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Here in this verse, is the word "saith" to be taken literally, or figuratively?

(Romans 10:11 KJV) For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed

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    This is literal language, similar to an instruction manual which is also literal language. I unfortunately don’t have the time to elaborate further. Blessings Commented yesterday
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    Look at how many times the phrase "what the Scripture says" appears in the NT, eg, Rom 11:2, 1 Tim 5:18, etc, etc. Look at Heb 11:4, etc. Commented yesterday
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    I thought the responses were specifically about the verse in question, when the Bible quotes another passage from the OT for example it’s literal language, as found in the verse you quoted. I either misunderstood the question or some of these responses are irrelevant to your question. Commented yesterday
  • You understood! I think, though, Nihil, we're all at different places in our journey. What do you think? And, we're helping each other. Iron sharpens iron. Commented yesterday
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    One needs to say @NihilSineDeo somewhere in the comment so that the person will be notified of your response. Commented 14 hours ago

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One might equally ask the same question about any other book.

The expression seems to be a very 21st expression. Until recently, dictionaries were far more likely to be saying things:

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"Can Scripture literally speak? Is Scripture being personified...OR, is God speaking through Scripture?"

Can the dictionary literally speak? Is the dictionary being personified … or, is Webster speaking through his book?

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It is a familiar theological tension within Christian thought: Scripture is truly the word of God, yet Scripture is not God Himself. An analogy may help. Imagine God delivering a speech in an auditorium:

  • God is the speaker
  • Scripture is the speech

The speech reveals the speaker's will, but the speech is not the speaker.

God genuinely speaks through Scripture, and Scripture truly literally communicates God's will. However, the question of personifying Scripture is not a doctrinal requirement but a personal choice. Even so, there is no harm in treating Scripture as if it speaks, for this can deepen our sense of communion with God - a rhetorical feature that often appears in Paul's writings.

Romans 9:17 (NIV)

For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.

Galatians 3:8 (NIV)

Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”

1 Timothy 5:18 (NIV)

For Scripture says, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,” and “The worker deserves his wages.”

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  • Very well written essay! Commented yesterday
  • Well-written, honoring and informative. Commented yesterday
  • This raises the question of what is said in scripture that is meant to be understood as false teaching, such as the speeches of Job's friends, which sound very pious if taken out of context. Are we supposed to understand these speeches as God's speech. I God carrying out a dialog with himself in which he ultimately decides against those who say pious things about Him? Commented yesterday
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    Yes, the speeches of the friends of Job are a good point, Dan. Only because of God's words to them can I know. God knew their heart motives, which may have come into play (as you mentioned, maybe piety?) I used to think I understood God's word well...and, now I realize I am just beginning to learn. It will surely take all of eternity! However, Scripture, Creation, the Spirit and His people reveal Him. His grace opens our eyes (but not to everything at once. We probably couldn't take it in our humanness!) Commented yesterday
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    @DanFefferman - The dialogues in the Book of Job are not, by themselves, the book's intended teaching; rather, the Book of Job as a whole is the teaching. Care must be taken not to isolate a single speech and declare it the word of God - especially when the text does not explicitly identified the speaker as God. Commented yesterday
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Obviously scripture does not literally speak. A person reads it. In Paul's time, scripture was often read out loud to a congregation, since very few people owned a copy of even one book of scripture. In that sense, the scripture did speak, but only through a reader. So the answer is "figuratively."

But there is a more fundamental problem here. In fact the scripture it question does not literally say what Paul claims it does. We can deduce what Paul is referring to from what he writes at the end of the previous chapter:

Romans 9

33 As it is written: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, and whosoever believeth in Him shall not be ashamed.”

This is a reference to Isaiah 28:16

Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; he that believeth shall not make haste.

Overlooking the translation problem of "not made haste" vs. "not put to shame," let's concentrate on the "cornerstone" issue. In the OT, the cornerstone is not a "him" but an "it."

Therefore, thus says the Lord God: See, I am laying a stone in Zion, a stone that has been tested, A precious cornerstone as a sure foundation; whoever puts faith in it will not waver. 17 I will make judgment a measuring line, and justice a level.— Hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and waters shall flood the hiding place. (NABRE)

Paul has interpreted the text to refer to be a "h/Him" - Christ. In so doing, he has interpreted Isaiah figuratively. The OT did not literally say what Paul interpreted it as saying. This does not make his interpretation wrong, but the answer to the OP's question in this regard is clearly "figurative."

Conclusion: The term "scripture saith" is figurative. So is Paul's interpretation of the verse he quotes from Isaiah, which speaks of a literal "stone." Paul interprets this figuratively, as referring to Jesus.

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  • When you read Scripture, does it speak to your heart (literally)? Commented yesterday
  • God speaks. Scripture speaks figuratively, as it has not literal voice. Commented yesterday
  • Ahhh...definitions make a big difference. To me, literal voice with Scripture means spiritual voice and not just audible voice. (It's not this same way with Shakespeare, though!) Commented yesterday
  • The "or" in my question caused a problem! I am editing to correct that. Commented 23 hours ago

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