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New Studies in Biblical Theology #19
Contagious Holiness: Jesus' Meals with Sinners
Preaching magazine Year's Best Book for Preachers One of humanity's most basic and common practices―eating meals―was transformed by Jesus into an occasion of divine encounter. In sharing food and drink with his companions, he invited them to share in the grace of God. He revealed his redemptive mission while eating with sinners, repentant and unrepentant alike. Jesus' "table fellowship" with sinners in the Gospels has been widely agreed to be historically reliable. However, this consensus has recently been challenged, for example, by the claim that the meals in which Jesus participated took the form of Greco-Roman symposia―or that the "sinners" involved were the most flagrantly wicked within Israel's society, not merely the ritually impure or those who did not satisfy strict Pharisaic standards of holiness. In this New Studies in Biblical Theology volume, Craig L. Blomberg engages with the debate and opens up the significance of the topic. He surveys meals in the Old Testament and the intertestamental period, examines all the Gospel texts relevant to Jesus' eating with sinners, and concludes with contemporary applications. Addressing key issues in biblical theology, the works comprising New Studies in Biblical Theology are creative attempts to help Christians better understand their Bibles. The NSBT series is edited by D. A. Carson, aiming to simultaneously instruct and to edify, to interact with current scholarship and to point the way ahead.
216 pages, Paperback
Published August 2, 2005
13 people are currently reading
337 people want to read
About the author
D.A. Carson
339 books740 followersDonald A. Carson is research professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. He has been at Trinity since 1978. Carson came to Trinity from the faculty of Northwest Baptist Theological Seminary in Vancouver, British Columbia, where he also served for two years as academic dean. He has served as assistant pastor and pastor and has done itinerant ministry in Canada and the United Kingdom. Carson received the Bachelor of Science in chemistry from McGill University, the Master of Divinity from Central Baptist Seminary in Toronto, and the Doctor of Philosophy in New Testament from the University of Cambridge. Carson is an active guest lecturer in academic and church settings around the world. He has written or edited about sixty books. He is a founding member and currently president of The Gospel Coalition. Carson and his wife, Joy, reside in Libertyville, Illinois. They have two adult children.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
November 9, 2023
The first 100 pages were hard to get through. The last 80 made the trek worth it. The book can be summed up in this quote in my opinion:
“Jesus regularly associated with the various sorts of sinners on whom the most pious in his culture frowned, but his association is never an end in itself. Implicitly or explicitly, he is calling people to change their ways and follow him as their master. But unlike so many in his world (and unlike so many cultures throughout the history of the world), he does not assume that he will be defiled by associating with corrupt people. Rather, his purity can rub off on them and change them for the better. Cleanliness, he believes, is even more “catching” than uncleanness; morality more influential than immorality.”
The premise of this book and the biblical theology culminating in Christ has huge implications for Christian hospitality!
“Jesus regularly associated with the various sorts of sinners on whom the most pious in his culture frowned, but his association is never an end in itself. Implicitly or explicitly, he is calling people to change their ways and follow him as their master. But unlike so many in his world (and unlike so many cultures throughout the history of the world), he does not assume that he will be defiled by associating with corrupt people. Rather, his purity can rub off on them and change them for the better. Cleanliness, he believes, is even more “catching” than uncleanness; morality more influential than immorality.”
The premise of this book and the biblical theology culminating in Christ has huge implications for Christian hospitality!
December 10, 2011
Good sturdy scholarship, and quite helpful. A bit of greenleft pc hooey right here and there, but for the most part, this was a good book.
August 24, 2021
Blomberg's sweep of the OT and NT on the topic of eating with outsiders is exhaustive without being exhausting. It was a tremendous help for my thesis on the theological significance of food and eating.
January 1, 2024
Compelling treatment. There was much fruitful engagement with scholarship, particularly on the charge that Jesus participated in Roman Symposia. However, the Eucharist is barely discussed, and Bloomberg fails to bring his work into a stirring climax with this meal pointing to the future messianic banquet.
