[JSNT21A (2005) 465-492]

DOI: 10.1177/0142064X05055749

God, Benefactor and Patron: The Major Cultural Model for

Interpreting the Deity in Greco-Roman Antiquity
Jerome H. Neyrey, S.J.
Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
Jerome.H.Neyrey. 1 @nd.edu

Abstract
This study contributes to a renewed interest in the Christian Deity by employing the cultural model of benefactor-client relations. What is fresh here is
an enlarged model of this pattern of social relations andfresh,apt and plentiful
illustrations ofit in antiquity. The patron-client model is expanded by concern
for types of reciprocity and classification of what is exchanged. Typical
titles of God-as-benefactor are examined in light of media of exchange,
especially power, knowledge and material benefaction. Then several leading
questions are asked: Why does God indeed give benefaction? What kind of
reciprocity is in view? What kind of debt is incurred? Finally, what do
clients return to God? Elites in antiquity state that God wants nothing and
needs nothing. Yet mortals have offered sacrifice, a form of inducement,
which practice Christians and philosophers rejected.

State of the Question, Thesis and Plan of Development

In 1975 Nils Dahl published a short article in a small journal on a major
topic, The Neglected Factor in New Testament Theology', namely God.1
Since then, only occasional studies have appeared, leaving the 'neglected
factor' still quite neglected. Scholars who took up Dahl's challenge tended
to go about their task in an impressionistic manner, with little fresh data
or appropriate models for interpretation. Most recent studies of God in
early Christianity have tended to ignore cultural and social materials.
1. Nils Dahl, 'The Neglected Factor in New Testament Theology', Reflections 73
(1975), pp. 5-8.
2005 SAGE Publications (London, Thousand Oaks CA and New Delhi)

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Journal for the Study of the New Testament 21A (2005)

This study, however, takes up the consideration of the Deity in antiquity

by means of the cultural model of benefactor-client relations. Scholarship
of course already provides a rich body of anthropological materials on
patron-client relations,2 as well as historical investigations of benefactor/
patron and client relationships in Greece and Rome.3 But I will make three
significant contributions to the study of God as benefactor-patron in
antiquity. First, I supplement the prevailing model of patron-client relations
with materials about types of reciprocity and classification of benefits
bestowed and returned. Second, this study contains a fresh cache of primary
materialfromantiquity illustrative of the benefaction model. Thus, readers
have access to a rich database of ancient discourse about gods. Finally,
whereas most studies of benefaction treat only the relationship of mortal
benefactor and mortal client, I focus on the discourse about a divine Benefactor with mortal clients.4 Therefore this study enlarges our cultural
model of benefaction, illustrates it with fresh data, and surfaces pertinent
ancient discourse about God-Benefactor and mortal clients. The materials
presented here mostly come from Greco-Roman sources about the gods of
antiquity. While I do not suggest that Israelite materials were unimportant
for interpreting New Testament and early church discourse on the God of
Israel, this study focuses on the Greco-Roman influence on and contribution
to God-talk in Christianity.
2. For a survey of the literature on patron-client relations, see John H. Elliott,
'Patronage and Clientage', in Richard L. Rohrbaugh (ed.), The Social Sciences and
New Testament Interpretation (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996), pp. 142-56; see
also Steffen W. Schmidt, James C. Scott, Carl Lande and Laura Guasti (eds.), Friends,
Followers and Factions. A Reader in Political Clientelism (Berkeley, CA: University
of California Press, 1977); S.N. Eisenstadt and L. Roniger, Patrons, Clients and Friends:
Interpersonal Relations and the Structure of Trust in Society (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1984); and Ernst Gellner and John Waterbury (eds.), Patrons and
Clients in Mediterranean Societies (London: Duckworth, 1977).
3. See Richard P. Sailer, Personal Patronage under the Early Empire (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1982); Paul Veyne, Bread and Circuses: Historical
Sociology and Political Pluralism (London: Penguin, 1990); and Frederick W. Danker,
Benefactor: Epigraphic Study ofa Graeco-Roman and New Testament Semantic Field
(St Louis, MO: Clayton Publishing House, 1982).
4. Previous study of God-as-Benefactor is quite limited. See Stephen C. Mott,
'The Greek Benefactor and DeliverancefromMoral Distress' (unpublished dissertation,
Harvard University, 1971), pp. 74-82 and 345-53, and 'Greek Ethics and Christian
Conversion: The Philonic Background of Titus II10-14 and III 3-7', NovT 20 (1978),
pp. 36-46; Bruce J. Malina, 'Patron and Client. The Analogy behind Synoptic Theology',
in his The Social World ofJesus (London: Routledge, 1996), pp. 143-75.

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Model of Benefactor/Patron-Client Relations

Social historians of ancient benefactor-client relations as well as modern
anthropologists provide the basis for my model. In fact, many social historians have themselves made extensive use of the work of the anthropologists, with the result that the current consensus on the topic represents
a confluence of precise historical data and exact theoretical interpretation.
The model informs the historian of what data is likely to appear and how
to interpretitwhen discovered. My presentation ofthe model of benefactorclient relations contains three major components: (1) characteristics of
patron-client relationship, (2) types of reciprocity that characterize the
exchange between patron and client, and (3) classification of what is
exchanged in the relationship.
Patronage
The following definition broadly describes patronage as an interpretative
model that explains and interprets a wide spectrum of relationships.
Patronage is a model or analytical construct which the social scientist applies
in order to understand and explain a range of apparent different social
relationships: God-man, saint-devotee, godfather-godchild, lord-vassal,
landlord-tenant, politician-voter, professor-student, and so forth.5

Anthropologists and historians agree upon the following elements

characteristic of benefactor-client relations. This list, based on the classic
exposition in Eisenstadt and Roniger,6 contains suggestions and clarifications made by other scholars.7
1.

Asymmetrical relationship, i.e. between parties of different

status, thus representing a vertical dimension of superior and
inferior relationships.8

5. A. Blok, 'Variations in Patronage', Sociologische Gids 16 (1969), p. 366; see

also Gellner, Patrons and Clients in Mediterranean Societies, pp. 1-7.
6. Eisenstadt and Roniger, Patrons, Clients and Friends, pp. 43-64, esp. 48-49.
7. For authors who list formal characteristics of the relationship, see Malina,
'Patron and Client', pp. 143-45, and Halvor Moxnes, The Economy of the Kingdom
(Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1988), pp. 40-47; Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, Patronage in
Ancient Society (London: Routledge, 1990), pp. 1-8.
8. See Gellner and Waterbury, Patrons and Clients, p. 4; Sailer, Personal Patronage
under the Early Empire, pp. 1-2. Dionysius of Halicarnassus's description of Roman
patron-client relations, begins with acknowledgment of the unequal status of the two

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Journal for the Study of the New Testament 27.4 (2005)

2.

3.
4.
5.

6.
7.

Simultaneous exchange of different types of resources, above all

instrumental, economic and political ones by the benefactor, in
response to which the client promises reciprocity, solidarity and
loyalty.
Interpersonal obligation is prevalent, couched in terms of personal
loyalty or attachment between patrons and clients.9
Favoritism is frequently present.10
Reciprocity: as basic goods and services are exchanged, clear
notions of reciprocity arise; the client who incurs a debt has
obligations to the patron.11
'Kinship glaze' over the relationship reduces the crassness of the
exchange; the patron is 'father' to the client.12
Honor, both given and received, is a significant feature of these
relationships.13

Human benefactor-client relationships tend to be asymmetrical, reciprocal,

voluntary, often including favoritism, focused on honor and respect, and
held together by 'good will' or faithfulness. As we shall see, changes will
occur when this scheme is applied to the relationship of gods and mortals.

members: 'After Romulus had distinguished those of superior rankfromtheir inferiors,

he next established laws by which the duties of each were prescribed' (2.9.10).
9. John Rich ('Patronage and Interstate Relations in the Roman Republic', in
Andrew Wallace-Hadrill [ed.], Patronage in Ancient Society [London: Routledge,
1990], p. 128) describes the importance of loyalty/faithfulness in the patron-client
relation: 'In one of the most important of its many usesfidesmeans "protection". The
weaker party is said "to be in thefides"ofthe stronger. At the formation of such a relationship, the weaker party is said to give himself into or entrust himself to thefidesof the
stronger and the stronger to receive the weaker into his fides.'
10. Richard Sailer, 'Patronage and Friendship in Early Imperial Rome: Drawing the
Distinction', in Wallace-Hadrill (ed.), Patronage in Ancient Society, pp. 52-53. Plutarch
states, 'There are favors that involve causing no offence, such as giving a friend preferential help in obtaining a post, putting some prestigious administrative function into his
hands, or a friendly embassy' (Precepts for Politicians 19-20).
11. Sailer, Personal Patronage under the Early Empire, pp. 21 and 27-29.
12. Dionysus of Halicarnassus narrates that Romulus wished patron-client relations
in Rome not to resemble the harshness shown by the Greeks: 'The Athenians called
their clients "thetes" or "hirelings", because they served for hire, and the Thessalians
called theirs "penestai" or "toilers", by the very name reproaching them with their condition' (2.9). So he recommended that the poor and lowly be described by a 'handsome
designation', namely 'patronage'.
13. Veyne, Bread and Circuses, pp. 124-30.

