Leaving behind the old redactional-stages approach (that has tempted many scholars through today), we are really forced to think about what “Jewish” and “Christian” should mean as identity or boundary-categories in the world of this text. Clearly it is too simplistic to lop off the Ascension section as “Christian” and call the Martyrdom section “Jewish,” since the Ascension participates in innumerable ways in a Jewish apocalyptic ascent framework, while the Martyrdom section is deeply enmeshed with the Ascension.
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The emphasis on the abnormal aspects of Mary’s childbearing prompts reflection on whether the text conveys a real birth of a real man, or an appearance which circumvents the usual modes of human entry and human being in the world.
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Additionally, Isaiah as a character is, I think, modeled as a Matthean Christ-figure in certain respects: both are positioned as part of a prophetic critique of ruling powers, tempted by some kind of evil entity to renounce something and gain earthly status, and killed with a wooden instrument. The charge of prophesying against Jerusalem is crucial in the trials of Jesus and Isaiah. The title ‘the Beloved’ is also emphasized uniquely in Matthew’s gospel with a citation from the Book of Isaiah (Matt 12:18).
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I like to think about apocalyptic rhetoric far more than I like to think about apocalypses: that is, what is a particular text doing vs. what is this text? So when I think about Ascension of Isaiah my question is: What is this particular text doing for readers and audiences?
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Although it is often described as an apocalypse, the Ascension defies simple categorisation. As a result, it invites capacious conversation about the categories that modern scholars use to understand ancient texts and about how scholars study texts with expansive histories across historical, linguistic, and religious contexts.
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