Texts in Conversation
In 1 Clement, the author retells the story of the budding staff of Aaron from Numbers 17 as an earlier quarrel over who should hold the priesthood, and treats the way Moses settled it as a precedent for the apostles appointing leaders to prevent strife.
Share:
2500 BCE
1000+ CE
LXX Numbers 17:5
Septuagint
5 And it will be that the man whom I choose, his staff will sprout, and so I will remove from me the murmuring of the sons of Israel, which they themselves are murmuring against you.” 6 And Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their rulers gave to him a staff for the ruler, to each one a staff, for each ruler according to their ancestral households, twelve staffs, and the staff of Aaron was among their staffs. 7 And Moses put up the staffs before the Lord in the tent of testimony. 8 And so it happened that on the next day, Moses and Aaron entered into the tent of testimony and, behold, the staff of Aaron in the house of Levi had sprouted and brought forth a shoot and put out blossoms and sprouted almonds.
Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 43:4
First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians
Early Christian
2 For he, when jealousy arose concerning the priesthood, and there was dissension among the tribes which of them was adorned with the glorious name, commanded the twelve chiefs of the tribes to bring to him rods inscribed with the name of each tribe. And he took them and tied them and sealed them with the signet rings of the chiefs of the tribes, and put them away in the tabernacle of the testimony on the table of God. 3 And having shut the tabernacle he sealed the keys and likewise also the doors. 4 And he said to them, “Brothers and sisters, the tribe whose rod shall bud, this has God chosen to be priests and ministers to Him.”
Search:
Notes and References
“... 1 Clement offers some interpretations that can be classified as allegorical and typological. As instances of the former, one may refer to the interpretation of the scarlet cord of Rahab (Josh 2:18) as a prophecy of redemption through the blood of Christ (1 Clem. 12.7) and the interpretation of the “gate” through which the righteous enter (Ps 117:19–20) as Christ (1 Clem. 48.2-4). These interpretations are part of the early church’s general christological reading of the OT. As instances of typology may be cited the parallels to the situation in the church at Corinth drawn from Deuteronomy 32:15 (1 Clem. 3.1); Isaiah 3:3–4 (1 Clem. 3.5); and Numbers 17 (1 Clem. 43). These latter agree with Clement’s predominantly paraenetic use of the OT for moral and ecclesiological lessons. ...”
Martin, Ralph P.
Dictionary of the Later New Testament & Its Developments
(p. 1197) InterVarsity Press, 1997
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.
User Comments
,