scholarly journals On the Interpretation of Metaphors and Similes in the Psalms: subtilitas intelligendi – subtilitas explicandi – subtilitas applicandi

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 36-47
Author(s):  
A. E. Bochkarev
Keyword(s):  
Moral Behavior ◽  
Linguistic Context ◽  
Spiritual Meaning ◽  
Subsequent Transformation ◽  
State Of Mind ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Symbolic Interpretation ◽  
The Veil ◽  
Level Of Understanding ◽  
Allegorical Interpretation

Based on the example of sacred Psalter explanations, the article examines numerous metaphorical descriptions with the intention to reconstruct the procedures and operations for extracting the spiritual meaning from the veil of the literal. According to the authoritative explanations in question, metaphors and figurative comparisons (similes) used by the psalm singer differ in their inherent meaning despite the coincidence in the semantic mechanism of transposition and the need for their subsequent transformation in interpretation. Some of them, in a poetic way, reflect David’s state of mind; others are filled with a deeper spiritual meaning. As a consequence, instructions for their interpretation become different. In the figurative-symbolic interpretation, explaining conditions for the choice of an auxiliary object, it is the nearest linguistic context that becomes an explanatory instruction; and when there is no such context it is the presumption of similarity by which X can be linked to Y in expressions like “God, the horn of my salvation” that serves this function. In the symbolic-allegorical interpretation, designed to explain metaphorical expressions at a different level of understanding, it is the presumption of spiritual meaning that becomes the instruction explaining metaphorical expressions in accordance with the rules of the Christian exegesis as a prefiguration of the New Testament history (in the typological reading), as a norm of moral behavior (in the tropological reading), and as the fulfillment of promises (in the anagogic reading). The basics for hermeneutics are implemented in the following way: subtilitas intelligendi, subtilitas explicanda, and subtilitas applicandi.

Die messiaanse interpretasie van die psalms in enkele Antiocheense en Oos- Siriese psalmkommentare

2011 ◽  
Vol 45 (2/3) ◽  
Author(s):  
H.F. Van Rooy
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Supplementary Data ◽  
Theodore Of Mopsuestia ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Psalm 110 ◽  
History Of ◽  
Psalm 22 ◽  
Allegorical Interpretation

The messianic interpretation of the psalms in a number of Antiochene and East Syriac psalm commentariesThe Antiochene exegetes interpreted the psalms against the backdrop of the history of Israel. They reconstructed a historical setting for each psalm. They reacted against the allegorical interpretation of the Alexandrian School that frequently interpreted the psalms from the context of the New Testament. This article investigates the messianic interpretation of Psalms 2 and 110, as well as the interpretation of Psalm 22, frequently regarded as messianic in non-Antiochene circles. The interpretation of these psalms in the commentaries of Diodore of Tarsus, Theodore of Mopsuestia and Išô`dâdh of Merv will be discussed, as well as the commentary of Denha-Gregorius, an abbreviated Syriac version of the commentary of Theodore. The commentaries of Diodore and Theodore on Psalm 110 are not available. The interpretation of this psalm in the Syriac commentary discussed by Vandenhoff and the commentary of Išô`dâdh of Merv, both following Antiochene exegesis, will be used for this psalm. The historical setting of the psalms is used as hermeneutical key for the interpretation of all these psalms. All the detail in a psalm is interpreted against this background, whether messianic or not. Theodore followed Diodore and expanded on him. Denha-Gregorius is an abbreviated version of Theodore, supplemented with data from the Syriac. Išô`dâdh of Merv used Theodore as his primary source, but with the same kind of supplementary data from the Syriac.

