Journal: Bibliotheca Sacra
Volume: BSAC 83:330 (Apr 1926)
Article: The Style And Language Of Saint Paul In His First Letter To The Corinthians
Author: Thomas Shearer Duncan

BSac 83:330 (April 1926) p. 129

The Style And Language Of Saint Paul In His First Letter To The Corinthians

Thomas Shearer Duncan, Ph.D.

The present discussion treats of the writings of Saint Paul almost purely from the point of view of external form and is preliminary to a more general study of the whole subject of his style and language. If it presents many matters of detail that are more or less tedious and call for patience, one must bear in mind that it is only by the examination of details that one may come to a reasonably safe conclusion about principles. Even a cursory study of the works of literary critics will demonstrate the necessity of the warning that the general impression of an author which one gets after a comparatively long study of him may not be a true one. That impression may be coloured by past experience or by prejudice, in other words, may represent a purely personal idea of excellence. In fact, what the literary critic and, in particular, the student of the Greek and Latin classics seems in this day to need most is the warning against seeing in an author only what one wishes to see and making his work only the instrument for demonstrating the truth of a prejudice.

Why study the letters at all under the category of form? The point of view may be taken as it has been taken in time past, that in his letters Saint Paul spoke naturally, always, of course, as the Spirit gave him utterance, and hence used no rhetorical embellishment to commend his message to his hearers. This point of view has been set forth as follows by Jülicher, one of the foremost of his modern critics: “Unconsciously he makes use of the tricks of popular speech with the greatest effect but he avoids all straining after effect through the observance of oratorical rules. He finds without effort the most

BSac 83:330 (April 1926) p. 130

striking form for his lofty ideas, and it is because his innermost self breathes through every word that most of his epistles bear so unique a charm.” The professed contempt of Christian writers in all times for the devices of rhetoric as aids to the expression of spiritual truth is too well known to require illustration. Gregory the Great (moral, praef. 1 f.) expressed it thus: ipsam loquendi artem despexi . . . quia indignum vehementer existimo ut verba caelestis oraculi restinguam sub regulis Donati. Whether this expressed contempt was in every instance sincere it is, at any rate, easy to understand. In fact, in a very real sense there is truth in the point of view often expressed by Christian writers that the conflict between Hellenism and Christianity was a conflict between form and matter.

The theory is fairly generally held and is very likely true that Saint Paul did not look upon his letters as literature for a...