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Matthew: The Chief Gospel  /  The Sower's Story: Weeds Among Wheat (Matthew Chapter 13)  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 8
Bercot argues Jesus quoted Isaiah from the Septuagint because it places the blame for hardness on the people rather than on God, unlike the Masoretic rendering; how does this claim affect your trust in how we interpret Scripture, and what would it change (or not change) about how you read “hardening” passages?
Another way to ask: If the Septuagint version of Isaiah puts the blame for hard hearts on people more than on God, how does that affect your trust in Bible interpretation? Would it change how you read passages about God “hardening,” or not?

Direct Answer The transcript suggests this should increase caution and humility in interpretation: the wording of an Old Testament passage can shape whether we blame God or people, and Jesus’s own quotation supports the people-responsibility reading. It may change how you read “hardening” texts by checking whether the passage portrays God as doing the hardening or people as hardening themselves.

Support from Transcript:

  • Bercot notes Matthew’s wording makes agency clear: “their heart has become hard… they have closed their eyes. It’s not God making them do this.”
  • He says Jesus is “quoting Isaiah from the Septuagint… Jesus himself… quoting from the Septuagint.”
  • He contrasts textual traditions: the Masoretic “makes it sound like it’s God who is causing…,” while the Septuagint “makes it clear they’re doing it themselves.”
  • He infers motive: “I think that’s why Jesus quoted the prophecy the way that He did.”
  • He draws a practical conclusion: “it’s important to always use the Septuagint,” noting “most of Jesus’ quotes are out of the Septuagint.”
Discussion Follow-ups Even if you don’t adopt his Septuagint preference fully, how might you slow down before building a doctrine of predestination from a single “hardening” wording?

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