Jehovah rained ... from Jehovah.
"The Lord rained—from the Lord out of heaven. This phraseology is remarkable, and has led some commentators to understand the words as a distinct intimation of a plurality of persons in the Godhead, q. d. 'The Lord, who appeared and conversed with Lot, the Son of God, rained from the Lord who is invisible, from the Father in heaven, the destroying tempest.' But it is perhaps safer to understand it as a mere Hebraic idiom, equivalent to saying, that Jehovah rained in this fearful manner from himself out of heaven. That is, such was the appearance of the phenomenon. Parallel modes of speech are not unusual in the sacred writers. Thus, Ex. 24. 1, 'And he (the Lord) said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord,' &c. Hos. 1.7, 'I will save them by the Lord God.' Zech. 10. 12, 'I will strengthen them in the Lord.' 1 Kings, 8. 1, 'Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the chief ef the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon.' The scope of the words is probably to intimate that the fiery shower was extraordinary and miraculous, altogether out of the common course of nature, something to be referred to the hand of Omnipotence." [Notes, Critical and Practical, on the Book of Genesis, Volume 1 By George Bush]
From John Wilson's The Concessions of Trinitarians:
Interpretations
The angel who represented the Deity rained .... by the power which he had received from God. — Grotius.
Jehovah rained from himself. — Vatable, Fagtus, Castalio, Sa, Pereira, Cocceius, Schulz, Boothroyd, Williams, &c. [In support of their interpretation, and of the fact that by a Hebrew idiom the noun is often repeated for the pronoun, these writers refer to Gen. i. 27; ii.3, 20; iv. 23; xviii. 17—19. Exod.xvi. 7; xxiv. 3. Num. x. 29. Josh. ix. 21. 1 Sam. xii. 7. 1 Kings ii. 19; viii. 1; xn. 21. 2 Chron. vii. 2. Esth. viii. 8. Hos.i. 7. Zech. i. 16; x. 12. Luke lis. 19. 2 Tim. i. 18, and other texts.]
There are many, both ancient and modern interpreters, who think the meaning is no more, than the Lord sent this rain from himself; it being the manner of the Scripture phrase to repeat the noun, instead of the pronoun. St. Chrysostom did not fear to say this is an idiom of the Scripture language, which intended only to show, that the Lord brought this punishment upon them. — Bishop Patrick [who, however, says "It cannot be denied, that here is an intimation of a plurality of persons in the Deity"].
Critical Remarks
The expression, from the Lord, increases the force of the preceding words, and signifies great, copious. Thus, dormire mortem is used for to sleep the sleep of death; and rain from the Lord for the rain of the Lord. Thus also the flame of the Lord signifies a very bright flame; a storm from heaven, a storm of heaven; and bread from heaven, the bread of heaven, that is, heavenly food-Drusius.
This Hebraism [the Lord from the Lord] has been a source of much scholastic disputation If the Greek and Latin versions had not literally rendered the original, KURIOS, PARA KURIOU, Dominus, a Domino, we should probably never have heard of distinction of persons. The Arabic translator seems well to have understood his text; as he renders, "God rained from himself sulphureous flame," &c. Nothing is more common in the oriental languages than to use a noun for the pronoun; and this, indeed, seems to be the language of nature. — Geddes.
Pronouns were invented to avoid the too frequent use of the same noun; but ancient simplicity, which did not hesitate to repeat the noun itself, is not rarely preserved. Thus, in Gen. iv. 23, we find ye wives of Lamech, for my wives; in Num. xxvii. 11, Moses for me, and the children of Israel for you (comp. ver. 8); in 1 Kings ix. 1, Solomon's for his desire; in Gen. ii. 20, Adam for himself; and in chap. xvi. 16, Abram for him. So Dan. iii. 3, all the nouns mentioned in ver. 2 are repeated, instead of saying, according to our manner, "they were gathered together." — Storr: Obs. ad Anal, et Syntax. Heb. pp. 106-7.
