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RABBI [Gk rhabbi (ῥαββι)]. Var. RABBONI. An honorific title found in the NT. The Hebrew word rabbı̂ is transliterated just over a dozen times in the Greek text of the Gospels. In ten of these cases, the RSV retains the transliteration with the English equivalent “rabbi.” In five other instances Gk rhabbi is translated “master” (Matt 26:25, 49; Mark 9:5; 11:21; 14:45). In origin a title of authority, Heb rabbı̂ became, by the 1st century c.e., a title as well as a mode of address.
A. Literary and Epigraphic Background
1. Biblical and Extrabiblical Evidence. In the OT the word rab, “big,” “great,” occurs only in construct with other nouns: rab šāqeh, “chief of officers” (2 Kgs 18:17 = Isa 36:2, etc.); rab sārı̂s, “chief of heads” (2 Kgs 18:17, Jer 39:3, 13; Dan 1:3); rab māg, “chief of princes” (Jer 39:3, 13); rab tabbāḥı̂m, “captain of the guard” (2 Kgs 25:8, etc.); Aram rab ḥartummayyā˒, “chief of magicians” (Dan 4:6, 5:1); rab signîn, “chief of prefects” (Dan 2:48); rab ḥôbel, “chief of sailors” (Jonah 1:6). In two other instances the title rab is not connected with a corps of officials (Jer 39:13; [41:1]; Esth 1:8). In extracanonical sources, both Aramaic and Phoenician, rab has the sense of “officer” or “chief,” and it appears most often in the construct form (DISO, s.v.). It is attested in the absolute in Jewish Aramaic texts from Qumran (e.g., 11QtgJob 19:3 [Job 29:4]; 25:1 [Job 34:24]).
2. “Rabbi” as a Jewish Title in the First Centuries c.e. The earliest evidence for “rabbi” as a title attached to a proper name (e.g., Rab Hana) occurs on Jerusalem ossuaries which apparently date from before 100 c.e. (CIJ 2: 249; 275–77; 277–79). The inscriptions which date from 100 c.e. to 400 c.e. stem largely from the cemeteries of Joppa and Beth-she˓arim (see the annotated list of inscriptions in Cohen 1981: 1–17). These inscriptions indicate that men entitled rabbî were probably wealthy, and that many were comfortable with the Greek language and with Greco-Roman artistic and architectural styles (see, e.g., Schwabe and Lifshitz 1973: no. 61). Overall, the inscriptions indicate that the title rabbı̂ should be thought of as an honorific roughly equivalent to “sir,” with no explicit connection to either teaching or adjudication (much like the colloquial use of Gk kyrios). One problematic exception should be noted [Naveh 1978: no. 6]; the inscription cited at Mazar 1974: 46 should not be admitted as evidence.)
B. Rab and Rabbi in Rabbinic Literature
The use of the term rab as a title is not attested before roughly the 1st century c.e. In rabbinic literature, personages associated with the period before 70 c.e. are not referred to with a title (e.g., Hillel, Shammai), while those associated with the later periods are titled (e.g., Rabbi Aqiba, etc.). Of greatest relevance to the present discussion, however, is the absolute use of the term as well as its use as a mode of address (as in the NT). The discussion is based solely on the Mishna and the Tosepta, the two earliest rabbinic collections.
1. “Rab” in the Absolute. In the absolute, the term rab is used almost exclusively in two ways: to designate the master of a slave (e.g., m. Pesaḥ. 8.1–2; m. Giṭ. 4.4 = m. ˓Ed. 1.3; compare Gk kyrios) or to designate a teacher, the more relevant usage for present purposes. In one tradition about a figure associated with the period before 70 c.e. and in two pre-135 c.e. traditions, rab designates a link in the chain of authoritative teaching (t. Pesaḥ. 4.13–14; m. Yad. 4.3; m. ˓Ed. 8.7).
In traditions attributed to post-135 c.e. figures, obligations to a rab are explicitly filial (m. Makk. 2.2 with t. B. Qam. 9.11; m. B. Meṣ. 2.11 with t. B. Meṣ. 2.29–30 and t. Hor. 2.25; m. Ker. 6.9). Similarly, the social relations of a rab are the focus of other post-135 c.e. traditions, as well as of anonymous traditions (m. ˓Erub. 3.5; m. Meg. 4.5; m. Ket. 2.10; t. Ber. 5.7; t. ˓Erub. 4.1; 5.11; t. Ket. 3.3; t. Sanh. 3.8).
