New Testament Use of the Old Testament: A Survey of Where the Debate Currently Stands

By Michael J. Vlach www.TheologicalStudies.org

Introduction New Testament (NT) use of the Old Testament (OT) is one of the most important topics in biblical interpretation. How the NT uses the OT also continues to be a major area of discussion and debate among evangelical scholars. The roughly 250 or so quotations of the OT in the NT plus various allusions has led to a wide variety of solutions from those trying to solve the question, How does the NT use the OT? Many articles and books have been written to address this complex issue, several of them helpful. Yet the complexity of this topic and the vast number of differing solutions to the problem has led to some angst and confusion for those looking for answers on this issue. The task is daunting and there is no consensus on the proper approach. In the last few decades some articles and books have summarized the differing views on how the NT uses the OT. They have allowed students of this issue to compare the differing approaches in a side-by-side comparison. In 1985 Darrell Bock offered a two-part article, Evangelicals and the Use of the Old Testament in the New.1 Bock categorized four differing approaches that evangelicals have offered in regard to how the NT uses the OT and listed the main representatives of each approach: 1. Full Human Intent School (Walter C. Kaiser) 2. Divine IntentHuman Words School (S. Lewis Johnson, J. I. Packer, Elliott Johnson) 3. Historical Progress of Revelation and Jewish Hermeneutic School (Earl Ellis, Richard Longenecker, Walter Dunnett) 4. Canonical Approach and New Testament Priority School (Bruce Waltke) In 1986, Douglas Moo examined issues such as Jewish exegetical methods, sensus plenior, and the canonical approach in his article, The Problem of Sensus Plenior.2 With his 2002 book, Evangelical Hermeneutics: The New Versus the Old,3 Robert Thomas compared the differing

Darrell L. Bock, Part 1: Evangelicals and the Use of the Old Testament in the New. Bibliotheca Sacra 142/567 (July 1985): 209220; Part 2: Evangelicals and the Use of the Old Testament in the New. Bibliotheca Sacra 142/567 (October 1985): 30616. 2 Douglas J. Moo, The Problem of Sensus Plenior, in Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon. Eds. D. A. Carson and John D. Woodbridge (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986), 179211. 3 Robert L. Thomas, The New Testament Use of the Old Testament, in Evangelical Hermeneutics: The New Versus the Old (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2002), 24169.
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views on NT use of the OT while also offering his own approachInspired Sensus Plenior Applicationshowing how it differed from the other evangelical options. In 2008, editors Kenneth Berding and Jonathan Lunde contributed to this topic via the Zondervan Counterpoint Series with the book, Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. 4 This book offers three differing perspectives: 1. Single Meaning, Unified Referents: Accurate and Authoritative Citations of the Old Testament by the New Testament (Walter C. Kaiser, Jr.) 2. Single Meaning, Multiple Contexts and Referents: The New Testaments Legitimate, Accurate, and Multifaceted Use of the Old (Darrell L. Bock) 3. Fuller Meaning, Single Goal: A Christotelic Approach to the New Testament Use of the Old in Its First-Century Interpretive Environment (Peter Enns)5 In the attempt to keep an apples to apples comparison, the editors asked the three main contributorsKaiser, Bock, and Ennsto address five key issues that surround the NT use of the OT debate: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The legitimacy of sensus plenior. How typology is best understood. Do NT writers take into account the context of the OT passages they cite? The significance of Jewish exegetical methods for explaining NT use of the OT. Whether we replicate the exegetical and hermeneutical approaches of the NT writers.6

In 2009 Rynold Dean published, Evangelical Hermeneutics and the New Testament Use of the Old Testament.7 Dean interacted with the four approaches Bock discussed in his 1985 articles and the view of Robert Thomas. Dean then offered his own critique of each. While not a summary of differing approaches of NT use of the OT, Greg Beale and D. A. Carson offered a significant commentary on NT uses of the OT with their work, Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament.8 The last few decades, and the last ten years in particular, has brought about helpful summaries and discussions on the various approaches to how the NT uses the OT. What this article will attempt to do is offer a concise summary of the current debate. Drawing upon the summaries of these other works and adding some insights of my own I will attempt three things: (1) a summary listing and explanation of the various evangelical options for how the NT uses the

Kenneth Berding and Jonathan Lunde, eds. Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008). 5 This book did not directly address two schools discussed by Bockthe sensus plenior and the canonical approaches. These concepts were certainly addressed but they were not discussed as their own categories. 6 Ibid., 12. 7 Rynold D. Dean, Evangelical Hermeneutics and the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Iron River, WI: Veritypath Publications, 2009). 8 G. K. Beale and D. A. Carson, eds. Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2007).
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OT; (2) a listing of some objections and questions for each view; and (3) some suggestions for where discussions on this issue should go.
The Various Evangelical Approaches to NT Use of the OT

