophet acceptable in his own land.”
• Jesus taught saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is within you. Only he who knows himself can find it.”
• Jesus taught saying, “He who is against you is for you and he who is far from you will draw near tomorrow.”
• When the Rabbis and Pharisees and priests saw Him, they were greatly upset, for he reclined with sinners. Overhearing them, Jesus explained, “The healthy have no need of a doctor”.

Extra-canonical sayings from Cyril of Jerusalem through the Dark Ages

This category of extra-canonical sayings is later and therefore less credible. They are from the Gospel Parallels ^[74]

• “The doctrine of Judaism cannot be joined to the doctrine of Christ. What connection can there be between the agreement of the Gospel of the Hebrews and the agreement of the Holy Gospels?” ^[75]
• The Hebrew Gospel has not “to the Holy City,” rather “to Jerusalem”.
• The words, “without cause” are omitted in the Hebrew Gospel and other manuscripts.
• The Hebrew Gospel reads here: “If you be in My heart and do not the will of My Father who is in Heaven, I will cast you away from My heart.”
• The Hebrew Gospel has “more wise than snakes”.
• The Hebrew Gospel has “the Kingdom of Heaven is plundered”.
• The Hebrew Gospel states, “I am grateful to you”.
• The Hebrew Gospel does not have, “three days and three nights”.
• The Hebrew Gospel has, “Corban is what you should gain from us”.
• The Hebrew Gospel states “son of John” for “Bar-Jona”.
• The Hebrew Gospel states immediately after the seventy times seven: “For in the prophets, after they were anointed with the Holy Spirit,there was found in them sin speech.”
• The Hebrew Gospel has, “And he denied and swore and cursed”.
• The Hebrew Gospel has, “And he delivered to them armed men, that they might sit over against the cave and guard it day and night”.

References