This volume brings the continuation and conclusion of Luther's interpretations of the New Testament from the detailed explanation of the Epistle to the Galatians to the sermons on the Epistle of Saint Jude; also the interpretation of many beautiful sayings of sacred Scripture, which Luther wrote to some in their Bibles, and the short notes, which Luther (after 1530) entered in his own hand in his copy of the New Testament.
Compared to the ninth volume of Walch's old edition, this volume appears in a very different form. The shorter interpretation of the Epistle to the Galatians has been assigned to the eighth volume, while the detailed explanation has been transferred to this volume, which has already been accounted for in the preface to the eighth volume. The first number of the appendix in the old edition, Luther's "very first exegetical work on the Psalms of David," has been omitted from this volume, partly because it does not belong to the interpretations of the New Testament, and partly because the space for it is too limited.
The second number of the appendix: "The Interpretation on Marc. 16, 14-20, 'Of the Glorious Mandate of Christ'" also had to be left out. Also the second number of the appendix: "The interpretation of Marc. 16, 14-20, "Of the glorious mandate of Christ", had to be left out, because it is not (as Walch assumed) from Luther, but from Dr. Ambrosius Moiban in Breslau. 1) Luther wrote only a preface to it. 2) The third number of the appendix, Luther's sermon on 1 John 5:4, 5, has been newly translated from Latin and inserted at the appropriate place. The fourth number of the appendix, "Luther's Short Notes on the New Testament," we have not called an appendix, because they deserve a place in this section just as much as the interpretation of many beautiful sayings.
Besides the earlier "Interpretation on the 1st Epistle of St. Peter from 1523", which is printed by Walch, we have, because Luther later (in 1539) 3) once again discussed this epistle pre
1) The title of this paper is given in the Erlanger Ausgabe, Vol. 63, p. 344.
2) Walch, old edition, vol. XIV, 194.
3) Compare the first note on the first interpretation of the first epistle of St. Peter, Col. 958.
The latter redaction, which first appeared in 1539 in the first volume of Luther's collected writings, was included in this volume after the Wittenberg edition. Both adaptations did not come from Luther's own pen, but the first redaction was "excipitated and subsequently printed" by Cruciger, the second by Georg Rörer. He says about it in the table of contents of the second volume of the Jena edition of 1555 (Weim. Ausg., Vol. XII, p. 250): "However, because the first epistle of S. Peter was later discussed and explained by the blessed man of God, D. M., in the Sunday sermons that he preached many years after noon, in many places more extensively and more abundantly than before, I have, at the request of Moritz Goltzen ^the Wittenberg bookseller^, the pious, godly man, compiled several pieces from D. M.'s sermons. M. sermons, put them into print in the XXIIIth year, sometimes somewhat changed and increased, as can be seen in the first German Tomo, Anno XXXIX at D. M. Leben ausgangen, now and then, but especially in the beginning and end." Until now, it seems to have remained unknown at what time Luther preached for the second time on the first epistle of Peter, for Walch says (probably on the basis of Rörer's "nachmals" in the words just cited) in his preface to the 9th volume, p. 17 b, only "that Luther preached after the time [the
is, after 1523] preached again on the first Epistle of Peter on Sunday afternoon," which the Erlangen edition, vol. 51, p. 324, repeats. Also nowhere else have we found a closer time determination about it, not even in the Weimar edition, which until then had only brought the first editing. However, we have been enabled by the Zwickau Luther finding, at least on one side, to give a very precise time determination, namely, that Luther preached in 1539 on the 1st Epistle of Peter, and that the last sermon, which was used for the improvement of the first edition, on 1 Peter 5, 9, was held on July 13, 1539, which can be recognized by comparing the interpretation given by us with the Zwickau sermons. So that everyone can investigate for himself whether this is the case, we have printed the "Five Sermons on the Fourth and Fifth Chapters of the First Epistle of St. Peter" from Buchwald's "Eleven Previously Unprinted Sermons by Martin Luther, Delivered in the Time of Trinity 1539", sub No. X, O, although the relation is very poor and required several improvements and corrections.
From the same small collection we have included, sub No. XII, O, "Two Sermons on I John 3:13-17."
To the "Interpretations of Many Beautiful Sayings" we have added the Bible inscriptions, which are found scattered here and there in the Erlanger Ausgabe, vol. 56; vol. 37, p. 106, and in the De
Wette's collection of letters. The passage, however, which in De Wette, Vol. VI, p. 432, has the heading: "Written in a Bible", we have translated into German and used for the first part of Luther's "Short Notes on the New Testament"; for that is where this piece belongs. In the Erlangen edition, the same is found in the opp. var. arg. VII, p. 555, under the praefationes. Both, the Erlangen edition as well as Seidemann, have overlooked the fact that it is found twice in Walch, namely vol. IX, 2774, and vol. XIX, 1774. We, too, only became aware of Walch's duplication of this piece during the editing of this volume, and have already included it in our edition, vol. XIX, 1460. There it should have been omitted.
