In Romans 15:16, Paul describes his vocation as “the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” The priestly framing of his missionary vocation draws quite obviously from the old covenant priesthood but also from the servant prophecies of Isaiah. Others have argued that Paul saw himself as the Isaiah 49 servant who served the Isaiah 53 Servant. In the relatively straightforward description of his missionary vocation in Romans 15:16, Paul is a priest offering the Gentiles to God through the proclamation of the gospel.
Second Corinthians 2:12–3:11 draws on many of the same themes as Romans 15 to describe Paul’s missionary vocation. He reaches back to old covenant events, institutions, and offices to describe his function as a διακόνος of the new covenant (2 Cor 3:6). Yet in this text, Paul more intentionally portrays himself as performing a vital covenant role parallel to the role of Moses and the old covenant priesthood. That is to say that Paul does not draw on priesthood as a mere metaphor or illustration of his missionary vocation, but that he sees his missionary vocation as the new covenant equivalent of the old covenant office.
Paul’s adaptation of the Roman triumph as an illustration of his vocation further complicates the picture. Scholars have disagreed concerning where Paul places himself in the triumph. While many see him as a captive in the triumph, others have argued that he portrays himself as an incense bearer. Both possibilities create interpretive problems, but none more so than the use of the illustration itself as a bridge toward the discussion of Paul’s new covenant role in 2 Corinthians 3, which is firmly fixed in the old covenant precedents.
This paper will seek to bring together Paul’s old covenant allusions with his contemporary illustration to clarify Paul’s priestly understanding of his missionary vocation. Briefly, in conclusion, applications will be suggested for missiology today.