From Jehovah is a phrase which is added in order more fully to characterise the brimstone and fire- Lightning was called the fire of God, not only by the Hebrews, but by other nations. See 2 Kings i. 12. Job i. 16. Isa. lxvi. 16— E. F. C. Rosenmuller.
Doctrinal Observations
It is not to be understood, that Moses speaks of two Lords. — Musculus.
I know that the ancients explained these words, the Lord rained from the Lord, as signifying that the Father rained from the Son; but this sense is by no means suitable to the passage. By repeating the word Jehovah, Moses designed rather to point out more strongly the fearful vengeance of God. — Calvin: Tract. Theol. p. 793. [See another passage from Calvin, in "Scriptural Illustrations of Unitarianism," p. 265, second edition.]
In the meantime, that there are three persons in the divine essence is not at all denied. But the argument which is commonly drawn from this passage is by no means valid, but, &c Sixtinus Amama: Antibarb. Bib. lib. ii. p. 263.
The Greek commentators infer from this text a Trinity or plurality of persons: the Lord signifying the Father; from the Lord, Christ; ... or, rather, the Lord the Son from God the Father, who hath committed all judgment unto the Son. But more valid arguments ought to be adduced against the Jews, or those who deny the doctrine of the Trinity. The clause, "from the Lord, out of heaven," is added merely by way of emphasis. — Mercer.
Those who understand the place so that the Lord raining from the Lord should be meant of God the Son raining from God the Father, show an attentive mind to the doctrine of the Trinity; but hence to argue for that point against the Jews or Antitrinitarians is not so proper, since they may allege there is an Hebraism in the phrase, whereby the noun is used for the pronoun, as hath been said and shown out of Scripture. Therefore the Syrmian Council, which anemathizeth those that deny this place for a proof of the Trinity, was rather rash than truly religious. See Zach. iii. 2. — Ley: Assembly's Annotations.
Though the proper Divinity of our blessed Redeemer is sufficiently established elsewhere, it does not appear to me to be plainly indicated here. — Dr. Adam Clarke.
This phraseology is remarkable, and has led some commentators to understand the words as a distinct intimation of a plurality of persons in the Godhead; q. d. "The Lord who appeared and conversed with Lot, the Son of God, rained from the Lord who is invisible, from the Father in heaven, the destroying tempest." But it is perhaps safer to understand it as a mere Hebraic idiom, equivalent to saying, that Jehovah rained in this fearful manner from himself out of heaven — that is, such was the appearance of the phenomenon. Parallel modes of speech are not unusual in the sacred writers. Thus Exod. xxiv. 1: And he (the Lord) said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord," &c. Hos. i. 7: "I will save them by the Lord God." Zech. x. 12: "I will strengthen them in the Lord." 1 Kings viii. 1: "Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto King Solomon." The scope of the words is probably to intimate, that the fiery shower was extraordinary and miraculous, altogether out of the common course of nature, something to be referred to the hand of Omnipotence. — Professor Bush.
[Besides some of the authors quoted or referred to above, Sixtinus Amama (in Antibarb. Bib. p. 263) and Sandius (in Script. S. Trin. Revel, pp. 86-7) mention Jerome, Eucherius, Augustine, Tostat, Gallasius, Cajetan, Pagninus, Oleaster, Arias Montanus, Tirin, Zuingle, Pellican, Peter Martyr, and Zanchius, as opposed to the Trinitarian exposition of the text under consideration.—This text seems now to be tacitly considered an insufficient argument either for a plurality of divine persons, or for the Deity of Christ, by the most judicious and learned defenders of these opinions, who would undoubtedly bring it forward, if they deemed it suitable to their purpose. This evinces, that hosts of passages not dissimilar to Gen. xix. 24, once thought to be valid authorities for the dogma of a Triune God, are silently, but surely, descending, as proof-texts, into the tomb of oblivion.]
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