Psalms 78:2
AMP - 2 I will open my mouth in a parable (in instruction by numerous examples); I will utter dark sayings of old [that hide important truth]--
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Matthew 13:35 indicates that the verse cited in the question was a prophetic statement that was fulfilled by the teachings of Jesus. (In the preceding verse (Matthew 13:34), Matthew said that Jesus did not say or teach anything to the people without using a parable.) The NIV citation of Psalm 78:2 found in Matthew renders the phrase translated as "dark sayings" by the Amplified Version (as cited in the question) as "things hidden since the creation of the world". Thus, there is no sinister or negative connotation of the adjective "dark", but rather a sense of "hidden" or "secret", in which truths were expressed in a veiled manner through the use of an allegory or a comparison to something else, and that required discernment by the hearer to perceive the underlying point being made. Other translations render "dark sayings" as "puzzling sayings", "riddles", "mysteries", "enigmas", or "things that are hard to understand".
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