마테복음에 나타난 '하데스'와 '아뷔소스'의 개념과 하늘나라와의 관계에 대한 연구

The Use of Hades and Abyss in Matthew' s Gospel and Their Relation to the Kingdom of Heaven

The present study demonstrates that Matthew uses Hades and (implied) the abyss to explain the presence of the kingdom of heaven (8:28-34; 11:20- 24; 16:18-19; cf. 18:18-19). In order to explore the relationship between the lowest places of the cosmos and the inauguration of the kingdom of heaven, this study investigates Matthew' s literary structure of these three passages and the historical background of the expressions used. Modern scholars have often asserted that in the Old Testament Sheol (Hades in the LXX) is the abode of the wicked and righteous alike, but I would suggest that Hades refers to the destination of the wicked. In the first century Jewish milieu Hades and the abyss are thought to be prisons for the unrighteous and the demons. How does Matthew employ the underworld for the kingdom of heaven? In the unusual story of Jesus and two demoniacs (8:28-34), the demons ask Jesus why he comes to torture them before the day of judgement, using the expressions πρò καιρoū ("before the time," 25:41) and βαδνίζω ("torture," 18:34). The terms imply that the torturers will be involved in exacting the ultimate fate of the demons at the eschaton. The event that the pigs perished in the water helps the reader know that the kingdom of heaven is present as the demons are imprisoned in the abyss which is implied in Matthew s account. In other words, the imprisonment of the demons implies that the kingdom is inaugurated by Jesus, the kingdom bringer. Further, Matthew contrasts the fall of Capernaum and the exalted status of the infants by juxtaposing 11:20-24 and 11:25-30 which highlight Hades and heaven respectively. Jesus employs Hades and heaven, the vertical cosmological images, to emphasize the pride and coming fall of Capernaum (and Israel) which echoes the oracle against the king of Babylon in Isaiah 14:13-15. In Capernaum, the headquarter of Jesus ministry, Jesus proves that the kingdom of heaven is present through his messianic works and proclamation of the good news (cf. Matt 11:5; Isa 61 + 35; 4Q521), but the Galilean town fails to respond to Jesus' call to repentance. By contrast, in the following passage (11:25-30), Jesus thanks God for the infants who have responded in faith. Jesus disciples experience the presence of the kingdom of heaven since the pre-existent Son and the personified Wisdom reveal the hidden secrets in heaven. In this regard the juxtaposition between Hades and heaven indicates the contrasting fates of the proud and the humble. In 16:18-19 (cf. 18:18- 19), the ecclesiastical task of Peter and the ekklesia is to rescue people from the grip of Hades and to open the gates of the kingdom of heaven since their status is associated with the heavenly realm. Given that the authority of Peter, the representative of the church, is expanded to the church (18:18), heaven supports the ekklesia, not the synagogue. Consequently, Matthew uses Hades and the (implied) abyss to highlight the inaugurated kingdom of heaven, adopting the vertical relationship between heaven and Hades (and the abyss). In doing so, Jesus indicates the victorious coming of the kingdom of heaven (8:28-34) and emphasizes the appropriate response to the kingdom bringer (11:20-30) and the status and task of the church which has the authority to bring people to the kingdom of heaven (16:18-19; 18:18-19).