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469

Types of Reciprocity
To understand what patrons and clients exchange, let us first consider the
very phenomenon of reciprocity: what types are there and between what
kinds of partners is each type practiced? Bruce Malina14 mediates to biblical
scholarship cultural theories of exchange, especially that of Marshall
Sahlins.15 Theorists identify three types of reciprocity pertinent to the
ancient Mediterranean:
1.
2.
3.

Generalized reciprocity, the solidarity extreme;

balanced reciprocity, the midpoint;
negative reciprocity, the unsocial extreme.16

Generalized reciprocity describes 'altruistic' interactions whereby the

interests of'the other are primary' (i.e., 'solidarity extreme'). It is generally
extended to kin-group members (i.e., 'charity begins at home') and is
illustrated in Mt. 7.11. Balanced reciprocity looks to mutual interests, in a
balanced fashion (i.e., quid-pro-quo exchange). It has one's neighbors and
villagers in view; illustrations of it include 1 Cor. 9.3-12 and Mt. 10.10.
Negative reciprocity seeks self- interest at the expense of 'the other', who
probably is a stranger or an enemy; hence it is the 'unsocial extreme'.
Parables such as Lk. 10.30 and 19.22 illustrate it.
Philo describes these three abstract types of reciprocity when he asks
the question: 'Why did God create?' Philo begins with a text, 'Noah found
grace with the Lord God' (Gen. 6.8), then asks about this 'grace', whether
it was something earned or deserved, and thus expressive of a balanced
reciprocity between God and Noah. He rejected any notion of 'balance'
here, and offered another explanation.
The second explanation ('he was thought worthy of grace') is founded on a
not unreasonable idea, that the Cause judges those worthy of His gifts, who
do not deface with base practices the coin within them which bears the stamp
of God, even the sacred mind. And yet perhaps that explanation is not the
true one.17

Since no balanced reciprocity whatsoever is appropriate, Philo offers a

14. Bruce J. Malina, Cultural Anthropology and Christian Origins (Atlanta, GA:
John Knox Press, 1986), pp. 98-106.
15. Marshall Sahlins, Stone-Age Economics (Chicago: Aldine-Atherton Press,
1972), pp. 185-230.
16. Sahlins, Stone-Age Economics, pp. 193-96.
17. Deus 1mm., 105. All texts and translations are from the Loeb Classical Library.

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Journal for the Study of the New Testament 27.4 (2005)

third explanation, which turns to a different form of reciprocity, not

balanced, but generalized:
[Moses].. .found this to be the highest truth, that all things are the grace or
gift of Godearth, water, air,fire,sun, stars, heaven, all plants and animals...
But God has given His good things in abundance, not because He judged
anything worthy of grace, but looking to His eternal goodness, and thinking
that to be beneficent was incumbent upon His blessed and happy nature. So
that if anyone should ask me what was the motive for the creation of the
world, I will answer that it was the goodness of the Existent, that goodness
which is the oldest of His bounties and itself the source of others (Deus
1mm. 107-108).

Thus creation was a singular act of generalized reciprocity, which most

appropriately suits God: 'to be beneficent was incumbent upon His blessed
and happy nature'. To be God means to bestow unmerited blessings and to
act according to the 'solidarity extreme'.
What is Exchanged?
My last critical task is to finish my model by considering what kinds of
favors are bestowed or exchanged in generalized and balanced reciprocity
in benefactor-client relations One could attempt a comprehensive compilation of things for which mortals petition the gods and for which benefactor are praised. Comprehensive, yes; but helter-skelter. What is needed
is a way to classify the materials in these exchanges. Fortunately theorists
provide us with a model for classifying the various items in our ancient
lists so as to bring greater clarity and understanding to them. The primary
architect of this model is Talcott Parsons, whose work has been digested
for biblical scholars by Bruce Malina.18
When people seek to have an effect on others, their general means of
achieving that can be abstracted into four 'general symbolic media':
(1) power,19 (2) commitment,20 (3) material goods and (4) influence.21
18. Talcott Parsons, Politics and Social Structure (New York: The Free Press, 1969);
see Terence S. Turner, 'Parsons' Concept of "Generalized Media of Social Interaction"
and its Relevance for Social Anthropology', Sociological Inquiry 39(1968), pp. 121 -34.
See also Malina, Christian Origins, pp. 77-87.
19. Parsons, Politics and Social Structure, pp. 3 52-404, originally published as 'On
the Concept of Political Power', Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society
107 (1963), pp. 232-62.
20. Parsons, Politics and Social Structure, pp. 439-72.
21. Parsons, Politics and Social Structure, pp. 405-29, originally published as 'On
the Concept of Influence', Public Opinion Quarterly 27 (1963), pp. 37-62.

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Because of their power, kings and generals can protect and deliver their
subjects. Gifts ofseed, food, dowries for daughters, and hospitality illustrate
inducement. As regards influence, teachers give instruction to students;
people who consult the sybils, the oracles or the prophets are seeking both
influence-as-knowledge and influence-as-access. Finally, commitment
refers to faithfulness, loyalty, obedience, as well as to fictive-kin bonds,
grants of honor and respect (i.e., doxologies and hymns to the gods), as
well as the language of 'friends' and friendship. Consider one example:
Rome's legions risk their lives for it (commitment) and so participate in
extending Rome's power, in recompense for which Rome grants them
pensions or lands in a colony (inducement) and perhaps public honoring,
such as a Roman triumph (commitment).
God as Benefactor/Patron
While there is a technical Greek term for 'benefactor' (), it
would be a mistake to collect instances of it alone and to conduct our
examination of god as 'benefactor' based only on that term.22 Three obser
vations are in order: ( 1 ) the ancients used many synonyms for 'benefactor' ;
(2) they combined certain titles apropos of 'benefactor', such as 'savior
and benefactor'; and (3) they strung together many titles of a deity,
, then, is neither the only nor even the most significant title when
considering God as Benefactor. Thus we shall examine individually the
six most frequent, significant names expressive of benefaction, and then
consider a deity adorned with many or all of them.
1. 'King' (). WhenDiocallsZeus 'king',he refers to the positive
results of his rule: 'In like manner do the gods act, and especially the great
King of Kings ( ), Zeus, who is the common protector
and father ( ) of men and gods' (Oration 2.75). Often
'king' and 'father' are found in combination, suggesting the positive
governance by a benefactor: 'Yet all these poets... call thefirstand greatest
god Father of the whole rational family collectively, yes, and King
22. The semantic word field for benefactor/patron is very rich, and includes most
notably the following terms: 1. technicalterms for 'benefactor' (, ,
, , , , , , ;
2. synonyms for 'benefactor' (, , , ; Patronus, patrocinium,
amicus, praeses, clientela; praesidium, beneficum); and 3. related attitributes
(/; , ; beraus, benignus,
beneficus).

