Exodus!!

Lesson*#19*Excursus:*

“Christ*in*the*Old*Testament,*Part*1”*

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Having!finished!our!study!of!the!book!of!Exodus!with!Lesson!#17,!we!moved!on!to!an!excursus!in!Lesson!#18,!an!examinaAon!of!the!“Pillar!of!Cloud!and!Fire.”!!Here!in!Lesson!#19!we!begin!a!second!excursus,!a!2Jpart!study!of!“Christ!in!the!Old!Testament,”!or!the!Hebrew!Scriptures.!!

APer!Jesus’!crucifixion,!burial!and!resurrecAon,!he!spends!40!days!with!his!disciples!teaching!them!what!they!need!to!know!to!take!the!Gospel!to!the!world.!!When!he!is!with!them!in!the!“upper!room”!on!Easter!Sunday!evening,!he!says!to!them:!!

“‘These*are*my*words*that*I*spoke*to*you*while*I*was*sDll*with*you,*that*everything*wriGen*about*me*in*the*law*of*Moses*and*in*the*prophets*and*psalms*must*be*fulfilled.’**Then*he*opened*their*minds*to*understand*the*scriptures.”*

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If!Christ!is!in!the!Old!Testament!as!Jesus!said,!how!do!we!go!about!finding!him!there?!!!!!!!!!!

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To!find!Christ!in!the!Old!Testament!we!must!know!how*to*look*for*him.!!Our!search!begins!with!understanding!how!the!canon!of!Scripture—that!is,!the!books!of!the!Bible!in*the*order*that*we*have*them—came!to!be.!!

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!!1450!!!!many!books!beginning!with!threads!of!oral!tradiAon!that!long!predate!the!actual!wriAng,!redacAng,!ediAng!and!copying!of!the!book!as!we!have!it!today.!!In!the!scholarly!world,!the!study!of!how!a!parAcular!book!of!Scripture!came!to!reach!its!final!form!is!called!“textual!criAcism.”!!!!

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In!Judaism!today,!the!Old!Testament—or!the!Hebrew!Scriptures—contains!39!books!composed!in!Hebrew!over!a!period!of!roughly!1,200!years,!1450!J!250!B.C.!!

The!composiAon!and!transmission!of!each!Old!Testament!book!has!its!own!more!or!less!complex!history,!

SecAon!of!Isaiah!from!the!Dead!Sea!Scrolls,!c.!150J100!B.C.!!Shrine!of!the!Book,!Jerusalem.!

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Between!1450!–!250!B.C.!hundreds*of!books!were!wriben!in!Hebrew—and!other!languages—on!“biblical”!themes!and!topics.!!It!was!not!unAl!the!late!1st!century!A.D.!that!Jewish!scholars!and!theologians!agreed!upon!the!39!books!in!today’s!Hebrew!canon.!!UnAl!then,!the!“canon”!of!Scripture!was!an!open!quesAon,!subject!to!much!debate.!

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Around!250!B.C.!the!books!considered!by!most!to!be!inspired!Scripture!were!translated!from!Hebrew!into!into!Greek,!the!lingua*franca*of!the!Mediterranean!world.!!!!

Legend!has!it!that!Ptolomy!II!commissioned!70!rabbinical!scholars!to!make!the!translaAon!for!inclusion!in!the!great!library!of!Alexandria,!Egypt.!!The!story!first!appears!in!“Leber!of!Aristeas,”!and!it!is!repeated,!with!embellishments,!by!Philo!of!Alexandria,!Josephus,!and!later!by!St.!AugusAne!himself.!!!!

The!translaAon!is!known!as!the!“Septuagint,”!or!“the!70,”!and!it!is!typically!referenced!with!the!Roman!numerals,!LXX.!!

This!is!the!“Scripture”!quoted!most!oPen!in!the!New!Testament,!especially!in!the!Pauline!epistles,!and!later!by!the!early!Church!Fathers.!!It!is!the!“Scripture”!that!Jesus!would!have!known.!!

Papyrus!page!from!the!Septuagint.!!InsAtute!of!Papyrology,!Heidelberg.!

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Between!250!B.C.!and!the!later!part!of!the!1st!century!A.D.!books!conAnued!to!be!wriben,!primarily!in!Greek,!on!“biblical”!themes!and!topics—hundreds!of!them.!!

