'This knowledge,' says Hort in his note on the expression, 'is not a knowledge of facts respecting a person, but a knowledge of himself ; it is, so to speak, a contemplation of him in his in- dividuality, yet not as an indifferent object but as standing in personal relations to Him who thus " foreknows" him. It must not therefore be identified with mere foreknowledge of existence or acts (prescience) ; or again , strictly speaking, with destination or predestination (opinio, Trpoopt'^u), even in the biblical sense, that is, in relation to a Providential order, much less in the philo- sophical sense of antecedent constraint.'
When we turn to St. Paul's more exact and precise exposition of doctrine we see that 'foreknowledge' is still directed to persons as its object, and also that ' prescience,' ' knowing beforehand,' is inade- quate to the expression of the mysterious thought conveyed. With St. Paul ' foreknowledge ' is the first link in the chain of the Divine purpose of grace, the first step in the spiritual history of the believer (Ro 8-''', oOs Trpo^yvu), ' f oreordination ' the second, 'effectual calling' the third, 'justification' the fourth, ' glory ' the fifth and last.
' Mere prescience [on God's part] of human volition,' says 0. J. Vaughan, 'leaves man the originator of his own salvation, in utter contradiction to Scripture here and everywhere. That TTpdyi'axns which is made the first step in the spiritual history seems to express, not indeed so much as predetermination (which would confuse npoeyvu) with Trpowptcrei'), but yet a resting of the mind of God beforehand upon a pemon with approval (cf. Ex 3312, Ps 1^), wliich can only be menially and doctrinally severed from the second step, npouipia-ev' (<S'f. Paul's Epistle to the Ro7nans^, 1S70, ad loc).
That the expression is used also of Israel by St. Piiul is quite in keeping with this pregnant sense : ' God did not cast away his people which he fore- knew' (Ro 11^). It is 'the chosen people,' 'the covenant people ' (6 \a6s), of whom the Apostle de- clares that God ' foreknew ' them. Here, again, 'foreknowledge' is thought of as directed not to a person or a ijcople simply, but to a person or a people in relation to a function, for Israel was
' designated afore ' to fill that place in the purpose of God which has been theirs among the nations.
There is no ground in the teaching of St. Paul for the view that because God foreknew that certain persons would respond to the gospel call, and remain true to their first faith to the end. He therefore foreordained them to salvation. Those whom God foreknew as His own of sovereign grace. He also foreordained to be conformed to the image of His Son ; but St. Paul makes this conformity to be the result, not the foreseen condition, of God's fore- ordination. ' Foreknew' points backward to God's loving thought of them before time began; their con- formity to the image of His Son points to the realiza- tion of this thought of God and its being carried to its furthest goal in the course of time. Of any ' fore- knowledge ' by God of others than those who are effectually called according to the Divine purpose neither St. Paul nor any other NT writer has any- thing to say. According to the teaching of the two apostles already referred to, the Divine foreknow- ledge represents the first step in the scheme of redemption, marking out the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world which taketh away the sin of the world, and the first movement of grace in the heart of God towards those who shall be saved.
The Patristic usage of the word takes no notice of its theological significance as we find it in St. Peter and St. Paul. Clement speaks of the first apostles being endowed with ' perfect foreknow- ledge ' to enable them to hand on to approved suc- cessors the ministry and service they had fulfilled (1 Clem. xliv. 2). Hermas attributes to the Lord the power of reading the heart, and with foreknow- ledge knowing all things, even the weakness of men and the wiles of the devil {Aland. IV. iii. 4).
Literature. — F. J. A. Hort, 3%e First Epistle of St. Peter, I. l-ll. 17, 1S9S, pp. 18, 80 ; Commentaries on Ro 829-30 by C. J. VauB-han (31870), Sanday-Headlam (6/CC, 1902), J. Denney {EGT, 1900), and T. Zahn (Introd. to AT, Eng. tr., 1909); C. Hodge, Systematic Theology, i. [1872] 397-400, 545 ; A. Stewart, art. ' Foreknowledge ' in HDB. THOMAS NiCOL.
FOREORDINATION.— See Predestination.
FORERUNNER.— This word occurs only in He 6^, where it is used of our Lord, who has entered within the veil as the Forerunner of redeemed mankind. It is a military term. {irp65poixos) used of the troops which were sent in advance of an army as scouts (Herod, i. 60, iv. 121, 122 ; Thuc. ii. 22, etc.). Again, a forerunner was sent in advance of a king to prepare the way for him (Is 40^). In the NT the Baptist becomes the forerunner of the Christ (Mt ll^"). The author of the Epistle shows that the promise made to Abraham still awaits its complete fulfilment — a promise which is made doubly sure, being confirmed by an oath. This promise has been fulfilled by Christ, so that hope may now enter where Jesus, the Son of Man, has already entered to make atonement for us.