NT Text:
OT Source(s):
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): Promise-Fulfillment
Anchor Text: Isa 54:1 — Sing, O Barren One
Significance: Paul's use, or perhaps even invention, of the term theodidaktos is almost certainly an allusion to Isaiah 54:13 LXX: "And I will cause all your sons to be taught of God [didaktous theou]," referring to a time when God will live so intimately with his people through his Spirit that they will no longer have to be taught by human intermediaries, but rather will be "taught of God." This idea of divine instruction as an eschatological blessing enjoyed by God's covenant people is found elsewhere in prophetic writings—Jeremiah portrays the new covenant as a period when God's people will not need others to teach them the law but will know it innately, for God will write it on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:33-34), while Isaiah envisions a future age when all the nations will stream to Mount Zion so that "[God] may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths" (Isaiah 2:3). That this eschatological blessing was still anticipated in NT times is clear from Jesus' citation of Isaiah 54:13 in John 6:45 to show that "all will be taught by God [didaktoi theou]" in the messianic age, and probably also lies behind the statement in 1 John 2:27 that "you have no need for anyone to teach you." Paul's use of theodidaktos is highly significant—his allusion to Isaiah 54:13 or to the anticipation of divine instruction as an eschatological blessing, so soon after his clear allusion in 4:8 to Ezekiel's description of the gift of God's Spirit, suggests that Paul views the Thessalonians' practice of philadelphia ("mutual love") as an eschatological blessing of God's covenant people. Though this blessing was originally intended for Israel, Paul believes that it extends to the predominantly Gentile believers at Thessalonica, further supporting that Paul's exhortations in 4:1-12 are rooted in his conviction that the Gentile Christians at Thessalonica are included in the renewed Israel, the eschatological people of God who enjoy both the blessings and the challenges of that privileged relationship.