Sunday, December 13, 2009

An Ancient Misquotation

I previously noted a large number of post-Reformation folks misquoting Matthew 23:37 and/or Luke 13:34. Such misquotation is apparently not unique to the modern times. As a friend recently pointed out to me, around the third century (A.D. not B.C.) the author of the first two chapters 4 Esdras wrote:

4 Esdras 1:28-30
Thus saith the Almighty Lord, "Have I not prayed you as a father his sons, as a mother her daughters, and a nurse her young babes, that ye would be my people, and I should be your God; that ye would be my children, and I should be your father? I gathered you together, as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings: but now, what shall I do unto you? I will cast you out from my face."

Obviously, it is not a direct quotation but it does seem to be an allusion, and it makes the same error of replacing "gather your children" with "gather you."

-TurretinFan

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

My pastor, yesterday, said an amazing thing about Satan, our enemy. "He's a most excellent scholar"! He uses the Word of God well when fighting against us!!

So it goes back to those words, for me, at least:::> "....Such misquotation is apparently not unique to the modern times....".

Turretinfan said...

Good point!