A Monotonous Cycle Revisited, Part 6

Posted on April 18, 2021 by admin

I intend to consider another description of cities of refuge to fortify the conviction that Genesis 9:5, 6 was God’s description of his own attitude and behavior toward murderers post-flood. He knew his own heart, his own judgments. There was no need for the detail and specificity found later in the law when that duty and authority was actually delegated to human beings. But first I want to consider something gleaned from the previous essay.

If I killed someone unintentionally in ancient Israel, fled to a city of refuge, was found not guilty of murder by the community and lived in the city of refuge until the death of the high priest, I would have kept the law. Likewise, if I murdered someone intentionally in ancient Israel, fled to a city of refuge, was found guilty of murder by the community, was handed over to the avenger of blood and executed, I would have kept the law. But would anyone declare me righteous before God? Or have I simply been brought to the knowledge of sin through the law?

Paul wrote (Romans 3:19, 20 NET):

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For no one is declared righteous (δικαιωθήσεται, a form of δικαιόω) before him by the works of the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.

A note (22) in the NET claimed that no one is declared righteous before him was an allusion to Psalm 143:2.

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Psalm 143:2 (Tanakh)	Psalm 143:2 (NET)	Psalm 142:2 (NETS)	Psalm 142:2 (English Elpenor)
And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified (יִצְדַּ֖ק).	Do not sit in judgment on your servant, for no one alive is innocent (ṣāḏaq, יצדק) before you.	And do not enter into judgment with your slave, because no one living will be counted righteous (δικαιωθήσεται) before you.	And enter not into judgment with thy servant, for in thy sight shall no [man] living be justified (δικαιωθήσεται).

My purpose in this thread is to understand the Old Testament as Jesus understood it: Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must all be born from above.’^[1] He seemed legitimately surprised by Nicodemus’ ignorance: Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you don’t understand these things?^[2] John described what it meant to be born from above (John 1:11-13):

[Jesus] came to what was his own, but his own people did not receive him. But to all who have received him—those who believe in his name—he has given the right to become God’s children—children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.

Paul described some of the results of being born from above (Romans 8:5-14 NET):

God achieved what the law could not do because it was weakened through the flesh. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous requirement of the law may be fulfilled (πληρωθῇ, a form of πληρόω) in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

For those who live according to the flesh have their outlook shaped by the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit have their outlook shaped by the things of the Spirit. For the outlook of the flesh is death, but the outlook of the Spirit is life and peace, because the outlook of the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to the law of God, nor is it able to do so. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but^[3] in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this person does not belong to him [Table]. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is your life because of righteousness. Moreover if the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will also make your mortal bodies alive through his Spirit who lives in you [Table].

So then, brothers and sisters, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh (for if you live according to the flesh, you will die), but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God.

And Paul continued (Galatians 5:14-24 NET):

For the whole law can be summed up in a single commandment, namely, “You must love your neighbor as yourself.” However, if you continually bite and devour one another, beware that you are not consumed by one another [Table]. But I say, live by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh. For the flesh has desires that are opposed to the Spirit, and the Spirit has desires that are opposed to the flesh, for these are in opposition to each other, so that you cannot do what you want [Table]. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, depravity, idolatry, sorcery, hostilities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish rivalries, dissensions, factions, envying, murder, drunkenness, carousing, and similar things. I am warning you, as I had warned you before: Those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God [Table]!

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,^[4] and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law:^[5] You shall not murder.^[6] It was easy to see how God’s own love springing up to eternal life from his Holy Spirit residing in me could keep me from intentional killing. How the fruit of his Spirit restrained unintentional killing took a bit longer to comprehend. God’s love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control springing up to eternal life also impacts how I work. When I am led by the Holy Spirit I am much less likely to shove someone impatiently or toss something without looking to see where it might land.

I began then to think of OSHA regulations as an attempt to legislate the fruit of the Holy Spirit. My religious mind did the same thing when I turned Paul’s definition of love (ἀγάπη) into rules I tried to obey in my own strength, before I believed that the fruit of the Spirit is the righteousness given by God (Romans 3:21-24 NET).

