To answer the question about who Gamaliel was in the Bible, it is necessary to clarify that there are two characters mentioned in the Bible with the name of Gamaliel. One in the Old Testament and another in the New Testament, this in order to avoid any confusion.
In this article we will study the two gamaliel, however, we will make special emphasis on the Master Gamaliel of the New Testament, who is recognized as one of the teachers of the apostle Paul, who was a very important Jew at the time of the early churchso continue reading to learn more about this character.
Gamaliel was a Pharisee and doctor of the Law in New Testament times, he was a very important teacher who had many disciples, including Saul (later known as the Apostle Paul) and held a high position as a member of the Sanhedrin.
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What does the name Gamaliel mean?
The Greek name Gamaliel means “reward from God.” The first Gamaliel mentioned in the Bible is found in the Old Testament.
He was a prince of the tribe of Manasseh, son of Pedazur, chosen to help Moses to number the people in the desert (Numbers 1:10; 2:20; 7:54,59; 10:23).
See here: Why didn’t Moses enter the Promised Land?
The Bible mentions that Gamaliel son of Pedazur was chief of the sons of Manasseh and that he had an army of thirty-two thousand two hundred soldiers, which was in charge of the census of the tribe. “On one side of Ephraim the tribe of Manasseh will camp. Their chief is Gamaliel son of Pedasur” (Numbers 2:20).
The teacher Gamaliel
The other, and better known, Gamaliel, was a doctor of the Law and held an important position as a member of the Sanhedrin.quoted in the New Testament in the book of the Acts of the Apostles.
He was the son of Simon and grandson of the famous Rabbi Hillel. Therefore, Gamaliel represented the more liberal group of Pharisees, the School of Hillel, as opposed to the School of Shammai.
Thus, Gamaliel held moderate views regarding the laws of the Sabbath, marriage, and The divorce.
Gamaliel’s recognition was such that he was given the title “Rabban,” meaning “our teacher,” a much higher title than the more common “Rabbi,” meaning “my teacher.”
One of the major works of Rabbinic Judaism, the Mishnahdescribes that “since the death of Rabban Gamaliel the Elder, there was no more reverence for the Law, and purity and abstinence were extinguished at the same time.”
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Gamaliel and the apostles of Jesus
At the trial of the Apostles (Acts 5:33-40), Gamaliel delivered a persuasive speech, recommending moderation in the treatment of the Apostles.
Some interpreters consider that this fact reflects Gamaliel’s fair and impartial temperament, while others believe that Gamaliel used irony in said speech to attack Sadducee skepticism towards divine providence.
There are some ancient traditions that suggest that Gamaliel became a Christian, and according to such suggestions, Gamaliel was baptized by Peter and John. However, there is no clearer historical evidence to confirm this conversion.
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Was Gamaliel the teacher of Paul?
In Acts of the Apostles 22:3, the Apostle Paul acknowledged Gamaliel as his former teacher, saying, “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city. Under Gamaliel’s tutelage I received thorough instruction in the law of our ancestors.and I was as zealous for God as any of you are today” (Acts 22:3).
Although this seems like an easy matter, and Gamaliel’s status as Paul’s teacher in Pharisaism is widely accepted, some objections are raised. Some scholars suggest that the expression “under Gamaliel’s tutelage I received instruction” should be understood more generally, ie something like “brought up under Gamaliel’s influence.”
These scholars claim that the radical hatred shown by Paul against Christians does not reflect the moderate teaching of Gamaliel.besides that the Apostle never mentioned it in his Epistles.
Other scholars even defend the possibility that Paul never studied in Jerusalem (something explicitly contradictory to the text of the Acts of the Apostles quoted above).
Some evidence of Gamaliel as Paul’s teacher
There is evidence in the Apostle Paul’s views that reflects Gamaliel’s Pharisaic tradition, such as his calling the book of Isaiah “the Law” (1 Corinthians 14:21), an appropriate expression for a student of Gamaliel.
There are also passages in the Talmud (one of the basic books of the Jewish religion) that refer to a student of Gamaliel as “that student” and, according to some interpreters, possibly Paul.
Another important point is that there are indications that Gamaliel was one of the few rabbis who allowed his students to learn Greek. The fact that Paul never mentioned Gamaliel in his epistles can perhaps be explained by the profound experience of his conversion and by passages like the one found in the Epistle to the Philippians saying: “However, whatever was gain to me, now I count it loss for Christ’s sake” (Philippians 3:7-9)
Paul’s deep knowledge of Jewish law and scriptures shows that the Apostle was highly educated. In particular, I believe that there are much stronger factors for us to understand that Paul was a student of Gamaliel.
We recommend the following video to learn more about the life of Gamaliel in the Bible.