Ben F. Meyer once wrote, ""Radical developments generally take place not by someone's seeing something new but by his seeing everything in a new way."" This book is Michael Vicko Zolondek's attempt to bring Meyer's words to fruition. For more than two hundred years, scholars have been debating whether the historical Jesus took up the role of Davidic Messiah. In this book, Zolondek addresses this long-standing question in a fresh and unique way. He challenges a generation of scholarship by arguing that the manner in which it has gone about answering the Davidic messianic question is significantly problematic when considered in the light of Jesus' cultural context and the messianism of his day. This cultural context and messianism then forms the basis for Zolondek's fresh approach to the Davidic messianic question, which he ultimately answers in the affirmative. In this book, readers will not only be exposed to more than forty years of research on the Davidic messianic question, but they will come away with a unique understanding of what it means to be a Davidic Messiah and what it would have looked like for Jesus to have taken up that role. ""Deftly sidestepping the usual path of trying to determine Jesus' 'self-understanding' or 'intentions, ' Zolondek instead offers a reasoned case that, whatever his intentions, Jesus' ministry excited messianic hopes among his followers. Zolondek succeeds in the improbable objective of making a fresh contribution to studies of 'the historical Jesus.'"" --L. W. Hurtado, Emeritus Professor of New Testament Language, Literature & Theology, School of Divinity, New College, University of Edinburgh ""Who did Jesus claim to be? This is surely one of the most important questions in New Testament scholarship. Since Jesus left no writings behind, we have to rely on documents written by his early followers. These followers proclaimed Jesus to be the Messiah, the Son of God. But is this proclamation the one that Jesus himself intended? In this new book Michael Zolondek takes up this very question and makes a convincing case that Jesus' earliest disciples had already identified him as Messiah before the events of his crucifixion and resurrection. The simplest explanation for their messianic faith is that it was instilled in them by Jesus himself. Zolondek's book is fully abreast of the latest scholarship and his conclusions are clear and compelling."" --Erik Larson, Associate Professor of Biblical Studies, Chair of the Department of Religious Studies, Florida International University Michael Vicko Zolondek earned his BA and MA in Religious Studies from Florida International University before earning his PhD in New Testament Language, Literature, and Theology from the University of Edinburgh. His research focuses on the historical Jesus. He teaches Religious Studies at Florida International University in Miami.