We have newly translated the great interpretation of the letter to the Galatians. We have to talk about it a little more in depth here, because the words used in the old
Translation of Menius.
As Hosea Cap. 13 it is written that one death strangles another; for so says the prophet v. 14: "Death, I will be a death or poison unto thee; hell, I will be a plague unto thee." But the death that strangles the other is the right life. But the prophet needs such a speech precisely because of the great indignation and anger against death, which so cruelly tears away and devours all the world; and he would not be able to defy death in this way, "Death, I will be your death or poison," if his heart were not full of the Holy Spirit, through whom he sings out enlightenment with all joy and gladness, and says that Christ's death has overcome the death that the devil has brought into the world.
Luther himself recognized Menius's translation, which was printed in the second edition, by including it in the first volume of his collected writings (1539).
Although Menius' translation shows that he had the German language well under his control, it cannot be denied that it suffers from various deficiencies that make a new translation appear desirable, namely: '
In many cases Menius did not give a translation, but a paraphrase of the Latin, e.g. in Luther's preface, which in our translation is at least a full third shorter than in Menius'.
Several times Menius inserted rhetorical expansions, which the Latin text does not offer. To prove this, we put a small section here, which forms the second half of 277 and 278 of the second chapter.
Our translation.
Court. 13, 14. "Death, I will be a death to you; hell, I will be a pestilence to you." [Vulg.) Thus he [Paul] says here that he died to the law through the law, as if to say: The law of Moses accuses me and condemns me. Against this accusing and condemning law I have another law, which is grace and freedom. This accuses the accuser and condemns the condemning law.
vm
Foreword.
After that St. Paul speaks Rom. 8, 3.: "God sends His Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and has condemned sin by sin." Makes two kinds of sin; as the prophet makes two kinds of death. But the sin that condemns the other is right, true righteousness. But St. Paul calls it a sin, out of a cheerful heart, which is full of the Spirit and of faith 2c. Item Eph. 4, 8. he takes the 68th Psalm, v. 19, and speaks in the same way, saying: "Christ has ascended on high and has caught the prison"; he sets prison against prison. In this way he also says here: "He died to the law through the law. As if to say, "The law of Moses accuses and condemns me; but against this law, which thus accuses and condemns me, I have another law, which is grace and liberty: which again accuses and condemns that law which wants to accuse and condemn me.
On a smaller scale, such extensions occur very frequently, e.g., Cap. 1, § 36, § 121, z 142; Cap. 2, § 98, § 99, § 303, § 366; Cap. 3, § 217, § 218, § 219, § 377; Cap. 6, § 119 2c. Cap. 4, § 1 is spun out by Menius in a rambling recapitulation to something over a "columne" and a half. At the end of § 240 of the 4th chapter, Menius inserts a longer section in which he elaborates on what Luther said by an excursus against the enemies of the Gospel at that time. In § 296 of the same chapter, what is contained in the Latin text is tripled in scope.
3. Sometimes in Menius the translation shrinks to an epitome, e.g. in the last sentence of Cap. 1, § 6; Cap. 2, § 87; Cap. 3, §180; Cap. 6, § 45 and § 66.
Thus death kills death, but this death that kills death is life itself. But he is called the death of death because of the exceedingly great unwillingness of the Holy Spirit against death. Thus, righteousness puts on the name of sin because it condemns sin, and this condemning sin is right righteousness.
4. Not infrequently, Menius' translation is so free that one can hardly recognize any resemblance to the Latin original, e.g., Cap. 1, § 179, §180, § 181. Of Cap. 1, § 180 and Cap. 6, § 14 and § 15, there is almost not a word in the Latin. Cap. 3, § 563 is completely changed in content. Luther's description of the struggle between law and gospel, which was going on within himself, is omitted, and commonplaces are inserted in its place. The second half of Cap. 3, § 195 is changed entirely. Menius also avoids difficulties of the text by inaccurate translation, e.g., Cap. 2, § 159.
5. Here and there, entire pieces are missing, e.g., the paragraph which we have added to Cap. 2, §6; a piece of Cap. 2, §162 at the end; the beginning of § 222; the first half of Cap. 3, § 372. to the end of
Cap. 4, § 342 is missing several sentences. What we have called § 52 in the 5th chapter is completely missing in Menius. In Cap. 5, § 248, a longer section is omitted. About half of Cap. 6, § 8 is missing. The second half of Cap. 6, § 58 is missing in Menius, and in its place other thoughts are introduced that recapitulate the previous.
In contrast, longer sections are inserted elsewhere, none of which are in the original Latin, e.g., Cap. 2, § 32, § 218; Cap. 3, § 336, § 337 (two full colums); Cap. 3, § 315. How arbitrarily Menius deals with the Latin text, we have a striking example in Cap. 3, 88 372-385. In this section, about one columne has been omitted, while two and a half columne have been inserted. Most of the paragraphs of this section take up about twice as much space in Menius' translation as in ours. Of Cap. 6, § 18 Menius brings less than half, but he has brought 8 19 to more than double.
7. sections are rearranged, e.g. § 28 and § 29 of the 6th chapter in Menius should be designated as § 34 and § 35.