April 7, 2025
I was caught between 2 and 3 stars here. I generally like the NSBT books I’ve read. This is the first exception for two main reasons:
1) There is not enough material here to make 180 pages, even though it is 180 pages long. I get that these are scholarly books meant to present a scholarly look at a Biblical theme. This, however, is a very niche theme. Blomberg quotes others at length consistently. I’d say that a bit less than half the book is quoted or reliant on other sources. As such, the first 4/5 of the book are really more of a literature review of Biblical scholars than a straightforward exploration of Biblical theology. That’s disappointing to me. I liked Andrew Malone more than Matthew Emadi, but they both used their books to make unique points. Blomberg waits until the last 18 pages to do that.
2) When he finally does get around to making his own points, Blomberg seems to misunderstand the point of the Church. There is a Church/Christian distinction that exists. Blomberg doesn’t see it, instead challenging the Church (as an organization) to make themselves more appealing to ‘sinners’ in order to draw people into fellowship. Contrary to his understanding, Jesus was not operating within the confines of the Church organization when he took meals with sinners. The commission to go and make disciples is a) made to members of the Church and not the organization itself and b) a commission to GO and not BRING. Seeking to create fellowship with sinners by bringing the world into the Church is missing the point. Again, contrary to Blomberg’s claims, this is a bad model. Most obviously, it seems as though the Corinthian Church had erred in this very way, leading to a kind of antinomianism that undermined Church polity.
That’s not to say the book is without merit. While his point is wrong that the Church ought to be more open in its approach, he is correct in two ways: 1) We do not make disciples from among the righteous. Associating with the unsaved is the only way to witness Christ to them. 2) The Church needs to be familiar with what is happening in the world at large in order to disciple people to disciple others. It does’t help, for example, if the Church trains people to respond to the 70’s sexual liberationists and feminists of everything revolves around Derrida/Foucault deconstructionism and critical theories.
I think there’s also a valid call that the Church— not the state— should lead in their gregariousness towards the poor, orphaned, and widowed. Jesus says this explicitly himself. I’m reminded by a statement that John Piper made where he said that, the older he gets, the more literally he interprets Jesus’ call to ‘give to everyone who asks.’ If nothing else, that’s an idea worth meditating on.
Nonetheless, the presence of a few good points does not save this book from being the weakest entry to DA Carson’s NBST series that I’ve read. I would not recommend reading this one.
1) There is not enough material here to make 180 pages, even though it is 180 pages long. I get that these are scholarly books meant to present a scholarly look at a Biblical theme. This, however, is a very niche theme. Blomberg quotes others at length consistently. I’d say that a bit less than half the book is quoted or reliant on other sources. As such, the first 4/5 of the book are really more of a literature review of Biblical scholars than a straightforward exploration of Biblical theology. That’s disappointing to me. I liked Andrew Malone more than Matthew Emadi, but they both used their books to make unique points. Blomberg waits until the last 18 pages to do that.
2) When he finally does get around to making his own points, Blomberg seems to misunderstand the point of the Church. There is a Church/Christian distinction that exists. Blomberg doesn’t see it, instead challenging the Church (as an organization) to make themselves more appealing to ‘sinners’ in order to draw people into fellowship. Contrary to his understanding, Jesus was not operating within the confines of the Church organization when he took meals with sinners. The commission to go and make disciples is a) made to members of the Church and not the organization itself and b) a commission to GO and not BRING. Seeking to create fellowship with sinners by bringing the world into the Church is missing the point. Again, contrary to Blomberg’s claims, this is a bad model. Most obviously, it seems as though the Corinthian Church had erred in this very way, leading to a kind of antinomianism that undermined Church polity.
That’s not to say the book is without merit. While his point is wrong that the Church ought to be more open in its approach, he is correct in two ways: 1) We do not make disciples from among the righteous. Associating with the unsaved is the only way to witness Christ to them. 2) The Church needs to be familiar with what is happening in the world at large in order to disciple people to disciple others. It does’t help, for example, if the Church trains people to respond to the 70’s sexual liberationists and feminists of everything revolves around Derrida/Foucault deconstructionism and critical theories.
