[ft] "dress" i.e. directing words toward other people ; as in "address"

Even when, in the second half of the second century, the New Testament emerged into sight as a canon of Holy Scripture, there was no disposition to substitute it for the 0ld; the Church was content to place it by the side of the Septuagint as another collection of equal value and authority. Irenaeus, for instance, who is the first Christian writer to quote the Gospels and Epistles with any freedom, scarcely falls behind Justin in the frequency of his appeal to the Greek Law, Prophets, and Psalms. When the more learned teachers of the Church began to enrich her literature with commentaries on the Scriptures, they commented as freely on the Old Testament as on the New, though with two or three exceptions they were unable to have recourse to the Hebrew original, and their commentaries on the Old Testament are in fact commentaries on the Septuagint version of it. Moreover, in her official acts of worship the early Church used the Greek Old Testament ; out of it she sang the psalms, and read the lessons at the Sunday Eucharist. Lastly, when the non-Hellenic Churches within the Empire, such as Latin-speaking Carthage and Coptic-speaking Egypt, began to translate the Scriptures into their own tongues, they translated the Old Testament as well as the New, and they translated the Old Testament from the Greek and not from the Hebrew, of which, in fact, they knew nothing. The Hebrew Bible was indeed as good as non-existent to the Church of the Empire ; its Old Testament was a Greek book, and the inspiration of the Hebrew writers was unconsciously transferred to the Alexandrian translators, who had to all intents taken their place.".

Elswhere Swete says; "To Tertullian and Cyprian, as well as to Clement and Barnabas, Justin and Irenaeus, the Septuagint was the Old Testament authorized by the church, and no appeal lay either to any other version or to the original.".

"Nor was this tradition readily abandoned by the few who attained to some knowledge of Hebrew. Origen, while recognizing the divergence of the LXX from the Hebrew, and endeaverouring to reconcile the two by means of the Hexapla, was accustomed to preach and comment upon the ordinary Greek text."

And "No question can arise as to the greatness of the place occupied by the Alexandrian Version in the religious life of the first six centuries of it's history. The Septuagint was the Bible of the Hellenistic Jew, not only in Egypt and Palestine, but throughout the Western Asia and Europe. It created a language of religion which lent itself readily to the service of Christianity and became one of the most important allies of the gospel. It provided the Greek-speaking Church with an authorized translation of the Old Testament, and when Christian missions advanced beyond the limits of Hellenism, it served as a basis for fresh translations into the vernacular."

Edersheim points out the consequences of the ignorance of the scriptures concerning the Messiah on the part of the grieving disciples after His death and their foolish disbelief ; "...Their sorrow arose from their folly in looking only at the things seen, and this, from their slowness to believe what the prophets had spoken. Had they attended to this, instead of allowing themselves to be swallowed up by the outward, they would have understood it all. Did not the scriptures with one voice teach this twofold truth about the Messiah, that He was to suffer and to enter into His glory? Then why wonder-why not expect, that He had suffered, and that Angels had proclaimed Him alive again?

  He spake it, and fresh hope sprang up in their hearts, new thoughts rose in their minds. Their eager gaze was fastened on Him as He now opened up, one by one, the Scriptures, from Moses and all the prophets, and in each well-remembered passage interpreted to them the things concerning Himself.

 Oh, that we had been there to hear -though in the silence of our hearts also, if only we crave for it, and if we walk with Him , He sometimes so opens from the Scriptures-nay, from all the Scriptures, that which comes not to us by critical study: ' the things concerning Himself."

Alfred Edersheim aptly points out; "...First and foremost, we learn the insufficiency of even the most astounding miracles to subdue the rebellious will, to change the heart, or to subject a man unto God. Our blessed Lord Himself has said of a somewhat analogous case, that men would not believe even though one rose from the dead. (Luke 16:31) And His statement has been only too amply verified in the history of the world since His own resurrection. Religion is matter of the heart, and no intellectual conviction, without the agency Of the Holy Spirit, affects the inmost springs of our lives."

The second century martyr, Justin, comments on Jesus teaching the prophecies of His resurrection ; ".after He was crucified, even all His acquaintances forsook Him, having denied Him, and afterwards when He had risen from the dead and appeared to them, and had taught them to read the prophecies in which all things were foretold as coming to pass, and when they had seen Him ascending into heaven, and had believed, and had received power sent thence by Him upon them, and went to every race of men, they had taught these things, and were called Apostles."

