Quotation

At a Glance

A quotation is a clear, direct use of earlier words in a later biblical text.

Key Points

• Quotation is more direct than allusion or echo.
• New Testament quotations of the Old Testament are usually intentional and authoritative.
• Context matters: a quotation should be read in its original setting as well as its later use.

Description

In biblical interpretation, a quotation is a later passage’s direct citation of earlier words, most commonly the New Testament’s use of the Old Testament. These quotations matter because they reveal the unity of Scripture and show that Jesus and the apostles treated earlier biblical revelation as truthful and authoritative. At the same time, interpreters should distinguish clear quotations from looser allusions and echoes, since the boundary is not always obvious and some uses involve textual, translation, or contextual questions. The safest definition, therefore, is that a quotation is an identifiable direct citation of earlier wording used by a biblical author to support, explain, fulfill, or apply God’s prior revelation.

Biblical Context

The Bible contains many examples of later writers citing earlier Scripture directly. New Testament authors quote the Old Testament to identify fulfillment in Christ, establish doctrinal claims, and reinforce moral exhortation. Such use assumes that earlier Scripture remains living and authoritative in later revelation.

Historical Context

Ancient Jewish and early Christian writers regularly cited authoritative texts in teaching and argument. The New Testament’s quotation practice fits that world, though it is governed by inspiration and by the theological purpose of the biblical author rather than by modern citation conventions alone.

Jewish and Ancient Context

Second Temple Jewish interpretation often engaged earlier Scripture through direct citations and chained references. The New Testament stands within that setting, but its quotations are not merely literary borrowing; they are Spirit-guided appeals to the recognized word of God.

Primary Key Texts

• Matthew 4:4
• Matthew 2:5-6
• Acts 2:16-21
• Romans 3:10-18
• Hebrews 8:8-12

Secondary Key Texts

• Luke 4:17-21
• Romans 9:25-26
• 1 Corinthians 15:54-55
• Hebrews 1:5-13

Original Language Note

No single English term captures every quotation formula in Scripture. In the New Testament, direct citations are often introduced with wording such as “it is written” or by a clear reference to a source text. Hebrew and Greek citation practices may include wording that is not always verbatim in English translations.

Theological Significance

Quotation shows the unity and authority of Scripture. When biblical authors quote earlier Scripture, they treat it as the word of God that continues to instruct, correct, and fulfill God’s redemptive purpose.

Philosophical Explanation

A quotation is a deliberate textual relationship in which a later author reuses earlier wording to invoke the source’s meaning and authority. In Scripture, this is not neutral literary borrowing but inspired reuse of prior revelation for theological argument and instruction.

Interpretive Cautions

Do not confuse quotation with allusion or echo. A quotation is usually clearer and more explicit than a vague verbal similarity. Also, quotations should be read in context, since a biblical author may apply an earlier text in a way that respects its original meaning while bringing out its fuller canonical significance.

Major Views

Interpreters generally agree that explicit quotations are the clearest form of biblical reuse. The main discussion concerns how sharply to distinguish quotations from allusions and echoes, and how much freedom a biblical author has in adapting wording while remaining faithful to the source text.

Doctrinal Boundaries

Biblical quotations are authoritative because they are used by inspired writers under the authority of Scripture itself. They do not license proof-texting apart from context, nor do they reduce the original passage to a detached phrase. The source text, its immediate context, and its canonical use all matter.

Practical Significance

Quotation helps Bible readers trace fulfillment, understand New Testament arguments, and read Scripture canonically. It also trains readers to compare passages carefully instead of relying on isolated phrases.

Related Entries

• allusion
• echo
• fulfillment
• intertextuality
• hermeneutics
• inspiration
• Septuagint
• Old Testament in the New Testament

See Also

• allusion
• echo
• citation
• fulfillment
• hermeneutics
• intertextuality
• Septuagint
• typology