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In novissimis diebus: Biblical Promises, Jewish Hopes and Early Christian Exegesis
- Journal of Early Christian Studies
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- Volume 1, Number 1, Spring 1993
- pp. 1-19
- 10.1353/earl.0.0119
- Article
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The phrase "in these last days" (novissimis diebus) occurs in Isaiah 2 and Micah 4. This article discusses how this expression was interpreted in early Christian commentaries on Isaiah and Micah. It shows that the Christian interpretation of Isaiah 2 and Micah 4 is best seen in the context of a rival Jewish understanding of the text. Jews interpreted the passage not to refer to the exile in Babylonia but to the future coming of "their" Messiah. The question, then, for early Christian exegetes was not whether the text was to be taken "historically," but to which later events was it to be applied, those that defined the Jewish people or those that gave rise to the Church.