Two usages characteristic of the Tosepta deserve special mention. First, important biblical figures (Moses, Elijah, Elisha) are described in terms of the relationship of rab and disciple (t. Sot. 3.7; t. ˓Ed. 3.4). Second, the plural rabbôtênû is used for the collective body of sages, and seems to be characteristic of traditions about Usha (e.g., “rabbôtênû were counted [for a vote] in Usha . . .” [m. Soṭa 9.14; the only mishnaic tradition of this type]; t. Ber 2.11; t. Dem. 1.11; t. Šeb. 4.16, 21; t. Ket. 5.1; 7.11; t. Kel. B. Meṣ. 7.11; t. ˒Ohol. 16.7; t. Para 5.1; t. Nid. 3.9; 4.7; 8.3). In this second case, the term rabbôtênû at the same time designates “our teachers” and members of an authoritative quorum.
2. “Rabbi” as a Mode of Address. A corrupt and apparently late tradition, which assumes that rabbî and rabbān designate teachers, distinguishes between these titles (or modes of address) on the basis of the success of disciples (t. ˓Ed. 3.4). Yet another anonymous tradition prescribes greeting the mourning king as adônênû wĕrabbênû, “our lord and master” (t. Sanh. 4.4), indicating that even in rabbinic literature the older (nontechnical) sense of the term was retained. The remaining examples of the term rabbî as a mode of address are in direct discourse; nearly all are about figures associated with the period before 135 c.e. Rabbî is used as an address for a judge (m. Ned. 9.5; m. B. Qam. 8.6; t. Yeb. 14.10; t. Giṭ. 1.3; t. Kel. B. Qam. 1.2–3) and in legal disputes—presumably for the senior member of the dispute (t. Kel. B. Qam. 1.6; t. Pe˒a 3.6). Given the earlier usage of the term, these instances are not inexplicable. In still other passages the figure addressed as rabbî is so called because he is a teacher (m. Roš Haš. 2.9; t. Ber. 4.16–18; t. Ma˓as. Š. 5.16; t. Ḥag. 2.11; t. Giṭ. 1.3; t. Zeb. 2.17; t. Neg. 8.6). Finally, in two traditions about R. Gamaliel (II), held to have been the patriarch and one whom we might expect to be addressed as rabbî by analogy with a king or a judge, Gamaliel is addressed as rabbênû (or rabbî) by members of his circle and is challenged on the basis of laws which he taught them (t. Ber. 4.15; t. Beṣ. 2.12; cf. m. Ber. 2.5–7).
C. “Rabbi” in the New Testament
1. Mark. Mark uses rhabbi three times and rabbouni (rabboni) once (10:51); all four instances convey a sense of Jesus’ particular greatness (Mark 9:5; 11:21 [Peter]; 14:45 [Judas]; 10:51 [Bartimaeus, who follows Jesus]). In three of the four instances, Jesus is called rabbi in response to a miraculous action on Jesus’ part: the Transfiguration (9:5), the withering of the fig tree (11:21), and the healing of the blind (10:51). Bartimaeus’ reference to Jesus as rabbouni is coupled with the address “son of David” (10:47, 48), suggesting that the term should be thought of as meaning “sir” or perhaps “lord,” and not “teacher” (cf. 9:17, in which “teacher” is used in a case of healing). Didaskalos, “teacher,” on the other hand, is used as a more general form of address by both disciples (4:38; 9:38; 10:35; 13:1) and nondisciples (9:17; 10:17, 20; 12:14, 19, 32).
2. Matthew. In Matthew the use of the appellation rabbi is polemical. The only person who addresses Jesus as rabbi is Judas (Matt 26:25, 49). The other two instances of the word rabbi occur in Matt 23:1–12. Although the Matthean material in 23:1–3 does imply some sort of public teaching (as may the Q material in v 4 directed in Luke 11:45–46 to lawyers), the immediate context of the address rabbi in 23:7 describes a group perceived to enjoy public recognition as well as the outward show of piety, men who wish to be called “sir.” In 23:8 the connection between rabbi and teacher is made explicitly. Yet the parallelism in 23:9–10 (patēr/patēr; kathegētēs/kathegētēs) leads us to expect not didaskalos, “teacher,” but rabbi in the second half of 23:8. This break in parallel structure protects Jesus from being referred to as rabbi, a term associated in Matthew with the hateful Pharisees. Moreover, if “teacher” is meant in 23:8, the theme is apparently repeated at 23:10, using the term kathegētēs for teacher. It is possible that the author of 23:1–12 has made use of materials in which rabbi meant “sir” (Matt 23:7–8), but that for the Evangelist the term had the direct (and negative) connotation of “teacher of the law.” This observation may be connected with the development of the term rab in rabbinic literature.