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Journal for the Study of the New Testament 21 (2005)

besides...men erect altars to Zeus the King and, what is more, some do
not hesitate even to call him Father in their prayers' (Dio Chrysostom,
Oration 36.35-36).
2. 'Father' (). Greeks and Semites frequently call god 'Father'.
For example, Dio Chrysostom states: 'At that time, the Creator and Father
( ) of the World, beholding the work of his hands... '
(Oration 36.60). Cicero comments:
the poets call him 'father of gods and men', and our ancestors entitled him
'best and greatest', putting the title 'best', that is most beneficent, before that
of 'greatest', because universal beneficence is greater, or at least more loveable, than the possession of great wealth (Nature of the Gods 1.64).
The meaning of this title, however, must be derived from examination of
the paternal role, that is, the rights and duties of earthly fathers. The duties
of a father include socialization of his children, protection and nurture of
them, and the like.23 It is his right that his children acknowledge him, as in
'Honor your father and your mother'. In time Caesar described himself as
the Pater Patriae, clearly extending the notion of domestic benefactor to
the political arena.24 'Father', then, was a term most suitable to a Benefactor.
3. 'Savior' (). The various studies of 'savior' indicate that it
enjoyed a wide range of meaning.25 A savior is one who: (1) rescues
another from danger and peril, such as war, illness, judicial condemnation,
floods and famines; (2) protects and preserves the polis and its citizens;
(3) inaugurates a golden age; 26 and (4) benefits others.27 In this vein
Foerster cites an inscription how on the annual feast of Zeus ^
23. See Jerome Neyrey, 'Father', in Carroll Stuhlmuller (ed.), The Collegeville
Pastoral Dictionary ofBiblical Theology (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press 1996),
pp. 315-19. See also John J. Pilch, '"Beat his Ribs while he is Young" (Sir 30.12): A
Window on the Mediterranean World', BTB 23 (1993), pp. 101-13.
24. See Mary Rose D'Angelo, Abba and "Father": Imperial Theology and the Jesus
Traditions', JBL 111 (1992), pp. 611-30.
25. Paul Wendland, '', ZNW5 (1904), pp. 335-53; Georg Fohrer, '',
TDNT, VII, pp. 1003-23; F.F. Bruce, '"Our God and Saviour": A Recurring Biblical
Pattern', in S.G.B. Brandon (ed.), The Savior God (Manchester: Manchester University
Press, 1963), pp. 51-66.
26. Fohrer, '', p. 1012.
27. Arthur Darby Nock ('Soter and Euergetes', in Essays on Religion and the
Ancient World [Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1972], II, p. 721) notes
gods acted as saviors: 'Zeus as father of men and gods, was strong to aid; Artemis
protected women in childbirth; Athena guarded the Acropolis... In fact, any deity was
credited with powers which men lacked, and could aid as humanity could not.'

NEYREY God, Benefactor and Patron

Al 3

the priests of Magnesia prayed for 'the of the city, country,

citizens, wives, children and other residents, for peace, for wealth, for the
growth ofthe grain and other fruits and cattle ' , 28 Thus, without specification,
it will be difficult to know just what nuance of 'savior' an author has in
mind. If it refers to rescue, then the deity's power is in view; if maintenance
of good status or general benefaction, then inducement.
4. 'Benefactor' (). Like 'Savior', this is a term of many mean
ings. As one scholarnoted, 'Gods andheroes, kings and statesmen, philoso
phers, inventors and physicians are hailed as benefactors because of their
contributions to the development ofthe race'. 29 While kings exercise power
benevolently andphilosophers provide wisdom, most benefactors bestowed
material benefits, that is, inducement. Finally, although he is by no means
the only one to say so, Philo calls attention to the benefaction of commit
ment that God cultivates:
He [God] shall no longer exhibit toward me the masterfulness that charac
terizes the rule of an autocrat, but the readiness to bless that marks the
power that is in every way kindly, and bent on the welfare of men. He shall
do away with the fear we feel before Him as Master, and implant in the soul
the loyalty and affection that goes out to Him as Benefactor ()'
(Plant. 90, emphasis added).

In addition, we commonly find in combination with other titles,

often with , a pattern common among mortals30 and immortals.31
5. 'Creator' (). Whereas served as a common
Greek description of the deity's creative activity, the LXX totally avoided
it and chose instead .32 Although ripened in meaning
over the years, it never lost its sense of builder or workman (i.e., 'God
33
builds the city', Heb. 11.10). In terms of general symbolic media, 'creator'
28. Werner Foerster, ', ', TDNT, VII, p. 967; the original citation is found
in SIG, II, pp. 589,26-31.
29. Georg Bertram, '', TDNT, II, p. 654.
30. Plutarch describes how some men vainly present themselves: 'Yet other persons
publicly styled themselves Benefactors (), Conquerors (), Saviors
() or the Great ()' (Plutarch, On the Fortune of Alexander 338C; see
also Polybius, Hist. 9.36.5).
31. Again,Philo,Leg All 2.57;3.137;Spec. Leg \.300;Leg. Gai. 118; mdDec. 41.
32. Werner Foerster, '', TDNT, , p. 1024. Foerster (p. 1026) notes that
Philo makes the same distinction: 'God, when He gave birth to all things, not only brought
them into sight, but also made things which before were not, not just handling material
as an artificer () but being Himself its creator ()' (Somn. 1.76).
33. Harry A. Wolfson comments on Philo's use of : ' Since God alone is

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Journal for the Study of the New Testament 21 (2005)

contains power (to order and maintain the cosmos), inducement (foods
and animals for human use), commitment (faithfulness in maintaining a
world fit for god's offspring), and influence (wisdom that is imbedded in
creation). Like other synonyms of benefactor, appears in
combination. For example, 'All of these things did the great Creator and
Master of the universe ( ) ordain to be in
peace' (7 Clem. 20.11); also, 'At that time, the Creator and Father
( ) of the World, beholding the work of his hands... '
(Dio Chrysostom, Oration 36.60).
6. 'Sovereign' (). This is an unusual term for a benefactor, for
it often describes the relation of master to slave (e.g., Philo, Vit. Mos.
1.201). It expresses above all power, and fear (see Philo, Rer. Div. Her.
22-23). Yet it is frequently found in Hellenistic prayers, perhaps because
it emphasizes the dependence of the person petitioning the deity.34 Some
writers used it in combination with other benefactor terms, thus softening
its hard edges.35 Christian usage, however, generally connotes divine
benevolence and power. For example, Simeon prays after blessing Jesus,
'Lord (), now let your servant depart in peace.. .for my eyes have
seen your salvation' (Lk. 2.29; see Acts 4.24). The clearest use of the
benevolent connotation of this name occurs in 1 Clement 'Let us learn
that in generation after generation the Master (^) has given a place
of repentance to those who turn to him' (7.5); and 'Through Noah the
Master () saved the living creatures which entered in concord
into the Ark (9.4; see also 11.1; 36.2).
Benefactor titles are not just paired, but often strung together. For
example, Plutarch quotes a Stoic about God: 'Zeus the Savior and Sire,
the Father of Right, of Order and of Peace' (Stoic Self-Contradictions
1049A) and 'Savior, Gracious, Averter of Evil' (Common Conceptions
a creator, he applied to Him exclusively the Platonic terms Demiurge (Leg. All. 2.3.1),
that is Craftsman, Maker (, Spec. Leg. 1.30), Planter (, Conf. Ling.
38, 196), Parent (, Spec. Leg. 2.198), Father (, Op. Mund. 24, 74) and
Cause (amos, Somn. 1.67). Some of these terms, such as Father, Maker, Parent,
Planter are also to be found in Scripture' (Philo [Cambridge, MA: Harvard University
Press, 1948], I, p. 211).
34. Karl Rengstorf, '', TDNT, II, pp. 44-45. This is Josephus's favorite
title for praying to God: 'Lord () of all the ages and Creator of universal
being...confirm these promises' (Ant. 1.272; see also 4.40; 5.41; 11.64, 162; 20.90).
35. Philo reflects Greco-Roman usage when he speaks about reverence for the
emperor as 'Master and Benefactor and Saviour and the like (
)' (Flacc. 126).

