I should not have paused at this word by way of explaining the word itself, had that been all. Every one knows what it means, and the Scriptures frequently use it. We meet with life, represented under the figure of a shadow; and we read of the shadow of death, and the like. But I rather fear that when the word shadow is used in reference to the things of the law, when it is said, "the law was a shadow of good things to come, but the body is of Christ, " (Coloss. 2: 17.) the full sense is not so generally understood as it were tobewished. I beg therefore to offer a short observation upon the subject.
Now it is and must be, very plain to common sense, that before there can be formed a shadow, there must be a body that is somewhat of substance to form that shadow. Let that shadow be what it may, suppose the shadow of a man, or of a tree, or of a house, plain it is, that the man, tree, or house, must have been before the shadow; it could not be formed before the substance which gave birth to the shadow was formed; that would be impossible. A shadow, strictly and properly speaking, is formed from some substance, no matter what, standing between the shadow formed and light of any kind forming that shadow, by shining upon the substance. If I stand between the light of the sun, or the light of the moon, or any lesser light than either, and the earth which is behind me, my shadow will be formed upon the earth in consequence of that shining. If there be no substance between, or if there be no light shining upon that substance, there will be no shadow. All this is so abundantly plain that it can need no farther proof.
To apply this then to the shadow of the law, the law is said to be a shadow, but the body or substance is Christ. And consequently Christ the substance was before that shadow, yea, formed that shadow, when as the, lamb slain before the foundation of the world, " Christ stood up at the call of JEHOVAH from everlasting. (Rev. 13. 8.) But how stood up? Surely not openly revealed to men, but openly to and before JEHOVAH, when in the council of peace he was the Man, the Branch; and that in the ancient settlements, ofredemption before all worlds. (Zech. vi. 11, 12.) Hence, Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for see, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the Mount." (Heb. 8. 5. Exod. xxv. 40.) So then, the pattern or substance in the Mount preceded all the shadows that followed in the tabernacle service. And if Christ be indeed, as the Holy Ghost by Paul saith he is, the body, while all the services of the tabernacle were but shadows, (Coloss. 2: 17.) is it notplain that, however, not openly to the church, yet openly to God, the substance of the pattern must somehow have been before the shadow? Never could these shadows have had even the shadow of a being, had not the substance been before, and formed them. If we could go farther, and demand how these things could be, the only answer proper to be given is read to us by the prophet: "If it be marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvelous in mine eyes, saith the Lord ofhosts?" (Zech. 8. 6.)
I will only detain the reader with a short observation upon the whole, namely, to say that it must be very blessed and very precious to the soul of the believer to discover in this instance, as in every other, that Jesus, as Christ, God, man, and mediator, was as the apostle saith he was, and is, "before all things, and by him all things consist." It was essentially necessary that he should be so, and the Holy Ghost bears witness by his servant Paul to it, that "in all things he might have the preeminence." (Coloss. i. 15. &c.) Hail! thouglorious Alpha, and Omega, of thy church’s glory! Thou art indeed the substantially all of thy people’s persons, safety, security, happiness, as well in grace as glory. All but thee are but as shadows, for thou alone art the body, and as thou hast said, I will cause them that love me to inherit substance, and I will fill their treasures." (Prov. 7: 21.)
Sometimes denotes intense darkness and gloom, Psa 23:4, and sometimes a cool retreat, Isa 33:2, or perfect protection, Psa 17:8 Isa 49:2 Dan 4:12 .\par The long shadows cast by the declining sun are alluded to in Job 7:2 Jer 6:4 . The swift, never ceasing motion of a shadow is an emblem of human life, 1Ch 29:15 Psa 102:11 .\par
(óêéÜ)
1. Healing property of shadow.-The shadow of St. Peter had the property of healing the sick (Act_5:15). Similarly, articles of clothing touched by St. Paul caused disease and evil spirits to depart from the afflicted (Act_19:12), just as those who touched the border of Christ’s garment were healed (Mar_6:56, Luk_8:44). Even the name of Jesus was effectual in some cases (Act_3:6; Act_4:10). The therapeutic power of suggestion in all such instances is recognized by modern psychology.
2. The metaphysical use of the term ‘shadow.’-This use occurs in Hebrews (Heb_8:5; Heb_10:1), affording an interesting link with the Epistle to the Colossians, where St. Paul declares that the Jewish ceremonial observances were but ‘a shadow of the things to come (óêéὰ ôῶí ìåëëüíôùí); but the body is Christ’s’ (Col_2:17). Here ‘shadow’ is contrasted with ‘body,’ or substantial reality. The ‘things to come’ are the Christian dispensation, which from the Jewish standpoint, was yet in the future. Christianity embodies the Divine reality, whereas Mosaism was only a ‘shadow’ cast temporarily into human history by the ‘body,’ the eternal fact of the heavenly Christ yet to be revealed. The interpretation of Calvin, that ‘shadow’ means the sketch of which Christianity is the finished picture, is unlikely when the occurrence and significance of the term in Hebrews are taken into consideration. The fundamental conception of this Epistle is the Alexandrian one that there are two worlds or orders of things, a higher and a lower-the one heavenly, eternal, and real; the other earthly, temporal, and merely phenomenal. The material, sensible world is not the real, but only the shadowy copy of the heavenly pattern. This conception the writer of Hebrews takes up and fills with a religious content. The Mosaic Law, so reverenced by the Jews, has only ‘a shadow of the good things to come, not the very image of the things’ (Heb_10:1). Here ‘shadow’ (óêéÜ) is contrasted with ‘image’ (åἰêþí). Judaism is the ‘shadow,’ Christianity is the ‘very image’ of the good things. The Christian religion gives us possession of the reality only dimly foreshadowed in the Jewish system. The Law is a shadow, inseparable indeed from the eternal image; but in comparison with that reality, it is only a dim flickering and transient outline, lacking the abiding substantiality and content of that which cast it. Furthermore, the priests of the Levitical system only ‘serve a copy’ (ὑðüäåéãìá) and shadow (óêéÜ) of the heavenly things’ (Heb_8:5). The tabernacle itself was made by Moses only according to the ‘pattern’ (ôýðïí) of the heavenly original, the ‘true tabernacle’ pitched by God (Heb_8:2). Like every other part of the Levitical system, the tabernacle was only a ‘copy,’ the ‘pattern’ (ôýðïí) of which exists eternally in heaven. This use of the term ‘shadow’ in contrast with ‘image’ is more than an illustration taken from article It may well be that, but it seems rather an explanation of Christian truth by means of the categories of Platonic and Philonic philosophy. Plato’s famous allegory of the Cave (Rep. vii. 514), wherein men are described as seeing on the wall of the den but the shadows of real objects passing outside, illustrates his theory of Ideas. The relation of eternal realities (archetypal Ideas) to visible things is like the relation between substantial bodies and their transient shadows. This theory was taken up by the Alexandrian philosophy, and the OT is explained by Philo in terms of this Hellenistic speculation. The writer of Hebrews, who shows many signs of Alexandrian influence, uses throughout his Epistle this Philonic form of thought to show the superiority of Christianity over Judaism. Judaism is but a ‘shadow,’ Christianity is the very ‘image’ embodying and expressing God’s eternal purpose concerning mankind.
M. Scott Fletcher.