I think there’s also a valid call that the Church— not the state— should lead in their gregariousness towards the poor, orphaned, and widowed. Jesus says this explicitly himself. I’m reminded by a statement that John Piper made where he said that, the older he gets, the more literally he interprets Jesus’ call to ‘give to everyone who asks.’ If nothing else, that’s an idea worth meditating on.
Nonetheless, the presence of a few good points does not save this book from being the weakest entry to DA Carson’s NBST series that I’ve read. I would not recommend reading this one.
June 16, 2022
When Jesus ate with "tax-collectors and sinners," was it for the purpose of repentance? Did the meals fit a more traditional Jewish setting, or were they more patterned after the pagan Sypnosium of the Greco-Roman culture?
In "Contagious Holiness: Jesus' Meals with Sinners," author Craig Blomberg takes a look at meals during the Biblical era. First, he mentions two areas of debate:
1. Were the meals more after the Jewish tradition with the participants sitting at the table, or did it reflect influence by the Greeks and Romans, where those around at the table reclined with discussion, a lot of drinking, and usually some entertainment (often sexual)?
2. Were the "sinners" Jesus ate with the immoral, without Jesus offering any condemnation, or was it more those seen as impure by the Jewish Society with the goal of leading them to repentance?
Blomberg then launches into a study looking at meal customs through the Old Testament, extra-Biblical books including the Deutero-Canonical Books (also known as the Apocrypha) and the customs of the world, both Jewish and the conquering Greeks and Romans. He follows this up by analyzing Jesus meals in the Gospels, including the dinner with Matthew/Levi and his friends and his invitations by Pharisees, dividing it between the accounts exclusive to Luke and those that aren't.
This is the third book I've read from the New Studies in Biblical Theology series, and in each case, the conclusion and application segment is the best part of the book, as it gives practical ideas to live out what is learned. In this case, the encouragement is for Christians to invite people different from us (including unbelievers) for the purpose of getting to know them and be a witness to them. It gives several examples how this is done around the world, such as a Denver church called Scum of the Earth.
This book (and this series) is aimed at intellectuals, but it is easy to read and helps one understand the issue. I recommend this book (and again, the series).
In "Contagious Holiness: Jesus' Meals with Sinners," author Craig Blomberg takes a look at meals during the Biblical era. First, he mentions two areas of debate:
1. Were the meals more after the Jewish tradition with the participants sitting at the table, or did it reflect influence by the Greeks and Romans, where those around at the table reclined with discussion, a lot of drinking, and usually some entertainment (often sexual)?
2. Were the "sinners" Jesus ate with the immoral, without Jesus offering any condemnation, or was it more those seen as impure by the Jewish Society with the goal of leading them to repentance?
Blomberg then launches into a study looking at meal customs through the Old Testament, extra-Biblical books including the Deutero-Canonical Books (also known as the Apocrypha) and the customs of the world, both Jewish and the conquering Greeks and Romans. He follows this up by analyzing Jesus meals in the Gospels, including the dinner with Matthew/Levi and his friends and his invitations by Pharisees, dividing it between the accounts exclusive to Luke and those that aren't.
This is the third book I've read from the New Studies in Biblical Theology series, and in each case, the conclusion and application segment is the best part of the book, as it gives practical ideas to live out what is learned. In this case, the encouragement is for Christians to invite people different from us (including unbelievers) for the purpose of getting to know them and be a witness to them. It gives several examples how this is done around the world, such as a Denver church called Scum of the Earth.
This book (and this series) is aimed at intellectuals, but it is easy to read and helps one understand the issue. I recommend this book (and again, the series).
June 1, 2021
This was a well organized, thorough summary of table fellowship, boundary markers, and hospitality in the Old Testament, Intertestamental literature, and the gospels.
Part of the stated purpose of the book was to address authenticity debates re: the gospel accounts and the Greco-Roman symposium, as well as discussions of whether Jesus actually called the sinners he socialized with to repentance.