NEYREY God, Benefactor and Patron

Al5

1076B). We find formal reflection on this piling up of titles in still another

title, 'many-named' (^).36 Finally, Seneca provides the perfect
illustration:
You may address this being who is the author of this world of ours by
different names; it will be right for you to call him Jupiter Best and Greatest,
and the Thunderer and the Stayer... Any name you choose will be properly
applied to him if it connotes some force that operates in the domain of
heavenhis titles may be as countless as are his benefits (Benefits 4.7.1). 37

Although we focus here on the role of patron in the ancient system of

patronage and clientelism, another figure needs be mentioned, even if
briefly, namely, the 'broker', whom the ancients understood according to
a variety of names and functions. Patrons and/or clients frequently used
forms of brokerage and mediation, which we examine to see where and
how a broker intercedes, brokers, and serves as go-between for heavenly
Patron or earthly clients.38
Greco-Roman deities often employed intermediaries to communicate
with and affect mortals, such as Hermes/Mercury39 or oracles/prophets or
36. An inscription concerning Klarian Apollo reads: 'self-existent, untaught, without
a mother, undisturbed, of many names () although not spreading abroad
his name, dwelling in fire... ' in G.H.R. Horsley, NewDocs 2 (1982), p. 39. Moreover, a
poem describes Artemis as a little girl on her father's lap, asking for a gift that would
put her on a par with her brother; she asked 'Give me many-namedness' ()
cited by J.M. Bremer, 'GreekHymns', in H.S. Versnel (ed.), Faith, Hope and Worship:
Aspects of Religious Mentality in the Ancient World'(Leiden: E J . Brill, 1981), pp. 19495.
37. Philosophical critique of popular god-talk argued that god is 'un-nameable'
(). See Harry A. Wolfson, 'The Knowability and Describability of
God in Plato and Aristotle', HSCP 57 (1947), pp. 233-47 and 'Albinus and Plotinus on
Divine Attributes', HTR 45 (1952), pp. 115-16.
38. On the place of brokerage in patron-client relations, see Eisenstadt and Roniger,
Patrons, Clients and Friends, pp. 228-45; Wallace-Hadrill, Patronage in Ancient
Society, w. 81-84, 226.
39. JohnN. Collins, Diafonia: Re-interpreting the Ancient Sources (Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 1990), pp. 90-92. Pliny's comment on the mediating role of Fate/
Fortune is worth noting: 'Nevertheless mortality has rendered our guesses about God
even more obscure by inventing for itself a deity intermediate between these two con
ceptions. Everywhere in the whole world at every hour by all men's voices Fortune
alone is invoked and named, alone accused, alone impeached, alone pondered, alone
applauded, alone rebuked and visited with reproaches... To her is debited all that is
spent and credited all that is received, she alone fills both pages in the whole of mortals'
account' (Nat. hist. 2.5.22).

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Journal for the Study of the New Testament 21A (2005)

sybils.40 Mortals in turn employed persons whom we call 'priests' to

sacrifice, petition and consult the deity; the Romans had colleges of
priests in charge of civic religion, whose head was known as the pontifex
maximus. On the strictly human level, mortals used mediators and gobetweens for purposes of trade, politics, legal matters and the like.41
Who made a good broker? Why be a broker? The best broker was a
person trusted by both patron and client. He had a foot in both worlds, so
that he appreciated the interests of both parties and strove to bridge them
effectively. Why be a broker? If typical patrons expected some return for
patronage, so too the broker received a tariff for services rendered. Why
are brokers necessary at all? If the ancient deities were inaccessible, so
too earthly monarchs; then some go-between was necessary safely and
honorably to approach the one who lives 'in unapproachable light'. Simi
larly, the blessed gods might be thought to be above direct involvement in
human affairs, for which purpose they employed angels, minor gods and
the like.
The place where brokerage materially affects New Testament scholarship
is the interpretation of Jesus as the unique and necessary mediator. He is
formally honored as the 'one mediator' (1 Tim. 2.5), as well as the
consummate priest, who not only has made purification for sins (Heb. 1.3)
but lives forever to make intercession on our behalf (Heb. 7.25). The etic
term 'mediator' includes ernie functions such as Prophet, King, Messiah,
Priest and the like. Moreover, Jesus bridges the heavenly and earthly worlds.
God, the heavenly benefactor, has bestowed on us all benefaction through
Jesus (e.g. Eph. 1.3-10). Similarly, all mortal prayers are made to God
through Jesus, either petitionary prayers (Rom. 1.8; 7.25; 1 Cor. 15.57) or
doxologies (Heb. 13.20-21; Jude 25). Jesus, then, mediates the heavenly
patronage of God to us, even as he functions to mediate earthly petition
and praise to the heavenly patron. Moreover, not only is thefirstcreation
said to be achieved through Jesus (Jn 1.13 ), but especially the new creation
(1 Cor. 8.6). Likewise at the great assize, God will 'through Jesus bring
with him those who have fallen asleep' (1 Thess. 4.14) and 'judge the
secrets of men through Jesus Christ' (Rom. 2.16). But since our focus is
on God as benefactor, we return to that central topic.
40. David E. Aune, Prophecy in Early Christianity and the Ancient Mediterranean
World (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1983), pp. 23-79.
41. A. Oepke, '$\ TDNT, IV, pp. 599-601 and 609-11. Collins (Diakonia,
pp. 96-132,133-49) has two chapters on 'words' and 'deeds' of the go-betweens that
serve as excellent summaries of the types of brokerage found in the ancient world.

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All

What Does a Benefactor God Bestow?

We could compile a database of benefaction from two sources: (1) petitions
made to the deity and (2) virtues for which benefactor-deities are praised.
For example, Norman Johnson catalogues the 'aims of the prayers' found
in the apocrypha and pseudepigrapha, and so provides the following list
ofpotential benefactions: (l)help in warfare, (2) deliverance from enemies
outside of war, (3) safe journey, (4) rain, (5) food and drink, (6) health,
(7) demon riddance, (8) procreation, (9) establishing/restoring the nation,
(10) the Temple and its sacrifices and (11) righteousness and justice.42
Similarly, Jon Mikalson43 undertook the same task for Greek prayers and
lists the following: (1) 'goodwill' ofthe god, (2) success in battle, (3) 'infor
mation', (4) agriculture, (5) health and healing, (6) wealth44 and (7) ripe
old age. Whether petition or praise, mortals consistently credit their gods
with the ability to grant certain benefactions.
We have many composite statements illustrative ofthe benefactions that
deities bestow on mortals. The following prayer represents a compendium
ofthe petitions/benefactions for which Greeks might petition their deity.
I start cultivating the good will of the gods. And I try to behave so that it
may be right for me when I pray, to acquire good health (), physical
strength (), distinction in the city ( t), good will among
friends ( ), survival with honour in war (
), and wealth () that has been increased by honest means
(Xenophon, Oec. 11.8; see Seneca, Benefits 3.9.2).

Three symbolic media are in view: commitment ('distinction in the city'

and 'good will'), power ('survival in war') and inducement ('good health',
'physical strength' and 'wealth').
Besides composite petitions to the Deity, scrutiny of God's praises also
enriches our database. Diodorus of Sicily praises the god Uranus for the
following benefactions; I have added the numbering and emphasis to
facilitate the grasp ofthe benefactions:

42. Norman B. Johnson, Prayer in the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha: A Study of

the Jewish Concept of God (JBL Monograph Series, 2; Philadelphia: Society of
Biblical Literature and Exegesis, 1948), pp. 7-34.
43. John D. Mikalson, Athenian Popular Religion (Chapel Hill: University of North
Carolina Press, 1985), pp. 18-26 and 39-49.
44. See Aristophanes, Birds 591 -601.

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Theirfirstking was Uranus, and he [1] gathered the human beings within
the shelter ofa walled city and [2] caused his subjects to cease lawless ways
and bestial manner of living, discovering for them the uses of cultivated
fruits, how to store them up, and not a few other things of benefit to man;
[3] he subdued the larger part ofthe inhabited earth... [4] And since he
was a careful observer ofthe stars heforetold'many things which would take
place throughout the world; [5] and for the common people he introduced
the year on the basis ofthe movement ofthe sun and the months on that of
the moon (3.56.3-5).