Some!gained!tracAon!in!both!Judaism!and!in!the!early!Church,!expanding!the!looselyJdefined!1stJcentury!A.D.!“canon”!of!Scripture!to!include:!!

• Tobit!• Judith!• 1!&!2!Maccabees!• Book!of!Wisdom!• Sirach!and!• various!addiAons!to!Daniel!and!Esther!

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Throughout!the!1st!century!nearly!all!“books”!were!in!the!form!of!scrolls,!sheets!sAtched!end!to!end,!then!rolled.!!Each!book!of!the!Hebrew!Scriptures!would!have!been!on!an!individual!scroll!(or!scrolls).!!Nearly!all!Jewish!communiAes!would!have!had!the!five!Torah!scrolls!(Genesis!–!Deuteronomy),!but!most!communiAes!would!only!have!had!some!of!the!other!books!considered!“Scripture,”!depending!upon!availability!and!the!resources!of!the!community,!since!each!was!handwriben!at!considerable!expense.!!

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APer!the!catastrophic!Jewish!Revolt!of!A.D.!66J72,!with!the!destrucAon!of!the!2nd!Temple!and!the!fall!of!Jerusalem,!the!Rabbis!focused!more!intently!on!Scripture!and!being!a!“people!of!the!book,”!defining!the!canon!of!Scripture!as!those!39!books!originally!wriben!in!Hebrew!prior!to!the!Septuagint!translaAon!of!c.!250!B.C.,!and!with!those!39!books,!the!canon!was!closed.!

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Today!the!Hebrew!Scriptures!consist!of:!

!• Torah!(Law)!

• Nevi’im!(Prophets)!• Kethuvim!(WriAngs)!

Tanakh,*the*Holy*Scriptures.!!Philadelphia:!!Jewish!PublicaAon!Society,!1985.!!

This*is*the*standard*English*translaDon*of*the*Hebrew*Scriptures.*

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Tanakh*is!an!acronym!for!Torah,!Nevi’im!and!Ketuvim:!!“TaNaKh”!!!!

Torah!(Law) !Nevi’im!(Prophets) ! !Kethuvim!(WriAngs) !!Genesis ! ! !Joshua ! ! !Hosea ! !Psalms!Exodus ! ! !Judges ! ! !Joel! ! !Proverbs!LeviAcus! ! !1!&!2!Samuel !Amos ! !Job!Numbers ! !1!&!2!Kings ! !Obadiah! !Song!of!Songs!Deuteronomy !Isaiah ! ! !Jonah ! !Ruth!

! ! ! !Jeremiah ! !Micah ! !LamentaAons!! ! ! !Ezekiel ! ! !Nahum ! !Ecclesiastes!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Habakkuk !Esther!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Zephaniah !Daniel!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Haggai ! !Ezra!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Zechariah !Nehemiah!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Malachi! !1!&!2!Chronicles!

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The!Astounding!4th!Century!!!

During!the!first!300!years!of!ChrisAanity!the!Gospel!message!was!spread!primarily!through!oral!teaching!and!preaching,!as!the!Church!was!a!persecuted!minority!within!the!Roman!Empire.!!As!we!enter!the!4th!century,!however,!all!that!changes.!!

In!A.D.!313!the!Emperor!ConstanAne!signed!the!Edict!of!Milan,!officially!toleraAng!ChrisAanity!in!the!Roman!Empire.!!In!A.D.!325!ConstanAne!called!the!Council!of!Nicaea!in!part!to!define!the!foundaAonal!beliefs!and!doctrines!of!ChrisAanity.!!Nicaea!was!the!first!of!seven!such!“Ecumenical!Councils”!held!between!325!and!787.!!Then!on!February!27,!380!the!Emperor!Theodosius!I!declared!ChrisAanity!the!official!religion!of!the!Roman!Empire.!!

At!the!start!of!the!4th!century,!roughly!10%!of!people!in!the!Roman!Empire!(about!6.5!million)!claimed!to!be!ChrisAans;!by!the!end!of!the!century,!90%!claimed!to!be!ChrisAans!(about!58.5!million).!!

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Yikes!

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In!Judaism!the!canon!of!Scripture!had!been!defined!and!closed!by!the!end!of!the!1st!century!!with!the!39!books!of!Scripture!originally!wriben!in!Hebrew,!prior!to!the!Septuagint!translaAon!of!c.!250!B.C.!!Not!so!in!ChrisAanity.!

