Until this day

In the late 7^th century or early 6^th century BCE, someone who used the phrase “until this day” created his literary masterpiece that we have identified as the Deuteronomistic History. Biblical scholars would probably call this person an editor or redactor and may argue that there were many editors and redactors involved in this process. I, for one, believe Jeremiah is the person who wrote this piece and did so during the time of Josiah.

This phrase has long been recognized as a clue to the origin of Hebrew scripture. It was cited in one of the earliest studies in a discussion about the location of Moses’ grave unknown to this day. The history of this research as told by Jeffrey C. Geoghegan in The Time, Place and Purpose of the Deutronomistic History is a fascinating read.

The phrase was probably employed to assert that in the author’s day this object still exist and can be verified. Matthew uses the phrase for the same reason that Jeremiah did. A hundred years after Matthew penned the words in verse 28:15, Justin Martyr wrote in the second century that the discussion of the theft of the body was still current among the Jews.

It has been said that the Deuteronomistic History was created during a time of national crisis. Does this logic also apply to the writing of the NT? Did the NT writers use phrases like “until this day” that reveal clues about the origin of the NT?

Copyrighted 2007

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Gospel of Luke