The Deity, therefore, bestowed on mortals an orderly life: inducement

(dwelling in cities, agriculture, possession of habitable land), influence
(ability to read the patterns of stars and the sky, and a calendar which
regulated annual and monthly life), power (shelter and protection of a
walled city), commitment (benevolent, overarching reason for doing any
of this).
Similarly, Dio Chrysostom comprehensively praises Zeus. After
praising him as 'many-named',45 Dio then explains each title, formally
linking it with its corresponding benefaction.
He is addressed as 'King' because of his dominion and power; as 'Father',
on account of his solicitude and gentleness; as 'Protector of Cities' in that
he upholds the law and the commonweal; as 'Guardian of the Race' on
account ofthe tie of kinship which unites gods and men; as 'Lord of Friends
and Comrades' because he brings all men together and wills that they be
friendly.. .as 'Protector of Suppliants' since he inclines his ear and is gracious
to men when they pray; as 'God of Refuge' because he gives refuge from
evil; as 'God of Hospitality' because it is the very beginning of friendship
not to be unmindful of strangers.. .and as 'God of Wealth and Increase' since
he causes all fruitage and is the giver of wealth and sustenance (Oration
1.40-41; see Oration 39.8)
Using the classification of power, commitment, inducement, and influence,
let us abstract Dio's remarks about Zeus and classify them appropriately.46

45. Zeus alone ofthe gods has the epithets of 'Father' and 'King', 'Protector of
Cities', 'Lord of Friends and Comrades', 'Guardian ofthe Race', and also 'protector of
Suppliants', 'God of Refuge' and 'God of Hospitality', these and his countless other
titles signifying goodness and the fount of goodness (Oration 1.39)
46. In Benefits 4.5.1-6.6 Seneca provides a useful list of divine benefaction:
(1) various foods, (2) creatures on land, in sea and in air, (3) land,(4) vast deposits of
gold, silver, copper, iron, (5) a mansion (the sky), and (6) breath, life, blood, and
freedom.

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Medium of
exchange

Title of Zeus

Reasons for the title

Power

1. 'King'
2. 'Protector of Cities'
3.'God of Refuge'

1. He has dominion and power.

2. He upholds the law and commonweal.
3. He gives refuge from evil.

Commitment

1. 'Father'

1. He shows solicitousness and

gentleness.
2. He brings all men together and wills
that they befriendlyto one another and
never enemy or foe.
3. He inclines his ear and is gracious to
men when they pray.

2. 'Lord of Friends'

3.'Protector of
Suppliants
Inducement

1. ' God of Hospitality'

2.'God of Wealth and

Increase'

Influence

1. It is the very beginning of friendship

not to be unmindful of strangers or to
regard any human being as an alien.
2. He causes all fruitage and is the
giver of wealth and sustenance, not of
poverty and want.

oddly absent

Moreover, in their treatment of epideictic rhetoric, rhetorical handbooks

instruct authors on how to praise a god, which praise is based on the
benefactions of the deity. For example, Quintilian first specifies that
attention be focused on 'the special power ofthe individual god and the
discoveries whereby he has benefitted the human race' (Inst. Orat. 3.7.6),
which he then illustrates:
In the case of Jupiter, we extol his power as manifested in the governance of
all things, with Mars we praise his power in war, with Neptune his power
over the sea; as regards inventions, we celebrate Minerva's discovery ofthe
arts, Mercury's discovery of letters, Apollo's of medicine, Ceres' ofthe
47
fruits ofthe earth, Bacchus' of wine (Inst. Orat. 3.7.6-9).
47. In his instructions on how to praise a benefactor deity, Alexander, son of
Numenius, says: 'You should consider his power, what it is and what works prove it;
then the sovereignty of the god and the subjects of his rule, heavenly, marine, and
earthly. Then his relation to art should be mentioned, as Athena is over all the arts, and
Zeus and Apollo over divination. Then what discoveries the god has made. Then

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Thus, processing the 'powers' and 'discoveries' that benefitted humanity,

we learn:
General symbolic media Deity

Description of benefit

Power

1. Jupiter
2. Mars
3. Neptune

governance of all
power in war
power over the sea

Influence

1. Minerva
2. Mercury
3. Apollo

arts
letters
medicine

Inducement

1. Ceres
2. Bacchus

fruits ofthe earth

wine

Commitment

oddly absent

Because attempts were made to rank benefactions in terms of worth,

further observations seem warranted. Plutarch provides a classification in
which he touts 'virtue' as the superior benefaction. Benefits are neither
good nor bad, such as 'wealth and health and bodily strength', because
they can be put to good use or bad; 'consequently none of these things is
good'. Hence
if god does not give men virtue.. .and does give wealth and health without
virtue, he gives these to men who will put them not to good use but to
bad... Yet if the gods are able to grant virtue, they are not benignant if they
do not grant it; and if they are not able to make men virtuous, they are not
able to benefit them either, if in fact anything else is good or beneficial
(Plutarch, Stoic Self-Contradictions 1048D; cf. Seneca, Benefits 1.11.1 -4).
Thus philosophical discussion of benefaction adds a new dimension to our
investigation of what God or the gods bestow. Benefactions may be
ranked and even devalued vis--vis virtue, which the deity should bestow
above all other benefactions.
whatever works he has done among the gods or for the gods, as Zeus has primacy of
power and Hermes heraldry. Then his philanthropy' (Rhetores Graeci 3.4-6); see F.C.
Grant, Hellenistic Religions (Indianapolis, IN: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1953), pp.
166-67.

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Why do Gods Give Benefaction? What Kind of Reciprocity is in View?

Our model considers 'reciprocity' afixed,ubiquitous element ofbenefactorclient relationships.48 Some evidence points to a contest of benefaction:
who can give the most and best benefits.49 Winners receive rewards. Even
those obliged to perform 'liturgies' could expect many returns for their
benefactions.50 We know how clients disliked being in any debt to their
benefactors, for this 'debt' implies an expected recompense to the bene
factor.51 Moreover, many benefactors bestowed their largesse with the
clear expectation of some return, as we learn from Cicero (Duties 1.15.4748) and Pliny (Letters 9.30.1-4). For example, the inscriptions collected
by Danker and others regularly attest that benefactors were awarded
public honoring,52 which ifwithheld would insult the benefactor. Surviving
benefactor inscriptions themselves give evidence of this reciprocity.
Yet we find a debate among Greco-Roman philosophers on the proper
motive for giving benefaction, and so the ideal type of reciprocity.
Seneca, for example, insists that the motive of bestowing benefaction must
be altruistic; no reciprocity is envisioned.
When a man bestows a benefit, what does he aim at? To be of service and to
give pleasure to the one to whom he gives. If his intention is conveyed to
me and stirs in me a joyful response, he gets what he sought. For he had no

48. A.R. Hands, 'Giving for a Return', in his Charities and Social Aid in Greece
and Rome (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1968), pp. 26-48; Sailer, Personal
Patronage, pp. 15-25.
49. Seneca speaks of a 'most honorable rivalry in outdoing benefits by benefits'
(Benefits 1.4.4; see Isocrates 1.26); see Hands, Charities and Social Aid, p. 31.
50. See S.R. Llewlyn, 'The Development ofthe System of Liturgies', NewDocs 1
(1994), pp. 93-111.
51. 'They who consider themselves wealthy, honored, the favorites of fortune, do
not wish ever to be put under obligations by our kind services. They suspect that a
claim is thereby set up against them or that something is expected in return. It is bitter
death to them to have accepted a patron or to be called clients' (Cicero, Duties 2.20.69).
52. Danker, Benefactor, see also Hands, Charities and Social Aid, pp. 175-209.
Note the following benefaction inscription: 'the king's most important reward (?
?) is praise, universal fame, reverence for his benefactions, statues and temples
and shrines bestowed on him by his subjectsall these are payment () for the
thought and care which such men evidence in their continual watch over the common
weal and its improvement' (Lucan, Apology 13), cited in J.R. Harrison, 'Benefaction
Ideology and Christian Responsibility for Widows', NewDocs 8 (1998), pp. 110-11.

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Journal for the Study ofthe New Testament 21 (2005)

wish that I should give him anything in exchange. Otherwise, it would have
been, not a benefaction, but a bargaining (Benefits 2.31.2).

