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The Jesus Quest: The Third Search for the Jew of Nazareth
In recent years Jesus' time, place and social setting have received renewed scholarly attention. New research on the Dead Sea Scrolls and other Jewish and Hellenistic texts has resulted in a surge of new images of Jesus and new ideas about his ministry. Dubbed the Third Quest for the historical Jesus, this recent effort is a transformation of the first quest, memorialized and chronicled by Albert Schweitzer, and the second quest, carried out in the 1950s and 1960s in the wake of extreme Bultmannian skepticism. The controversial works of John Dominic Crossan, Marcus Borg and Burton Mack, and the results of the Jesus Seminar have been thrust upon the public by publicists and media as the voices of learned consensus. Meanwhile, at the center of the scholarly investigation of Jesus, a less celebrated but certainly no less informed majority rejects many of the methods and conclusions of those who have captured the limelight. In The Jesus Quest Ben Witherington, a participant in the Quest, offers the first comprehensive determination and assessment of what scholars are really saying about Jesus. In addition to the views of Crossan, Borg and Mack, he presents and interacts with the work of important scholars such as Geza Vermes, E. P. Sanders, Gerd Theissen, Richard Horsley, John P. Meier, N. T. Wright and Elisabeth Schssler Fiorenza, as well as outlining his own understanding of Jesus as sage. Here is an indispensable survey and assessment of the most significant religious scholarly debate of the 1990s. Now with a lengthy new postscript, the new paperback edition of this widely praised book updates you on the continuing saga of the Third Quest for the historical Jesus.
334 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
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About the author
Ben Witherington III
129 books151 followersBen Witherington III (PhD, University of Durham) is Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky, and is on the doctoral faculty at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. He is the author or coauthor of more than thirty books, including The Jesus Quest, The Paul Quest, and The New York Times bestseller The Brother of Jesus. He has appeared on the History Channel, NBC, ABC, CBS, and CNN.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 1, 2020
This book addresses all the latest scholarly takes on Jesus twenty-five years ago. It is extraordinarily well-researched, and I enjoy Witherington as a scholar and teacher, having had him in seminary. If you are interested in Jesus Seminar stuff of the 1980s and 1990s, this is a must-read. For the rest of us, if you are not familiar with the scholars he references, the details can become cumbersome. Witherington covers a lot of ground, and still manages to delve to significant depths with most of the scholars he references. That is a feat in and of itself.
December 3, 2014
When I finished my first walk to Santiago de Compostela in 2000, I came back with a desire to learn more about the “historical” Jesus. This book would have been great to have this volume at hand then. Now after almost a decade and a half of reading and studying about Jesus of Nazareth and the early church, it’s even better.
The Jesus Quest: The Third Search for the Jew of Nazareth, 2nd Edition
[1997] by Ben Witherington III is a must read for anyone interested in the extent of modern academic and scholarly research into the historical Jesus. However, this excellent book should be read cautiously and with some caveats in mind.
In some ways, this book reminds me of the opening chapters of thesis or dissertation for a graduate degree in history. Witherington lays out the conditions that should be met to create an accurate description of the “historical” Jesus. This amounts to an introductory thesis statement which the rest of writing will either confirm or challenge. Having established what he defines as a successful investigation into the “historical,” the author looks around to see what other contributors to the field have done.
Like the second step of a dissertation, this is a historiographical essay that examines the literature that has been in the field so far. After discussing the work Albert Schweitzer during the First Quest at the turn of the opening of the 20th century and the work decades later of the Second Quest (which was best exemplified by Rudolph Bultmann as well as others), Witherington settles into his main interest which is the contribution so far of the Third Quest to the study of the historical Jesus.
Here we met the cavalcade of notables starting with the Jesus Seminar, then John Dominic Crossen, the Marcus Borg, E.P Sanders, Gerd Theissen, Richard Horsley, Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza and others. Then Witherington writes about his contribution. Afterwards he goes back to critical examining the more traditional work of John P. Meier, N.T. Wright and Raymond E. Brown.
The reader discovers that there are a lot of different representations of the “historical” Jesus out there. There’s: Jesus the Cynic, Jesus the Charismatic Figure, Jesus the Eschatological Prophet, Jesus the Social Prophet, Jesus the Prophet of Sophia, Jesus the Sage, Jesus the Marginalized Jew and Jesus the Messiah. All of the above are analyzed critically by Witherington except for the Sage which is the author’s contribution to the genre. [He does graciously acknowledge and then dismiss some criticism by Crossen in this edition.]