3. Luke. Rabbi does not occur in Luke. A word needs to be said about the Lukan term epistatēs, however (Luke 5:5; 8:24, 45; 9:33, 49; 17:13). This term corresponds once to the Markan rabbi (Luke 9:33; Mark 9:5) and twice to didaskalos (Luke 8:24; Mark 4:38; Luke 9:49; Mark 9:38). With the exception of 17:13 the address is found only in the mouths of disciples. In LXX, epistatēs is used to translate śārê missı̂m, “taskmasters” (Exod 1:11 [RSV]), and elsewhere, nāgı̂d, “chief” (2 Chr 31:12 [RSV]), and apparently it covers some of the same semantic field as rab (see also LXX Exod 5:14; 1 Kings 5; 16; 2 Kgs 25:19; Jer 52:25; 2 Chr 2:2). Moreover, in Ptolemaic Egypt and elsewhere the title epistatēs designated certain kinds of officials. It is possible that the Lukan term epistatēs reflects (as it clearly seems to in Luke 9:33) sources which used the Heb/Aram rabbı̂.
4. John. In John, two disciples address Jesus as rabbi after hearing from John that he is the “the lamb of God” (1:36–38); one reports that they have “found the Messiah” (1:41). Nathanael, amazed by Jesus’ supernatural vision, addresses Jesus as rabbi, son of God and king of Israel (1:49). Even in John 3:2, where Jesus is called “a teacher come from God” in addition to rabbi, the use of the term is explained on the basis of Jesus’ ability to perform signs. (It should be noted, however, that in John 3:1–5 Jesus does act as a teacher of heavenly things.) When Mary Magdalene perceived Jesus to be a gardener, she called Jesus kyrios, “sir”; when she realized that he was indeed the risen Jesus (John 20:15), she called him rabbouni. This understanding should inform our reading of John 6:25, in which “the people” call Jesus rabbi, as well as of the remaining passages, in which a teacher is called rabbi by his disciples (3:26 [John]; 4:31; 9:2; 11:8). It is important to note, however, that in John rabbi and rabbouni are each glossed as didaskalos, “teacher” (John 1:38; 20:16, respectively); it seems to have taken on this meaning exclusively.
The precise connection between early Christian and early rabbinic traditions is unclear. As the term rabbi became an honorific title and a mode of deferential address in general, it was taken up by rabbinic literature in particular as a special designator for a teacher. This was accompanied in the Mishna and the Tosepta by the casting of primary figures of authority as “teachers.” The semantic shift from “sir” to “teacher” that is reflected in rabbinic literature has left traces in those NT passages in which rabbi, used of Jesus because of his greatness, is overlaid with the predominant sense of “teacher.”
Bibliography
Cohen, S. J. D. 1981. Epigraphical Rabbis. JQR 72: 1–17.
Dalman, G. 1902. The Words of Jesus. Trans. D. M. Kay. Edinburgh.
Mazar, B. 1974. Beth She˓arim. Vol. 1. Catacombs 1–4. Jerusalem.
Naveh, J. 1978. On Mosaic and Stone. Tel Aviv (in Hebrew).
Schwabe, M., and Lifshitz, B. 1973. Beth Shearim. Vol. 2. The Greek Inscriptions. New Brunswick.
Shanks H. 1963. Is the Title “Rabbi” Anachronistic in the Bible? JQR 53: 337–45.
———. 1968. On the Origin of the Title “Rabbi.” JQR 59: 152–57.
Vermes, G. 1973. Jesus the Jew. New York.
Zeitlin, S. 1963. A Reply [to Shanks]. JQR 53: 345–49.
———. 1968. The Title Rabbi in the Gospels Is Anachronistic. JQR 59: 158–60.
Hayim Lapin
Freedman, D. N. (1996, c1992). The Anchor Bible Dictionary (5:600). New York: Doubleday.
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RABBI The title “Rabbi” (Heb. = “my teacher”) came to be applied during the 1st cent. as a mode of address to the authoritative teachers who were members of the Sanhedrin. In the form “Rabboni” it is addressed in the NT on two occasions to Jesus (Mark 10:51; John 20:16); both Jesus (Matt. 26:25, 49; Mark 9:5; 11:21; 14:45) and John the Baptist (John 3:26) are called “Rabbi” by their disciples. In later Jewish tradition, notably in northern Europe, “rabbi” came to be a term properly reserved for those teachers of Jewish law who had received ordination, and so it remains in general use today.
