Tailoring Scripture with Citation Formulae: Clues about Early Christian Views of the Holy Books and the Holy God

The phrases “scripture says” and “as it is written” in early Christian literature appear unremarkable, little more than throwaway lines. Tailoring Scripture with Citation Formulae: Clues about Early Christian Views of the Holy Books and the Holy God contends, however, that they provide much to remark on. Current discussions of scriptural intertextuality either neglect or instrumentalize citation formulae. Within a world of expensive books and widespread illiteracy, though, the formulae would not only have signaled the presence of an upcoming citation. At times they also situated and interpreted a quoted passage. Further, close attention to the formulae yields three interesting clues about early Christian views of the holy books and the holy God. First, the media of the formulae in the Gospels cuts precisely counter to expectations, with the pre-Synoptic tradition indicating a textual view of scripture and Matthew, an oral one. Second, the wellspring of prosopological exegesis, that is, discovering the triune God speaking in Israel’s sacred writings, is best attributed to the Epistle to the Hebrews. Third, while the undisputed Pauline letters say little about the nature of scripture, the apostle’s citation formulae in Romans and Galatians indicate that it operated as a divine hypostasis for him. This book is a comprehensive study including an analysis and catalogue of early Christian formulae.

Timothy A. Gabrielson is associate professor of biblical studies and chair of the Theology & Ministry Department at Sterling College.