Sometimes, Menius also has downright wrong translations; e.g. Cap. 3, 8 111 he did not realize that the "eulogy" about the justice of the law was to be understood ironically. - According to the Latin, Cap. 4, § 54: "Therefore we have this filiation only through the redemption of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is our abundant and everlasting forgiveness.
The first is "service, be it according to equity or dignity" (sive de congruo, sive de condigno). That this translation is correct is proven by § 58. Menius translates: "Therefore we do not need any further merit, neither de congruo, nor de condigno.
In some places Menius unnecessarily amplifies Luther's expressions, e.g. Cap. 2, § 213 he translates homines sine mfente by: incomprehensible coarse asses; Cap. 2, § 248 malevolus by: a useless spitting bird; Cap. 2, § 378 sophistae arch-villains; Cap. 3, § 106 commander caeci the blind asses' heads; Cap. 3, § 211 aliquis ineptus a clumsy grobianus. On the other hand, in other places where Luther's expression seems too harsh or too bold to him, he softens the same, e.g. Cap. 2, § 309 quod Christus sit diabolus meus contra diabolum Menius translates: that Christ, the stronger, sees and binds the strong. Cap. 3, § 322 according to the Latin: "And indeed all the prophets saw this in the spirit, that Christ would be the greatest of all malefactors, murderers, adulterers, thieves, robbers of God, blasphemers 2c., whose like had never been in the world." Instead Menius brings: "And indeed all the prophets foreknew in the Spirit that Christ would be the greatest of sinners, the like of which had never been on earth." Cap. 5, § 42 seemed to him the expression: "the law was a denial of Christ" too harsh, therefore he brought other thoughts in the place of Luther's execution. From the-
For the same reason he changed Cap. 5, § 132. According to the Latin it reads: "Thus God puts on the larva of the devil, and the devil the larva of God, and God wants to be known under the larva of the devil and wants the devil to be rejected under the larva of God. Instead of this, Menius says: "Therefore, we should be careful not to blaspheme God in the place of the devil, and not to worship the devil in the place of God." Cap. 3, § 10 it reads according to the Latin: "These are completely opposite things, as the devil and God, sin and righteousness, death and life are opposite to each other." Menius: "Therefore rhyme together like winter and summer, fire and water."
10. Some of the expressions in Menius' translation are so outdated that even scholars hardly understand them; e.g. in the sentence Cap. 3, § 10: "Unserer Deutschen Gewohnheit hält somit, dass wir auf allerleilei Ding fürwitzig und jächgierig sind; Walen sind ruhmredig, können viel Prangens und große Bellilschier machen," are two expressions incomprehensible to the ordinary reader: "jächgierig sein" (i.e., to strive for something with great haste) and "große Bellitschier machen" (i.e., to give oneself a great reputation). Walch, old edition, vol. XXIII, 175, gives 8. v. "Deutsche" as the content of this phrase: "Deutsche haben Fürwitz und Rachgier" instead of: "Deutsche sind neuerungssüchtig," and Aurifaber in the Tischreden, cap. 7, § 43 (Erl. Ausg.,
Vol. 58, p. 55), puts instead of: "Make yourself a Bellitschier" - "Make yourself a good harness."
Now we want to add only a few words about the main writings in this volume. In the great interpretation of the Epistle to the Galatians, Cap. 5, § 263, Luther states that his main intention was to teach the article of justification as clearly as possible. This was done in such a splendid way that there is no book other than the Holy Scriptures that shows the way to salvation so fully, so clearly and purely as this interpretation.
Of the First Epistle of Peter, Luther says that it is "one of the noblest books in the New Testament," and of the sermons Luther preached on it, Seckendorf (Hist. Luth., lib. I, § 160, p. 282) says that they are full of wonderful interpretations and memories.
We consider it necessary to mention here that the "other interpretation of the first epistle of St. John" (Col. 1522 ff.) is not, as Rambach stated under the heading, "translated into German from Luther's own handwritten manuscript", but, as Köstlin has already recognized, is reproduced from a (very deficient) postscript.
A particularly outstanding place among Luther's sermons is that on 1 John 4:16-21. Older and newer outstanding theologians are unanimous in their praise of it. Also from the speech
We would like to draw attention to 1 John 5:4, 5, which Luther wrote out in 1512 for the provost of Leitzkau, because it shows us how bright and pure Luther's knowledge was even in the pre-Reformation period.
About the "Interpretation of Many Beautiful Sayings" Rörer rightly says in his preface: "Although this work seems small, the benefit is not small who wants to strengthen his faith with reading. As it has been said before, God's serious command is that one should read His Scriptures and
should learn. Thus, these short interpretations, in which the natural juice of the sayings is captured, give more understanding than many great, ancient commentaries of Origen or many others."
Now God grant that we also continue to read the Holy Scriptures diligently, and let Luther's exquisite interpretations lead us ever deeper into them, so that our faith may grow and remain constant, and we may finally attain the end of our faith, eternal bliss. Amen.
St. Louis, on Reformation Day, 1893.