Justin, as found in the "Ante-Nicene Fathers" (volume 1, pages 234 and 235) also decries that already some Messianic prophetic words found in the Septuagint (Greek text) were be being deleted from the scriptures by the unbelieving Jews. "But I am far from putting reliance in your teachers, who refuse to admit that the interpretation made by the seventy elders who were with Ptolemy[king] of the Egyptians is a correct one; and they attempt to frame another. And I wish you to observe, that they have altogether taken away many Scriptures from the translations effected by those seventy (from which the term Septuagint is derived from) elders who were with Ptolemy, and by which this very man who was crucified is proved to have been set forth expressly as God, and man, and as being crucified, and as dying; but since I am aware that this is denied by all of your nation,."

Regarding the the New Testament writers use of Messianic prophecies (Psalm 16:8-11 -Acts2:25-28 one writer (Herrick Th.M) concludes the following concerning the Apostle's use of the LXX, according these versus to the Messiah's Resurrection ;         

" Though the texts (MT and LXX) differ, and the LXX lends itself more readily to Peter's meaning in a resurrection context, the point could be made from the MT. Concerning the expression of this truth, Peter did not hesitate to employ Jewish hermeneutical methods (midrash/pesher) such as were consistent with his audience's understanding."

The Septuagint was the "vernacular" Bible of it's day and no doubt had been found in the hands of the Grecian philosophers and the Sybill (some of the sybill may have been legitimate pre-church and early church prophetesses).

Philip Schaff, a church historian gives the historic background of the use of the greek language by the new testament writers who often employed the use of the greek Septuagint Old Testament. ; " ..."Greece gave the apostles the most copious and beautiful language to express the divine truth of the Gospel, and Providence had long before so ordered political movements as to spread that language over the world and to make it the organ of civilization and international intercourse, as the Latin was in the middle ages, as the French was in the eighteenth century and as the English is coming to be in the nineteenth. "Greek," says Cicero, "is read in almost all nations; Latin is confined by its own narrow boundaries." Greek schoolmasters and artists followed the conquering legions of Rome to Gaul and Spain. The youthful hero Alexander the Great, a Macedonian indeed by birth, yet an enthusiastic admirer of Homer, an emulator of Achilles, a disciple of the philosophic world-conqueror, Aristotle, and thus the truest Greek of his age, conceived the sublime thought of making Babylon the seat of a Grecian empire of the world; and though his empire fell to pieces at his untimely death, yet it had already carried Greek letters to the borders of India, and made them a common possession of all civilized nations. What Alexander had begun Julius Caesar completed. Under the protection of the Roman law the apostles could travel everywhere and make themselves understood through the Greek language in every city of the Roman domain."

Alfred Edersheim in his " History of the Old Testament" elects the Septuagint over the Massoretic texts, [ft]

 [ft] most "Protestant" Bibles have the Massoretic Texts know as the "MT" as their Old Testament source

in several passages in 1 Samuel chapter 17 ; " * There is considerable difficulty about the text as it now stands. That the narrative is strictly historical cannot be doubted. But, on the other hand, vers. 12-14, and still more vers. 55-58, read as if the writer had inserted this part of his narrative from some other source, perhaps from a special chronicle of the event. The LXX solves the difficulty by simply leaving out vers. 12-31, and again vers. 55-58; that is, they boldly treat that part as an interpolation; and it must be confessed that the narrative reads easier without it. And yet, on the other hand, if these verses are interpolated, the work has been clumsily done; and it is not easy to see how any interpolator would not have at once seen the difficulties which he created, especially by the addition of vers. 55- 58.

Besides, the account, vers. 12-31, not only fits in very well with the rest of the narrative . but also bears the evident impress of truthfulness. The drastic method in which the LXX. dealt with the text, so early as about two centuries before Christ, at least proves that, even at that time, there were strong doubts about the genuineness of the text. All this leads to the suggestion, that somehow the text may have become corrupted, and that later copyists may have tried emendations and additions, by way of removing difficulties, which, as might be expected in such a case, would only tend to increase them. On the whole, therefore, we are inclined to the opinion that, while the narrative itself is strictly authentic, the text, as we possess it, is seriously corrupted in some of the expressions, especially in the concluding verses of the chapter.."

