Isaiah in Luke JAMES A, SANDERS Profesor of Intrtetamental and Biblical Studves(STC), Professor of Reigron (GS) Claremont Theological Sehool Luke, seeped i the Old Testament, makes clear that tounderstand what God was domg in Chast, ‘one has o know Senpture, and especially the Book of aish Isa1aHs crTED, alluded to, or otherwise appears in the New Testament more than any other Old Testament book.? Five hundred and ninety references, ex: plicit or otherwise, from sixty-three chapters of Isaiah are found in twenty three New Testament books (289 from Isaiah 1 89, 240 from chaps 40—55; 111 from 56—66).* gr, Tn and the New Texampes,_Rewew Expontor 65 499 70 (196), "Hamuning. “The Nor Teaament Use of Isiah” Sowheeat ural of Th 081968) Unng she spare nds inte 2h edition 9 the Nese Aland AT. ‘ne es that Tnlah ors the hardest the Book of Revelation wath tome 13 oecusrnces, ‘Pheer ctatons or allusons New would be Machew woh 87 sceartence: then Lake wb 18 Romans with 4, Acts wih 38, Join wih 87- Mase wh 28 and Hebrews wth 28"Suh ace fas hae ited value andthe ataden shouldbe cat Crawing to tnanyeoncisons mth Oncol the sags ede yen be Sse be emplanoncfsenly samt find uefelSenpeute dex forthe NT Se Henry MShivesfonding the Old Testament he ‘New (Phladelphin, The Weuminter Press, 1578) and my rewew'of win USQR 30 241 46 (2873) Acthe Anetent Beal Manasrpe Center Claremont we pla comple ascrpture tedex toll the fi of manascnpa we ld Iwi be manave wadeaking ut wih com ‘ute technology apd a clear method of work we hope ental to beset prose hs fur Rrersemce to sholashp 2M Mare Rupert PAD cand on bial aes te Claremont Gra School dd ome ofthe bar rare oe thy anil op wonkng throug he Newle Aland Serpareinder 26th econ aIsaiah én Luke TIerprection Isaiah was apparently the most helpful single book of the Old Testament in assisting the early church to understand the sufferings and crucifixion of the Christ, but Isaiah also provided help in understanding nearly every phase of. Jesus life, ministry. death, and resurrection. Isaiah was of service, too, in hhelping the early churches to understand who they were and what their role was as witnesses to the Christ event and as those who prepared for the escha: ton's fulfillment by proclamation of what God had done in and through Christ. Christology and ecclesiology were formulated in the early churches withthe help of Tsaiah, ‘While there have been quite a few studies of the Old Testament in the New, and more specifically of Isaiah in the New? the work has really hardly begun. "The Old ‘Testament in general, and Isaiah in particular, are sometimes used in the New as dicta probantia; but itis becoming elear that early Chris tians searched scripture to try to understand why Chris suffered the fate of 2 ‘common criminal, a Isis, why he was so ignominiousy treated, why he was ‘crucified. They found help inthe prophets, especially in Isaiah, to understand how God could turn tragedy into triumph, Isaiah was particularly helpful in che attempt to understand why Christ’ ‘own people and contemporaries rejected him. The hard words of Isaiah 6:9-10 were specifically illuminating: Sometimes God hardened the heart of a foreign authority ike Pharaoh or sent someone like Isaiah whose proclama- tion had the purpose, or at least the result, of making his own people's eyes blind, ears deaf, and heart dull. Passages such as Isaiah 42, 49 and 58 and Pealms 22 and 118 illuminated for early Christians the heart-breaking tragedy of the crucifixion in such a way that they could perceive its transformation from ignominy and shame to the symbol of salvation for the world. Just as the old Isracl and Judah had died in the assaults upon them by Assyria and Babylonia but were resurrected (Ezekiel 37) as the new Israel, Judaism in the Exile, so God was effecting through the crucified and resur: rected Christ a new Israel, che church, Such citing of seripeure is not proof: texting, it is midrash (scripture searching) at its best Early Christian readings of scripture shaped the thinking of the church about what God had done in Christ and was doing with them ~and it shaped the writing they did when they wanted to share that thinking whether in gos: pels, letters, oF other literary forms. The basic hermeneutic emerging over land over again as the work progresies on how the Old Testament served the 2, ig el esos, gh eee dc ial blogaphy ia Meal val Siege anh fe it te Ne on FE sp. 0°78. Hs can aw be supplement bythe bibliography in fate The [Remment of tirael andthe Stone of Shembuing 20m eco fe Past (tomas 11), de sevtaion fof the PD. degie awarded by Uston Fhecogial Seminary. 1980 45[New Testament writers is theocentric. They wanted to know what God was do- ing and saying o them. 0 Luke's knowledge of scripture was rather remarkable. His RSV, soto speak seas Greck text of whae the Old Testament was to that point. There is abun. ‘dant evidence in Luke and Acts that Luke knew his ancient RSV very well in deed, especialy certsin portions. Whatever Semitisms are in Luke's work can te accounted for otherwise. There is nothing in Luke that exceeds the normal bounds of semitization already widespread in the Hellenic language and lie erature of his time. He thought and wrote in the koind Greck of his word ‘And here it 4 major observation about Luke's knowledge of his scripture: In zo case of Luke's reading and understanding of scripture does one have 0 gO to a Pharisaicrabbinic type Jewish interpretation of an Old Testament pat sage to ce how Luke moved through the ancient text t his modern message. Quite often one must rummage around inthe targummim, midrashim, and Jrwish commentaries before one Finds the key to how an Old Testament pas sage functioned for Matthew. He was sometimes dependent on a particulat i terpretation or understanding ofa passage of scripture: indeed, i would have been tha which he had in mind even ashe read or cited a ext” ‘Not so Luke. What is remarkable about Luke's Knowledge of his scripture was tha apparently it came fom his assiduous reading fi, or portions of it Luke had his canon within the canon just a eveyone and, indeed, every de nnoination does. That is not the pone. The poin is chat whether before con version Luke had been 2 Gentile or a reform Jew, he knew certain part of scripcue in such depth that unless the modern inerpreter of Luke also knows the Sepcuagint or Greek Old Testament very well indeed he or she will mis ‘major points Luke wanted to score. And those portions were centrally Deuter. onomy and the Deuteronomic history, that is, Deuteronomy to IV Kingdoms (QI Kings) That particular section of seripeure not only helped shape Luke's orc Teneo Hala dains shat Lake bnew de Minar Prophets aah, andthe Ralisbet ali for tho was where he sayed lon ta vecogntable Sepccaint teat (Unterurhngen liber de aitetomentchen Ztae ber ska erin Akademie 1998) pp 97-18 and 188.49), Hepes oe Reach aah mut he ith he oe 3 One has odo a bit of socoloy of ancient knowledge when atemeing to interpret any ancient tent eopecaly when seeming to undestund ew an ncient ule ase te ign ler ha the nut. only one Mae's parable a the Ge Banquet in 251-14, one needs to how the Targum preud'jonachan o Zephaniah 't 163s J.B IM: Derr ntitewa'n Lacie Nee Tete (London, Daron: Langman & Yoda 1870) pp. 186 85. One meds notch thing to undermad Cubes forme Aiea eA a ted i" thow in By Old Tetament Ear, by Crenshaw and] Wil, ed (New York KTAV.15t4) pp. 1 ror the dental ot special ection of Luke's gorpel 9.2 co 14, ee C.F. Evans “The 46