| Theodore of Mopsuestia (ca. 350--428) was the greatest biblical exegete of the Christian school of Antioch. In the Commentary on Psalms 1--80, his interpretation of Psalm 44 (LXX) provides a focal point for examining his biblical exegesis and Christology.; A detailed examination of Theodore's commentary on Psalm 44 identifies three key terms--- a ,kol ouqi&d12;a , pro&d12;sw pon , and u`po&d12; qesiv . Throughout the Commentary on the Psalms, Theodore is concerned with the narrative meaning of Scripture ( `istor i&d12;a ), not with its spiritual meaning ( qewri&d12; a ).; 'A kolouqi&d12; a designates the narrative sequence or its train of thought, related both to the biblical text and its logical meaning but identified with neither. It mediates between text and interpretation and reveals the how of exegesis.; Pro&d12;sw pon , as an exegetical term, designates the who of Scripture: the role that David, as speaker of all the psalms, assumes along with the person about whom he speaks.; ` Upo&d12;qe siv designates the subject matter or what of each psalm, set within a specific historical situation. Both pro&d12;sw pon and u`po&d12; qesiv demonstrate Theodore's concern to grasp the biblical story in its literary integrity and historical setting.; The exegetical character of a ,kol ouqi&d12;a , pro&d12;sw pon , and u`po&d12; qesiv suggests a pronounced exegetical character of Theodore's Christology in his commentary on Psalms 2, 8, and 44. In fact, for him there is no difference between exegesis and theology. Theodore understands the single pro&d12;sw pon of the Incarnate Lord exegetically, not theologically. Based on the u`po&d12; qesiv , he assumes that Scripture speaks of the Incarnation within a narrative context, not as an isolated event. When Scripture distinguishes between the divine and the human in Christ, it follows the distinction between the uncreated and the created. Using biblical language, he is content to describe the union in terms of a single, shared honor and a single, uniting pro&d12;sw pon .; However deficient Theodore's Christology may be, there seems to be no evidence that he intends to divide Christ into two persons. He teaches a unified Christ who is discovered in the one pro&d12;sw pon that David assumes, in the one u`po&d12; qesiv that the Bible describes, and the narrative and its meaning toward which the a ,kol ouqi&d12;a points. |