The Dead Sea Scrolls, found in the caves of Qumran near the Dead Sea in Israel in the late 1940's-early 1950's quite often substantiate the Septuagint readings of the Scriptures.

What has become so strikingly apparent to me in my studies of the Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament, in particular His Resurrection,  is that many versus in the Septuagint and corraborated in the Dead Sea Scrolls (written before the Messiah's birth) are directly speakin of or figuratively pointing to the Messiah to rise from the dead but are strangely lacking in the Massoretic texts. As one example, see Isaiah 53:11 in this study in this "Messiah Resurrection Prophecies Christ's Resurrection In Accordance With the Greek Scriptures"

In conclusion to the question of which texts, the Hebrew/Massoretic texts, the Greek Septuagint, or the Dead Sea Scrolls (of which they are generally in close agreement) are more genuine (closest to the original "autographs") may it be agreed that we must didligently adhere to the following scriptures to gain scholarly insight  and spiritual discerment :

 "Study to show thyself approved to God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." ( 2 Timothy 2:15) and as another scripture instructs us : "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." (Romans 8:14).

 God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him, not those who do so half-heartedly. If we apply these truths then we are assured that the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth.

I have spent several years of study in this important search of those scriptures that Jesus expounded on the road to Emmaus after His resurrection with the foolish, doubting, ignorant, and slow of heart to believe (the prophetic scriptures of His resurrection) disciples and I believe I have found treasure in my search. Jesus today is still willing to expound those scriptures to us by His Holy Spirit. If he did so for those disciples then certainly He will do the same for us if we ask and search.

One more conclusion that I came to is that for me, the "Authorized"/Massoretic Old Testament texts are no longer my "default" Old Testament but rather the Greek Septuagint (original language as well as translated to English) Nevertheless, along with the ancient Greek texts I will continue to consult the Hebrew/Authorized version as well as the Dead Sea Scrolls.

This website and my study CDrom uses all three texts as it's sources with the majority of the texts derived from those used almost exclusively for over 1500 years by the Christian Church and it's "fathers" as well as the majority of New Testament writings (Matthew being the exception), the Septuagint (LXX).

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Deuteronomy 18:15, LXX ;" The Lord thy God shall raise up to thee a prophet of thy brethren, like me; him shall ye hear:"

and

Deuteronomy 18:18, LXX (Thomson version) ; "I will raise up for them, from among their brethren, a prophet like thee, and I will put my words in his mouth, and he will speak to them as I command him:"

Cross references :

John 5:45-47   "Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is {one} that accuseth you, {even} Moses, in whom ye trust.  46 For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote concerning me.  47 But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?"

Acts 7:37 This is that Moses, who said to the children of Israel, A prophet will the Lord your God raise up to you of your brethren, like me; him will ye hear.

 Matthew 17:5-6   5 While he was yet speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold, a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: hear ye him.  6 And when the disciples heard {it}, they fell on their face, and were in great fear."

Acts 3:22-26 "For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; Him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever He shall say unto you."

23 And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.

 24 Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.

 25 Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.

 26 Unto you first God, having raised up His Son Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities."

John 12:49-50 ; "For I have not spoken from myself; but the Father who sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.

 50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatever I speak therefore, even as the Father said to me, so I speak."

Hebrews 3:1-6 ; "Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

 2 Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses {was faithful} in all his house.

 3 For this {man} was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath built the house, hath more honor than the house.

 4 For every house is built by some {man}; but he that built all things {is} God.

 5 And Moses verily {was} faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were {afterwards} to be spoken.

 6 But Christ as a son over his own house: whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence, and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end."

John 5:45-46, Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.

Vs 46 For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote concerning me."

Matthew Henry ;  "That God would raise Him up from the midst of them. In His birth He should be one of that nation, should live among them and be sent to them. In His resurrection He should be raised up at Jerusalem, and thence His doctrine should go forth to all the world: thus God, having raised up His Son Christ Jesus, sent Him to bless us."

