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Luther's Hermeneutical “Shift”

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 June 2011

John J. Pilch O.F.M.
Affiliation:
Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisc. 53233

Abstract

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Type
Notes and Observations
Copyright
Copyright © President and Fellows of Harvard College 1970

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References

1 Old Testament Promissio and Luther's New Hermeneutic, HTR 60 (1967), 145–61CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

2 Ibid., 148.

3 Ibid., 149.

4 From Shadow to Promise. Old Testament Interpretation from Augustine to the Young Luther (Cambridge, 1969)Google Scholar.

5 Ibid., 166.

6 Ibid., 173–75.

7 Art. cit., 151; op. cit., 169.

8 WA 3,604.1: “Devota peticio Sanctorum veteris legis: pro adventu Christi …”; 3,604.26: “Israel: Loquitur de tota Ecclesia constituta ex veteri et novo populo, que est vinea Christi Esa. 5 Matth. xx”; 3,604.11: “manifestare in humanitate assumpta”; and 3,604.14: “et vent in mundum per carnem.”

9 WA 3,625.24–26: “Secundum literam est vox prophete ad Deum pro populo carnali Israel. Sed in spiritu est vox Ecclesie ad Christum Dominum contra Iudeos primum ac gentes.”

10 WA 3,639.35–37: “Licet iste psalmus anagogice exponatur de suspirio sanctorum ad eternam domum Dei, tamen potest primaria intelligi de populo legali vel humana natura ad Ecclesiam Christi suspirante. Ideo de utroque simul nos loquemur.”

11 WA 3,369.30–32: “Est igitur vox populi fidelis ad Christum Dominum de futura Ecclesia petentis ut veniat. Ideo verba debent simul indicative et optative accipi, quod simul orat et prophetat.”

12 WA 4,50.19–22: “Deplorat miseriam humane nature, ut omnes revocet ad veritatem, maxime autem ne populus Israel promissiones Dei in hac vita expectaret carnaliter, quando audit, quod etiam prospera et bona huius mundi ex ira Dei abbreviata sunt hominibus.”

13 Art. cit., 152; op. cit., 169f.

14 WA 4,144.11: “Scribantur, pro ‘scribentur’, i.e. narrabuntur (cf. Ps. 86. ‘dominus narrabit in scripturis populorum.’) haec in generatione altera, que est generatio ndelium in tempore gratie. Nam in generatione priore veteris legis non scribebantur nee narrabantur, sed prophetabantur futura, ut narrarentur, ut Ro. 1 ‘Euangelium, quod promiserat ante per prophetas suos. etc’ ”

15 Cf.:

Ps. 104 (105) in WA 4,192.1–2: “Laus veteris synagogae super beneficiis sibi a deo exhibitis epilogum recitantis.” Yet note that a few lines later (32–36) Luther again reverts to the traditional fourfold sense of scripture.

Ps. 105 (106) in WA 4,197.28–30: “Iste psalmus est confessio peccatorum in persona totius populi Israel et aggravatio eorundem per commemorationem beneficiorum Dei ad provocandam misericordiam in Christo venturo mittendam.” But notice in line 26 that Luther hastens to give a mystical sense to this psalm as well.

Ps. 113 (114–115) in WA 4,257.5–6: “Laus fidelis synagogae super exitu de Aegypto, qui mystice conversio populorum ad fidem Christi est.”

Ps. 122 (123) in WA 4,407.32–36: “Est autem iterum petitio adventus Christi in camera. Verumtamen, quia omnis Scriptura, que de adventu Christi in carnem loquitur, potest optime, immo debet intelligi de adventu eiusdem spirituali per gratiam: ideo iste psalmus moraliter est petitio cuiuscunque gratie et pro necessitate cuiuslibet defectus spiritualis.”

16 WA 3,13.6–7: “Omnis prophetia et omnis propheta de Christo domino debet intelligi, nisi ubi manifestis verbis appareat de alio loqui.”

17 WA 40/1435.26–32 and 436,13–15: “Sed quare Christus punitur? An non ideo, quia peccatum habet et gerit? Quod autem peccatum habeat Christus testa-tur etiam Spiritus sanctus in Psalm. … In his Psalmis loquitur Spiritus sanctus in persona Christi et manifestis verbis testatur eum peccasse sive peccata habere. Sunt tamen haec testimonia Psalmorum voces non innocentis, sed patientis Christi qui personam omnium peccatorum gerendam suscepit ideoque reus factus est peccatorum totius mundi.”