Since I didn’t read this book with those questions in mind, I appreciated this work more for the survey of table fellowship rules and expectations from the OT and intertestamental period. I liked that each meal with Jesus recorded in the gospels was covered so that I could get historical background all in one place rather than having to look up each text individually. I appreciated much the author had to say in the final chapter on application in today’s world.
“As has become a pattern in [Jesus’] ministry, it is the lifestyle of discipleship, purity, and doing God‘s will which Christ believes he can impart to others rather than being contaminated by their impurity.” (p. 150)
Part of the stated purpose of the book was to address authenticity debates re: the gospel accounts and the Greco-Roman symposium, as well as discussions of whether Jesus actually called the sinners he socialized with to repentance.
Since I didn’t read this book with those questions in mind, I appreciated this work more for the survey of table fellowship rules and expectations from the OT and intertestamental period. I liked that each meal with Jesus recorded in the gospels was covered so that I could get historical background all in one place rather than having to look up each text individually. I appreciated much the author had to say in the final chapter on application in today’s world.
“As has become a pattern in [Jesus’] ministry, it is the lifestyle of discipleship, purity, and doing God‘s will which Christ believes he can impart to others rather than being contaminated by their impurity.” (p. 150)
November 7, 2020
This is a theology book written by a thorough and brilliant theologian. As such, it is pretty dense. Taking a painstaking pace, Blomberg works his way through all of the cultural meal settings of the Old Testament, the Intertestamental Era, and the New Testament to make the point that we ought to be more like Christ in that we use meals as a means of developing relationships, friendships, and commonality with people of all walks of life. Had I not been dedicated to the completion of reading the entire volume, I would have skipped to the last chapter as it was the application of the often repetitive observations. This last chapter has very specific application complete with examples of what it looks like being carried out. Overall, the message is important, the method academic and thorough, and the work challenging.
December 31, 2019
Solid exegesis and historical work pared with an exhortation for the Church to interact with our neighbors through Christ-centered hospitality. I was informed, edified, and challenged well by this one. Readers who balk at academic work might dislike the formality but should still push through to the conclusion.
September 8, 2025
fantastic analysis and synthesis along with application
Bloomberg really os a master at exegetical theology. He takes on and otherwise interacts with sig if I can’t interpretations, carefully examines the text, and brings together the findings in a compelling, but reasonable and non-sensational manner.
Bloomberg really os a master at exegetical theology. He takes on and otherwise interacts with sig if I can’t interpretations, carefully examines the text, and brings together the findings in a compelling, but reasonable and non-sensational manner.
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September 12, 2019Contagious Holiness is not currently available at local libraries.
January 13, 2020
There are some nuggets of gold in here but you have to dig. Spends far longer addressing liberal criticisms of the gospel texts than just unpacking the text and it's meaning.
August 3, 2022
Primarily scholarly and somewhat hard to get through, but the last chapter had some encouraging application.
August 30, 2016
I have enjoyed many of Blomberg's books, and still see him as one of my favourite modern day authors. Of course with his Baptist background and my Lutheran background, there will be areas that I don't agree with, there is much to be said for that fact. The Author here does quite a scholarly approach to examining both the Meals and the people with whom he eat (ie Sinners from the title), and that alone makes the book worthwhile.
I did appreciate the Author's stated objective to avoid turning this book into another study on the Lord's Supper but rather to concentrate on the other meals that Jesus was involved in or talked about. He of course does show that the two areas are in no way disjoint.
Whilst I found great value in his analysis of the Roman / Greek Symposium, and found a discussion on how this related to Second Temple Judaism, and especially how it related to the time of Jesus and the time of the Gospels being written, I found that this topic was used too much. It almost comes across as the main theme of the book, which is a little disappointing given the many other fine areas the Author touches upon.
The Final Chapter - and especially the Applications section of that - do redeem the book. Though it also makes me wish that more of this Application was discussed throughout the book.
This is very well referenced - which is always a plus! I do recommend it as a worthwhile read for Christians who want a more scholastic approach to this topic, though feel this could have been better.