What follows is a listing and explanation of the various evangelical approaches to NT use of the OT followed by some questions and objections that have been or can be raised against them. Note that my emphasis is on the views themselves and not on the main representative(s). The views presented below involve brief summaries and, of course, brief summaries run the risk of oversimplification. The views below can have variations within them and it is not my intent to discuss the various differences that exist within each camp. 1. Single Meaning/Multiple Application (Consistent Contextual Use of the OT by the NT Approach) This view is similar to what Bock referred to as the Full Human Intent School. With this perspective the NT writers faithfully adhere to the authorial intent (which is also Gods intent) of the OT passages they cite. There is a connecting link between the meaning of the OT passages quoted and how the NT authors use the OT passages. Thus, the NT writers use the OT contextually and in accord with the authorial intent of the OT authors as discovered by historicalgrammatical hermeneutics. On the flip side, the NT writers do not use the OT non-contextually or in ways completely foreign to the intention of the OT writers. The NT writers do not add new or different meanings to OT passages or alter/transcend the original OT meanings. Those who affirm this approach often assert that there is a clear distinction between the meaning of a text and an application of that text. Meaning is one while application can be varied or many. Or in other wordsa text can have one meaning with several applications. It is not necessary for the OT author to know all the coming implications or applications of his text, but when the NT uses the OT passages these uses are consistent with the intent of the human OT authors. Also new applications are not new meanings. Those who hold this view acknowledge the confluence of the divine author (God) and the human author in the writings of Scripture but deny that there is a divine meaning that is hidden or goes beyond what the human OT author intended. What the human author intends by what he wrote is what God fully intends for him to communicate. There is no need to postulate divine meaning that goes beyond what the human author meant because what God intended to communicate can be found in the inspired human authors intent. To deny this is to add unneeded subjectivity to the interpretive process since meaning is given that cannot be reached by studying the text. Scripture involves writings and if there is a meaning beyond the writings, this brings questions concerning the nature of Scripture and opens up the Bible to needles subjective speculations. Adherents of this view claim that additional revelation from God comes in the form of later passages of Scripture in which God inspires later human authors to convey what He wants them to convey. There is often an informing or antecedent theology that later writers of Scripture draw upon. Later revelation builds upon but does not reinterpret earlier revelation. There also is no need for hidden meanings since in the progress of revelation God reveals what He wants
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known when He wants it known. Thus, this approach rejects the concept of sensus plenior in which there is added meaning beyond the meaning offered by the OT human authors. This approach also acknowledges the presence of typology in which OT persons, events, and institutions correspond to NT persons and events. The presence of typology, however, does not mean that the NT reinterprets the OT or means that the meaning of the NT becomes that of the OT. This approach also stresses the importance of corporate solidarity in which a single individual can represent many (i.e. Adam as head of unredeemed humanity; Christ as the ultimate seed of Abraham; Christ as representative of Israel, etc). In sum, the NT authors may apply the OT passages in a variety of ways, and concepts such as corporate solidarity, typology, and antecedent theology must be taken into account, but the NT authors do not quote the OT out of context or in ways inconsistent with the original meaning. Questions and Criticisms of Single Meaning Approach Those who do not hold to this Single Meaning/Multiple Application approach have often expressed their appreciation for what this view attempts to accomplish, which is a one-to-one connection between the meaning of an OT passage and how the NT uses that passage. And it has been acknowledged that this approach works in many instances. Yet critics have claimed that this approach simply does not account for all NT uses of the OT. As Bock stated, this view has too many hurdles to climb to be the most likely solution to the use of the OT in the NT.9 Another criticism of this approach is that it has the OT authors understanding more than what is probable. In his criticism of Kaiser, Berding point out that interpreters may find themselves presuming upon the conscious intention of an OT author ideas that cannot readily be shown from the immediate context to be in his mind.10 Still another criticism is that this approach turns a blind eye away from the first-century Jewish hermeneutical milieu in which pesher and midrash approaches were common. In sum, no one is denying that the NT authors at times use a contextual understanding of the OT, but there are several cases where this is not the case and this contextual approach is straining to fit these non-contextual uses into the contextual mold. 2. Human Meaning Plus Hidden Divine Meaning (or Sensus Plenior) Approach Those who hold this perspective assert that because the Bible is both a human and divine book, at times there are additional fuller/deeper meanings in OT passages intended by God but not comprehended by the human OT authors. Thus, what the human author of the OT intended in his text does not exhaust the meaning of that passage. God may embed a latent or hidden meaning in the passage that the human author was not aware of at the time of his writing. With some OT passages, therefore, human meaning + divine meaning = full meaning of an OT passage. Later NT revelation brings out the hidden divine meaning that God embedded in the OT passage.

Bock, Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament, 95. Bock is responding to Kaisers Single Meaning, Unified Referents view. 10 Kenneth Berding, Conclusion, in Three Views, 24142.
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This approach does not deny the importance of the human authorial intent as discovered by grammatical-historical hermeneutics and often sees it as the anchor of meaning. Nor does it see Gods hidden meaning as contradicting the human meaning. J. I. Packer stated: The point here is that the sensus plenior which texts acquire in their wider biblical context remains an extrapolation on the grammatico-historical plane, not a new projection on to the plane of allegory. And, though God may have more to say to us from each text than its human writer had in mind, Gods meaning is never less than his. What he means, God means.11 Questions and Criticisms of Sensus Plenior Approach Many have been attracted to this approach because it appears to explain how the NT writers can appeal to the OT in ways that appear to go beyond the human authors intention in the OT. Yet several criticisms of the sensus plenior approach have been voiced. First, some have argued that if there is a deeper and fuller meaning behind OT texts does this not relegate the human authors of the OT to a secondary level, or perhaps, as Kaiser argues, a nuisance for getting at the really deep things of God.12 A second objection is that these alleged deeper meanings are not really Scripture. Bruce Vawter stated, If, as in scholastic definitions, Scripture is the conscriptio [writing together] of God and man, does not the acceptance of a sensus plenior deprive this alleged scriptural sense of one of its essential elements, to the extent that logically it cannot be called scriptural at all?13 Picking up on this point Kasier asks, if the deeper meaning was one that was not located in the words, sentences, and paragraphs of the text, then it was not Scripture, which in the Greek is called graphe, writing (i.e. that which stands written in the text)!14 A third objection concerns the original OT writers and audiences. Were they left out of the deeper meanings? Did they possess a lesser revelation? A fourth objection is the charge of eisegesisreading backwards from the NT to the OT and giving new meanings to the OT that are not discoverable by exegesis.15 A fifth objection is that sensus plenior would largely remove apologetic value from the Bible. How could the early Christians defend the unity of the testaments if the alleged connections between the two appeared arbitrary and contrived by the New Testament writers? 3. Contemporary Judaism/Second Temple Judaism (NT Writers Used Jewish Interpretive Principles of the Day Approach) With this approach it is believed that the NT authors were not driven by faithfulness to historical-grammatical hermeneutics but often relied upon interpretive methods of the period of

J. I. Packer, Biblical Authority, Hermeneutics, and Inerrancy, in Jerusalem and Athens: Critical Discussions on the Philosophy and Apologetics of Cornelius Van Til, ed. E. R. Geehan (Nutley, N.J.: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1977), 14748. 12 Kaiser, Single Meaning, Unified Referents, in Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament, 49. 13 Bruce Vawter, Biblical Inspiration (Theological Resources; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1972), 115. 14 Kaiser, Single Meaning, Unified Referents, in Three Views, 49. 15 Kaiser makes this point in Single Meaning, Unified Referents, 51.
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Second Temple Judaism when understanding the OT. As Richard Longenecker stated, The Jewish roots of Christianity make it a priori likely that the exegetical procedures of the New Testament would resemble, at least to some extent, those of Judaism of the time.16 This includes the use of midrash, pesher, and allegory which are non-contextual in nature. The Bible student must keep in mind that the writers of the NT were not bound by modern conceptions of how the OT should be used. Instead they used the OT to support their understanding that Jesus was the Messiah and the fulfillment of the OT. According to Peter Enns, a study of how the NT writers use the OT shows that the NT authors engagement of their Scripture was not directed by grammatical-historical principles. Thus, there is often a disconnect between what an OT passage means in its context and how it is employed by NT writers.17 Key to this approach is the belief that the NT writers interpreted the relationship between the testaments in light of the coming of Jesus Christ and then used Jesus to read meaning back into the OT. Thus, Jesus is the lens through which the OT should be understood. The NT authors interpreted the OT through a Christological or Christotelic lens. If Christ is the goal of Scripture then what came before Him can now be understood in light of Him. For the NT writers, the concern was not with adhering faithfully to the authorial intents of the OT writers but understanding these passages in light of the Christ-event even if this meant using the OT non-contextually according to modern standards. Adherents of this view claim that modern interpreters often miss what the NT writers were doing because they are expecting the NT authors to operate according to the same interpretive principles that moderns use. But the NT writers were not operating according our conventions but those of their day. Thus, noncontextual uses of the OT are legitimate because that is how the Jewish community interpreted the OT back then. Richard Longenecker and Peter Enns have defended this perspective. Questions and Criticisms of the Contemporary Judaism Approach One objection against the contemporary Judaism approach involves why so much emphasis is given to the Jewish interpretive practices of the day? Did not Jesus often correct the false understandings of the Jewish religious leaders with the correct view of the OT? In addition, G. K. Beale has offered a serious challenge to the claim that the NT writers were often using the OT non-contextually with midrashic exegesis. He says, Our starting point is to observe that it is not at all clear that non-contextual midrashic exegesis was as central to earlier Pharisaic and Qumran exegesis as is suggested by scholars . . .18 He then offers two reasons:

Richard N. Longenecker, Biblical Exegesis in the Apostolic Period (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1975, 1999), 186. 17 Peter Enns, Fuller Meaning, Single Goal, in Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament, 174. 18 G. K. Beale, Did Jesus and His Followers Preach the Right Doctrine from the Wrong Texts? An Examination of the Presuppositions of Jesus and The Apostles Exegetical Method, in The Right Doctrine from the Wrong Texts?: Essays on the Use of the Old Testament in the New, ed. G. K. Beale (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1994), 388.
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First, it may not be appropriate to speak of a non-contextual rabbinic method in the preA.D. 70 setting, since most examples come from after A.D. 70 and those which can be dated with probability that do not appear to reflect such an atomistic approach. Second, concern for contextual exegesis is found not uncharacteristically both in Qumran and in Jewish apocalyptic.19 Thus, Beale is challenging the widely held belief that pre-A.D. 70 rabbinic methods were noncontextual in nature. Beale appeals to the work of D. Instone Brewer20 who identified the exegetical examples of purported pre-A.D. 70 proto-rabbinic exegesis. According to Beale, Brewer concluded that while these Jewish exegetes may not have always succeeded, they attempted to interpret the Old Testament according to its context, and they never supplanted the primary meaning by a secondary or allegorical one.21 This shows an early concern for context to varying significant degrees which previously has not been sufficiently acknowledged.22 If Beale is correct in his analysis this has far-reaching implications for the argument of those who believe that early Christian exegetes were influenced by a prevalent atomistic Jewish hermeneutic.23 In fact, this analysis may put the validity of the contemporary Judaism approach into question. 4. Canonical Interpretation (Broader Canon as Basis for Understanding the OT Approach) The canonical approach asserts that the broader canon of the Bible should be the basis for understanding earlier passages of Scripture. Thus, when understanding the OT, the clearer revelation of the NT is the place to start, not the OT passages themselves. The OT texts intention became deeper and clearer as the parameters of the canon were expanded. Older texts in the Bible underwent a progressive perception of meaning as they became part of a growing canonical literature. Or as Douglas Moo comments when defining this view, any specific biblical text can legitimately be interpreted in light of its ultimate literary contextthe whole canon, which receives its unity from the single divine author of the whole.24 Later portions of Scripture (i.e. NT) inform what earlier portions of Scripture (i.e. OT) mean. Bruce Waltke states, The Christian doctrine of the plenary inspiration of Scripture demands that we allow the Author to tell us at a later time more precisely what he meant in his earlier statements.25 Thus, the NT has priority in unpacking the meaning of the OT. Waltke argues for the priority of New Testament interpretation when he declared that the classical rule,

Ibid., 388. D. Instone Brewer, The Hermeneutical Method of Early Judaism and Paul, [published as Techniques and Assumptions in Jewish Exegesis before 70 C.E. (Tbingen: Mohr [Paul Siebeck], 1992.]. 21 Beale, Did Jesus and His Followers Preach the Right Doctrine from the Wrong Texts? An Examination of the Presuppositions of Jesus and The Apostles Exegetical Method, 388, n. 2. 22 Ibid. 23 Ibid., 388. 24 Douglas J. Moo, The Problem of Sensus Plenior, in Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon, 205. 25 Bruce K. Waltke, Is it Right to Read the New Testament into the Old? Christianity Today (September 2, 1983): 77.
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the New interprets the Oldshould be accepted by all Christian theologians.26 This perspective makes much of taking into account the meaning of Scripture as a whole and the analogia fidei. Waltke, though, claims that this approach does not embrace the concepts of sensus plenior or reinterpretation. This approach is similar to sensus plenior in that both methods depend on further revelation to find the full meaning of an earlier text. But the distinction from it lies in this: whereas the supposed sensus plenior depends exclusively on further revelation and may allow a reinterpretation of the prophecy, the canonical process approach combines further revelation with the sharpening focus of history itself and disallows the possibility of reinterpretation.27 With the canonical approach, the meaning of OT texts is not found primarily in the historical-grammatical contexts of the OT passages themselves. Instead, the meaning of these passages is found in the growing canon that informs what came earlier. As God inspires the OT authors to write what they did He knows what the ultimate meaning of their words will mean even though they do not. But this is not hidden meaning. Instead, added meaning to earlier texts takes place as the canon takes shape.28 The end result, though, is that the canon as a whole is needed to understand what earlier portions of Scripture really mean. Questions and Criticisms of Canonical Approach The canonical approach is favored by many. Some like this perspective since it seems correct that later passages of the canon should inform what earlier passages mean. But one criticism of this perspective is similar to that posed to the sensus plenior approach, namely, that it leaves the original writers and readers of the OT prophecies and promises unaware of the true meaning of what God revealed. Again, it can be asked, under the canonical approach in what sense is OT revelation actually a revelation to the original writers and readers? Is it the case that what is really important to understand comes only for those who live hundreds of years later? Another objection of the canonical view concerns the possibility that the parameters of the canon are not transcending the OT prophetic expectations with a fuller meaning but instead are affirming them. When one reads Waltkes writings, for instance, much is made of national and physical promises of the OT being transcended by spiritual realities. For instance, Waltke claims that in the NT the kingdoms character is heavenly and spiritual, not earthly and political.29 But is the physical/national (OT) to spiritual (NT) paradigm biblical or is it a false dichotomy that wrongly pits physical/national entities against spiritual entities? Some claim that national and physical entities still have a place in NT theology. Jesus and the apostles appear to affirm the future of national Israel (see Matt 19:28; 23:37-39; Acts 1:6; Rom 11:26). The earth and Jerusalem still have prophetic significance (see Matt 5:6; Luke 21:24; Rom 8:1924). Temples still have a place in NT prophetic sections (see Matt 24:15; Rom 9:4; 2 Thess 2:4).

Bruce K. Waltke, Kingdom Promises as Spiritual, in Continuity and Discontinuity: Perspectives on the Relationship Between the Old and New Testaments, ed. John S. Feinberg (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 1988), 264. 27 Waltke, Kingdom Promises as Spiritual, 284. 28 See Moo, 206. 29 Waltke, Kingdom Promises as Spiritual, 270.
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Cannot individual spiritual salvation exist alongside corporate salvation that involves Israel (see Rom 11:26) and nations (see Rev 21:24, 26; 22:2)? It will be interesting to see how the canonical approach fares in light of the growing acceptance of a New Creation Model in which Gods purposes for His creation include both physical/national matters and spiritual matters.30 5. Inspired Sensus Plenior Application (Inspired Subjectivity Approach) This approach, which Robert Thomas calls, Inspired Sensus Plenior Application (ISPA), asserts that OT passages have only one meaning as discovered by historical-grammatical hermeneutics, but the inspired NT authors sometimes applied OT passages to present events and circumstances in ways entirely different from the original meaning of the OT passages. Thus, the NT writers subjectively applied OT passages in non-literal ways to convey new revelation that went beyond what the OT authors intended or knew. This inspired subjectivity method, however, was limited to the NT writers because they operated under inspiration and is not allowable for other Christians since they are not operating under inspiration. In promoting this view Robert Thomas states: In such cases, New Testament writers applied Old Testament texts to situations entirely different from what was envisioned in the corresponding Old Testament contexts. The New Testament writers disregarded the main thrust of grammatical-historical meaning of the Old Testament passages and applied those passages in different ways to suit different points they were making. They usually maintained some connecting link in thought to the Old Testament passages, but the literal Old Testament meanings are absent from the quotation.31 Clearly the New Testament sometimes applies Old Testament passages in a way that gives an additional dimension beyond their grammatical-historical meaning. This does not cancel the grammatical-historical meaning of the Old Testament; it is simply an application of the Old Testament passages beyond its original meaning, the authority for which application is the New Testament passage.32 Questions have been raised about the ISPA view as well. Rynold Dean claims that Thomas may have injected some confusion into the debate by using the term sensus plenior in a way that is different from how most scholars understand the term.33 Most scholars operate under Raymond Browns definition which includes the idea that God imbeds hidden meaning in the OT passages.34 So even though the OT writers do not understand this hidden meaning, it is

A new creation model is in contrast to a spiritual vision model which holds that Gods primary purposes are mostly spiritual as opposed to physical. For more on the contrast between the new creation model and the spiritual vision model see Craig A. Blaising, Premillennialism, in Three Views on the Millennium and Beyond, ed. Darrell L. Bock (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1999), 16074. 31 Robert L. Thomas, Evangelical Hermeneutics: the New Versus the Old (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2002), 247. 32 Thomas, 251. 33 Dean says, The problem stems from the fact that Thomas has chosen to use words that have a relatively established meaning in hermeneutical circles, but in ways that differ from their normally accepted use in the field. Evangelical Hermeneutics and the New Testament Use of the Old Testament, 173. 34 Raymond E. Brown, The Sensus Plenior of Sacred Scripture (Baltimore, MD: St. Marys Univ. Press, 1955), 92. Browns definition is The sensus plenior is that additional, deeper meaning, intended by God, but not
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there nonetheless waiting to be unearthed by NT revelation. But Thomas denies that there is a hidden meaning in OT passages for this would violate the principle of single meaning. God knows that later in NT times these passages will be used in different ways but there is no sensus plenior when an OT passage is originally written. Second, Thomas asserts that New Testament writers applied Old Testament texts to situations entirely different from what was envisioned in the corresponding Old Testament contexts. In doing so he claims that NT writers are using the OT to make points that are totally divorced from the intent of the OT authors. A question could be raised, though, as to why the NT authors would appeal to OT texts to make points that have nothing to do with the OT passages. Does not the appeal to something previous (in this case the OT) mean that there must be some connection with what is appealed to? If not, then why is an appeal to the OT even made? Why dont the inspired apostles simply give new revelation without quoting the OT texts? 6. Historical-Exegetical and Theological-Canonical (Eclectic Approach) This approach takes a some-of-the-above approach and believes that points from the various methods are needed to address the complexity of the NT use of the OT issue. Darrell Bock indicated an affinity to this way of thinking when he stated: The author [Bock] also hopes that in being rather eclectic with the various approaches, the wheat has been successfully retained from each view while the chaff has been left behind.35 Bock said this in regard to the four positions he explained in his two articles from 1985. Bock argues that much of the debate on the NT use of the OT issue has been historical/exegetical vs. theological/canonical. But for him this either/or approach is unnecessary when perhaps a both/and paradigm is better.36 Bock has indentified his approach as Single Meaning, Multiple Contexts and Referents.37 For Bock, the original context of an OT passage plays a key role for setting parameters of how the text is used, but it is not always the only factor.38 It appears for Bock that there is a stable meaning found in the OT context that is the foundation of meaning for that passage, but earlier passages become clearer as later revelation is given. There can also be new referents as new contexts and revelation unfolds.39 He argues, then, that there can be two ways of reading the Biblehistorical-exegetical and theologicalcanonical.40 Thus, there should be a both/and and not an either/or approach to the NT use of the OT issue. The exegetical should not be pitted against the theological-canonical since both can be harmonized.41

clearly intended by the human author, which is seen to exist in the words of a biblical text (or group of texts, or even a whole book) when they are studied in the light of further revelation or development in the understanding of revelation. 35 Darrell L. Bock, Evangelicals and the Use of the Old Testament in the New, Part 2 Bibliotheca Sacra 142 (Oct. 1985): 30219. 36 Bock, Single Meaning, Multiple Contexts and Referents, in Three Views, 115. 37 This is the title of his view given in Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. See pp. 10551. 38 Bock, Single Meaning, Multiple Contexts and Referents, 106. 39 Ibid., 114. 40 Ibid. 41 Ibid., 115.

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This mediating approach is viewed as a strength by some. Commenting on Bocks article in comparison with that of Kaiser and Peter Enns, Craig Blomberg stated, As if often the case with theologically mediating viewpoints, Bock appears to have the best of this debate.42 Enns on the other hand says Bocks approach shows marks of an inconsistent analysis.43 7. NT Reinterpretation of OT (NT Priority Over OT Approach) This last approach is more difficult to categorize and perhaps a case could be made that this is not a distinct category of NT use of the OT. There are no instances this author is aware of where someone openly identifies with it. So identifying this as a distinct approach is somewhat tenuous. It may also be possible that this view could be part of another approach.44 Yet sometimes some will use reinterpretation language to describe how the NT writers use the OT. It is claimed that the Christ-event now means that OT passages and themes about physical and national matters have been reinterpreted to refer to greater spiritual realities and truths now being revealed in the NT. Thus, the NT is viewed as the divine interpreter and reinterpreter of the OT and the lens through which the OT must be viewed. One should not start with the OT to understand the OT; one must start with the NT to understand the OT. For instance, George Ladd stated: The Old Testament must be interpreted by the New Testament. In principle it is quite possible that the prophecies addressed originally to literal Israel describing physical blessings have their fulfillment exclusively in the spiritual blessings enjoyed by the church. It is also possible that the Old Testament expectation of a kingdom on earth could be reinterpreted by the New Testament altogether of blessings in the spiritual realm.45 This emphasis on starting with the NT to understand the OT is not new to this view and we have seen it with the sensus plenior, contemporary Judaism, and canonical approaches. This perspective has been criticized as well. Some have argued that it if the New Testament reinterprets the Old Testament or seriously modifies or transcends its promises and covenants, one may rightly wonder in what sense the Old Testament revelations were actually revelations in good faith to the original readers of the promises. In response to George Ladds declaration that the New Testament reinterprets the Old Testament, Paul Feinberg asks, If Ladd is correct that the NT reinterprets the OT, his hermeneutic does raise some serious questions. How can the

Craig Blomberg, Three Views on the NT Use of the OTa review, http://www.bethinking.org/resources/three-views-on-the-nt-use-of-the-ot---a-review.htm. Accessed Nov 10, 2011. 43 Peter Enns, Response to Bock, in Three Views, 160. 44 The two most likely candidates would be the sensus plenior and canonical approaches. Bruce Waltke, though, explicitly denies that reinterpretation is part of the canonical approach although it seems from my perspective that reinterpretation may be taking place within the canonical view. 45 George E. Ladd, Revelation 20 and the Millennium, Review and Expositor 57 (1960): 167. Emphasis mine. Kim Riddlebarger also states: But eschatological themes are reinterpreted in the New Testament, where we are told these Old Testament images are types and shadows of the glorious realities that are fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Kim Riddlebarger, A Case for Amillennialism: Understanding the End Times (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2003), 37. Emphasis mine. Stephen Sizer: Jesus and the apostles reinterpreted the Old Testament. Stephen Sizer, Zions Christian Soldiers: The Bible, Israel and the Church (Nottingham, England: InterVarsity, 2008), 36. Emphasis mine. It should be noted that most of these reinterpret quotes are done in the context of eschatology discussions and not theory of hermeneutics.
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integrity of the OT text be maintained? In what sense can the OT really be called a revelation in its original meaning?46 David L. Turner says, If NT reinterpretation reverses, cancels, or seriously modifies OT promises to Israel, one wonders how to define the word progressive. Gods faithfulness to His promises to Israel must also be explained.47 Turner also points out that this approach comes close to violating New Testament statements that uphold the truth claims of the Old Testament: It appears exceedingly doubtful that the NT reinterprets the OT. . . . This comes perilously close to conflicting with such NT passages as Matt 5:18 and John 10:35b.48 Walter Kaiser says Christians misjudge the revelation of God if we have a theory of interpretation which says the most recent revelation of God is to be preferred or substituted for that which came earlier.49 He also argues that the assertion that the New Testament must be the guide for interpreting the Old Testament comes dangerously close to the idea that there is a canon within the canon. He states, But why would a rule be imposed on the revelation of God that demands that the Old Testament passages may not become the basis for giving primary direction on any doctrines or truths that have relevancy for New Testament times? This is only to argue in the end for a canon within a canon.50 Issues for Further Study Many issues are interconnected with the complex issue of NT use of the OT. Below are some issues that I think need more attention in the future. Has the Case for Non-Contextual Use of the OT been Exaggerated? It appears that many treatments of NT use of the OT focus upon the hard cases or the passages that seem to be the biggest challenge to contextual usage of the OT. For example, Matt 2:15/Hos 11:1; Matt 2:17-18/ Jer 31:15; Gal 3:16 (Jesus as seed); etc. But in focusing on the hard cases is it possible that we are giving the impression that the NT often or primarily uses the OT non-contextually when that really is not the case? Of the 200+ quotations of the OT in the NT, it appears that many of these can be understood contextually. Beale has observed that noncontextual uses of the OT are actually quite rare: It is often claimed that an inductive study of the New Testament reveals a predominately non-contextual exegetical method. But, in fact, of all the many Old Testament citations and allusions found in the New Testament, only a very few plausible examples of noncontextual usage have been noted by critics.51

46

Paul Feinberg, Hermeneutics of Discontinuity, in Continuity and Discontinuity, 116. Emphasis in

original. David L. Turner, The Continuity of Scripture and Eschatology: Key Hermeneutical Issues, Grace Theological Journal 6:2 (1985): 281. 48 Turner, The Continuity of Scripture and Eschatology, 282. 49 Walter C. Kaiser Jr., The Land of Israel and the Future Return (Zechariah 10:612), in Israel, the Land and the People: An Evangelical Affirmation of Gods Promises, ed. H. Wayne House (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1998), 222. 50 Kaiser, The Land of Israel and the Future Return (Zechariah 10:612), 219. 51 Ibid., 38889.
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Beale lists approximately a dozen cases where alleged non-contextual uses of the OT may occur but then adds, it is by no means certain that even these examples are actually noncontextual. A number of scholars have offered viable and even persuasive explanations of how they could well be cases of contextual exegesis.52 He also points out that even if it can be established that there are examples of non-contextual hermeneutics, it does not necessarily follow that they are truly representative of a wider hermeneutical pattern in the New Testament. They may be exceptional rather than typical.53 In fact, to claim that the NT writers used the OT in mostly non-contextual ways is a substantial overstatement.54 Beales point needs to be considered. If it can be shown that most cases of NT use of the OT are contextual, should not this impact the significance we give to the harder cases? Can Some of the Views be Harmonized? When one examines a complex issue in which there are various views and perspectives it may be helpful to consider whether there can be a harmonization of some of the views to some degree? Are they all mutually exclusive or can some middle ground be found? Bock believes there is by arguing for both historical-exegetical and theological-canonical approaches. Interestingly, Walter Kaiser, who argues strongly for a single meaning and contextual use of the OT, agreed with Bocks main points in the Three Views book. Kaiser explicitly agreed with Bock on the point that the NT can develop and complement what the OT meant so long as it does not end up denying what the OT text affirmed.55 Waltke openly identifies with the canonical approach while Bock also uses a theological-canonical approach along with a historical-exegetical method. It appears that on the point that later revelation clarifies earlier revelation both would have some similarities. It should be noted, though, that both scholars come to vastly different theological conclusions. Waltke believes that OT discussions of physical and national blessings are interpreted by the NT to mean spiritual blessings. The OT is about an earthly kingdom but the NT is about a spiritual kingdom. Bock on the other hand holds believes that the physical blessings to national Israel will be fulfilled. Thus, one issue to examine will be whether a canonical approach can rightly work alongside and in addition to a historical-grammatical approach to the OT. As of now it appears that there are two approaches that adopt a canonical approach: (1) Canonical but not historicalgrammatical; and (2) Canonical in addition to historical-grammatical. Can Typology be Understood within the Context of Historical-Grammatical Hermeneutics? Most of the contributors to this debate are agreed that there are types in the OT that prefigure and correspond to greater NT realities. For example, it appears that Matthew is making a correspondence between Israel as Gods son at the time of the Exodus and Jesus as Gods Son in Matt 2:15 (compare with Hos 11:1). What is not agreed upon, however, is whether typology is consistent with contextual or historical-grammatical hermeneutics? Some have claimed that

Beale, Did Jesus and His Followers Preach the Right Doctrine from the Wrong Texts? An Examination of the Presuppositions of Jesus and The Apostles Exegetical Method, 389. 53 Ibid. 54 Ibid., 398. 55 Kaiser, Response to Bock, in Three Views, 155.
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typology is not historical-grammatical hermeneutics while others say the recognition of types fits within a historical-grammatical hermeneutic. How Much about Jesus Could be Known from the OT? The NT obviously links Jesus with what the OT predicted. But is it doing it from a contextual understanding of the OT or not? Dan McCartney argues that Christs death and resurrection cannot be found solely from a grammatical-historical approach to the OT: I believe that, as Jesus says in Luke 24, the Old Testament actually does speak of Christs death and resurrection and the resultant missionary people of God, but those things cannot be found purely by means of a grammatical-historical analysis of the Old Testament itself. Yet we must do as the apostles did and read the whole Old Testament, not just those texts the New Testament writers happened to cite, through the lens of the fulfilment of the story in Christ.56 Thus, one important issue is how much the OT tells us about the details of Christs life and ministry. The more connection that can be found helps the case for a contextual understanding of the OT. Less connection means that the NT authors may be interpreting the OT mostly through the lens of the Christ-event and not relying upon the contexts of the OT passages. Is it Correct to Assume that Since the Bible is both a Divine and Human Book that There Must Be Hidden Meanings Not Known to the Human Authors of the OT? This question is at the heart of the sensus plenior or fuller meaning issue. Many assert that since the Bible is both human and divine there must be hidden meanings embedded in the OT texts by God that the human OT authors were not aware. All appear agreed that God understands the full implications and applications of the OT texts better than the human OT authors but does this necessarily mean there has to be hidden meanings that the OT author does not have access to? If so, how does this affect our understanding of Scripture if there is a level of meaning not found in texts? Were the NT Writers Consciously Relying Upon Their Inspiration to Interpret the OT? Scripture is clear that the NT writers were inspired. But were the NT writers consciously relying upon their inspiration to make alleged non-contextual uses of the OT? Did they think to themselves, Im inspired so I can use these OT passages non-contextually while others cannot? This is an issue that is rarely addressed but it is significant. Some take for granted that this is the case, but is this necessarily so? This has implications for whether the methods of the NT writers can be reproduced by all Christians or not.

Dan G. McCartney, Should We Employ the Hermeneutics of the New Testament Writers? http://www.bible-researcher.com/mccartney1.html. Accessed Nov 9, 2011.
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Conclusion NT use of the OT continues to be an important yet controversial topic in biblical interpretation. I have not attempted to solve the difficult issues but I have tried to point out the various approaches to this issue and the questions and objections facing each view as a basis for understanding the issues and to point to areas where fruitful discussion on this topic can take place.

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