The Wisdom and Wit of Rabbi Jesus

Dr. William E. Phipps brings Jesus to life. I was raised reading the Bible in a very dry way never even grasping the idea that the Bible might have humor in it. Rereading the passages under his guidance, I found Jesus' stories funny and more memorable (most likely the reason the stories could still be remembered when they were first written down so many years after his death).Great work!

Dr. Phipps leads the reader down a fun path looking at the wit and wisdom of Jesus. As a student of Dr. Phipps over 20 years ago, I was and still very interested in his scholarship of Jesus and his life. Dr.Phipps is not shy about asking the hard questions of Jesus, and the hard questions of our own thoughts of Jesus. You are asked to view Jesus as a real person who like you and I, laugh, cry and times have fun. Enjoy the read.

Phipps contends that Jesus was a master at using humor and wit to convey his message. Sometimes the Jewish leaders were the brunt of his humor, but, as Phipps points out, this tactic of public speaking was not unheard of in Jesus' time. Phipps suggests that many of the harder sayings of Jesus make more sense if interpreted as humorous sayings (such as a camel going through the eye of a needle). Phipps also proposes that the Gospels tell us much more about the personal and sexual character of Jesus than we are willing to see. He suggests that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene. The Wisdom and Wit of Rabbi Jesus raises some interesting issues about who Jesus was, what he primary taught, and the teaching techniques he used to spread his message. It is a good commentary which breathes fresh insight into several of the more difficult passages in the Gospels.