I did appreciate the Author's stated objective to avoid turning this book into another study on the Lord's Supper but rather to concentrate on the other meals that Jesus was involved in or talked about. He of course does show that the two areas are in no way disjoint.
Whilst I found great value in his analysis of the Roman / Greek Symposium, and found a discussion on how this related to Second Temple Judaism, and especially how it related to the time of Jesus and the time of the Gospels being written, I found that this topic was used too much. It almost comes across as the main theme of the book, which is a little disappointing given the many other fine areas the Author touches upon.
The Final Chapter - and especially the Applications section of that - do redeem the book. Though it also makes me wish that more of this Application was discussed throughout the book.
This is very well referenced - which is always a plus! I do recommend it as a worthwhile read for Christians who want a more scholastic approach to this topic, though feel this could have been better.
February 27, 2025
An excellent overview of the Gospels description of Jesus' hospitality. Craig L. Blomberg balances between tackling the academic issues of the Historical Jesus, identity of the sinners, and the exegesis of the major feasts throughout the Gospels. He shows how Jesus invitation to a meal extended to those outcast from society for their position (either tax collectors helping the Romans or woman who soled themselves often into marriage). Relying on the Quran community and Essen texts, Blomberg offers an interpretation of how hospitality is a call to repent not merely approving of behaviour. I found this book helpful in its background and practical suggestions, although I would argue that their is more of an eschatological and sacramental interpretation than Blomberg allows.
March 12, 2013
This is an interesting study of Jesus' practice of sharing table fellowship with a broad spectrum of society, including the outcasts of His society for the purpose of evangelizing them, even though this practice regularly caused heartburn amongst the Pharisees.
The author traces the role of dining with others throughout the Old Testament and Apocrypha, and into the Gospels. The whole study raises the question about the "contextualization" of the Gospel, which is a hot topic these days. It's Blomberg's thesis that Jesus' example of "contagious holiness" as exemplified in His table fellowship should be something we would do well to follow.
The author traces the role of dining with others throughout the Old Testament and Apocrypha, and into the Gospels. The whole study raises the question about the "contextualization" of the Gospel, which is a hot topic these days. It's Blomberg's thesis that Jesus' example of "contagious holiness" as exemplified in His table fellowship should be something we would do well to follow.
April 27, 2016
Really really technical... Thankfully Blomberg has a summery at the end of each chapter in which he restates all of his conclusions and the relevant material he had surveyed or proved throughout the chapter. I almost didn't feel right rating it at all because they're was much more to be learned that what I could glean, however his remarks and conclusions concerning the practical application of Jesus' table fellowship with sinners is excellent so I had to give it a good rating.
Don't think that because it is a short book, that you can just blaze through it.
Don't think that because it is a short book, that you can just blaze through it.
September 13, 2011
A good book highlighting the role that dining with sinners played in Jesus' ministry. Spends a surprising amount of time looking at Old and inter-Testmental material for a book that from its cover would seem to focus mostly on the Gospels. Very comprehensive overview and insights into each instance in the gospels of Jesus sharing a meal. Good application and challenge at end of book, would have like more application perhaps throughout the entire book.
February 11, 2016
This book provides keen insight and careful analysis of Jesus' mealtime practices in the gospels. I appreciate the way that Dr. Blomberg opens up the world of the text while challenging believers to live the values that Jesus represents through his eating with 'the notoriously sinful'. It is a good reminder that God's holiness is far more powerful than sin while requiring a transformed life through these encounters.
July 26, 2013
Though there are some pearls in this book his interaction with certain previous approaches to this topic wore on me a bit. Though Blomberg is certainly a scholar, his writing style is not my favorite. With that said, the pearls that are to be found in this book are worth the read.
September 8, 2016
An excellent study of the Lord Jesus Christ's sharing meals with sinners. This gives us some insight on our evangelistic ministry of hospitality.
April 20, 2014
It was a good book, but forgettable. It's a helpful reference here and there, but overall it was just a very average "good" book
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews