Jesus In The Christian Bible

In the Christian Bible, the gospels of Matthew and John have several conflicting details, each describing the life of Jesus differently. In the book of Matthew, Jesus is portrayed as a man who is partly divine, often emphasizing his humanity. In John, Jesus is portrayed as a divine being who is partly human, often emphasizing his divinity. This is shown by the differing ways that Jesus reacts to his imminent doom throughout the Passion story. In this essay I will demonstrate how Jesus’ attitude towards his sacrifice displays whether the reader sees him as more human or more divine. In Matthew, Jesus is very reluctant to die, which is demonstrated through his actions leading to the crucifixion. The night before his arrest, Jesus goes to the garden and prays, “My father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me” (26.39). Jesus knows that he must die, but he is asking his father, God, to let him …show more content…
In Matthew, “Jesus was silent” (26.63) while many people testified against him so “they might put him to death” (26.59). Jesus broke his silence to respond to the high priest, who asked if he was the son of God. Jesus responded, “You have said so. But I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven” (26.64). When asked if he was the Son of god, he chose to be known as the Son of man, humanizing Jesus. In contrast, the Book of John shows Jesus pronouncing his status as a divine being in human form. He does this by standing behind his teachings, saying that “I have spoken openly to the world…Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me, what I said to them; they know what I said” (18.20-21). By speaking these words Jesus shows that he is not afraid of the consequences of his actions, which is death, and he does not deny his status as the Son of God. This version of Jesus is not reluctant, but ready to die for others