John Gill ; "...the Messiah, with whom the whole agrees; and upon this the expectation of a prophet among the Jews was raised, John 6:14 and is applied to Him, and referred to as belonging to Him in  Acts 3:22 ; 7:37, who was a prophet mighty in word and deed, and not only foretold future events, as His own sufferings and death, and resurrection from the dead, the destruction of Jerusalem, and other things; but taught and instructed men in the knowledge of divine things, spake as never man did, preached the Gospel fully and faithfully, so that as the law came by Moses, the doctrine of grace and truth came by him; and He was raised up of God, called, sent, commissioned and qualified by Him for the office of a prophet, as well as was raised from the dead as a confirmation of His being that extraordinary person: from the midst of thee; He was of Israel, according to the flesh, of the tribe of Judah, and of the house of David, born of a virgin in Bethlehem, preached only in Judea, and was raised from the dead in the midst of them, and of which they were witnesses:"

Spurgeon ; "...In all respects our Lord was raised up from the midst of us, one of our own kith and kin. "For this cause He is not ashamed to call us brethren." He was our Brother in living, our Brother in death, and our Brother in resurrection; for after His resurrection He said, "Go, tell my brethren;" and He also said, "My Father, and your Father; my God, and your God." Though now exalted in the highest heavens He pleads for us and acts as a High Priest who can be touched with a feeling of our infirmities. God has graciously raised up such a Mediator, and now He speaks to us through Him. O sons of men, will ye not hearken when such an One as Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of man, is ordained to speak of the eternal God? Ye might be unable to hear if he should speak again in thunder, but now he speaketh by those dear lips of love, now he speaketh by that gracious tongue which has wrought such miracles of grace by its words, now He speaketh out of that great heart of His, which never beats except with love to the sons of men-will ye not hear Him?

Surely we ought to give the most earnest heed and obey His every word."

Gill on verse 18 'I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren like unto thee,' &c.] "So that it seems this promise or prophecy was first made at Mount Sinai, but now renewed and repeated, and which is nowhere else recorded; see Deuteronomy 18:15 when they were not only made easy for the present by appointing Moses to receive from the Lord all further notices of his mind and will, but were assured that when it was his pleasure to make a new revelation, or a further discovery of his mind and will, in future times, he would not do it in that terrible way he had delivered the law to them; but would raise up a person of their own flesh and blood, by whom it should be delivered, which was sufficient to prevent their fears for the future:

and will put my word in his mouth; the doctrines of the Gospel, which come from God, and are the words of truth, faith, righteousness, peace, pardon, life, and salvation; and which Christ says were not his own, as man and Mediator, but his Father's, which he gave unto him, and put into his mouth, as what he should say, teach, and deliver to others; .

and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him; nor did he keep back, but faithfully declared the whole counsel of God; and as he gave him a commandment what he should say, and what he should speak, he was entirely obedient to it; ."

 Hengstenberg ; ".Moses had Christ here in view, though not merely in reference to his visible manifestation, but also to his previous invisible influence ; as the Spirit of Christ is said by Peter to have spoken through the prophets. He does not indeed speak of the prophets as a collective body, to which Christ also in the end incidentally belonged, as Calvin and other commentators supposed ; but the prophetic order appeared to him personified in Christ, in whom his idea of it was completely realized. There is then here a reference to the other prophets also,."

"It was His Spirit that gave them their being."

Keil and Delitzsch ; " ...This prophecy, therefore, is very properly referred to Jesus Christ in the New Testament, as having been fulfilled in Him. Not only had Philip this passage in his mind when he said to Nathanael, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law did write, Jesus of Nazareth," whilst Stephen saw the promise of the prophet like unto Moses fulfilled in Christ (Acts_7:37); but Peter also expressly quotes it in Act_3:22-23, as referring to Christ; and even the Lord applies it to Himself in John_5:45-47, when He says to the Jews, "Moses, in whom ye trust, will accuse you; for if ye believed Moses, ye would also believe Me: for Moses wrote of Me." In John_12:48-50, again, the reference to Deuteronomy_18:18 and Deuteronomy_18:19 of this chapter is quite unmistakeable; and in the words, "hear ye Him" which were uttered from the cloud at the transfiguration of Jesus (Mattthew_17:5), the expression in Deu_18:15, "unto Him shall ye hearken," is used verbatim with reference to Christ"...

