[c] Moral and religions Elevation. — The ethi- cal side of the S|iirit's work conies into view in the teaching of the psalmists and proidiets. In I's 51" the Spirit is described as ^j-jiTir", LXX tA rKi!/«l <rov t6 37101-, i.e. the energizing jirinciple of the divine holiness (Cheyne, Origin of the Psalter, p. 3'22 ; on the idea ot 'holiness.' see Kirkpatrick, Doctrine, etc. p. 173 f.), — a title found again in Is Vi'.V- ". In the Psalm this Divine Spirit of Imli- iiess is apparently reganled as imparting to the in- dividual Israelite dis|>ositions which may bring bim nearer to the oharticter of God, the ' cle&n heart '
404
HOLY SPIRIT
HOLY SPIRIT
i-
and ' sttadfast spirit ' ; in the prophetic passafie it is represented as having dwelt in the elect nation from the days of the Exodus (cf. Neh 9-'°, Han '-"). and as grieved hy their rebellions against its guidance. Nor was the moral guidance of the Spirit limited to Israel, if we may adopt the common interpreta- tion of Gn 6', which represents the Spirit of J" as udging, ruling, and working in men hefore the "lood ; but the sense of p; is uncertain (Ox/. Ileb. Lex. p. H)'2), and the ethical application is at least doubtful (Uelitzsch, ad loc). It is certain, however, that the prophets foresee a large exten- sion of the moral operations of the Divine Spirit in the days of the Messianic kingdom (Jer 31 ""■, Ezk 36*"-), and the prophecy of Joel (2^) speaks of an ontpourin"» of the Si)irit ' upon all flesh, which, although it is conceived under the image of a general bestowment of the gift of prophecy, pointed, in St. I'eter's judgment (.\c 2"'-), to the Pentecostal elVusion, which brought with it the setting up of the kingdom of God in the heajts of men of all nations.
A difficulty arises from the mention in the his- torical books of an 'evil spirit sent by or pro- ceeding from J"' (JgOS", IS 16" [•"• nxr] 18">, 1 K 22="- [nn,n Ni-i, ipp '-i •"• w:], 2 Ch 18»"-'), and even of an 'evil spirit of God' (1 S 19» LXX irvfuMO BeoC rovr,pby). Schultz(07' Theol. ii. 205, 270) contends that the Spirit is in all cases the same, the Spirit of God working good or evil according to the character of the man on whom it operates. But it is incredible that tlie sacred writers intend to identify the 'good Si>irit' of God (Ps 143"') with the power which inspired Saul with iealousj- and the prophets of Ahab with lying words. The evil spirit \sfrom God and is God's, inasmuch as it is Mis creature and under His control ; but it is not His personal energy. As Wellliausen (on 1 S 16") points out, the expression .t.t 'i is apparontlj- limited to the good Spirit, which is the operative presence of J" Himself.
iii. ' The Spirit of God ' as revealed in the OT is ' God exerting power ' ( A. B. Davidson on Ezk 36^). On this account it is invested with personal quali- ties, and personal acts are ascribed to it. If tlie truth, mercy, and light of God are partly hyposta- tized by the Psalmist (Ps 4.3' 57' etc. ; see dlieyne, Orinin, etc. p. 322), the Spirit of God, the prin- ciple of life which resides in the depth of tlie Divine Nature, and represents the Divine presence in the world and in man, is necessarily regarded as quasi-personal ; it broods, rules, speaks, guides, quickens, because it is the living energy of a personal God. The Spirit of J' is personal, inas- much as the Spirit is God (Ps 139', Is GS"- '»). There is, besides, a quasi-independence ascribed to the Spirit, which approaches to a recognition of distinct personality (cf. e.g. Is 48"), especially in passages where the Spirit and the Word are con- trasted (Schultz, ii. p. 184). But the distinction applies only to the external activities of these two divine forces ; the concept of a distinction of Persons within the Being of God belongs to a later revelation.
iv. It may be asked whether a progress can be obser^-ed in the OT doctrine of the Spirit. On the one hand, certain points are clear from the (irst : the Pentateuch in its oldest parts reveals the Spirit of God as the source and support of tlie higher life in man, and as endowing him with intellectual gifts, and in particular with the gift of prophecy. All this belongs to the teaching of JE, while P adds that the Spirit at the Krst vitalized the cosmos. Even in pre-exilic times tlie Spirit is revealed as the quasi-personal energy of God in man and the world. The greatest prophet of the 8th cent, already recognizes the office ot the SpiritastheAcointer of the Messiah (Isll=*-). But
as the revelation proceeds, the ethical charact«i of the Spirit's inlluence on man conies more dis. tinctly into view. The higher view of propliecy, as contrasted with mere soothsaying, appears lirsi in Deuteronomy (.see Driver on Dt 18""--) ; and it is to the period of the Exile and the dajs that followed it that we must probably attribute the thought of the Spirit as the regenerating »nd directing force in human nature, and of its opera- tions as about to be extended to men who lay beyond the circle of kings and prophets, and beyond the fold of Israel (for the il.ate of Ps 51, cf W. R. Smith, OTJV-, p. 440 ; Kirkpatrick, P.m/ms, ii. p. 284 ; and for the date of .loci, see Driver, Caiub. Bible, Joel and Amos, p. 11 H'. ).