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God (although it is attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed—namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction [Table], for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. But they are justified (δικαιούμενοι, another form of δικαιόω) freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets, Jesus said. I have not come to abolish these things but to fulfill (πληρῶσαι, another form of πληρόω) them.^[7]

The next description of cities of refuge is found in Deuteronomy.

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Deuteronomy 19:1-3 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:1-3 (NET)	Deuteronomy 19:1-3 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:1-3 (English Elpenor)
When HaShem thy G-d shall cut off the nations, whose land HaShem thy G-d giveth thee, and thou dost succeed them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses;	When the Lord your God destroys the nations whose land he is about to give you and you dispossess them and settle in their cities and houses,	Now if the Lord your God annihilates the nations whose land your God is giving you and you dispossess them and live in their cities and in their houses,	And when the Lord thy God shall have destroyed the nations, which God gives thee, [even] the land, and ye shall inherit them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses,
thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which HaShem thy GOD giveth thee to possess it.	you must set apart for yourselves three cities in the middle of your land that the Lord your God is giving you as a possession.	you shall set apart three cities for yourself in the midst of your land that the Lord your God is giving you.	thou shalt separate for thyself three cities in the midst of thy land, which the Lord thy God gives thee.
Thou shalt prepare (תָּכִ֣ין) thee the way, and divide the borders of thy land, which HaShem thy G-d causeth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every manslayer may flee thither.	You shall build (kûn, תכין) a roadway and divide into thirds the whole extent of your land that the Lord your God is providing as your inheritance; anyone who kills another person should flee to the closest of these cities.	Calculate (στόχασαί) for yourself the distance, and you shall divide into three regions your land that the Lord your God apportions you, and there shall be a refuge there for every murderer.	Take a survey (στόχασαί) of thy way, and thou shalt divide the coasts of thy land, which the Lord thy God apportions to thee, into three parts, and there shall be there a refuge for every manslayer.

It is interesting to note that though the NET translators understood תָּכִ֣ין (kûn) as a road building project, the rabbis who translated the Septuagint understood it as στόχασαί (a form of στοχάζω), a calculation of distance or a survey. Six cities of refuge were still the plan but were predicated on Israel’s faith and obedience.

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Deuteronomy 19:8, 9 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:8, 9 (NET)	Deuteronomy 19:8, 9 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:8, 9 (English Elpenor)
And if HaShem thy G-d enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which He promised to give unto thy fathers–	If the Lord your God enlarges your borders as he promised your ancestors and gives you all the land he pledged to them,	But if the Lord your God enlarges your borders, as he swore to your fathers, and he gives you all the land that he said he would give your fathers,	And if the Lord shall enlarge thy borders, as he sware to thy fathers, and the Lord shall give to thee all the land which he said he would give to thy fathers;
if thou shalt keep all this commandment to do it, which I command thee this day, to love HaShem thy G-d, and to walk ever in His ways—then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three;	and then you are careful to observe all these commandments I am giving you today (namely, to love the Lord your God and to always walk in his ways), then you must add three more cities to these three.	—if you give heed to do all these commandments that I command you today, to love the Lord your God and to walk in all his ways all the days—then you shall add for yourself three more cities to these three,	if thou shalt hearken to do all these commands, which I charge thee this day, to love the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways continually; thou shalt add for thyself yet three cities to these three.

The law specified again who the cities of refuge were for:

