What do you think?
Rate this book
Searching for the Messiah: Unlocking the Psalms of Solomon and Humanity's Quest for a Savior
An award-winning historian of religion examines the role a “messiah” plays in Western culture, from its pre-Christian roots to modern interpretations of a savior.
Over the centuries, people have longed for a messiah, whether a religious figure such as Jesus, a political leader, or even in popular culture. The messianic quest emerges most acutely during difficult times when people experience a sense of powerlessness and desperation. But the concept of a messiah — a savior — has its root in the writings of ancient Judaism and early Christianity, evolving from an anointed leader to universal savior. Wilson turns to a little understood pre-Christian text, “The Psalms of Solomon,” which set the stage for messianic expectation just prior to the birth of Jesus.
Known today only to a handful of scholars — in marked contrast to the “Song of Solomon” — these important pslams were composed not by a King, but by a devout 1st century BCE Jew who witnessed terrible atrocities under brutal Roman rule. This crucial work encourages us to What is a messiah? Who is a messiah? How would we recognized one should he or she appear? And what is a messiah supposed to do?
In his own lifetime, Jesus directed his followers to search for “the messiah within” in his parables. Later, Paul changed the concept of “the messiah,” to “the Christ,” when presenting his message to Gentiles instead of Jews. Jesus was no longer a Jewish messiah but a Hellenistic divine avatar.
In Searching for the Messiah, Wilson reveals how this collective search for messiahs throughout modern human history has been fundamentally flawed. Jesus himself rejected the idea of an external fixer, instead formulating his teachings to focus on the role of the individual, their choices, and their actions.
Searching for the Messiah is revelatory and illuminating work of scholarship that will challenge and inspire.
Over the centuries, people have longed for a messiah, whether a religious figure such as Jesus, a political leader, or even in popular culture. The messianic quest emerges most acutely during difficult times when people experience a sense of powerlessness and desperation. But the concept of a messiah — a savior — has its root in the writings of ancient Judaism and early Christianity, evolving from an anointed leader to universal savior. Wilson turns to a little understood pre-Christian text, “The Psalms of Solomon,” which set the stage for messianic expectation just prior to the birth of Jesus.
Known today only to a handful of scholars — in marked contrast to the “Song of Solomon” — these important pslams were composed not by a King, but by a devout 1st century BCE Jew who witnessed terrible atrocities under brutal Roman rule. This crucial work encourages us to What is a messiah? Who is a messiah? How would we recognized one should he or she appear? And what is a messiah supposed to do?
In his own lifetime, Jesus directed his followers to search for “the messiah within” in his parables. Later, Paul changed the concept of “the messiah,” to “the Christ,” when presenting his message to Gentiles instead of Jews. Jesus was no longer a Jewish messiah but a Hellenistic divine avatar.
In Searching for the Messiah, Wilson reveals how this collective search for messiahs throughout modern human history has been fundamentally flawed. Jesus himself rejected the idea of an external fixer, instead formulating his teachings to focus on the role of the individual, their choices, and their actions.
Searching for the Messiah is revelatory and illuminating work of scholarship that will challenge and inspire.
Audible Audio
Published January 3, 2022
5 people are currently reading
18 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 9, 2022
Barrie Wilson has produced a thought provoking account of the history of and present day beliefs about "the Messiah." I was impressed by his historical analysis of 2000+ year old biblical writings and how post-Christ authors changed the role of Jesus, distorted his intents, and modified accounts of his actions and sayings. (Of course what else can on expect from "scholars" who write about events of years ago with little more than word of mouth and scant written evidence about the subject.) I was also surprised the learn that our present day Bible was put together in the second century AD and from the many biblical writing available, those reflecting current beliefs and dogma were selected.
The author discusses a few other Messiah-like figures from history and fiction, including Woodrow Wilson, Adolf Hitler, and the many super-heros in cinematic fiction. The point of the latter being that most people think of a Messiah as someone who will emerge to solve the worlds problems.
I wish he had discussed other great historical figures like Muhammod, Ghandi, or Martin Luther King, all of whom lived lives reflecting many of the historical belief of what makes a Messiah.
However, Wilson finishes by giving his own take on the Messiah: to see a Messiah, look in the mirror.
The author discusses a few other Messiah-like figures from history and fiction, including Woodrow Wilson, Adolf Hitler, and the many super-heros in cinematic fiction. The point of the latter being that most people think of a Messiah as someone who will emerge to solve the worlds problems.
I wish he had discussed other great historical figures like Muhammod, Ghandi, or Martin Luther King, all of whom lived lives reflecting many of the historical belief of what makes a Messiah.
However, Wilson finishes by giving his own take on the Messiah: to see a Messiah, look in the mirror.
November 29, 2024
When I picked up this book to read, I had something else in mind. Coming from someone in the field of Religious Studies, I expected the book to explore the concept of the messiah across various religions. However, the author primarily focused on Christianity and touched a bit on Judaism, with only brief mentions of other religions like Islam and Hinduism. I’ll limit my review to addressing a few issues rather than offering a full apologetic response to the content.
I believe the premise of the book is rather weak. The author spends much of the book deconstructing Christianity, basing his arguments on poor, and I would even say unfair, assumptions about the subjects he analyzes. He attempts to discredit the Gospel writers and the New Testament authors, especially the apostle Paul. The author misuses both Old and New Testament texts, allowing his personal frustrations to overshadow academic integrity. He fails to apply proper hermeneutics or follow sound methodologies for studying ancient writings.
I believe the premise of the book is rather weak. The author spends much of the book deconstructing Christianity, basing his arguments on poor, and I would even say unfair, assumptions about the subjects he analyzes. He attempts to discredit the Gospel writers and the New Testament authors, especially the apostle Paul. The author misuses both Old and New Testament texts, allowing his personal frustrations to overshadow academic integrity. He fails to apply proper hermeneutics or follow sound methodologies for studying ancient writings.
January 11, 2021
This book gives a lot to think about, basically finding following God from within, rather than becoming dependent on a superhero. The book oversimplifies, and twists Biblical ideas to the author's bias (as he accuses Paul and others of doing), and is not really complete. I did enjoy the section on Psalms of Solomon, which I need to read in its original source.
November 18, 2022
Liberal, uninformed garbage. Easily refuted with basic logic, challenging his many assumptions, and basic understanding of the Bible. Spend time with any orthodox Jewish community or messianic community and you will easily see majority of the claims made are erroneous
February 25, 2024
The author had an agenda and chose the facts to match it instead of following the facts. Not much to take away after you finish.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews