The Interpretation of a Controverted Text by William Warren Prescott

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Nov 16, 1911

The Interpretation of a Controverted Text

By William Warren Prescott

IN attempting to give a consistent exegesis of some controverted passages in the New Testament, it is well to remember that these later writings are simply the unfolding of the earlier writings, which have been collected under the name of the Old Testament. Sometimes this is the only way by which the meaning of a statement can be determined, since, when taken by itself, it is either uncertain or does not convey to the reader any clear idea at all. As an illustration we refer to the statement of Jesus, “If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.” The real force of this statement can only be apprehended by reading Isa. 43: 10-13 and the related passages.

The principle of interpretation here laid down needs to be applied in determining the correct punctuation, and consequently the correct meaning of a scripture. It should, of course, be remembered that punctuation is a comparatively modern invention, designed to aid the reader in understanding the true sense of the printed matter. If it is found, however, that the punctuation obscures the true sense, or if a further examination of the original manuscripts indicates that a change ought to be made, there should be no hesitancy in doing so, although the greatest care should be exercised in the application of this rule. An example of the transfer of a clause from one sentence to another by a change in punctuation is found in Rev. 22: 1, 2, where, in the revised version (both English and American), a comma takes the place of the period after the word Lamb, and a period is put in place of the first comma in the second verse, making it read: “Proceeding out of the throne of God

and of the Lamb, in the midst of the street thereof.” It is therefore permissible to suggest a change in the punctuation adopted by the translators of the English Bible, when such a change is absolutely demanded in order to bring any particular passage of scripture into harmony with the plain teaching of other scriptures.

There is no truth more clearly emphasized in the Scriptures than that it was the purpose of the incarnation of Christ to give life to those who receive him. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life.” For this gift we are wholly dependent upon Christ “who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” Those who thus accept Christ as their life fall asleep in Jesus, to be awakened by the voice of the Son of God, and will then put on immortality. “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” There is much positive teaching in the Scripture that emphasizes this phase of the gospel.

There are many, however, who have either adopted or inherited the doctrine, of wholly pagan origin, that man is immortal by nature, that he is consequently conscious in death, and that he spends the time between death and the resurrection in a state of conscious suffering or happiness. Those who attempt to establish such an interpretation of the Scriptures are accustomed to lay great stress upon the words of Jesus to the thief on the cross, found in Luke 23: 43. As punctuated in both the authorized and revised versions, this passage reads: “Verily I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” Comparing Rev. 22: 1, 2, with Rev. 2: 7, it is clear that the throne of God is in paradise, and that to be in paradise is to be with God. But after his resurrection Jesus declared to Mary that he had not yet ascended to his Father, and it is therefore plain that he had not, up to that time, been in paradise. This indicates that the interpretation of Luke 23: 43, which would place both Jesus and the thief in paradise on the day of the crucifixion, can not be correct. Much depends upon the construction given to the word “to-day.” In Rotherham’s translation of the New Testament this passage reads: “Verily, to thee I say, this day, with me shalt thou be in paradise.” In an appended note the translator makes this explanation concerning the punctuation: “It is left for the reader to determine whether the words ‘this day’ should be joined with the former part of the sentence, or with the latter.” To assist the reader in arriving at the right conclusion, we call attention to the fact that this word “to-day,” or the words “this day,” is an Old Testament idiom of frequent occurrence. One example of this in a passage quite parallel with Luke 23: 43 is found in Deut. 8: 19: “And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish.” This is “a solemn idiom, used for great emphasis,” which occurs forty-two times in the book of Deuteronomy alone. The passages are these: 4: 26, 39, 40; 5: 1; 6: 6; 7: 11; 8: 1, 11, 19; 9: 1, 3; 10: 13; 11: 2, 8, 13, 26, 27, 28, 32; 13: 18; 15: 5, 15; 19: 9; 26: 3, 16, 17, 18; 27: 1, 4, 10; 28: 1, 13, 14, 15; 30: 2, 8, 11, 15, 16, 18, 19; 32: 46.

A reading of these passages will show that the words “this day” are so often used in connection with some verb of assertion as to establish an idiom characteristic of solemn statement. Following this Old Testament idiom, Jesus, who himself inspired the Old Testament, used the similar form of expression to emphasize his promise to the thief. When punctuated so as to bring out this meaning clearly, the passage may be read thus: “Verily I say unto thee to-day, Thou shalt be with me in paradise.” This statement is in perfect harmony with the general tenor of the teaching of the Scripture concerning the condition in death and the time of reward in paradise.

W. W. P.