Insisting that benefaction is not 'bargaining', Seneca then contrasts his

ideal benefaction with commerce:
No one enters his benefactions in his account-book, or like a greedy taxcollector calls for payment upon a set day, at a set hour. The good man never
thinks of them unless he is reminded of them by having them returned;
otherwise, they transform themselves into a loan (Benefits 1.2.3).
A benefactor is not a money-lender (Benefits 4.2.3), nor does he keep
track of his benefactions: 'In benefits the book-keeping is simpleso
much is paid out; if anything comes back, it is gain, if nothing comes
back, there is no loss. I made the gift for the sake ofthe giving' (Benefits
1.2.2-3).
When this model of benefaction is projected on the gods, much ink is
spilt about the 'motive' for God's benefaction. Seneca, for example,
insists that divine favor is altruistic, and so generalized reciprocity best
characterizes God. For example, he voices Stoic belief that to give bene
faction is an essential characteristic ofthe nature of God:
God seeks no servants. He himself does service to mankind, everywhere
and to all he is at hand to help.. .a man will never make sufficient progress
until he has conceived a right idea of Godregarding Him as one who
possesses all things, and allots all things, and bestows them without price.
And what reason have the gods for doing deeds of kindness? It is their
nature (Ep. 95.48-49; cf. Philo, Plant. 130).
Since no 'motive' prompts God's benefaction, God does not engage in
any type of reciprocity: 'God can hope for no advantage from us, then no
motive is found for God's giving a benefit' (Benefits 4.3.3).53 'God', he
says, 'bestows on us very many and very great benefits, with no thought
for any return, since he has no need of having anything bestowed, nor are
we capable of bestowing anything on him' (Benefits 4.9.1). The ideal
earthly benefaction is to 'follow the example of the gods' who show

5 3. Seneca compares types of reciprocity: ' If it were only self-interest that moved
us to help others, those who could most easily dispense benefits, such as the rich and
powerful and kings, would not be under the least obligation to bestow them; nor indeed
would the gods bestow countless gifts, for their own nature is sufficient to them.. .if the
only reason for giving a benefit is the advantage ofthe giver, and if God can hope for
no advantage from us, then no motive is found for God's giving a benefit' (Benefits
4.3.2-3).

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483

kindness 'withoutanymotiveofrewardandwithoutattainingany advantage

for themselves' (4.25.3). Among elite thinkers, then, divine benefaction is
ideally described as altruistic, which we label as 'generalized reciprocity'.
What do Clients Return to God, Benefactor and Patron?
Mortal patrons and clients accepted the reciprocal nature of their relation
ship. Thus clients knew what patrons expected of them in return. Contrary
to what we just saw in Seneca, Suzanne Dixon argues that typical patrons
in the Roman world bestowed benefits for the express purpose of some
return, normally understood as praise and honor.54 In this regard, she cites
Cicero's critique of patronage:
A great many people do many things that seem to be inspired more by a
spirit of ostentation (gloria) than by heart-felt kindness; for such people are
not really generous but are rather influenced by a sort of ambition to make a
show of being open-handed (Duties 1.44).
Thus patrons tend to act out ofsome form of balanced reciprocity, expecting
a return of praise and respect from their clients. Moreover, ingratitude
ranked as one ofthe worst interpersonal evils. For example, on Seneca's
'axis of evil' he argues that ingrates are the worst of a very bad lot: 'Homi
cides, tyrants, thieves, adulterers, robbers, sacrilegious men, and traitors
there always will be; but worse than all these is the crime of ingratitude'
(Benefits 1.10.4).55 Earthly patrons and clients understand that this is how
the game is played, and so project this sense of duty and debt to heavenly
benefactors and mortal clients. Mortals adept at the earthly game ofpatron
age could not help but presume that the same rules applied to the heavenly
version. Such, indeed, was the view of most ancients, with the exception
of a few elites who engaged in a philosophical critique of popular religion.
Clients, then, owe the Deity honor and praise.
Although popular piety presumes that God wants or needs a return such
as sacrifice, honor and gratitude, the critics of popular religion shout a
resounding 'Nothing!' God and the gods 'need nothing' (^).
54. Suzanne Dixon, 'The Meaning of Gift and Debt in the Roman Elite', Echos du
Monde Classique/Classical Views 12 (1993), pp. 451-64. Lucan (Apology 13) states
that 'no one does anything without pay'.
55. See Suzanne Dixon, " Lousy Ingrate": Honour and Patronage in the American
Mafia and Ancient Rome', Internationaljournal ofMoral and Social Studies 8 (1993),
pp. 61 -64. Cicero says: 'No duty is more imperative than that of proving one's gratitude'
(Duties 1.15.47); see Seneca, Benefits 4.20.3; 7.31.1-3.

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This statement, found as early as Euripides ('God wants for nothing if

he's truly God', Hercules Furens 1345) and the product of Greco-Roman
philosophical god-talk (Plutarch, Stoic Self-Contraditions 1052E),56
seems to have become widely accepted, especially by Israelite and early
Christian authors.
Israelite use ofthis expression honors God as being so perfect and superior
to mortals that 'God does not want anything' (Ep. Arist. 211), which
becomes part ofthepraiseof God in prayer. But if God needs nothing, God's
clients do: Lord of all, who has need of nothing ($)..6
undefiled for ever this house, so recently purified' (2 Mace. 14.35-36).57
Philo states that one way of honoring God's benefaction is to stress that as
Giver, God gave 'all' to mortals but himself needs nothing: 'But God has
bestowed no gift of grace on Himself, for He does not need it, but He has
given the world to the world' (Deus Imm. 107; cf. Vit. Mos. 1.157).
Josephus's remark explicitly comes in the context of reciprocity to the
deity for benefaction: 'Not by deeds is it possible for men to return thanks
to God, for the Deity stands in need of nothing (^) and is above
all such recompense' (Josephus, Ant. 8.111).
Although the New Testament contains no instances of 'needs nothing',
wefindit often in Christian authors with evident Greco-Roman background.
Irenaeus, for example, four times insists that God 'needs nothing', although
he mandates as a response a 'sacrifice' of praise.
The prophets indicate that God stood in no need of their slavish obedi
ence. . .God needed not their oblation, but [demanded it], on account ofman
himself who offers it. Because God stands in need ofnothing.. .reject those
things by which sinners imagined they could propitiate God, and show that
He does Himself stand in need of nothing. (Adv. Her. 4.17.1, emphasis
58
added).
Irenaeus strove to protect the deity from being propitiated and thus
manipulated. Finally, Justin provides a summary ofthe materials we have
been studying: 'But we have received by tradition that God does not need
the material offerings which men can give, seeing, indeed, that He
56. Again Seneca: 'Whoever teaches men to be grateful, pleads the cause both of
men and ofthe gods, to whom, although there is no thing that they have need of since
they have been placed beyond all desire, we can nevertheless offer our gratitude'
(Benefits 2.30.2).
57. Similarly: 'You, O King.. .you have no need of anything ()' (3 Mace.
2.9).
58. See also 1 Clem. 52.1-4, and Philo, Spec. Leg. 211.

NEYREY God, Benefactor and Patron

485

Himself is the provider of all things' (Justin, 1 Apol 10).

Again, What do Clients Render to God-Benefactor and Why?
Most earthly clients thought that they must make a response, but what do
theyrenderto God-Benefactor? What do theythinkthe heavenly Benefactor
wishes? First, what folly to think that mortals could give the deity power;
who is himself'almighty' (). But inducement was universally
thought of as an appropriate response to the Deity. Bruce Malina's
definition of inducement serves us well here, for it includes sacrifice:
If subordinates sought to have effect on their superiors, they had recourse to
inducement and influence. Inducement included all sorts of gifts, services,
presents, while influence entailed reasons for doing what one wanted, hence
requests, petitions, entreaties and the like. In language of embedded religion,
inducement is called sacrifice, influence is called prayer. Sacrifice of any
sort is a form of inducement directed to the deity.59
When we speak of sacrifice, we mean inducement. Then why do earthly
clients offer sacrifice? Theophrastus classifies sacrifice according to three
formal ends: 'There are three reasons to sacrifice to the gods: either to
honorthem, orto thank them or to ask them for good things'.60 This reduces
to either praise/gratitude or petition. Thus clients might activate the
relationship by offering a sacrifice in petition of benefaction or respond to
benefaction with a sacrifice of praise for favors received. Given the
ubiquity and duration of sacrifice in the ancient world, earthly clients
considered it proper and necessary to offer inducement to their heavenly
patrons.
Nevertheless, some thinkers began to critique the propriety of offering
sacrifice. The two most telling arguments against sacrifice focus on the
unseemliness of thinking that the gods (1) wanted blood and flesh or
(2) bartered with mortals, a form of balanced reciprocity. Lucian provides
a grand satire of this aspect of sacrifice.
59. Bruce J. Malina, 'Mediterranean Sacrifice: Dimensions of Domestic and
Political Religion', BTB 26 (1996), p. 29 (emphasis added).
60. Cited by Simon Pulleyn, Prayer in Greek Religion (Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1997), p. 55. Philo says: 'If anyone examines the motives which led men to resort to
sacrifices as a medium of prayer and thanksgiving, he will find that two hold the
highest place. One is the rendering of honour to God for the sake of Him only and with
no other motive... The other is the benefit which is twofold, on one side directed to
obtaining a share in blessings, on the other to release from evils' (Spec. Leg. 1.195).

