The Relationship of Jewish and Gentile Believers to the Law Between A.D. 30 and 70 in the Scripture

12 sentence. He has spoken incompletely in the past and another way in these last days (tn' Eaxchou Twv ~µEpwv Tmhwv 12 ), comparing the succession of these two ages. Finally, the author describes God's communication in these last days by the anarthrous phrase Ev ui0 in contrast to Ev Tote; npoq>tjTmc;. The author's reference to the Son in this way emphasizes not so much the person as it does the quality of God's communication. 13 God spoke in the Old Testament to the fathers by the prophets, but in these last days has spoken to us in Son. God has used "son quality" communication. He is speaking to be sure through the person of His Son in the last days, but the focus is upon the Son as a channel of revelation from the Father. The author's first and well-chosen words clearly communicate his main concern: the superior nature of the revelation from God to this generation. In describing the superiority of the Son compared to angels in 1:4 the author 12 This phrase compares the two definite successive ages in Jewish thought. It is u ed in the Septuagint and becomes a technical phrase . Cf. G. W . Buchanen, "Eschatology and the 'End of Days ,"' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 20 (1961): 188-93. 13 The comments of Dana and Mantey are particularly applicable to thi prepo itional phrase and to the noun which in the context clearly points to a definite per on . ' Sometime with a noun which the context proves to be definite the article i not u ed . Thi place tr upon the qualitative aspect of the noun rather than it mere identity . " H . E . Dana and Juliu R . Mantey, A Manual Grammar of the Greek New Testament (Toronto, Ontari : The Macmillan ompany , 1957), 149 . In reference to the prepo itional phra e the ontinu , It i instructive to ob erve that the anarthrou noun occur in many pr p itional phra . Thi i no mere accident , for there are no accident in the growth of a languag : ea h idi m ha it rea on. or i it becau e the noun i ufficiently definite without th arti l , hi h i tru , Greek nouns have an intrin ic definitene . But that i n t th rea n f r n t u in th rti l A prepo itional phra e u ually implie ome id a f qualit r kind . l dpxfj in Jn . 1: 1 hara t ri hri t a pre i t nt , thu d fining th natur f hi p r n . " p . 1 0 . ' t 1 u ed m H b. 1:1, 2 with a ut the m f re th t 810 ith th mt1 h od pok through proph l then , but now through a on ( f . Mt. 1 : 7, ). " p . 10 . "H r th n thr u n un hut to mph 1z th p int th t th n 1 r d1 11 d1 1 th ultim t m mm f ht b r th t th rtt 1 d " D 1 1 ur