P. Derek Overfield PhD Thesis - Research@StAndrews:FullText

Alexandria.
The above evidence is sufficient to convince
us that the article is present without doubt in
1:10,12,20 and present, though with some slight degree
of uncertaintYrin 3:11.
This having been established
we can now examine the context of the four references
in order that we might discover what part, if any,
Messianism plays in these references.
(a) 1:10
Undoubtedly in this verse the major theme
is that of the anakephalaiosis.
There is no evidence
that this or any other similar function was considered
Messianic, at least Strack-Billerbeck cite no Rabbinic
parallels and neither does Mowinckel mention this as a
Messianic function. B u t Q ulspe ' 1 32 d oes Cl 't e a very
interesting Rabbinic text that does offer some slight
degree of parallelism; he notes that in ¥alkut Schimoni
to Gen 34 (Midrash Abkir) the whole world is pictured
as being brought together in Adam.
This is all the·
more noteworthy in view of the Pauline doctrine of the
Second Adam (1 Cor 15:45f).
It is at least possible
then that Eph 1:10 reflects knowledge of both an
early form of this Rabbinic tradition and that which
lies behind 1 Cor 15:45f.
If Paul is the author of
Ephesians then of course he would know not only the
tradition behind the Corinthian text but also the
text itself.
The Rabbinic text (and Eph 1:10, if
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