Jesus was critical of teachers of the Law being anxious to be so addressed (Matt. 23:5ff.). This reservation lies behind the canting protest of the obsequious friar in Chaucer’s Summoner’s Tale (3.2185-88), who resists the term “master”:
“No maister, sire,” quod he, “but servitour,
Thogh I have had in scole that honour.
God liketh nat that ‘Raby’ men us calle,
Neither in market ne in youre large halle.”
Characterizations of postbiblical rabbis frequently include biblical elements, as in Browning’s “Rabbi Ben Ezra,” or talmudic mashal, as in A. M. Klein’s “Rev Levi Yitschok Talks to God.” In some later 20th-cent. texts there has been a tendency to return to the literal “my teacher,” as in the poems (and dedication) of Leonard Cohen’s Book of Mercy.
Jeffrey, D. L. (1992). A Dictionary of biblical tradition in English literature. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans.
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Rabbi — my master, a title of dignity given by the Jews to their doctors of the law and their distinguished teachers. It is sometimes applied to Christ (Matt. 23:7, 8; Mark 9:5 (R.V.); John 1:38, 49; 3:2; 6:25, etc.); also to John (3:26).
Easton, M. (1996, c1897). Easton's Bible dictionary. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
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RABBI Title of respect, meaning “my great one” or “my superior one,” used in Jesus’ day for Jewish religious teachers.
According to Matthew 23:7, “rabbi” was evidently used as a common title of address for the Jewish scribes and Pharisees. However, in the NT it is most commonly used as a title of respectful address when others were speaking to Jesus. It was used by Nathanael (Jn 1:49), by Peter and Andrew (v 38), by Nicodemus (3:2), by the disciples as a group (9:2; 11:8), and by a crowd generally (6:25). Mary Magdalene (Mk 10:51) and blind Bartimaeus (Jn 20:16) both use the longer form, “rabboni,” to address Jesus directly, thus indicating even more profound respect than the use of the shorter title “rabbi.” By the time of the writing of John’s Gospel, the title “rabbi” meant “teacher”; John explicitly states this in 1:38 and implicitly says this in 3:2.
Jesus condemns the scribes and the Pharisees for their evident pride displayed in their love of being greeted in the marketplaces and their insistence on having people call them “rabbi” (Mt 23:7–8). Jesus prohibited the use of the title for his own disciples, saying, “You are not to be called rabbi.” However, Jesus’ prohibition was more against seeking to be called this and insisting on it than the legitimate possession of the title itself. In fact, when people did use the title of Jesus in a reverent way, they were not in any way rebuked.
Elwell, W. A., & Comfort, P. W. (2001). Tyndale Bible dictionary. Tyndale reference library (1106). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.
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RABBI (Heb. rabbi, Gk. hrabbi, “my teacher”). A respectful term applied by the Jews to their teachers and spiritual instructors (Matt. 23:7–8; John 1:38; 3:26; 6:25). The terms rabbi and rabboni both mean simply “master” (John 1:38; 20:16). The use of the title rabbi cannot be substantiated before the time of Christ. Later Jewish schools had three grades of honor: rab, “master,” the lowest; rabbi, “my master,” the second; and rabboni, “my lord, my master,” the most elevated. m.f.u.
Unger, M. F., Harrison, R. K., Vos, H. F., Barber, C. J., & Unger, M. F. (1988). The new Unger's Bible dictionary. Revision of: Unger's Bible dictionary. 3rd ed. c1966. (Rev. and updated ed.). Chicago: Moody Press.
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RABBI, RABBONI. Heb. raḇ meant ‘great’, and came to be used for a person in a respected position, rabbi, ‘my great one’, was used as a reverential form of address. By the end of the 2nd century bc the word raḇ was used for a teacher, and rabbi as the respectful address, ‘my teacher’. Later the suffix lost its possessive significance, and the word ‘rabbi’ came to be used as the title of the authorized teachers of the Law; in modern Judaism it is used for those who are ordained to this work. By NT times the word had not come to be restricted to the official usage. It was certainly a title of honour, applied once to John the Baptist and twelve times to our Lord. In Mt. 23:7f., in contrast to the scribes’ delight in being called ‘rabbi’, the disciples are told not to be so called—‘for you have one teacher’, Jesus said to them, ‘and you are all brethren’. The Heb. word is transliterated into Gk. as rhabbi or rhabbei and in this passage quoted, and also in Jn. 1:38 and 20:16, it is made clear that the Heb. word was equivalent in meaning to the Gk. didaskalos.
