Aune argues that Jesus is not dressed as a priest when John first sees him, but his argument is odd. He notes that the Greek wor for “robe” ( poderes ) is used twelve times in the LXX, always of an article of priestly gear. But the word is used for five different articles of gear, five different Hebrew terms – the breastplate (Exodus 28:15, 22), the ephod (Exodus 28:31), the robe (Exodus 28:4; 29:5), a linen garment (Ezekiel 9:2), and a garment (Zechariah 3:4). He concludes that the word isn’t a “technical term.”
Fair enough, but the evidence that Aune himself assembles suggests the possibility that poderes is uniquely suited to conjure up the whole priestly panoply.
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