In my previous post on this topic, I argued that we need to answer 44 specific questions in order to come up with fact-based initial evaluation of Bart Ehrman’s Seven Gospels Argument (SGA).

The first question is whether Mark (one of the seven sources that Ehrman points us to) confirms the following attribute claim:

A1. Yeshu’a was a flesh-and-blood person.

Because Mark is the most extensive source of the seven, one would expect that Mark would confirm all or nearly all of the eleven attribute claims involved in the Minimal Jesus Hypothesis (MJH).

In the case of attribute claim (A1), Mark has an abundance of verses that confirm this claim.

There are explicit references to Jesus’ body in Mark

14:8 “…she has anointed my [Jesus’] body beforehand for its burial.”

14:22 “Take; this is my [Jesus’] body.”

15:43 “Joseph of Arimathea…went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.”

15:46 “taking down the body [of Jesus], wrapped it in the linen cloth, and laid it in a tomb.”

15:47 “Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body [of Jesus] was laid.”

Jesus had a mother, brothers, and sisters (implying that he was born into a family)

3:30-32 “A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him [Jesus], ‘Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you.’ “

6:2-4 “They said, ‘Where did this man [Jesus] get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? … Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?’”

Jesus got hungry

11:12 “he [Jesus] was hungry.”

Jesus produced saliva

7:32-35 “he [Jesus] spat…”

8:23 “when he [Jesus] had put saliva on his [the blind man’s] eyes and laid his [Jesus’] hands on him…”

Jesus ate food

2:16 “he [Jesus] was eating with sinners and tax collectors.”

14:14 “where I [Jesus] might eat the Passover with my disciples?”

Jesus drank liquid

14:25 “I [Jesus] will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day…”

15:36 “and gave it to him [Jesus] to drink…”

Jesus walked

2:14 “As he [Jesus] was walking along…”

10:32 “and Jesus was walking ahead of them…”

11:27 “as he [Jesus] was walking in the Temple…”

Jesus sat down

2:15 “As he [Jesus] sat at dinner…”

4:1 “he [Jesus] got into a boat on the sea and sat there..”

9:35 “He [Jesus] sat down…”

11:7 “he [Jesus] sat on it [the colt].”

14:3 “as he [Jesus] sat at the table…”

Jesus went to sleep

4:37-38 “he [Jesus] was in the stern [of the boat] asleep on the cushion, and they woke him up…”

Jesus had arms

9:36 “taking it [a little child] in his [Jesus’] arms, he said…”

10:16 “he [Jesus] took them up into his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.”

Jesus had hands

1:41 “Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him…”

5:23 “Come lay your [Jesus’] hands on her, so that she may be made well…”

6:5 “he [Jesus] laid his hands on a few sick people…”

8:23 “when he [Jesus] had put saliva on his [the blind man’s] eyes and laid his [Jesus’] hands on him…”

10:16 “he [Jesus] took them up into his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.”

Jesus had fingers

7:33 “he [Jesus] put his [Jesus’] fingers into his [the deaf man’s] ears.”

Jesus had feet

5:22 “when he [Jairus] saw him [Jesus], fell at his [Jesus’] feet…”

7:25 “she came and bowed down at his [Jesus’] feet.”

Jesus had a head

14:3 “she broke open the jar and poured the ointment on his [Jesus’] head.”

15:19 “They struck his [Jesus’] head with a reed…”

Jesus was subject to being beaten and flogged

14:65 “to blindfold him [Jesus], to strike him…The guards took him over and beat him.”

15:15 “after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.”

Jesus was subject to being crucified and killed

8:31 (& 9:31) Jesus predicted that the ‘Son of Man’ would be killed.

10:32-34 “they will mock him [the Son of Man], and spit upon him, and flog him, and kill him…”

15:15 “after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.”

15:24 “And they crucified him…”

15:37 “Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.”

As you can see there are many factual details associated with just this one question out of the 44 questions. This is, hopefully, because Mark is the most extensive source of the seven, and there will be fewer relevant details when we examine Q, and presumably even fewer details when we look at M and L.