Companion to the Bible

by E. P. Barrows

QUOTATIONS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT IN THE NEW.

1. As it respects inspiration, and consequent infallible authority, the quotations of the New Testament stand on a level with the rest of the apostolic writings. The Saviour's promise was: "When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth;" literally, "into all the truth," that is, as immediately explained, all the truth pertaining to the Redeemer's person and work. When, therefore, after the fulfilment of this promise, Peter and the other apostles expounded to their brethren the Scriptures of the Old Testament, wherein the Spirit of Christ "testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow," the same "Spirit of Christ" guided them to a true apprehension of their meaning. If we cannot trust Peter and Paul, whom Christ himself personally commissioned to preach his gospel, qualified for this work by the gift of the Holy Spirit, and endowed with miraculous powers as the seal of their commission—if we cannot trust these men to interpret the words of the Old Testament, then we cannot trust the guidance of the Divine Spirit himself. But when we have admitted, as we must, the authority of the New Testament writers as interpreters of the Old Testament, a very important question remains to be considered; and that is the manner of their quotations. This question we propose briefly to examine in respect to both outward form and inward contents.

2. As it respects outward form, we cannot but notice at once the very free spirit of these quotations. It is manifest that these inspired penmen are not anxious about the verbal accuracy of the words cited. The spirit and scope of a passage, which constitute its true life and meaning, are what they have in view, not the exact number of words literally translated from Hebrew into Greek. It is well known that a very large part of their quotations is made from the Greek version of the seventy, called the Septuagint, which was in common use in their day. No one pretends that the translators who made the Septuagint were inspired, or that they always succeeded in hitting the exact meaning of the Hebrew original. Yet, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the robust good sense of the New Testament writers went straight forward without stopping to notice or criticise deviations from the Hebrew, provided they did not affect the use which they wished to make of the passages quoted.

But the New Testament writers do not always conform their quotations to the Septuagint. They frequently follow the Hebrew wholly or in part where the Greek version departs from it. Matthew, in particular, follows the Hebrew in the Messianic quotations. Chap. 29, No. 19. Yet in these cases also they cite in the same free manner, abridging sometimes the Hebrew passage quoted, or giving only its general sense. It may be that thus the wisdom of God intended to bear testimony against the undue exaltation of the letter of inspiration above its spirit.

From a list of some two hundred and fifty citations placed side by side with the original Hebrew passages and the Septuagint version of the same we select the following as illustrations of the above remarks, each passage being literally translated. The words in brackets are regarded by some as not belonging to the true text.

Hebrew. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the meek: he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to the bound; to proclaim a year of acceptance to the Lord. Isa. 61:1,2.

Septuagint. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because he hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. Isa. 61:1, 2.

New Testament. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because he hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor, he hath sent me [to heal the broken-hearted,] to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to send away free the bruised (perhaps from the Greek of Isa. 58:6); to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. Luke 4:18, 19.

Hebrew. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold thy king shall come to thee: he is just and endowed with salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. Zech. 9:9.

Septuagint. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; proclaim, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold the king cometh to thee, just and exercising salvation; he is meek, and mounted on an ass and a young colt. Zech. 9:9.