What Did Paul Mean by “According to the Scriptures”?
Speaking of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, Paul made this statement by the Holy Spirit:
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
1 Corinthians 15:3-4
What Scriptures was Paul referring to? Since the book of James and three of Paul’s earlier epistles (the two Thessalonian letters and Galatians) were the only New Testament Scriptures at this point in time,* it would be a reference to the Old Testament Scriptures since they clearly spoke of the sufferings, death & resurrection of Christ, e.g. Psalm 16:8-11, Psalm 22 & Isaiah 53. Also see Luke 24:25-27 and Acts 2:25-31.
Paul made another interesting reference to the existing Scriptures of that time earlier in the same epistle, in 1 Corinthians 4:6, which you can read about here.
* For a listing of the chronological order of the New Testament books go here.
Related Topics:
What Does “Do Not Go Beyond What is Written” Mean in 1 Corinthians 4:6?
What are the Sources of Truth (Reality)?
Hermeneutics—Proper Bible Interpretation
What Does “Do Not Go Beyond What is Written” Mean in 1 Corinthians 4:6?
Berean Spirit — What is it? How Do You Cultivate It?
Who Wrote the New Testament Books? Who Authorized them as Scripture Canon?
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