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113-118) or Greater (cxx.—cxxxvi.) or Daily Hallel (cxlvi.—cl.). Comp. Gratz , Monatschrift f. Gesch. u. Wissenschaft d. Judenthums 1878, 217 ff.; 1879, 193 ff.

ii. The Mode of Citation

The quotations are without exception made anonymously. There is no mention anywhere of the name of the writer (Heb. 4:7 is no exception to the rule).

God is presented as the speaker through the person of the prophet, except in the one place where He is directly addressed (2:6 ff. diemartuvrato dev pouv ti" ); e.g.,

Heb. 1:5 tivni ga;r ei\pen (sc. oJ qeov" ) (Ps. 2:7); 1:7 levgei (Ps. 104:4); 13 ei[rhken (Ps. 110:1); v. 5 oJ lalhvsa" pro;" aujtovn (Ps. 2:7).

In two places the words are attributed to Christ. Heb. 2:11, 13 oujk ejpaiscuvnetai ajdelfou;" aujtou;" kalei'n levgwn (Ps. 22:22); 10:5 ff. eijsercovmeno" eij" to;n kovsmon levgei ... tovte ei[rhken (Ps. 40:6 ff.).

In two other places the Holy Spirit specially is named as the speaker: Heb. 3:7 ff. kaqw;" levgei to; pneu'ma to; a{gion (Ps. 95:7 ff.); 10:15 marturei' hJmi'n kai; to; pneu'ma to; a{gion (Jer. 31:31 ff.). Comp. 9:8 tou'to dhlou'nto" tou' pneuvmato" tou' aJgivou .

But it is worthy of notice that in each of these two cases the words are also quoted as the words of God (Heb. 4:7; 8:8).

This assignment of the written word to God, as the Inspirer of the message, is most remarkable when the words spoken by the prophet in his own person are treated as divine words, as words spoken by Moses:

Heb. 1:6 (Deut. 32:43); Heb. 4:4; comp. Heb. 13:5, 7, 8 (Gen. 2:2); Heb. 10:30 (Deut. 32:36); and by Isaiah:

Heb. 2:13 (Is. 8:17 f.). Compare also Heb. 13:5 (Deut. 31:6). Generally it must be observed that no difference is made between the word spoken and the word written. For us and for all ages the record is the voice of God.

The record is the voice of God; and as a necessary consequence the record is itself living. It is not a book merely. It has a vital connexion with our circumstances and must be considered in connexion with them. The constant use of the present tense in quotations emphasises this truth:

Heb. 2:11 oujk ejpaiscuvnetai ... kalei'n, levgwn .

Heb. 3:7 kaqw;" levgei to; pneu'ma to; a{gion . Heb. 12:5 h{ti" uJmi'n ... dialevgetai .

Comp. Heb. 12:26 ejphvggeltai levgwn .

There is nothing really parallel to this general mode of quotation in the other books of the N.T. Where the word levgei occurs elsewhere, it is for the most part combined either with the name of the prophet or with ‘Scripture’: e.g.,

Rom. 10:16 jHsaiva" levgei . Rom. 10:19 Mwush'" levgei .


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