Divine Discourse in the Epistle to the Hebrews

‘In the Midst of the Assembly I Will Praise You’: Hebrews 2.12 and Its Contribution to the Argument of the Epistle

“…10 By doing so, the author allows their audience to reread an old text in a new way – with a new character identified as the speaker. As others have shown, there are identifiable features of both the base text being quoted and the prosopological exegesis itself that can assist in identifying its use (Bates 2012; Pierce 2020). The base text is usually a canonical text using first-person speech in which the assigned participants are ambiguous.…”

“…The base text is usually a canonical text using first-person speech in which the assigned participants are ambiguous. The prosopological exegesis introduces a new interpretation in which the speaker of the base text is identified as a specific character (Bates 2012: 219-20; Pierce 2020: 20-22). Sometimes such exegesis is introduced by a formula including the word προσώπον, although this is not always the case.…”

“…The second feature of the author’s use of the Old Testament somewhat overlaps with the first. While prosopological exegesis focuses primarily on the changed identity of the speaker of a quoted text, although Pierce (2020: 4) includes the addresses and subjects as well, a similar hermeneutical move can impact the meaning of key words in the text. By bringing the quoted text into a new co-text, the author can alter the meaning of specific terms.…”

“…In using this psalm, the author can continue his discussion of Jesus’ suffering while making the important connection to Jesus’ siblings. As Pierce (2020: 101) writes, ‘While a number of citations could have been selected to recall Christ in the midst of suffering, this particular text serves the author’s argument because, in the midst of suffering, he lays claim to his brothers and sisters’.…”

“…Of relevance to the study of Hebrews’ use of the Old Testament, see Bates 2015: esp. 136-74; Pierce 2020: 3-28.…”