'너희 마음에 떠오르기까지'

'Until theMorning Star Arises in Your Hearts' -AHermeneutics of 'AttentiveWaiting' as Taught in2Peter 1:19

The meaning of 2 Pet 1:19 puzzles many in various aspects. What does it mean that "until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts"? The phrase such as 'the day dawns' and 'the morning star rises' seem to indicate the future parousia and final judgement especially against the backdrop of 2 Peter's opponents, the false prophets and false teachers(2:1-3). However, the phrase, 'in your hearts' throws the whole verse into troublesome arguments: How would those eschatological-futuristic events occur 'in your hearts'? The solutions vary as to how one deals with the phrase, 'in your heart.' Terrence Callan associates the phrase with 20, not with 19, thus avoiding the question itself. Some take 19 referring to the 'objective-historical' future events, while others to 'subjective-spiritual' inner experiences. Recently R. Bauchkam and others interpret 19 in light of 1 Cor 13:8-10, i.e., when Jesus returns and judges(thus, futuristic-objective), there shall be no need for the prophetic words while Jesus himself shines upon in their hearts. But, why still 'in your hearts'? This article finds no sufficient answers in these views, and takes 19 referring to the Scriptures' present illumination to the hearts of the readers in the view of the sure futuristic eschatological events. Particularly, the story of Transfiguration in 1:12-18 is linked to 19 in the terms of comparison, 'more certain'(βεβαιότερον), which also troubles many who would not accept the eschatological event in Transfiguration could be 'less certain' than the written scriptures. Yet, the opponents in 2 Peter likely erred in their treating the prophetic words of the scriptures. This is why 'Peter' links 19 with 20-21 in which he asserts not only the divine origin of the prophetic words and their divine process of interpretation. In other words, the false prophets and teachers in 2 Peter read the words regarding the eschaton in the way of ἰδίας, namely, regarding the interpreters as the source and the hermeneutical key to the prophetic words. This article concludes that 2 Peter suggests, in chapter 1 as a whole, a hermeneutics of 'attentive waiting' which I believe has been neglected not only by the opponents of 2 Peter but by a lot of modern/postmodern hermeneutics. 2 Peter 1:19 teaches that it is not the interpreters who bring the text to the light, but the scriptures that cast the darkness out in their hearts. Thus, wait attentively(!) until the scriptures illumine your hearts, and until the end comes.