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So nothing that they [the gods] do is done without compensation. They sell
men their blessings, and one can buy from them health, it may be, for a calf,
wealth for four oxen, a royal throne for a hundred, a safe return from Troy
to Pylos for nine bulls, and a fair voyage from Aulis to Troy for a king's
daughter! Hecuba, you know, purchased temporary immunity for Troy from
Athena for twelve oxen and a frock. One may imagine, too, that they have
many things on sale for the price of a cock or a wreath or nothing more than
incense (Lucan, On Sacrifices 2).

The gods, he mocks, do nothing 'without compensation', suggesting that,

whether they are needy or greedy, they engage in some form of barter or
exchange. Moreover, according to Lucian's satire, mortals are by far the
better trading partners, obtaining things of significant worth for mere bagatelles. Alas, he implies, the gods can be controlled and manipulated.
Authors with philosophical backgrounds, such as Philo and Seneca,
offered important critiques of sacrifice. Philo, for example, contrasts God's
nature with that of mortals:
God alone is the giver; we do not give.. .1 know that God can be conceived
of as 'giving' and 'bestowing', but 'being given'this I cannot even conceive
of.. .it is absolutely necessary for the Truly Existing One to be active, not
passive (Det. Pot. Ins. 161-62).

Thus mortals, even when making some response to the deity, do not 'give'
anything to God-who-alone-is-Giver. Mortal clients, then, should not
attempttohavean impact on their Immortal Patron by means of inducement.
But of course they did, and they were in the majority.
It is widely attested that the only proper response that mortals can render
to God is some form of praise, honor and gratitude, which we classify as
commitment. Josephus, who claims that 'Thanksgiving is a natural duty'
(Ant. 4.212), also says of gratitude:
But with that (gift of speech), O Lord, we cannot but praise Thy greatness
and give thanks for Thy kindnesses to our house and the Hebrew people...
And so with my voice I render thanks to Thee' (Ant. 8.111).

Philo goes further in his discussion of offering honor and gratitude to God
by elevating 'thanksgiving' to 'pre-eminent' status among the virtues:
Each ofthe virtues is a holy matter, but thanksgiving is pre-eminently so.
But it is not possible to express our gratitude to God by means of buildings
and oblations and sacrifices.. .for even the whole world were not a temple
adequate to yield the honour due to Him. Nay, it must be expressed by
means of hymns of praise... (Plant. 126).

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Temples and sacrificial systems, Philo argues, are inadequate to express

requisite 'gratitude', which can only be done by 'hymns of praise'. Thus
no inducement is proper, only commitment, praise and gratitude. Philo
later rephrases the exchange between God-benefactor and mortals-clients:
[T]he work most appropriate to God is conferring boons, that mostfittingto
creation giving thanks, seeing that it has no power to render in return anything
beyond this; for, whatever else it may have thought of giving in requital,
this it willfindto be the property ofthe Maker of all things, and not ofthe
being that brings it.. .in all that has to do with shewing honour to God, one
work only is incumbent upon us, namely thanksgiving (Plant. 130-31).

Gods 'give', but mortals 'give thanks'. For, mortals have 'no power to
render in return anything beyond it' and 'the property' (inducement-assacrifice) already belongs to God. All that is left is commitment, that is,
'thanksgiving' (praise and gratitude).
We saw above that, according to Seneca, the worst possible action of a
client was ingratitude (Benefits 1.10.4). Patrons expected some form of
commitment, an expectation clear to all clients. However, let us not confuse
praise and gratitude with 'thanks', as J. H. Quincey warns us not to do:
The Greek habit in accepting an offer, service, etc., was to confer praise and
not thanks. The Englishman with his 'Thank you! ' is content to express his
feelings, the Greeks.. .saw an obligation created by a favour received and
sought, in their practical way, to discharge it. And since praise was a commodity of which all men had an infinite supply and which all men valued,
the obligation could always be discharged immediately.61

The mortal-to-mortal exchange was consciously 'discharged' as quickly

as possible. Obligation incurred was repaid by praise and honor,62 a
commodity more precious than gold. Some mortals surely dealt with their
benefactor gods in this fashion, but others were more sensitive to cultivate
and maintain the relationship by means of commitment, that is, expressions of gratitude or 'sacrifices of praise'.63
61. J.H. Quincey, 'Greek Expressions of Thanks', JHS 86 (1966), p. 157. On this
point, see John J. Pilch, 'No Thank You!', Bible Today 40 (2002), pp. 49-53.
62. On the prevalence of 'praise/honor' over 'thanks' in Greek religion, see H.S.
Versnel, 'Religious Mentality in Ancient Prayer', in Versnel (ed.), Faith, Hope and
Worship, pp. 43-53; Quincey, 'Greek Expressions of Thanks', pp. 133-58
63. In addition to ' sacrifices of thanksgiving', i.e., animal sacrifices (Versnel, Faith,
Hope and Worship, pp. 42-47), we find mention of 'sacrifice of praise'; see Everett
Ferguson, 'Spiritual Sacrifice in Early Christianity and its Environment', ANRW,
II.23.2,pp. 1151-89.

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Journal for the Study ofthe New Testament 21 (2005)

For example, Justin Martyr argues that the Maker neither needs nor
wants sacrifices (inducement), forthe only honor worthy of God is gratitude
(commitment):
What man will not acknowledge that we are not atheists, but declare that He
has no need of streams of blood and libations and incense; whom we praise
to the utmost of our power by the exercise of prayer and thanksgiving for all
things wherewith we are supplied, as we have been taught that the only
honour that is worthy of Him is not to consume byfirewhat He has brought
into being for our sustenance, but to use it for ourselves and those who
need, and with gratitude to Him to offer thanks by invocations and hymns
for our creation (7 Apol 13).
But 'honor', 'gratitude' and 'thanksgiving' are all prayers of commitment,
which acknowledge God's worth; they are not grants of something God
lacks or needs. Moreover, Justin envisions a cycle in which benefaction
(creation) is constantly received from the Benefactor and enjoyed by the
clients. And since 'ourselves and those who need' will always want bene
faction, the 'prayer and thanksgiving for all things wherewith we are sup
plied' will be a constant response to God. Thus commitment is understood
here: God gives, we return honor and gratitude to the Benefactor who
continues his benefactionthus loyalty and faithfulness are shown by
both parties, that is, commitment. But is this now balanced reciprocity on
our part?
Finally, it would seem that influence also plays a role in the response of
clients to their heavenly benefactors when we consider the reasons why
clients honor benefactors and give gratitude for benefits. Some authors
cited above consider their 'sacrifice of praise' to be disinterested honoring
of God, such that there seems to be little exchange expressed by this commit
ment. But other authors state that testimonials of honor and gratitude also
serve as motives, reasons andreminders to the heavenly Patrons to maintain
their benefaction, which we call influence. Thus commitment offered in
this manner contains a strong element of balanced reciprocity. Concerning
influence, we recall how Malina contrasted it with inducement. Inducement
refers to material offerings, such as sacrifices, gifts and presents, whereas
influence describes reasons for doing what is wanted, hence requests,
petitions and entreaties. In terms of worship, sacrifice is inducement, but
influence is prayer.64
Wefindevidencethattheancientsappreciated how commitment contains
influence and so is offered to secure future benefaction. For example,
64. Malina, 'Mediterranean Sacrifice', p. 29.

