Over at Evangelical Realism, we’re looking at the First Apology of Justin Martyr, and in this week’s installment, Justin presents us with a Messianic prophecy that somehow manages to be almost, but not quite, entirely unlike anything he says it is. And yet believers today still use that verse as proof that Jesus is the Son of God? Astonishing.
Aug 05 2012
The proof that wasn’t.
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2 comments
dailydouq
August 5, 2012 at 2:35 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Astonishing, indeed – thanks for the article. It is amazing how the “literal” facts can be squeezed and crunched into the preconception to justify whatever POV xtians wish. Too bad facts aren’t that plastic.
CJO
August 6, 2012 at 6:30 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
It was interpreted as a Messianic text by (some) ancient Jews, too. See 4Q252 from the Dead Sea Scrolls, the so-called Genesis pesher (although it’s not a pesher, really, like the DSS exegeses of the prophets, it’s more of a paraphrase and expansion).
Incidentally the poetry there is quite nice; it’s a shame people have to try to make these texts speak for their own theological concerns instead of just hearing that voice on its own terms from across all those centuries.