The Death of Everyone: Robert Lifton, Christian Theology and Apocalyptic Imagery

Horizons ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 306-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy Bregman
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
New Testament ◽  
Christian Theology ◽  
Nuclear War ◽  
Life And Death ◽  
Spiritual Meaning ◽  
Symbolic Immortality ◽  
Early Twentieth Century ◽  
Contemporary Life ◽  
The New Testament

AbstractThis paper explores an issue raised by psychologist Robert Lifton in The Broken Connection. Lifton believes the present threat of total extinction through nuclear war has drastically affected humanity's ability to reconnect life and death, and to make individual death meaningful. The death of everyone—as an imaginable possibility—defeats all expressions of “symbolic immortality,” affirmations of continuity and hope.How has Christian theology met this predicament? Twentieth-century history has been so menacing and overwhelming that some theologians have found in apocalyptic-eschatological imagery the most appropriate framework to encounter that history and discern its spiritual meaning. Yet this imagery, even when de-literalized, provides at best ambiguous answers. Early twentieth-century theology—Schweitzer, Case—recognized the importance of apocalyptic thought for the New Testament, but easily repudiated this for contemporary life. In contrast, later thinkers such as Cullman, Brunner, and Moltmann make extensive use of eschatological imagery. However, they face the problem raised by Lifton: how to make “hope” vivid to readers already gripped by a future of possible universal catastrophe.

scholarly journals Biblical hermeneutics as the structuralist of the poetics of "The Word of Law and Grace" of Ilarion

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Eternal Life ◽  
Biblical Hermeneutics ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The Law ◽  
Allegorical Interpretation

The article states that, for the purpose of interpreting the Biblical topos of the Law and Grace, Hilarion refers to the genre of the word. Hilarion takes first place in the title, and then in the text of the work God brings out wisdom. By law, he believes the Old Testament, which has already fulfilled its task, and Grace - the New Testament, which outlines the existence of man, his relationship with God, gives hope for eternal life. The subject of the "Word" breaks the sermon into four fragments. In the first of them, we notice the allegorical meaning of reading the Scriptures in relation to the history of mankind. The second part is devoted to the interpretation of the image of Jesus Christ, which appears as a synthesis of God and human nature. The third fragment depicts events beyond the boundary of the Bible. It is devoted to the baptism of Rus. In the fourth fragment Prince Volodymyr is glorified. Following the best traditions of Byzantine oratory prose, the author of the Word simply pours his text into quotations from the Bible and adds to them a predominantly allegorical interpretation, emphasizing that the work is not intended for proclamation, but for reading, which enabled the author to interpret the Scriptures and in the literal, and in allegorical sense. The advantage of the New Testament over the Old Testament is embodied by the author in the images of the free wife of Abraham Sarah - Grace and his servant Hagar - Law. Laconic retelling of God-inspired text, Hilarion interprets the old-czarist images, as those that represent the new covenants at the level of allusions, presented them in the form of additional parallel antithesis. The same anti-colored color is also depicted by the images of their children. Isaac was born from a free woman, which means that he represents freedom, Ishmael is from a slave, hence his image symbolizes slavery. He who receives Grace receives goodness, love, becomes the son of God, and begins to live a new life in the Holy Spirit through which the believer is through. The overcoming of the Law and the perception of Grace means, according to Hilarion, the acquisition of spiritual freedom.

Allegorical Interpretation of the Holy Scripture in Qumran Scrolls' Pesharim

2019 ◽  
pp. 163-184
Author(s):  
Илья Сергеевич Вевюрко
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Biblical Hermeneutics ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Biblical Allusions ◽  
Symbolic Content ◽  
Allegorical Interpretation

Данная статья посвящена проблеме аллегорезы как способа интерпретации Священного Писания кумранитами. Несмотря на то, что аллегорический метод интерпретации считается визитной карточкой александрийской школы с её ярко выраженным эллинистическим субстратом, мы можем заметить, что кумранская литература, возникшая главным образом в контексте эсхатологического прочтения пророческих книг, активно использует его в своих пешарим. Первоначально аллегорический метод толкования становится актуальным при условии, что все другие виды интерпретации не дают ожидаемого автором результата. Аллегорезу отличает жёсткая внутренняя логика, применяемая автором для извлечения более глубоких аспектов рассматриваемого текста. Аллегореза пешарим, опираясь на библейские аллюзии, а также цепочки смежных смыслов, ставит целью раскрытие символического содержания пророческих книг, актуализируя их в современной толкователю ситуации. При этом кумранские экзегеты используют герменевтические ходы, встречающиеся в Священном Писании (особенно в Новом Завете), что делает их тексты ценными для понимания внутренней библейской герменевтики в её первоначальном контексте. The article deals with a problem of allegoresis as a means of interpretation of the Scriptura Sacra in Qumran. Though an allegorical method is considered to be the hallmark of the Alexandrian school with its pronounced Hellenistic substrate, we can see that Qumran literature, which arose mainly in the context of eschatological reading of prophetic books, actively uses it in the pesharim. Initially, the allegorical method of interpretation becomes relevant provided that all other types of interpretation do not work as be expected by the author. Allegoresis is marked by a strong inner logic, used by the author for extracting of the more deep aspects of the text. Based on biblical allusions, as well as the chain of interchangeable related meanings, the allegoresis of pesharim sets its goal in revealing of the symbolic content of prophetic books, actualizing them in the modern interpreter’s situation. At the same time, Qumran exegetes use hermeneutical ways present in the Holy Scripture (especially in the New Testament), which makes their texts valuable for understanding the internal biblical hermeneutics in its original context.

scholarly journals Salt for the earthen oven revisited

2011 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
John J. Pilch
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Common ◽  
Symbolic Interpretation

The symbolic interpretation of the salt sayings in the New Testament (Mt 5:13; Mk 9:42–50; Lk 12:49–53; 14:34–35) is best based on the long-standing cultural practice of using salt as a catalytic agent to burn dung, the common fuel for the typical earthen oven used by peasants even to this day. Seasoning and preservation are culturally inappropriate.

scholarly journals Satanological Myth in the Coptic literature and its development

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 1007-1032
Author(s):  
Evgenia B. Smagina
Keyword(s):  
Early Christianity ◽  
Evil Spirit ◽  
Abstract Concepts ◽  
Biblical Narrative ◽  
Book Of Job ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Subsequent Transformation ◽  
Allegorical Interpretation ◽  
Further Development

The article deals with the satanic myth, its Biblical genesis and further development in Judaism and early Christianity as well as its variants in Coptic literature.  The myth is based on the story about the fall of the Supreme Angel and his subsequent  transformation into an evil spirit. Two versions of the myth are known conventionally  called “The proud man” and the “Envious man”. The first is the “legend of Lucifer” when  Satan wished to become higher than God or equal to Him and was cast down. This legend goes back to the Biblical prophets as well as the pre-Christian exegesis. The second  version describes how Satan was cast down for refusing to worship Adam. This legend  is partly rooted in the book of Job and could have developed as a result of two coexisting,  however, separate motives were found in the Jewish and early Christian exegesis. Both  variants occur in great detail in various Coptic texts, including magical ones. The Biblical  basis of the myth enlarged by various additions. Besides, there is also a version, which  comprises details from both legends. The Satanological myth, like other apocryphal legends about angels and demons based upon the Biblical narrative in Coptic literature is  developed in two ways: 1) personification of abstract concepts and properties, 2) allegorical interpretation of stories regarding Biblical characters as legends about angels or  demons.

scholarly journals The topos “revenge” in the Gothic narrative “A legend of the Nightfort”: ways of crystallisation

Lege Artis ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 90-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoia Ihina
Keyword(s):  
Implied Author ◽  
Symbolic Interpretation ◽  
The One ◽  
Allegorical Interpretation

Abstract The article explores how the meaning of the topos revenge is crystallised (accumulated and interpreted) in the gothic narrative “A legend of the Nightfort” at two planes: internal (the one concerning the narrator-narratee roles) and external (concerning the implied author-reader roles). Both planes are linked in the process of intranarrative transgression, where the first mode of crystallisation is regarded as an allegorical interpretation of revenge and the second one – as a symbolic interpretation.

Exodus

2019 ◽  
pp. 546-560
Author(s):  
Michael Graves
Keyword(s):  
Fourth Century ◽  
1 Corinthians ◽  
Augustine Of Hippo ◽  
Gregory Of Nyssa ◽  
Key Points ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Theodoret Of Cyrus ◽  
Allegorical Interpretation ◽  
The Devil ◽  
Figurative Interpretation

Christian writers of the second and third centuries adopted the figurative interpretation of the Exodus presupposed by the New Testament, adding new figural readings and articulating a theology of the Exodus as spiritual salvation. Tertullian in particular follows the lead of 1 Corinthians 10 and connects Israel’s crossing the sea to baptism. Origen creates a coherent allegorical interpretation of the entire Exodus story by filling out details in the rest of the narrative in keeping with the theme of Christian salvation. Later authors who devote significant exegetical attention to the Exodus include Gregory of Nyssa, Ephrem the Syrian, Theodoret of Cyrus, and Augustine of Hippo. Key points of discussion include the Passover, baptism through the sea, and the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart. By the fourth century, a standard Christian reading of the Exodus appears in a wide variety of sources, depicting Israel’s exodus from Egypt as a figural representation of salvation from the devil and sin, towards virtue and communion with God.

Origen's Veils: TheAskēsisof Interpretation

2014 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. 815-842
Author(s):  
Susanna Drake
Keyword(s):  
Hebrew Bible ◽  
The Body ◽  
Song Of Songs ◽  
Christian Identity ◽  
Literal Interpretation ◽  
Spiritual Meaning ◽  
The Veil ◽  
Anti Jewish ◽  
Interpretive Practices ◽  
Sexual Renunciation

In his interpretations of the books of the Hebrew Bible, written mainly in Caesarea Maritima, Origen often depicts the “letter” of scripture as a veil that covers the spiritual meaning of the text. He imagines the work of the spiritual exegete as an act of unveiling. Drawing on several biblical veils (including Moses' veil and the bride's veil in the Song of Songs), Origen constructs a hermeneutic theory that privileges a rational, spiritual, and “unveiled” interpretation of the text over a carnal, literal interpretation, which he most often associates with Jews. After examining the ancient association of veils with femininity and aidōs (shame), this article argues that Origen's consignment of Jews to a “veiled” reading functions as anti-Jewish slander insofar as it associates Jewish interpretive practices with shame, dishonor, femininity, and fleshliness. Origen's interpretation of the veil contributes to his understandings of gender, sexuality, sexual renunciation, and Christian identity. Despite Origen's rhetorical disavowal of the veil as literal, fleshly, Jewish, and feminine, a reading of his exegesis of biblical veils attests to his unrenounced desire for the “veil of the letter” and the “body” of the text.

High-resolution x-ray imaging of small copper-rich precipitates in steels

1988 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 528-529
Author(s):  
J. R. Michael ◽  
K. A. Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Thermomechanical Processing ◽  
Atom Probe ◽  
Ferrite Matrix ◽  
Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope ◽  
Probe Field ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Subsequent Transformation ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Scanning Transmission

Although copper is considered an incidental or trace element in many commercial steels, some grades contain up to 1-2 wt.% Cu for precipitation strengthening. Previous electron microscopy and atom-probe/field-ion microscopy (AP/FIM) studies indicate that the precipitation of copper from ferrite proceeds with the formation of Cu-rich bcc zones and the subsequent transformation of these zones to fcc copper particles. However, the similarity between the atomic scattering amplitudes for iron and copper and the small misfit between between Cu-rich particles and the ferrite matrix preclude the detection of small (<5 nm) Cu-rich particles by conventional transmission electron microscopy; such particles have been imaged directly only by FIM. Here results are presented whereby the Cu Kα x-ray signal was used in a dedicated scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) to image small Cu-rich particles in a steel. The capability to detect these small particles is expected to be helpful in understanding the behavior of copper in steels during thermomechanical processing and heat treatment.

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