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Understanding Captivity Captive.pdf

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I. Textual Issue: Apparent Contradiction between Psalm 68:18 and Ephesians 4:8

A. Original Hebrew and Greek Texts

• Psalm 68:18 (Masoretic Text): "Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts among men..."
• Psalm 68:18 (Septuagint): Matches Hebrew, emphasizing "received gifts among men."

B. Pauline Adaptation in Ephesians

• Ephesians 4:8: "When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men."
• Paul explicitly changes wording from "received" to "gave," creating an interpretive challenge.

II. Historical Viewpoints on "Captivity Captive"

A. Jewish Interpretations (Rabbinic Tradition)

• Targum Psalms (an Aramaic translation of Psalms) and Midrash:

  • Moses ascended Sinai, captured the Torah from angels.

    "You ascended to the firmament, O prophet Moses; you captured captives; you taught the words of Torah; you gave gifts to the sons of men, even among the stubborn who are converted."

  • "Captivity" = Torah; "Gifts" = Teachings distributed among Israel (including rebellious).

• Rashi:

  • Affirms Moses' ascent and distribution of heavenly Torah-gifts to rebellious Israel.

• The Rabbinical View

  The rabbis saw Psalm 68 as poetically alluding to the single greatest ascent and descent event in Israelite history—Moses’ ascent up Sinai to receive the Torah. This event became a core symbolic and theological paradigm for God's interaction with Israel:

  • The Torah was viewed as the ultimate heavenly gift.
  • The "ascent" imagery matched Sinai perfectly, being the one major event where a human figure literally climbed to God's presence and returned with revelation.
  • "Captivity" became a poetic metaphor for heavenly treasures inaccessible to humanity until Moses’ intercession.

  Thus, even though Psalm 68 does not explicitly name Moses or the Torah, rabbinic hermeneutics commonly looked for scriptural passages that could poetically encapsulate the Sinai revelation, and Psalm 68:18 fit remarkably well.

B. Early Church Fathers (Patristics)

• Christus Victor View:
  • "Captivity" = Sin, death, Satan (humanity's captors).
  • Christ conquered these powers, turning captors into captives.
• Harrowing of Hell View:
  • Harrowing in its earlier sense was “to raid or plunder.”
  • "Captivity" = Souls of righteous held in Hades.
  • Christ liberated them and led them triumphantly into heaven.
• Augustinian (Conversion and Grace):
  • Humans as captives of sin liberated and willingly captured by Christ’s grace.

C. Medieval Theology

• Western (Roman Catholic):
  • Affirmed literal "harrowing of hell," freeing souls.