Mark 8:31 "And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again."  (Jesus, the greatest Prophet of all, High Priest, and King  prophecied His own death and Resurrection )

Cross references :

1 Samuel 8:7 "And the Lord said to Samuel, Hear the voice of the people, in whatever they shall say to thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me from reigning over them."

Hosea 6:2, LXX (Thomson Version); "In two days He can restore us to health ; on the third day we shall be raised up and live before Him."

Mark 9:31 "For he taught his disciples, and said to them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day."

Mark 10:33  Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles:

Mark 10:34  And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.

Matthew 16:21  "From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day."

Luke 9:22  "Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day."

Luke 24:7  Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again."                                                                                                                                                      

Matthew 12:40  For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.                                                                                                           

John 2:19  Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

Acts 3:14-15 (Jewish eyewitnesses whose testimony was unopposed) "But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; vs.15  And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.

John Gill ; "Ver. 31. And he began to teach them, &c.] For as yet he had said nothing to them about his sufferings and death, at least in express terms; but now they being firmly established in the faith of him, as the Messiah, he thought it proper to inform them,

that the son of man must suffer many things; meaning himself, as that he should be betrayed, apprehended, and bound, should be smitten, spit upon, buffeted, and scourged; and which things must be done, and he suffer them, because it was so determined by God, and foretold in the Scriptures:

and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests and Scribes; which composed the grand Sanhedrim of the nation, and are the builders that were prophesied of by whom he should be rejected, Psalm 118:22,

and be killed; in a violent manner; his life be taken away by force, without law, or justice:

and after three days rise again: not after three days were ended, and on the fourth day, but after the third day was come; that is, "on the third day", as the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions read; and even the Pharisees themselves thus understood Christ, Matthew 27:63,64, so the phrase, "after eight days", is used for the eighth day, being come, or that same day a week later"; see Luke 9:28 compared with Matthew 17:1 Joh 20:26.

Abbott ; "He explained these things that they might not now, upon his tacit acknowledgment of his Messiahship, begin to form expectations of worldly power and grandeur.--After three days; on the third day."

 John 11:24-26 ;vs. 24; " Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.

Vs. 25"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:"

26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?"

cross references :

Isaiah 26:19 Dead Sea Scrolls ; "But your dead ones shall live with My dead body they shall arise. They shall awake and sing O inhabitants of the dust. Because your dew is as the dew of light and the earth shall cast out the departed."                                                               

John 5:21  For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.

John 6:39  And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.

John 6:40  And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

John 6:44  No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

Adam Clarke ; "Verse 25. I am the resurrection, and the life] Thou sayest that thy brother shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day; but by whom shall he arise if not by Me, who am the author of the resurrection, and the source of life? And is it not as easy for me to raise him now as to raise him then? Thus our blessed Lord raises her hope, animates her faith, and teaches her that he was not a mere man, but the essential principle and author of existence.
  Though he were dead  Every man who has believed or shall believe in me, though his believing shall not prevent him from dying a natural death, yet his body shall be re-animated, and he shall
live with me in an eternal glory. And every one who is now dead, dead to God, dead in trespasses and sins, if he believe in me, trust on me as his sole Saviour, he shall live, shall be quickened by my Spirit, and live a life of faith, working by love."

John Gill ; ".He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: believers in Christ die as well as others, though death is not a penal evil to them; its curse is removed, its sting is taken away, being satisfied for by Christ, and so becomes a blessing and privilege to them, and is desirable by them; but though they die, they shall live again; their dust is under the peculiar care of Christ; and they shall rise by virtue of union to him, and shall rise, first in the morning of the resurrection, and with peculiar privileges, or to the resurrection of life, and with the peculiar properties of incorruption, power, glory, and spirituality. So likewise such that have been dead in sin, and dead in law, under a sentence of condemnation, as all mankind are in Adam, and being in a natural and sinful estate, and as the chosen of God themselves are; yet being brought to believe in Christ, that is, to see the excellency and suitableness of him as a Saviour, and the necessity of salvation by him; to go out of themselves to him, disclaiming their own righteousness; venture their souls upon him, give up themselves to him, trust in him, and depend upon him for eternal life and salvation; these live spiritually; they appear to have a principle of life in them; they breathe after spiritual things; they see the Son of God, and behold his glory; they handle the word of life; they speak the language of Canaan, and walk by faith on Christ, as they have received him; they live a life of sanctification and justification; they are manifestly in Christ, and have him, an interest in him, and so must have life; they live comfortably [my ft]

[ft] "in a manner to give comfort or consolation"  (see Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

 they live by faith on Christ, and his righteousness, and have communion with him here, and expect to have, and shall have eternal life hereafter."