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During!the!4th!century!a!major!issue!was!sAll!on!the!table!for!the!Church:!!

What*exactly*is*Scripture?*!

Although!several!informal!lists!of!books!had!been!drawn!up!as!early!as!the!3rd!and!4th!centuries,!no!list!had!gained!consensus!by!the!Church!at!large—unAl!the!Council!of!Hippo!in!A.D.!393,!called!by!St.!AugusAne.!

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For!the!Church,!the!larger!Septuagint!canon!of!46!books!making!up!the!“Old!Testament”!had!long!since!been!accepted!as!inspired!Scripture,!since!that!was!the!“Bible”!that!Jesus!and!the!Apostles!would!have!known.!!In!A.D.!393!with!the!Council!of!Hippo,!however,!the!27!books!of!our!current!“New!Testament”!were!added!to!the!list.!!

In!397!the!Council!of!Carthage!accepted!the!decision!of!the!Council!of!Hippo;!in!405!Pope!Innocent!I!affirmed!it;!and!by!the!5th!century,!with!the!compleAon!of!St.!Jerome’s!LaAn!Vulgate!!translaAon,!the!full!canon!of!46!books!in!the!Old!Testament!and!27!books!in!the!New—a!total!of!73!books—had!become!the!official!ChrisAan!“canon”!of!Scripture.!

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What’s!more,!by!the!4th!century!the!scroll!had!been!replaced!by!the!codex,!individual!sheets!stacked!one!atop!the!other,!bound!by!sAtching!on!the!leP!side!and!held!together!between!two!covers,!a!major!technological!advancement.!!

Codex*SinaiDcus,!4th!century.!!BriAsh!Library,!London.!!

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CollecAng!and!organizing!73!books!of!Scripture!into!a!codex!and!binding!them!between!two!covers!creates!a*fixed*text,!one!that!is!read!in!a!linear!fashion,!from!page!1!to!the!end,!just!as!we!read!a!novel.!!

The!experience!is!fundamentally*different!from!reading!a!collecAon!of!scrolls!loosely!arranged!by!genre.!

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Arranged*in*categories*of*similar*genre.!!!!

Torah!(Law) !Nevi’im!(Prophets) ! !Kethuvim!(WriAngs) !!Genesis ! ! !Joshua ! ! !Hosea ! !Psalms!Exodus ! ! !Judges ! ! !Joel! ! !Proverbs!LeviAcus! ! !1!&!2!Samuel !Amos ! !Job!Numbers ! !1!&!2!Kings ! !Obadiah! !Song!of!Songs!Deuteronomy !Isaiah ! ! !Jonah ! !Ruth!

! ! ! !Jeremiah ! !Micah ! !LamentaAons!! ! ! !Ezekiel ! ! !Nahum ! !Ecclesiastes!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Habakkuk !Esther!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Zephaniah !Daniel!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Haggai ! !Ezra!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Zechariah !Nehemiah!! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Malachi! !1!&!2!Chronicles!

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Arranged*as*a*fixed*linear*narraDve,*with*recapitulaDon!!!!!

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Five!Books!of!Moses ! ! ! ! ! !Major!Prophets! ! !Minor!Prophets!Genesis ! ! ! !Ezra ! ! ! !Isaiah ! ! ! !Hosea!Exodus ! ! ! !Nehemiah! ! !Jeremiah ! ! ! !Joel!LeviAcus ! ! ! !Tobit! ! ! ! !LamentaAons ! !Amos!Numbers ! ! ! !Judith ! ! ! !Baruch ! ! !Obadiah!Deuteronomy ! ! !Esther ! ! !Ezekiel ! ! ! !Jonah!

! ! ! ! !1!&!2!Maccabees !Daniel ! ! ! !Micah!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Nahum!

Historical!Books! ! !PoeAcal!Books ! ! ! ! ! ! !Habakkuk!Joshua ! ! ! !Job ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Zephaniah!Judges ! ! ! !Psalms ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Haggai!Ruth! ! ! ! !Proverbs ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Zechariah!1!&!2!Samuel ! ! !Ecclesiastes ! ! ! ! ! ! !Malachi!1!&!2!Kings ! ! !Song!of!Songs!1!&!2!Chronicles! ! !Wisdom!