‘Rabboni’ (rhabbouni) is a heightened form of ‘rabbi’ used to address our Lord in Mk. 10:51 and Jn. 20:16.
Bibliography. G. H. Dalman, The Words of Jesus, 1902, pp. 331–340; E. Lohse, on rhabbi, rhabbouni, TDNT 6, pp. 961–965; H. L. Ellison, NIDNTT 3, pp. 115f. f.f.
Wood, D. R. W., Wood, D. R. W., & Marshall, I. H. (1996, c1982, c1962). New Bible Dictionary. Includes index. (electronic ed. of 3rd ed.) (996). Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press.
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Rabbi, Rabboni (Heb., ‘My Great One’), a title that took on the meaning ‘My Master’ or ‘My Teacher’ and eventually became used in the absolute sense. Rab, without the possessive article, is used in the ot as a title meaning ‘chief’ or ‘officer’ (2 Kings 18:17). By the time of the Mishnah (a.d. 200) rab had come to mean a master as opposed to slave and a master or teacher of students. The nt has two forms of the title, rabbi and rabbounei (these Greek words are sometimes translated, as ‘master,’ or simply transliterated, as ‘rabboni’). These probably reflect the pronunciations in Hebrew and Aramaic in the first century. Later pronunciations attested in the Targums (translations of Hebrew Scriptures into Aramaic) and inscriptions are rebbi, ribbi, rib, and ribboni. In the second and third centuries rabbi began to designate someone authorized to teach and judge matters of Jewish law.
In the nt Rabbi is used only in direct address of Jesus, not as a title. The Gospel of John (end of the first century) offers a translation of the term as ‘teacher’ (1:38). The Gospel of Matthew implies that rabbis are teachers among the Jews (23:7-8). The Gospel of John uses the address ‘Rabbi’ of Jesus often in chaps. 1-12. The address ‘Rabboni’ in John 20:16 is probably employed to express familiarity and devotion. The Gospel of Matthew has only outsiders address Jesus as Rabbi; the disciples use titles with more christological weight such as ‘Lord.’ In the Gospel of Luke only Judas Iscariot calls Jesus ‘Rabbi.’ A.J.S.
Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, P., & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper's Bible dictionary. Includes index. (1st ed.) (848). San Francisco: Harper & Row.
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Rabbi (Gk. rhabbɩ́), RABBONI (rhabbounɩ́)
A title of respect (from Heb. raḇ, “great” or “big”). By the 1st century c.e. “rabbi” was a loose designation for a teacher, meaning “my master” or “my great one.” This term appears in three of the four Gospels, typically in reference to Jesus.
In Mark only the disciples call Jesus “rabbi,” and this address typically follows a miraculous event (Mark 9:5; 11:21; 14:45; “rabboni” at 10:51). In Matthew the only person to address Jesus as “rabbi” is Judas (Matt. 25:26, 49). The remainder of the disciples choose other titles, thus suggesting the polemical natures of Judas and the remaining eleven. In a speech by Jesus, the term seems to refer to one who is a teacher of the law (Matt. 23:7–8). Luke’s gentile audience would have found little meaning in a term like “rabbi” that developed in the Jewish culture. Luke prefers Gk. epistátēs, “school-master” or a supervising official (Luke 5:5; 8:24, 45; 9:33, 49; 17:13). In the Gospel of John “rabbi” is used by both the disciples and outsiders to designate Jesus (John 1:38, 49; 3:26; 4:31; 6:25; 9:2; 11:8). When Mary Magdalene encounters the risen Christ, she exclaims “rabbouni” (John 20:16). Twice the term is glossed with didáskalos, “teacher” (John 1:38; 20:16).
In 1st-century Judaism the word maintained a loose designation, meaning “teacher.” The use of rabbi as an official term for an ordained scholar actually belongs to the period following the destruction of the temple in 70 c.e. In the rabbinic literature individuals from the predestruction era (e.g., Hillel and Shammai) are not referred to as “rabbi,” while those who are associated with the period following the destruction (e.g., Akiba) are consistently given the title “rabbi.”
W. Dennis Tucker, Jr.
Freedman, D. N., Myers, A. C., & Beck, A. B. (2000). Eerdmans dictionary of the Bible (1105). Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans.