Zephaniah 3:8 LXX (Augustine's version) ; "Wait ye upon Me, saith the Lord, in the day of My Resurrection, in the future, because it is My determination to assemble nations, and to gather together the kingdoms."

Zephaniah 3:8 LXX, (Thomson version) ; "On that very account, wait thou for Me, saith the Lord, until the day of My resurrection for a testimony. For this judgement of Mine is for the assemblies of nations ; to admit kings, to pour out all the fury of My wrath on them."

Zephaniah 3:8 (Transl. of the Latin Vulgate) ; " Wherefore expect me, saith the Lord, in the day of My resurrection that is to come, for my judgment is to assemble the Gentiles, and to gather the kingdoms: and to pour upon them my indignation, all my fierce anger: for with the fire of my jealousy shall all the earth be devoured."

The Greek reads; " dia tou/to u`po meinon me le gei kurioj eivj h`me ran avnastasew,j mou eivj martu rion dio ti to. krima mou eivj sunagwga j evqnw/n tou/ eivsde xasqai basilei/j tou/ evkce ai evpV auvtou j pa/san ovrgh n qumou/ mou dio ti evn puri  zhlouj mou katanalwqh setai pa/sa h` gh/"

note that the phrase "rise up to the prey" in the King James version gives a different (non-resurrection) context to the verse, thereby not following the more ancient Septuagint (LXX)

The Latin Vulgate/Douey Rheims, Augustine's reference to, and Thomson's Septuagint (LXX) inclusion of the phrase "the Day of my Resurrection" in prophetic reference to Christ's ( "the Lord") rising from the dead is indeed a stunning find in my quest for prophecies of Messiah's Resurrection. In this treasure hunt, as-it-were, for just such a revealing reference, this is the crown jewel among so many more that were always there in Scripture just waiting to be quaried from the Holy Writ. It seems very odd indeed that the vast majority of Bibles do not even so much as footnote that such a verse is to be found in the most ancient Biblical manuscripts!

cross references:

Isaiah 55:3-5 LXX (Thomson version) "Incline your ears and follow in My paths; hearken to Me and your soul shall live on good things; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant-the gracious promises to David which are faithful.  Behold for a testimony [ft]

[my footnote] marturion , ou witness, testimony; evidence, proof;

to nations I gave him,-a chief and a lawgiver to nations.  Nations which knew thee not will fly to thee, for the sake of the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, because He hath glorified thee."

Isaiah 30:18 ;  "And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him."

James 5:7  "Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain."

Revelation 19:11, verse 11 ; "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon Him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge and make war."12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns; and He had a name written, that no man knew, but He Himself.13 And He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and His name is called The Word of God.14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."

John Gill ; "  Ver. 8. "Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the Lord,' &c.... this is said to the disciples and followers of Christ among the Jews; for there were some few that did fear the Lord,  and received his doctrine, and submitted to His ordinances, and walked in His ways; and these are encouraged to wait upon the Lord; upon the Word of the Lord, as the Targum; or for Him, and to expect that He would appear, and work salvation and deliverance for them, when distress should come upon the unbelieving Jews: 'until the day that I rise up to the prey': until the day that He rose from the dead, quickly after which He ascended to heaven, leading captivity captive; Satan, and His principalities and powers, which He made a prey and spoil of upon the cross: or, till I rise "up for a testimony", or witness {'heis marturion', Septuagint.}; of His being the true Messiah; for His resurrection from the dead was the signal He gave as a testimony of it,  (Mt 12:39,40). Some render it, "till I rise up to perpetuity": or, "forever"... for, when Christ rose from the dead, He rose to an immortal life, never to die more; and ever live He does to make intercession for His people, to secure their happiness for them, and to preserve them unto it; and therefore they have great encouragement to wait upon Him, and for Him:"...

