Christian Message Boards: This Is My Body

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Posted by epouraniois (Member # 5187) on :

Firstly, a word on Figures of speech.
they have purpose, they are:

Warm and vivid way of stating a literal truth,
make it more colorful, make truth more vivid, accent the subject

Figures of Speech:
attract attention
emphasize
make the conversation warm and vivid

to take a Figure of speech literally is not true
it is coloring up something to make it more emphatic

say the ground is dry. This is literal fact
say the ground is thirsty. This cannot be true. The ground has no feelings
it gives the truth color, makes it less boring, gives more color, but the as dry as the ground may be, it can never experience the human quality of thirst

Figures are scientific and definite. They have names, categories, and never detracts from truth, but makes it more emphatic.

When a statement is contrary to known fact, it is sure to be Figure of speech
when a statement is contrary to Biblical doctrine, it is sure Figure of speech is being used
when rules of grammar are departed from, you can be sure it is Figure of speech

Now the verse in question is either quite literal, and bread is actually Christ's body in truth and in fact, and true worship includes the worship of bread because it is literally worshiping the body of Christ. Now this all hangs on Figure of speech. You can see how important it is to know if a Figure of speech is used there. How do I then know? Well, I do, because when I read the words the HS has given, I notice the actual rules of grammar are broken. And so it calls my attention up.

Luk 22:19 And he took bread, and gave thanks, and broke it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.

The word 'this' references the word 'bread' doesn't it? The Lord is saying, this bread is my body. I just point this out to you, the word 'bread' is masculine, and the word 'this' should agree with is and doesn't.

It is in the neuter gender and it is pulled over to agree with the word 'body'. Now this may sound technical to you, but anyone who reads Greek will notice this right away. And the HS who is writing it, has deliberately done it, to alarm us and show us that it is this Figure Metaphor that is being used.

This bread represents my body. That is the way to say it without the Figure Metaphor. Metaphor is only one of some 200 clearly defined and articulated Figures.

Ellipsis would be, 'this bread is like my body'.
Metaphor would be, 'This bread is my body'.
Hypocatastasis would be, 'My body is bread'.

Another Figure Metaphor the Lord used in the same way is, I am the door. I am everything a door represents, Christ is the way in.

In the Bible there are some Figures we still use today, while others haven't been used for thousands of years. Being that the bread is not literally Christ's body, but the Figure metaphor, we can see how important it is to be aware when a Figure is being used, to the intent we do not go astray from the truth which is being made known.