Inspiration of the OT

[KGM]

I have no doubt that the Old Testament contains inspired writings, but how do we know? We know that the New Testament is inspired because of the authority given to the church to determine this, but how did the Jews know that the OT was inspired prior to Jesus? I understand that the Jewish leaders had the authority to bind and loose. Does this in a nutshell explain how they knew it was inspired? I might add which Jewish leaders were given this authority and where is this in the OT?

 

[Digitonomy]

This doesn’t help from a Jewish perspective, but 2 Timothy 3:16 states that all scripture is inspired by God.

Which scripture is the author referring to? The primary meaning is probably just Old Testament scripture - the New Testament books weren’t really considered scripture yet. The secondary meaning for us may be broader, and refer to the entire canon including the New Testament.

 

[scottm]

Good question. The short answer is that we know because Jesus said so, and Paul and Peter and the gospel writers said so.

But, ya, the history of it – I don’t know the history of it! Good question.

 

[KGM]

I’m curious as to how the Jews before Christ new that what they were reading (or was read to them) was inspired by God. We christians today, because of the Church, know what scriptures are inspired. I believe in the authority of the Roman Catholic Church and, therefore, believe in the inspiration of all scripture, but let’s turn the clock back to say 500 BC. A Jew during this time would know scripture is inspired by God how? Who in those days had the authority to decide this. In fact it appears, from some reading, that there was not a general consensus as to what books should be in the OT scriptures.

 

[Janet_S]

I’m curious as to how the Jews before Christ new that what they were reading (or was read to them) was inspired by God. We christians today, because of the Church, know what scriptures are inspired. I believe in the authority of the Roman Catholic Church and, therefore, believe in the inspiration of all scripture, but let’s turn the clock back to say 500 BC. A Jew during this time would know scripture is inspired by God how? Who in those days had the authority to decide this. In fact it appears, from some reading, that there was not a general consensus as to what books should be in the OT scriptures.

This doesn’t answer all your questions, but it is a Jewish perspective on sacred Scripture:
jewfaq.org/torah.htm

 

[Verbum]

Hi KGM,

We do not rely on the Jews for the inspiration of he Old Testament. We rely on Jesus and the apostles who handed it down to us.

However, the Jews did recognize the scriptures as the word of God. This from the pnline Catholic Encycopedia (1911 ed.) :

The belief in the sacred character of certain books is as old as the Hebrew literature. Moses and the prophets had committed to writing a part of the message they were to deliver to Israel from God. Now the naby (prophet), whether he spoke or wrote, was considered by the Hebrews the authorized interpreter of the thoughts and wishes of Yahweh. He was called, likewise, “the man of God,” “the man of the Spirit” (Hosea 9:7). It was around the Temple and the Book that the religious and national restoratiion of the Jewish people was effected after their exile (see 2 Maccabees 2:13-14, and the prologue of Sirach in the Septuagint). Philo (from 20 B.C. to A.D. 40) speaks of the “sacred books”, “sacred word”, and of “most holyscripture” (De vita Moysis, iii, no. 23). The testimony of Flavius Josephus (A.D. 37-95) is still more characteristic; it is in his writings that the word inspiration (epipnoia) is met for the first time. He speaks of twenty-two books which the Jews with good reason consider Divine, and for which, in case of need, they are ready to die (Contra Apion., I, 8). The belief of the Jews is the inspiration of the Scriptures did not diminsh from the time in which they were dispersed throughout the world, without temple, without altar, without priests; on the contrary this faith increased so much that it took the place of everything else

So the Jews recognized as inspired the writings of those who were “men of God”.

Verbum

 

[KGM]

I understand that we do not rely upon the Jews for the ispiration of the Old Testament. My question is how did the Jews before Christ know that what was being passed on through the scriptures was the Word of God? We know this because of the Magesterium, but before there was the Church there had to be some way to know that OT scriptures were inspired by God. Today there is a clear distinction between those writings that were inspired by God and those that were not. There were many gospels written, but only Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were inspired. How then did OT Jews know that what they were being taught was inspired by God?