# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1886_S59
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

of the Ev. Luth. Synodical Conference of North America. 1886. 59

There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over
the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust." On this word "Gen-
tiles" he lays stress and grounds his statement made before. Yes,
not merely the word, but also the form of the word, the case, num-
ber, the inflection, the connection in which a word stands, has been
determined by the Holy Spirit precisely so and not otherwise. Gal.
3:16 says: "He saith not: And to seeds, as of many, but
as of one: And to thy seed, which is Christ." Here
the apostle draws an argument from the form of the word. From the fact that
it does not say: the seeds, thy seeds, for which in Hebrew one
word would stand, but the seed, thy seed, as of
one, Paul proves that in this promise of the Old Testament
the discussion is of one person, namely Christ, and not of the totality
of the descendants of Abraham. This is not the place to go into
the manifold objections that perverse expositors have raised against
this exegesis of the apostle. So much is certain, that
Paul ascribes it to God himself when a singular and not a plu-
ral stands at a place in Scripture.

So it says further in Rom. 10:16: "For Isaiah saith: LORD, who
hath believed our preaching?" (Isa. 53:1). Here Paul draws a
proof from the connection of the words "believe" and "preach." The
prophet Isaiah complains that he preaches and the hearers do not believe.
Over this the prophet could not complain if his preaching did not
have the power to work faith. Now the prophet complains with
right that this effect has not occurred. From this the
apostle argues in v. 17: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing
by the Word of God." Paul can use this as an argument only
if really the word "believes" and the word
"preaching" there in Isaiah are divine expressions, on which one can base a divine
argument.

So it is also important to the apostle Peter that Sarah calls Abraham a
lord, 1 Pet. 3:6: "As Sarah obeyed Abraham,
calling him lord (Gen. 18:12)." This kind of proof from individual expressions
is found especially often in the Epistle to the Hebrews, chap.
12:26-27: "But now he hath promised, saying: Yet once more I will
shake not only the earth, but also heaven" (Hag. 2:7).
"And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken,
as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain."
Here the expression "Yet once more" is set forth as something significant,
which indicates something. Heb. 8:8 says: "For finding fault with them he
saith: Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, when I will make a new testament with the house
of Israel and with the house of Judah" (Jer.
31:31 f.). Verse 13: "In that he saith, A new, he hath made the first