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Deuteronomy 19:4-7 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:4-7 (NET)	Deuteronomy 19:4-7 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:4-7 (English Elpenor)
And this is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee thither and live: whoso killeth his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in time past;	Now this is the law pertaining to one who flees there in order to live, if he has accidentally killed another without hating him at the time of the accident.	Now this is the ordinance for a murderer who flees there and shall live: He who strikes his neighbor unintentionally and did not hate him before yesterday or before the third day,	And this shall be the ordinance of the manslayer, who shall flee thither, and shall live, whosoever shall have smitten his neighbour ignorantly, whereas he hated him not in times past.
as when a man goeth into the forest with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of these cities and live;	Suppose he goes with someone else to the forest to cut wood and when he raises the ax to cut the tree, the ax head flies loose from the handle and strikes his fellow worker so hard that he dies. The person responsible may then flee to one of these cities to save himself.	and he who goes into the forest with his neighbor to gather wood and his hand is knocked aside when he cuts the wood with the ax, and the iron slips from the wood and happens to strike his neighbor, and he dies, this one shall flee to one of these cities and live,	And whosoever shall enter with his neighbour into the thicket, to gather wood, if the hand of him that cuts wood with the axe should be violently shaken, and the axe head falling off from the handle should light on his neighbour, and he should die, he shall flee to one of these cities, and live.
lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and smite him mortally; whereas he was not deserving of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.	Otherwise the blood avenger will chase after the killer in the heat of his anger, eventually overtake him, [NET note 14: “and overtake him, for the road is long”] and kill him, though this is not a capital case since he did not hate him at the time of the accident.	lest the avenger of blood pursue after the murderer, because his heart is hot, and overtake him—if the road was rather long—and he strike his soul, and he dies, and to this one there is not a death sentence, since he did not hate him before yesterday and before the third day.	Lest the avenger of blood pursue after the slayer, because his heart is hot, and overtake him, if the way be too long, and slay him, though there is to this man no sentence of death, because he hated him not in time past.
Wherefore I command thee, saying: ‘Thou shalt separate three cities for thee.’	Therefore, I am commanding you to set apart for yourselves three cities.	Therefore I command you this thing, saying: You shall set apart three cities for yourself.	Therefore I charge thee, saying, Thou shalt separate for thyself three cities.

Likewise, the law specified who should not be allowed to remain in a city of refuge:

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Deuteronomy 19:11-13 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:11-13 (NET)	Deuteronomy 19:11-13 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:11-13 (English Elpenor)
But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die; and he flee into one of these cities;	However, suppose a person hates someone else and stalks him, attacks him, kills him, and then flees to one of these cities.	But if there be a person hating his neighbor and he lies in wait for him and attacks him and strikes his life and he dies and flees into one of these cities,	But if there should be in thee a man hating his neighbour, and he should lay wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him, that he die, and he should flee to one of these cities,
then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.	The elders of his own city must send for him and remove him from there to deliver him over to the blood avenger to die.	then the council of elders of his city shall send and take him from there and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, and he shall die.	then shall the elders of his city send, and take him thence, and they shall deliver him into the hands of the avengers of blood, and he shall die.
Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the blood of the innocent from Israel, that it may go well with thee.	You must not pity him, but purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, so that it may go well with you.	Your eye shall not be sparing toward him, and you shall cleanse the innocent blood from Israel, and it shall be well with you.	Thine eye shall not spare him; so shalt thou purge innocent blood from Israel, and it shall be well with thee.

I’ll finish this example and consider one more example in another essay.

A comparison/contrast of the Greek of Romans 3:20a and Psalm 143:2b (142:2b) in the Septuagint follows:

Romans 3:20a (NET Parallel Greek)	Psalm 143:2b (Septuagint BLB)	Psalm 142:2b (Septuagint Elpenor)
οὐ δικαιωθήσεται πᾶσα σὰρξ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ	οὐ δικαιωθήσεται ἐνώπιόν σου πᾶς ζῶν	οὐ δικαιωθήσεται ἐνώπιόν σου πᾶς ζῶν
Romans 3:20a (NET)	Psalm 142:2b (NETS)	Psalm 142:2b (English Elpenor)
no one is declared righteous before him	no one living will be counted righteous before you.	in thy sight shall no [man] living be justified.

Tables comparing Psalm 143:2; Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 19:1; 19:2; 19:3; 19:8; 19:9; 19:4; 19:5; 19:6; 19:7; 19:11; 19:12 and 19:13 in the Tanakh, KJV and NET, and tables comparing the Greek of Psalm 143:2 (142:2); Exodus 20:13 (20:15); Deuteronomy 19:1; 19:2; 19:3; 19:8; 19:19; 19:4; 19:5; 19:6; 19:7; 19:11; 19:12 and 19:13 in the Septuagint (BLB and Elpenor), and a table comparing Galatians 5:23 in the NET and KJV follow.