Matthew Henry ; ( here ties the two victories of Christ, the former and the latter, together) "Principalities and powers shall be spoiled, and made a show of openly, and the victorious Redeemer shall triumph over them. The end of those that continue to be of the earth, and to mind earthly things, after God has set up the kingdom of heaven among men, shall be destruction (Phillipians 3:19); they shall be devoured with the fire of God's jealousy."

 Note that Augustine's passage does not have the "to admit kings, to pour out all the fury of My wrath on them." phrase of the Scripture. The Lord will indeed gather his people from all nations in the marriage supper of the Lamb. (see Revelation chapter 18)Yet even if the other versions with the judgment in the verse are accurate, it does not negate the resurrection passage as we know that the Lord has since His resurrection brought judgment (as the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A. D.) and will again bring destruction to the unbelieving inhabitants on earth.

According to the "Pulpit Commentatery" the following church "fathers" interpreted Zephaniah 3:8 as Christ's resurrection and/or "dividing the spoil" ; Cyril, Jerome, Eusebius, and Augustine. (See "The Pulpit Commentary for detailed references.)

The Massorites ( Jewish translators) said this was the only verse in the scriptures that used the entire Hebrew alphabet.

In the following, Justin (Martyr) pursuasively demonstrates Christ's fulfillment of the portion of this scripture:  "for a testimony" , by design or otherwise (highlighted in yellow) ;

 "THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST PROVES THAT THE BODY RISES.

  If He had no need of the flesh, why did He heal it? And what is most forcible of all, He raised the dead. Why? Was it not to show what the resurrection should be? How then did He raise the dead? Their souls or their bodies? Manifestly both. If the resurrection were only spiritual, it was requisite that He, in raising the dead, should show the body lying apart by itself, and the soul living apart by itself. But now He did not do so, but raised the body, confirming in it the promise of life. Why did He rise in the flesh in which He suffered, unless to show the resurrection of the flesh? And wishing to confirm this, when His disciples did not know whether to believe He had truly risen in the body, and were looking upon Him and doubting, He said to them, "Ye have not yet faith, see that it is I;"(3) and He let them handle Him, and showed them the prints of the nails in His hands. And when they were by every kind of proof persuaded that it was Himself, and in the body, they asked Him to eat with them, that they might thus still more accurately ascertain that He had in verity risen bodily; and He did eat honey-comb and fish. And when He had thus shown them that there is truly a resurrection of the flesh, wishing to show them this also, that it is not impossible for flesh to ascend into heaven (as He had said that our dwelling-place is in heaven), "He was taken up into heaven while they beheld,"(4) as He was in the flesh. If, therefore, after all that has been said, any one demand demonstration of the resurrection, he is in no respect different from the Sadducees, since the resurrection of the flesh is the power of God, and, being above all reasoning, is established by faith, and seen in works."

A. Barnes comments on the Masorretic phrase "the day I rise up for a prey" (not in the LXX): "And since the whole history of the Church lies wrapped up in the Person of the Redeemer, "the day that I rise up to the prey," is especially the Day in which the foundation of His Church was laid, or that in which it shall be completed; the Day whereon He rose again, as the first-fruits, or that Day in which He shall "stand again on the earth" , to judge it; "so coming even as He went up into heaven" Acts_1:11. Then, "the prey" must be, what God vouch-safes to account as His gain, "the prey" which is "taken from the mighty" Isaiah_49:24-25, and "the lawful captivity, the prey of the terrible one," which shall be delivered; even that spoil which the Father bestowed on Him "Who made His soul an offering for sin" Isa_53:10, Isa_53:12, the goods of the strong man Matthew_12:29 whom He bound, and spoiled us, His lawful goods and captives, since we had "sold" (Romans_7:14;. Isaiah_50:1; Isaiah_52:3) ourselves "under sin" to him. Cyril: "Christ lived again having spoiled hell, because "it was not possible" (as it is written) "that He," being by nature Life, "should be holden of death" Acts 2:24."

