Monday, August 18, 2008

Volume 8, Luther's prophecy

AELW 8:x

“Dr. Luther, the man of God, concluded his lectures on Genesis on November 17, 1545. He had begun them in the year 1535, when he said in his preface: ‘I shall linger over the exposition of this book and shall die in the process of doing so [immorabor et immoriar].’ In accordance with this prophecy concerning himself, he died piously, with earnest prayer to God, in his homeland, at Eisleben, on February 18, 1546.

Thus it seems certain that most or all of the lectures on which these transcripts were based were delivered during the calendar year 1545, and that Luther’s lecture on the last verses of the Last chapter of the Book of Genesis was delivered on Tuesday, November 17, 1545. It was to be not only the last lecture of his most massive work of Biblical exposition but the last lecture of his professorial career. Three months and one day later he died."

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