The Biblical Accommodation Debate in Germany : Interpretation and the Enlightenment

252 Pages·2017·2.9 MB·English

by  Hoon J. Lee

IIIIIIIIIIIIIInnnnnnnnnnnnnnnntttttttttttttteeeerrrrrrrrrrrpppppppppppprrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeettttttttttttaaaaaaaaaaaattttttttttttiiiiiiiiiiiiiooonnn aanndd thhee EEnnllliigghhhhhhhhhhhhtttteeeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnnnnnnmmmmmmmmmmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnnnntttttttttttttt
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNN JJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJ........... LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
The Biblical Accommodation
Debate in Germany
Hoon J. Lee
The Biblical
Accommodation
Debate in Germany
Interpretation and the Enlightenment
Hoon J. Lee
Trinity Christian College
Chicago, IL, USA
ISBN 978-3-319-61496-0 ISBN 978-3-319-61497-7 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-61497-7
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017944594
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the
Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights
of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction
on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and
retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology
now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are
exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and
information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication.
Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied,
with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have
been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published
maps and institutional affiliations.
Cover illustration: INTERFOTO/Alamy Stock Photo
Printed on acid-free paper
This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature
The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
To Susie, Wyatt, and Ford
A
cknowledgements
I would like to thank John Woodbridge for his guidance during the
writing of this book. Not only did he introduce me to the issue of
accommodation, he has provided invaluable insight through numer-
ous conversations and readings of drafts. In addition, I have benefited
from the Douglas Sweeney’s careful reading of the book. His comments
helped me focus the work.
Several libraries facilitated tracking down sources, including the
Herzog August Bibliothek and their support through the Günther
Findel-Stiftung Fellowship, the Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, and the
Thüringer Universitäts-und Landesbibliothek at the University of Jena.
I am indebted to my family, who has supported me throughout the
entire process. My deepest gratitude is for my wife, to whom this book is
dedicated. Without her encouragement, patience, and sacrifice, this pro-
ject would not have been completed.
vii
c
ontents
1 Introduction 1
2 Accommodation in the Seventeenth-Century
Dutch Republic 23
3 Accommodation in Early Eighteenth-Century Germany 61
4 The Beginning of the Accommodation
Debate, 1761–1789 99
5 The Middle Years of the Accommodation
Debate, 1790–1799 141
6 The End of the Accommodation
Debate, 1800–1835 177
7 Conclusion 211
Bibliography 223
Index 245
ix
A
bbreviAtions
BJHP British Journal for the History of Philosophy
BJRL Bulletin of the John Rylands Library Manchester
CTJ Calvin Theological Journal
CTQ Concordia Theological Quarterly
CQ The Covenant Quarterly
HTS Harvard Theological Studies
Int Interpretation
JETS Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
ZTK Zeitschrift für Theologie und Kirche
xi
CHAPTER 1
Introduction
Throughout the history of Christianity interpreters of the Bible have
strived to faithfully understand Scripture and accurately interpret its
meaning. The significance of properly grasping God’s revelation has
not been lost on exegetes, whether the occasion was a great ecumeni-
cal council or a small private affair. Through tireless determination, the
study of the Bible continues to grow and offer profound insight into
God and his work throughout creation. Ultimately, interpreters have
sought to understand the Bible in a manner worthy of God’s communi-
cation to man.
However, the depth of Scripture, for better or worse, has often led
to a wide variation of interpretations. As differing readings of the Bible
show no sign of waning, the history of biblical interpretation has helped
readers discern between various interpretive methods and streams. As
an essential tool for modern exegesis, the study of how the Bible was
interpreted in the past has aided our present pursuit of a faithful reading
of Scripture, serving as an arbiter over present issues by bolstering the
strengths and exposing the weaknesses of modern interpretative method-
ologies.
One of the most contentious topics in the history of biblical inter-
pretation and in current scholarship is historical criticism.1 Since the
1 V.P. Furnish defines historical criticism as having five characteristics: (1) “a concern
to understand the relation between biblical teachings and the data derived from experi-
ence”; (2) “an assumption that the Bible is a proper object for rational investigation”;
© The Author(s) 2017 1
H.J. Lee, The Biblical Accommodation Debate in Germany,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-61497-7_1
2 H.J. LEE
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, historical criticism has developed
and tested the boundaries of faithful exegesis. With the introduction of
unconventional methodologies, it has provided a wealth of new infor-
mation, but accompanying these inroads is an ongoing debate over the
validity of some aspects of the historical-critical method and its conclu-
sions. For example, scholars often debate whether the premise of histori-
cal criticism desacralizes Scripture. Is reading and interpreting the Bible
in the same manner as other ancient Near Eastern texts appropriate for
God’s revelation?
As interpreters go on contesting the legitimacy of historical criticism,
they have neglected a vital element of its history. In the modern discus-
sion of hermeneutical methods, contemporary scholarship has yet to fully
address the doctrine of accommodation, especially its development in
the eighteenth century. Thus Graham A. Cole, speaking to the history
of biblical interpretation, writes, “one of the most fertile ideas generated
in such discussion is the idea of divine accommodation.”2 Urging for a
renewal of the doctrine of accommodation, D. A. Carson argues that a
“restatement of that doctrine would be salutary today.”3 Despite the sig-
nificance of accommodation, the doctrine remains an elusive principle
and is sorely misunderstood in current biblical scholarship. This volume
aims to redress this confusion.
Footnote 1 (continued)
(3) “a conviction that this investigation must proceed with attention to the individual-
ity of the writers”; (4) “a commitment to the distinction between the words of the New
Testament and the Word of God”; and (5) “an acceptance of a thoroughgoing histori-
cal view of the canon itself.” “The Historical Criticism of the New Testament: A Survey
of Origins,” BJRL 56, no. 2 (1974): 336–370. Also see Ernst Troeltsch, “Historical and
Dogmatic Method in Theology,” in Religion in History, trans. James Luther Adams and
Walter F. Bense, with an introduction by James Luther Adams (Minneapolis: Fortress,
1991), 11–32.
2 Graham A. Cole, “The Peril of a ‘Historyless’ Systematic Theology,” in Do Historical
Matters Matter to Faith?: A Critical Appraisal of Modern and Postmodern Approaches to
Scripture, ed. James K. Hoffmeier and Dennis R. Magary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012),
63.
3 D. A. Carson, The Gagging of God: Christianity Confronts Pluralism (Grand Rapids,
MI: Zondervan, 1996), 130.