Ignatius understands his prophetic speech as legitimate because the
Spirit spoke through him. . . Ignatius does not offer a detailed description of
τὸ πνεῦμα in Phld. 7.1–2. Yet the Spirit in these two verses is almost
certainly God. This Spirit inspires Ignatius to prophesy and legitimates his
speech as authoritative in contrast to his opponents who act only in the
strength of their own flesh. The Spirit is an active agent that is sent from
God, knows where it comes from and where it goes, and exposes the hidden things
(Phld. 7.1). (Jonathon Lookadoo, The High Priest and the Temple:
Metaphorical Depictions of Jesus in the Letters of Ignatius of Antioch [Wissenschaftliche
Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 2. Reinhe 473; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2018],
119, 120)