NEYREY God, Benefactor and Patron

489

Josephus illustrates this nexus:

Twice each day, at the dawn and when the hour comes for turning to repose,
let all acknowledge before God the bounties which He has bestowed on
them through his deliverancefromthe land ofEgypt: thanksgiving is a natural
duty, and is rendered alike in gratitude for past mercies and to incline the
giver to others yet to come (Ant. 4.212).

While 'twice daily' likely refers to temple sacrifices (inducement), they

are infused with 'thanksgiving' (commitment), which functions 'in gratitude
for past mercies' but also for the purpose of 'inclining the giver to [give]
othersyetto come' (influence). Thus commitment ('thanksgiving') is joined
with influence (petition), that is, reasons to continue benefaction. The deity,
while being honored, is also challenged by praise to act anew.
What, then, do mortals return to their heavenly Benefactor? Ofthe four
classifications of things exchanged, mortals offer to god inducement
(sacrifice), commitment (praise, gratitude, loyalty and faithfulness) and
influence (motives and reasons for benefaction). Moreover, the materials
surveyed indicate that mortals offer honor and praise in two different
modes, either as a true acknowledgment ofthe patron's goodness or in the
expectation that they will excite the patron to renewed benefaction. The
former resembles generalized reciprocity, the latter balanced exchange.
Philo is obviously aware of this as he makes the same distinction:
Myfirstprizes will be set apart for those who honour Me for Myself alone,
the second to those who honour Me for their own sakes, either hoping to
win blessings or expecting to obtain remission of punishments... The prizes
set aside for those who honour Me for Myself will be gifts of friendship; to
those whose motive is self-interest they do not showfriendshipbut that I do
not count them as aliens (Abr. 128-29; cf. Deus 1mm. 69).

Those who 'honour Me for Myself alone' relate to God with commitment,
which is altruistic in that it is utterly God-centered. To them God extends
' gifts offriendship', which is both God's inducement and especially commitment. But those who 'honour Me for their own sakes' return a kind of
commitment diluted by anticipation of balanced reciprocity. For, failing to
relate to the Deity in terms of 'friendship' they do not receive it from God.
What do we Know if we Know this?
Inasmuch as there are few studies of God in terms ofthe benefactor-client
model, I hope to have filled that lacuna and brought fresh insight into
Greco-Roman god-talk. The model of benefactor-client relations used

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Journal for the Study ofthe New Testament 21 (2005)

here is basically that found in classical studies, now expanded by consider

ation of two topics taken from the social sciences, types of reciprocity
(generalized, balanced and negative) and general symbolic media (power,
commitment, inducement and influence). The basic model, then, is produc
tively expanded. This expanded model allowed for a harvest of primary
data, as it both identified materials generally ignored and facilitated in
classifying and so interpreting them more accurately. The data simply
would not have been visible without the expanded model to provide the
needed perspective. Thus, readers should benefit both from a fresh study
ofthe Deity and from a new, improved model of patron-client relations.
But something is missing.
This article necessarily operates at a high level of abstraction, which
might leave New Testament readers wondering about the utility and suit
ability of this material for understanding the Christian scriptures. The
following comments are intended to suggest where the contents of this
study impact critical interpretation ofthe New Testament. Suggestions,
alas, not full discourse. Semantic wordfieldsare often valuable for identify
ing technical terms and their synonyms. Although the term 'benefactor'
occursinLk. 22.25, itdoesnotrefertoGod;butas we shall see, 'benefactor'
is known by other names. Moreover, the terms for benefaction are many
and rich. Bruce Malina identifies, at least in Paul, the dominant terms for
patronage:
Of course the vocabulary of 'grace' (charizomai, charts, charisma) belongs
to the favoritism of patronage. I suggest that charizomai refers to showing
patronage, charts to willingness tobe a patron, and charisma to the outcomes
of patronage.65
God as Benefactor and Patron
Like many Greco-Roman deities, the God of Jesus Christ is 'many
named'. Not all names of God reflect a relationship of patron to clients,
but the following six names do. All of these names directly communicate
that God shows various types of favor, blessing, benefaction and
patronage to mortals.
Creator:
Father:
King:
Lord:

Acts 17.24; Rom. 1.19-22; 1 Cor. 8.6

Mt. 6.9-12; Eph. 1.3; 3.14-16; Gal. 4.6
1 Tim. 1.17; Rev. 15.3; 19.16
Lk. 1.32, 68; Acts 3.22; 17.14; Rev. 4.8, 11

65. Malina, 'Patron and Client', pp. 171-73.

NEYREY God, Benefactor and Patron

Master:
Savior:

491

Lk. 2.29; Acts 4.24

Lk. 1.47; 1 Tim. 1.3; 2.10; 3.4; Jude 24

What Benefactions does God Give?

The diagram below focuses only on Matthew, but it provides a suitable
example ofthe range of benefaction God gives. It can serve as a model for
retrieval of divine benefaction in other Gospels and letters.

Power
Rescue of Jesus in Mt. 2.
Spirit of power descends upon Jesus at
Jordan.
All miracles of Jesus = God's power,
especially when evil spirits are silenced
and expelled.
Power to raise the dead (22.23-33).
12 legions of God's angels available
(26.53).
Vindication of Jesus (21.42ff.; 22.44;
27.50-54).

Commitment
Covenant of promises: 'Son of Abraham, Son of
David'(1.1).
Election of Jesus and support of him: Baptism
and 12.18-21; Transfiguration, Death,
Resurrection.
Clients worth more than sparrows (10.32- 33).
desire mercy, not sacrifice' (9.13; 12.8// Hos.
6.6).
Forgiveness by God (6.13-14; 9.2-8; 18.22-35).
Praise and honor from God (5.1-12); reward of
honor from God (6.1,4, 6, 14, 18).
Recipients of God's benefaction: Magi, 'Galilee
ofthe Gentiles', Syro-Phoenician woman,
'all nations'.

Inducement
Daily bread (Our Father' 6.9-13).
Seek first the kingdom, food and clothing
will be provided (6.25-33).
Multiplication of loaves and fishes (14.1321; 15.32-39).
Promise of 'hundred fold' (19.29).
Eating at the table of God (22.1-10).

Influence
Knowledge and secrets revealed (11.25-27;
13.10-17; 16.17; 24.36).
Dreams (1.18-25; 2.12, 13, 19; 27.19).
Stars (2.Iff., 9).
Hidden prophetic meaning ofthe scriptures,
esp. Isaiah (1.22-23; 2.6, 17, 23; 4.14-16;
8.17; 12.18-21; 13.14, 35; 21.4-5; 27.9).
Special speech revealed (10.19-20).
Parables (13.3-9, 31-32, 33, 44-50).

Types of Reciprocity
As one would expect, God acts out of altruistic generosity, as parent do to
their children (e.g. Mt. 5.45-48). The premier expression of divine altruism
is surely 'God so loved the world that he gave his only son' (Jn 3.16; see
Rom. 5.8; 8.31-33; Lk. 14.12-14). Despite the fact that Jesus is called a
'thief, neither he nor God practice negative reciprocity. Balanced reci
procity, however, is another matter. I suggest that Paul understands the

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Journal for the Study ofthe New Testament 21 (2005)

debate over 'faith' vs 'law' as the insistence by some on a form of balanced

reciprocity between mortals and God. After citing Gen. 15.6 ('Abraham
believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness'), Paul contrasts
what is earned (balanced reciprocity) with what is given as gift (altruistic
reciprocity): 'Now to one who works, his wages are not reckoned as a gift
but as his due. And to one who does not work but trusts him who justifies
the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness' (Rom. 4.4-5). In fact,
it would utterly dishonorable for a mortal to make a claim on God or to
consider God in one's debt, which is what happens when mortals interpret
their interaction with God in terms of balanced reciprocity (see Gal. 2.164.31; Phil. 3.2-20). Finally, a recent book on God treats many Gospels,
Acts and Pauline letters in the light of patron-client relations. Hence that
very study may serve as an indicator of the importance of the patronclient model and a model for investigation of other New Testament
documents.66

66. Jerome H. Neyrey, Render to God: New Testament Understandings of the

Divine (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2004).

^ s
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