If the various members of the Third Quest were sitting at a great table, Witherington seems to think that he should be sitting down at the end of the table with Meier, Wright and Brown, the more conservative historically-critical scholars. In fact, he dedicates this study to Meier and Brown because they “have labored long and hard in the service of God and God’s people.” Not surprisingly, both great scholars wrote favorably about the first edition.
So as you read this book remember the following caveats as you read this book. As the author points out no examination of the historical Jesus will be a portrait of the Jesus that lived two millennia ago. At best such a study will give the reader an appreciation of an aspect of that Jesus. Additionally reader of scholarly works have to remember that all scholars write to support and defend the own views. It doesn’t matter if they’re also current or former churchmen or kindly old priests; all of these writers write with their own agenda in mind. The careful reader will look for this as he reads. A third caveat is while Witherington does a great job showing how other scholars have and have not met the different aspects model that he introduces in the beginning, he’s not that critical of his own work.
That’s not to say his work isn’t worth reading. It looks like an exciting mediation into the nature of the historical Jesus. I’m just saying the author doesn’t cast as critical an eye on his own work in his volume as he does on his colleagues.
For the list of works in the bibliography alone, this volume rates five stars. This book will help anyone interested in learning more about the Third Quest for the historical Jesus. It’s important, though, to read it with a jaundiced eye and to keep the warnings I mentioned in mind. Enjoy.
In some ways, this book reminds me of the opening chapters of thesis or dissertation for a graduate degree in history. Witherington lays out the conditions that should be met to create an accurate description of the “historical” Jesus. This amounts to an introductory thesis statement which the rest of writing will either confirm or challenge. Having established what he defines as a successful investigation into the “historical,” the author looks around to see what other contributors to the field have done.
Like the second step of a dissertation, this is a historiographical essay that examines the literature that has been in the field so far. After discussing the work Albert Schweitzer during the First Quest at the turn of the opening of the 20th century and the work decades later of the Second Quest (which was best exemplified by Rudolph Bultmann as well as others), Witherington settles into his main interest which is the contribution so far of the Third Quest to the study of the historical Jesus.
Here we met the cavalcade of notables starting with the Jesus Seminar, then John Dominic Crossen, the Marcus Borg, E.P Sanders, Gerd Theissen, Richard Horsley, Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza and others. Then Witherington writes about his contribution. Afterwards he goes back to critical examining the more traditional work of John P. Meier, N.T. Wright and Raymond E. Brown.
The reader discovers that there are a lot of different representations of the “historical” Jesus out there. There’s: Jesus the Cynic, Jesus the Charismatic Figure, Jesus the Eschatological Prophet, Jesus the Social Prophet, Jesus the Prophet of Sophia, Jesus the Sage, Jesus the Marginalized Jew and Jesus the Messiah. All of the above are analyzed critically by Witherington except for the Sage which is the author’s contribution to the genre. [He does graciously acknowledge and then dismiss some criticism by Crossen in this edition.]
If the various members of the Third Quest were sitting at a great table, Witherington seems to think that he should be sitting down at the end of the table with Meier, Wright and Brown, the more conservative historically-critical scholars. In fact, he dedicates this study to Meier and Brown because they “have labored long and hard in the service of God and God’s people.” Not surprisingly, both great scholars wrote favorably about the first edition.
So as you read this book remember the following caveats as you read this book. As the author points out no examination of the historical Jesus will be a portrait of the Jesus that lived two millennia ago. At best such a study will give the reader an appreciation of an aspect of that Jesus. Additionally reader of scholarly works have to remember that all scholars write to support and defend the own views. It doesn’t matter if they’re also current or former churchmen or kindly old priests; all of these writers write with their own agenda in mind. The careful reader will look for this as he reads. A third caveat is while Witherington does a great job showing how other scholars have and have not met the different aspects model that he introduces in the beginning, he’s not that critical of his own work.
That’s not to say his work isn’t worth reading. It looks like an exciting mediation into the nature of the historical Jesus. I’m just saying the author doesn’t cast as critical an eye on his own work in his volume as he does on his colleagues.
For the list of works in the bibliography alone, this volume rates five stars. This book will help anyone interested in learning more about the Third Quest for the historical Jesus. It’s important, though, to read it with a jaundiced eye and to keep the warnings I mentioned in mind. Enjoy.
August 10, 2025
Although this book is not a fresh and new publication looking at historical Jesus scholarship, it is a great overview of the “field of takes” surveying some of the more dominant scholarly voices in the Third Quest for the Historical Jesus.