Jonah 1:17 and 2:1-3 LXX "Now the Lord had commanded a great fish to swallow Jonas, so Jonas was three days and three nights, in the belly of the fish. And when out of the belly of the great fish, Jonas prayed to the Lord his God, and said, In my affliction I cried to the Lord my  God, and He hearkened to me: thou didst hear my cry from the womb of Hades: thou didst hearken to my prayer: thou hast cast me into the depths of the heart of the sea. When streams encompassed me-all thy billows and thy waves passed over me."  [my ft]

[ft] the greek is literally "hades" rather than "hell" as the Friberg Lexicon states ; "... Hades (lit. an unseen place); (1) the place of the dead underworld  (Acts 2.27); (2) usu. in the NT as the temporary underworld prison where the souls of  the ungodly await the judgment (Luke 16.23); ..." also, verse 1 is actually verse 17 of chapter 1 in Charles Thomson's unedited version)

Cross reference:

Psalm 86:13 LXX (Thomson version) "For Thy mercy to me hath been great; Thou hast delivered my soul from the deepest mansion of the dead."

Psalm 4:1 LXX (Thomson version) ; "When I made my supplication, my righteous God heard me: Thou hast enlarged me in distress: be gracious to me and hear my prayer."

Psalm 16:10 LXX, (Thomson version) ; ..." that thou wilt not leave my soul in the mansion of the dead, nor suffer thine Holy One to see corruption." [my ft]

[my ft] The MT/KJV or so-called "authorized version" has ; "Psalm 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption."

Apostolic (Peter) commentary and scriptural reference Acts 2:22-36   " Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know --  ²³ "Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death;  ²⁴ "whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it.  ²⁵ "For David says concerning Him: 'I foresaw the LORD always before my face, For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken.  ²⁶ Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad; Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope.  ²⁷ For You will not leave my soul in Hades, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.  ²⁸ You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of joy in Your presence.'  ²⁹ "Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.  ³⁰ "Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,  ³¹ "he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption.  ³² "This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.  ³³ "Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.  ³⁴ "For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: 'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand,  ³⁵ Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." '  ³⁶ "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."

1 Samuel 30:6   ⁶ "Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God."

Psalm 18:5-6 LXX, (Thomson version) ;  "The pangs of Hades surrounded me, and the snares of deth were before me.

Vs 6 In my distress I called on the Lord, and to my cry before Him reached His ears."

Hebrews 5:7-9 :   "Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to him that was able to save him from death, and was heard, in that he feared;

 ⁸ Though he was a Son, yet he learned obedience by the things which he suffered;  ⁹ And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation to all them that obey him;"

Matthew Henry comments;"...When Christ lay, as Jonah, three days and three nights in the grave, though he prayed not, as Jonah did, yet his very lying there cried to God for poor sinners, and the cry was heard. "...and..."As a type and figure of Christ's resurrection He died and was buried, to lay in the grave, as Jonah did, three days and three nights, a prisoner for our debt; but the third day he came forth, as Jonah did, by his messengers to preach repentance, and remission of sins, even to the Gentiles. And thus was another scripture fulfilled, After two days he will receive us, and the third day he will raise us up, "(Hosea 6:2)

John Gill : "...In this Jonah was a type of Christ, who, amidst his agonies, sorrows, and sufferings, prayed to his Father, and claimed his interest in him as his God, .."

"...'out of the belly of the grave' (b); out of the midst of it; that is, out of the belly of the fish, which was as a grave to him, as Jarchi observes; where he lay as out of the land of the living, as one dead, and being given up for dead: and it may also respect the frame of his mind, the horror and terror lie was in, arising from a sense of his sins, and the apprehensions he had of the wrath of God, which were as a hell in his conscience; and amidst all this he cried to God, and he heard him; and not only delivered him from he fish's belly, but from those dreadful apprehensions he had of his state and condition; and spoke peace and pardon to him.".

"...and the floods compassed me about; all thy billows and thy waves passed over me; which was his case as soon as cast into the sea, before the fish had swallowed him, as well as after: this was literally true of Jonah, what David says figuratively concerning his afflictions, and from whom the prophet seems to borrow the expressions, Psa_42:7; and indeed he might use them also in a metaphorical sense, with a view to the afflictions of body, and sorrows of death, that compassed him; and to the billows and waves of divine wrath, which in his apprehension lay upon him, and rolled over him."