The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 1 — Section 150

than in that. which connoted his eternal tions which belong to his eternal glory. It and Rhsolut<' BC'ing. The Torgum of Onke- <'itnnot be said that Philo wne ignornnt of 11'!!-the oldC'~I, most ACcnrRte, and precious th<'Ee modcR of expression, though in the of these dO<'uments-in numerous plACes sub- main he allowe the idea of "Word" to lltitutes "the Word of the Lord" for Je- pnss away from the term }l,J-yos, and he Jw,.1th. "the Word of Elohim" for Elohim, charged it with a meaning which he found end "the Word of the Lord" for the angel or in Platonic and stoical philosophy, and used messenger of Jehovah. Thus in Gen. vii. 16 it, not in the historic or theocmtio sense, it is said, "The Lord protec-tcd Noah by his which was current in the Palestinian 'Word;" xxi. 20, "The Word of the Lord schools, but in the metaphysic nnd specu- w11s with bhmnel in the wilderness." In lative sense which enabled him to make the Gen. xxnii. 21 Jacob made a covenant Hebrew Seriptures the vehicle of his ethicnl th1tt "the Word of the Lord should be his system. Word, in the Old Testament and C'TOd; " Exod. xix. 17. " Moses brought forth in thll Chaldee Pam.phrru!es, represented the the people to meet the Word of God." The nearest possible approa.oh to a definition of term Delmrah, which is analogous in mean- the activity nnd revelations of God ; and ing to Memra, is also need in the Jerusalem that activity is regarded, not as a'mere attri- Te.rgum of Numb. vii. 89 io e. similar sense. bute, bnt as an essential and personal aspect The substitution was adopted in the same of the Eternnl One. In the hands of the way by Jone.than ben Uziel, in his para- Apostle John (unlike Philo's), the Logos phrase of Isa. )xiii. 7 and Ma.I. iii. 1, so that wn.s a distinct hypostasis, identifiable with the Jewish mind was thoroughly imbued God, and yet in union and reltttion with with this method of portraying the instru- him. He was "in the beginning," and ment and 11gent of the Divine revelations, therefore before all creation. He did not es one savourin~ of the smallest amount of become. He was not made. He was. As anthropomorphism, which they were willing speech answers to the immanent realities of to attribute to the Holy One of Israel. which it is expression, the idea of John in Another gronp of highly import.ant biblical this first verse suggests, though the sugges- representntions of the activity and sell'..reve- tion does not come into further expression, lation of God consists of the personal " Angel the "thought" or "reason" which ever~ (or Messenger) of Jeho\·a.h," who not infre- more was she.ping itself into " word." It qnently appears, even in hnman form, con- would seem as though the apostle had been versing ·with the patriarchs, and making led to gather together into one teaching the covenunt with man (see Gen. xxxii. 24, etc.; various suggestions of the Old Testament. Exod. xxxiii. 12, etc. ; Hos. xii. 4 ; Isa. Ix.iii. He realized the significance of the omnific 9 ; Mai. iii. 1 and other places). In some of Word. He embodied and improved upon these passages the Name of Jehovah himself the sapiential philosophy in its conception is attributed to his Angel, and the form of of Divine Wisdom, of the Brightness of the Divine manifestation becomes more end Father's glory, and the express Image of his more clearly personal. Nevertbeles:1, this substance; he felt the force and justice of Angel appears to stand witbill, rather than the Hebrew periphrases for God, the only without, the very bosom of the Eternal One. God, in his gracious relations with man ; and Jehovah does not lose bis Name of unap- he was not ignorant of the speculations of proachable dignity and absolute existence the Hellenists who found in this term the while yet he clothes himself with angelic phasis of all Di vine self-consciousness, and powers, or even human form, and enters the symbol of pure being in its relation into Ii ving and intimate relations witll bis with the universe. In the begin11ing thP. own people. Kurtz(' Old Covenant,' voL i Logos teas. And the Word (Logos) was pp. 181-201) has urged that the nnmerous with God (1rpos Tov 0,&11). The preposition is references in Old Testament lo the " Angel difficult to translate; it is equivalent to Jehovah," a.re compatible with the idea of "was in relation with God," " stood over e created spirit, endowed with plenipoten- against," not in space or time, but eternally tiary functions and titles, and perfectly dis- and constitutionally. It is more, even, tinct from the "Logos." The strength of than the 1rapa. ,ro( (eh. xvii. 5),; for, in hie position is that during the Incarnation addition to the idea. of proximity, there and afterwards the New 'festament writers is that of "motion towards" inrnlved in still speak of the activity and might of 1rpos. A verb of rest is here combined " the Angel of the Lord." But this position with e. preposition of motion, exactly as is greatly modi1ied by the obvious fact that in &11 •Is 'TOIi ,c6}1,1rov of ver. 18. In Mark the Logos did not become depotentiated and vi. 3: ix. 19 ; Matt. xiii. 36; xxvi. 55; l limited to the life of Jesus during the thirty Cor. xvi. 6, 7 ; Gal. i. 18 the similar use of yeara of bis OQ.l'tbly manifestation. During 1rpos shows that the idea of intercourse is the whole of that period, and ever since, the euggested, an<l mutual acquaintance, so t~t Logos bas not ceaaed to exercise the funo- the personality of the ~gos is therefore OII, I, 1-61.] '!'II f~ GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. 'j