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!Gospels ! ! ! !Pauline!Epistles ! ! !General!Epistles!!Mabhew ! ! !Romans! ! ! ! !Hebrews ! ! !!!Mark ! ! ! !1!&!2!Corinthians! ! !James ! ! ! !!!Luke ! ! ! !GalaAans ! ! ! !1!&!2!Peter ! ! !!!John ! ! ! !Ephesians ! ! ! !1,!2!&!3!John! ! !!! ! ! ! ! !Philippians ! ! ! !Jude ! ! ! !!!History ! ! ! !Colossians ! ! ! ! !!!Acts! ! ! ! !1!&!2!Thessalonians ! !Prophecy ! ! !! ! ! ! ! !1!&!2!Timothy ! ! !RevelaAon!! ! ! ! ! !Titus ! ! !!! ! ! ! ! !Philemon ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!! ! !!! ! ! ! !!! ! ! ! !!! ! !!

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From!a!Jewish!perspecAve,!one!reads!Scripture!in!categories!of!genre!in!a!nonVlinear*fashion,!much!as!a!flower!unfolds.!!

From!a!ChrisAan!perspecAve,!one!reads!Scripture!as!a!fixed!linear*narraAve!consisAng!of!a!variety!of!literary!genres,!with!the!curtain!rising!in!Genesis!and!falling!in!RevelaAon.!!!

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As!Harvard!Professor!and!literary!criAc!Northrop!Frye!wrote!in!The*Great*Code!(1981):!!

[Although!the!Bible!may!be!a!loose!collecAon!of!“lible!books”!(“ta*biblia,”!in!Greek)!this!“does!not!maber”].!!“What!mabers!is!that!‘the!Bible’!has!been!read!as!a!unity,!and!has!influenced!Western!imaginaAon!as!a!unity.”!!!

Northrop!Frye!(1912J1991).!With!the!publicaAon!of!his!!Anatomy*of*CriDcism*in!1957,!Frye!was!called!“the!foremost!living!!

student!of!Western!literature.”!

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And!as!Pope!Benedict!XVI!states!in!his!introducAon!to!Jesus*of*Nazareth:!!

“If!you!want!to!understand!the!Scripture!in!the!spirit!in!which!it!is!wriben,!you!have!to!abend!to!the!content!and!to!the!unity*of*Scripture*as*a*whole.!.!.!!Older!texts!are!reappropriated,!reinterpreted,!and!read!with!new!eyes!in!new!contexts.!!They!become!Scripture!by!being!read!anew,!evolving!in!conAnuity!with!their!original!sense,!tacitly!corrected!and!given!added!depth!and!breadth!of!meaning.”!!Pope!Emeritus,!Benedict!XVI.!

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From!a!ChrisAan!perspecAve,!when!we!search!for!Christ!in!the!Old!Testament!we!are!invited!to!enter!the!narraAve,!to!probe!beneath!the!surface!of!the!text,!to!see!Scripture!fulfilled!in!light!of!the!incarnaAon!and!the!end!goal!of!redempAon,!to!see!Christ!on!every!page!and!to!hear!his!voice!in!every!word.!!

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Let!me!offer!an!example!of!such!“rereading”!in!the!genealogy!and!birth!of!Jesus!in!the!Gospel!according!to!Mabhew.!!

A!biblical!hermeneuAc—!“Rereading!Isaiah”!

QuesAons!for!discussion!and!thought!**

1.   Although!Jewish!and!ChrisAan!Bibles!have!the!exact!same!text,!word!for!word,!in!the!39!books!of!the!Hebrew!Scriptures,!Jews!and!ChrisAans!arrive!at!radically!different!readings!of!the!same!text.!!Why!is!that?!!

2.   What!is!the!“Scripture”!that!Jesus!and!the!Apostles!knew?!3.   Why!were!the!Hebrew!Scriptures!translated!into!Greek!

around!250!B.C.?!4.   In!what!languages!are!the!books!of!the!Old!and!New!

Testaments!wriben?!5.   How!are!passages!in!the!Old!Testament!“reread”!in!light!

of!the!New!Testament?!!!!

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Copyright!©!2014!by!William!C.!Creasy!! All! rights! reserved.! No! part! of! this! course—audio,! video,!photography,! maps,! Amelines! or! other! media—may! be!reproduced!or!transmibed!in!any!form!by!any!means,!electronic!or! mechanical,! including! photocopying,! recording! or! by! any!informaAon! storage! or! retrieval! devices! without! permission! in!wriAng!or!a!licensing!agreement!from!the!copyright!holder.!!

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