Witherington looks at the dominant voices and gives a fair assessment of the merits of each perspective, but is also very critical of where each view, in his assessment, falls short. The book progresses from some of the more ridiculous takes to those that get closer and closer to overall accuracy and helpfulness. Eventually, Witherington gives his own view and then closes with a discussion on mainstream versus marginal perspectives.
While I don’t agree with all of Witherington’s takes, I do think his overall assessment is sound and well-placed. The resource was unbelievably helpful in surveying the field of historical Jesus academia and knowing where the voices are found and how they fit together. Towards the end of the book he makes the point that finding something new and trendy to say is often more attractive then pursuing what is most probable — a point that I completely agree with.
Witherington looks at the dominant voices and gives a fair assessment of the merits of each perspective, but is also very critical of where each view, in his assessment, falls short. The book progresses from some of the more ridiculous takes to those that get closer and closer to overall accuracy and helpfulness. Eventually, Witherington gives his own view and then closes with a discussion on mainstream versus marginal perspectives.
While I don’t agree with all of Witherington’s takes, I do think his overall assessment is sound and well-placed. The resource was unbelievably helpful in surveying the field of historical Jesus academia and knowing where the voices are found and how they fit together. Towards the end of the book he makes the point that finding something new and trendy to say is often more attractive then pursuing what is most probable — a point that I completely agree with.
February 7, 2017
I would highly recommend and commend this book, but only to a specific group of people.
If you are fascinated by the wave of historical Jesus scholarship in the 80s and 90s, but feel a little lost in the quagmire of competing ideas - or if you feel like something is just not quite right with those Jesus Seminar dudes, but can't put your finger on it - then this summary volume is probably perfect for you. Witherington gives a wonderfully succinct overview of the most significant figures in the so-called "3rd Quest for the Historical Jesus," explaining his perspectives on where they are to be commended and critiqued. As other reviewers have noted, he is particularly critical of the Seminar, and especially of Crossan, but I found his case to be persuasive on both counts.
I'm personally very thankful for this volume - and it will certainly stay on my shelf, as a reference tool - because it captures such a wide swath of scholarship. It's extremely helpful to know how different scholars have understood Jesus more recently, and the questions about him that rightfully deserve more focus than others. But all that to say, this will not be an exciting read to everyone (probably not to most people, actually). I'm also guessing that you will know if you are one of those individuals who will gobble this up.
If you are fascinated by the wave of historical Jesus scholarship in the 80s and 90s, but feel a little lost in the quagmire of competing ideas - or if you feel like something is just not quite right with those Jesus Seminar dudes, but can't put your finger on it - then this summary volume is probably perfect for you. Witherington gives a wonderfully succinct overview of the most significant figures in the so-called "3rd Quest for the Historical Jesus," explaining his perspectives on where they are to be commended and critiqued. As other reviewers have noted, he is particularly critical of the Seminar, and especially of Crossan, but I found his case to be persuasive on both counts.
I'm personally very thankful for this volume - and it will certainly stay on my shelf, as a reference tool - because it captures such a wide swath of scholarship. It's extremely helpful to know how different scholars have understood Jesus more recently, and the questions about him that rightfully deserve more focus than others. But all that to say, this will not be an exciting read to everyone (probably not to most people, actually). I'm also guessing that you will know if you are one of those individuals who will gobble this up.
August 24, 2025
Awesome book on the historical Jesus! A summary of most historical Jesus research up until the time of publishing with some words on the future. Witherington doesn’t give his own opinion (besides a brief section about Jesus in light of the wisdom tradition that was awesome) unless he is critiquing a view here or there. I would probably line up closer to Witherington or even a Wright view on the historical Jesus, but it was still fun to read the development and summaries of other views. I really appreciated this work and anyone that is into as niche of a topic as this should definitely read this. 4.5 stars
February 4, 2015
It is interesting to see what all the schools of thought think about who the Historical Jesus was. All, however, are filled with personal bias and assumption when really all we have is what the Bible... already shown time and time again to be historically accurate and is what I believe is God-breathed.... says about what he did and who he was/claimed to be.
Still an interesting read for all those who want to know more about where the world and theology is taking Jesus and how these views shape Christianity today.
Still an interesting read for all those who want to know more about where the world and theology is taking Jesus and how these views shape Christianity today.
February 13, 2013
Overrated. People have compared it to Jesus and the Victory of God by NT Wright. However, it is primarily a polemic against John Dominic Crossan. Still a good book, but not as magisterial as I had hoped.
October 11, 2023
If you're new to the world of the third quest, or don't have the time to pick up the actual literature being written on the subject, this is an an excellent overview and critique of the status today.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews