One of the passages that we considered in
the main article of this issue was Matthew 2:23. This passage tells us:
Matthew 2:23
"And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be
fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets. "He shall be called a
Nazarene."
For many, this verse is a cause of trouble since the
SPOKEN prophecy that the Messiah would be called a Nazarene can nowhere be
found written in the Old Testament. To solve this "difficulty", a
connection is sometimes assumed between the term "Nazarene" and
the Hebrew word "netser" that means "branch". Apart from
the fact that this connection is no more than a mere supposition, the
inconsistency of this view is also shown in that while Matthew 2:23 says that
the prophecy was uttered by "the prophets"
i.e. by a plural number of people, the word "netser" was used for
Christ only by Isaiah (Isaiah 11:1).
However, we believe that whole "problem" is
not but a problem CREATED by the fact that we do not pay attention to what we
read. Really, while the Scripture says that the prophecy was SPOKEN [Greek:
"to rethen" meaning "that which was spoken"] by the
prophets, what we understand is that the prophecy was WRITTEN [Greek: "o
gegraptai" meaning "that which stands written"] by the prophets.
However, when the text says SPOKEN means SPOKEN. Some prophecies were spoken
and not written. Some others were not spoken but only written, while some
others were both spoken and written. When we read a quotation that says
"as it is written", we will find it 100% in the Scripture, since it
is guaranteed that it is WRITTEN. However, when what is quoted is said that it
was simply SPOKEN, then we may find it written but we may also not find it
written. The Word does not guarantee that it was written. What it guarantees is
that it was SPOKEN.
There are fifteen quotations in the Bible for which we
are told that they were SPOKEN. To see whether they were both spoken and
written, or whether they were only spoken, we have to search the Scripture to
see if we can find them. A search like this shows that all the prophecies that
were spoken were also written, APART from two of them. These are:
i)
the prophecy that Jesus will be called a Nazarene. The fulfilment of this
prophecy is given in Matthew 2:23. This prophecy was only SPOKEN by the
prophets and it was latter written down by Matthew. This is also a form of the
figure of speech "hysteresis" or "subsequent narration". By
this figure "the Holy Spirit, in later and subsequent Scriptures, adds
supplementary details which were not given in the history itself; and sometimes
even historical facts, of which no mention had before been made". One of these facts of which no
mention was made before is the prophecy that the Messiah would be called a
Nazarene. This prophecy was SPOKEN by plural number of prophets. It was not
written by them but by Matthew who made it known together with its fulfilment.
ii)
Apart from Matthew 2:23, another passage that for similar reasons is a
stumbling block for many, is Matthew 27:9-10:
Matthew 27:9-10
"Then was fulfilled what was SPOKEN BY JEREMIAH the prophet, saying,
"And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of him who was
priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced and gave them for the
potter's field, as the Lord directed me"
The problem that many have with this passage is that
this quotation cannot be found anywhere in the book of Jeremiah. To "solve" this difficulty, it
has been suggested that Matthew 27:9-10 is actually a quotation from Zachariach
11:12-13 on the base that both passages speak for "thirty pieces of
silver". Apart from the great differences between these two passages, the
inconsistencies of this view are made clear by the fact that God in Matthew
27:9-10 says that the prophecy was SPOKEN BY JEREMIAH. If these verses were a
quotation from Zachariach, God instead of Jeremiah, would have told us
Zachariach. In other words, instead of telling us "Then was fulfilled what
was SPOKEN by JEREMIAH" He would have told us "Then was fulfilled
what was WRITTEN by ZACHARIACH". We believe that when God says Jeremiah He
means Jeremiah and therefore no one has the right to say that He actually means
Zachariach.
However, again the problem is not but a CREATED
problem. And it is created because we do not pay attention to what we read. The
text does not say that the prophecy was WRITTEN but that it was SPOKEN. Some
prophecies were only written and not spoken. Some others were both written and
spoken while some others were only spoken and not written. The prophecy quoted
in Matthew 27:9-10 was SPOKEN but it was NOT WRITTEN. Matthew by the figure of
speech "hysteresis" or "subsequent narration" informs us
about this prophecy long after it was SPOKEN.
Concluding all the above we can discriminate the
passages / prophecies quoted from the Old Testament in two categories: in those
who we are told that were WRITTEN and in those who we are told that were
SPOKEN. The greatest majority of the quotations given in the New Testament
belong to the first category i.e. to those who we are told that were WRITTEN.
Since we are told explicitly that these passages / prophecies were WRITTEN, it
is guaranteed that we will find them in the Old Testament. A check can prove that
there is no passage that the Word says that it is WRITTEN that cannot be found
in the Old Testament.
On the other hand, for the passages for which we are
told that were SPOKEN there is NO guarantee that we will also find them written
in the Old Testament. These passages would be found in the Old Testament only
if apart from spoken were also written. But no one can say from the outset,
that all the prophecies that were spoken were also written. From the fifteen
passages for which we are told that they were SPOKEN, the thirteen can be found
in the Old Testament which means that they were both spoken and written. The
two that cannot be found are Matthew 2:23 and Matthew 27:9-10. These prophecies
were ONLY SPOKEN. Matthew, through the figure of speech hysteresis, informs us
for their existence long after they were spoken.
Therefore, is there any real difficulty with Matthew 2:23 and 27:9-10? No, except if we CREATE one.