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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 February 2009
The fact of the Incarnation is one of the central affirmations of the Christian Faith. To deny that ‘the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us’ is to deny what is essential to Christianity. The mode of the Incarnation, however, has been held to be less essential to our Christian Faith than the fact. Nevertheless in the creeds and confessions of the Christian Church the fact of the Incarnation is almost invariably set forth in terms of the mode. For example, the clause qui conceptus est de Spiritu Sancto, natus ex Maria Virgine is the first intimation of the fact of the Incarnation in the Apostles' Creed.
page 159 note 1 Dodd, C. H., The Apostolic Preaching and its Developments (Hodder and Stoughton, 1936), Lect. 1.Google Scholar
page 160 note 1 Brunner, Emil, The Mediator (Lutterworth Press, 1943), p. 326.Google Scholar
page 161 note 1 If the Isaianic prophecy had an immediate fulfilment in the sign to Ahaz, then we cannot render 'almah by virgin or we are faced with having to explain two Virgin births! Cp. Mueller, W., Evang. Quart., XXXIII, 203–207 (Oct.-Dec. 1960)Google Scholar
page 161 note 2 Hunter, A. M., The Work and Words of Jesus (S.C.M. Press, 1950), p. 29.Google Scholar
page 161 note 3 Machen, J. G., The Virgin Birth of Christ (Marshall, Morgan and Scott, 1930), p. 46.Google Scholar
page 162 note 1 Emil Brunner, op. cit., p. 324.
page 162 note 2 The main infancy gospel which refers to the birth of Jesus is the Protevangelium Jacobi, chapters 17–19.
page 163 note 1 Matt. 1.18, Luke 2.5.
page 163 note 2 Luke 1.34, cp. Koran, sura 19.15–29.
page 163 note 3 Matt. 1.25.
page 163 note 4 Luke 3.23.
page 163 note 5 Matt. 2.13, 14, 20, 31.
page 164 note 1 Ignatius, Ephes. 7.2, 18.2, 19.1; Smyrn. 1.1.
page 164 note 2 In view of the use made by Ignatius of the doctrine against the Docetists, it is surprising to find Brunner maintaining that the doctrine contains ‘a strong docetic trait’ in his Christian Doctrine of Creation and Redemption (Lutterworth Press, 1952), P. 355.Google Scholar Since the Virgin birth doctrine is concerned to show how Christ was made flesh and came to have a real human body, it is difficult to see how it can be regarded as in any way docetic.
page 164 note 3 Harris, J. R. and Robinson, J. A., Texts and Studies (Cambridge, 1893), 1, 23ff.Google Scholar
page 164 note 4 Justin Martyr, Dial., 85.
page 165 note 1 J. G. Machen, op. cit., p. 41.
page 165 note 2 Mackintosh, H. R., The Person of Jesus Christ (T. and T. Clark, 1912), p. 529.Google Scholar
page 166 note 1 H. R. Mackintosh, op. cit., p. 531.
page 166 note 2 H. R. Mackintosh, op. cit., p. 527.
page 166 note 3 Denney, James, Studies in Theology (Hodder and Stoughton, 1895), p. 64.Google Scholar
page 167 note 1 Intffabilis Deus which was promulgated on 8th December 1854 a nd set forth the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary as a dogma of the Roman Church saying ‘that Mary was preserved from original sin from the first moment of her conception’.
page 168 note 1 Turner, H. E. W., Expository Times, Vol. LXVIII, pp. 12–17 (Oct. 1956).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
page 169 note 1 Luke 1.34 RSV.
page 169 note 2 Luke 1.35 RSV.
page 170 note 1 John 1.13, 3.31; Rom. 1.3, 8.3; 1 Cor. 15.47; Gal. 4.4; Phil. 2.7.
page 171 note 1 Luke 1.4.
page 171 note 2 Matt. 13.55; Luke 4.22; John 1.45, 6.42.
page 171 note 3 Matt. 2.13, 14, 20, 21.
page 171 note 4 Luke 3.23.
page 171 note 5 Luke 2.33 RV.
page 172 note 1 Luke 2.48.
page 172 note 2 John 6.42.
page 172 note 3 Luke 2.27, 41, 43.
page 172 note 4 It is true that the term foster-father is used in the RSV rendering of Isaiah 49.23. In this verse it translates the Qal participle 'omen which is used substantively to denote a class of men who were employed in princely or wealthy families. These 'omenim acted as tutors, guardians and companions to the heir of the family. They were not foster-fathers in the usual English meaning of this term. The Hebrew word is also used in Numbers 11.12; 2 Kings 10.1, 5; and Esther 2.7. Cp. G. M. Mackie, H.D.B., iii, 573b, article ‘Nurse’.
page 173 note 1 Taylor, Vincent, The Historical Evidence for the Virgin Birth (Oxford, 1920), p. 28.Google Scholar
page 173 note 2 Luke 2.33.
page 173 note 3 Luke 2.48.
page 174 note 1 Luke 2.50.
page 174 note 2 Matt. 1.16.
page 174 note 3 Luke 3.23.
page 174 note 4 J. G. Machen, op. cit., p. 129.
page 175 note 1 Barclay, W., And He had Compassion on Them (Church of Scotland Youth Committee, 1955), p. 277.Google Scholar
page 179 note 1 Herford, R. Travers in his Christianity in Talmud and Midrash (Williams and Norgate, 1903) p. 39fGoogle Scholar mentions this possible derivation of Pandira, but prefers to leave the derivation obscure and to regard the name as a relic of ‘ancient Jewish mockery against Jesus, the clue to whose meaning is now lost’.