Psalm 143:2 (Tanakh)	Psalm 143:2 (KJV)	Psalm 143:2 (NET)
And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.	And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.	Do not sit in judgment on your servant, for no one alive is innocent before you.

Psalm 143:2 (Septuagint BLB)	Psalm 142:2 (Septuagint Elpenor)
καὶ μὴ εἰσέλθῃς εἰς κρίσιν μετὰ τοῦ δούλου σου ὅτι οὐ δικαιωθήσεται ἐνώπιόν σου πᾶς ζῶν	καὶ μὴ εἰσέλθῃς εἰς κρίσιν μετὰ τοῦ δούλου σου, ὅτι οὐ δικαιωθήσεται ἐνώπιόν σου πᾶς ζῶν
Psalm 142:2 (NETS)	Psalm 142:2 (English Elpenor)
And do not enter into judgment with your slave, because no one living will be counted righteous before you.	And enter not into judgment with thy servant, for in thy sight shall no [man] living be justified.

Exodus 20:13 (Tanakh)	Exodus 20:13 (KJV)	Exodus 20:13 (NET)
Thou shalt not murder; Thou shalt not commit adultery; Thou shalt not steal; Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.	Thou shalt not kill.	“You shall not murder.

Exodus 20:13 (Septuagint BLB)	Exodus 20:15 (Septuagint Elpenor)
οὐ φονεύσεις	οὐ φονεύσεις
Exodus 20:15 (NETS)	Exodus 20:15 (English Elpenor)
You shall not murder.	Thou shalt not kill.

Deuteronomy 19:1 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:1 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:1 (NET)
When HaShem thy G-d shall cut off the nations, whose land HaShem thy G-d giveth thee, and thou dost succeed them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses;	When the LORD thy God hath cut off the nations, whose land the LORD thy God giveth thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses;	When the Lord your God destroys the nations whose land he is about to give you and you dispossess them and settle in their cities and houses,

Deuteronomy 19:1 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:1 (Septuagint Elpenor)
ἐὰν δὲ ἀφανίσῃ κύριος ὁ θεός σου τὰ ἔθνη ἃ ὁ θεός σου δίδωσίν σοι τὴν γῆν αὐτῶν καὶ κατακληρονομήσητε αὐτοὺς καὶ κατοικήσητε ἐν ταῗς πόλεσιν αὐτῶν καὶ ἐν τοῗς οἴκοις αὐτῶν	ΕΑΝ δὲ ἀφανίσῃ Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου τὰ ἔθνη, ἃ ὁ Θεὸς δίδωσί σοι τὴν γῆν αὐτῶν, καὶ κατακληρονομήσητε αὐτοὺς καὶ κατοικήσετε ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν αὐτῶν καὶ ἐν τοῖς οἴκοις αὐτῶν
Deuteronomy 19:1 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:1 (English Elpenor)
Now if the Lord your God annihilates the nations whose land your God is giving you and you dispossess them and live in their cities and in their houses,	And when the Lord thy God shall have destroyed the nations, which God gives thee, [even] the land, and ye shall inherit them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses,

Deuteronomy 19:2 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:2 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:2 (NET)
thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which HaShem thy GOD giveth thee to possess it.	Thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it.	you must set apart for yourselves three cities in the middle of your land that the Lord your God is giving you as a possession.

Deuteronomy 19:2 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:2 (Septuagint Elpenor)
τρεῗς πόλεις διαστελεῗς σεαυτῷ ἐν μέσῳ τῆς γῆς σου ἧς κύριος ὁ θεός σου δίδωσίν σοι	τρεῖς πόλεις διαστελεῖς σεαυτῷ ἐν μέσῳ τῆς γῆς σου, ἧς Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου δίδωσί σοι
Deuteronomy 19:2 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:2 (English Elpenor)
you shall set apart three cities for yourself in the midst of your land that the Lord your God is giving you.	thou shalt separate for thyself three cities in the midst of thy land, which the Lord thy God gives thee.

Deuteronomy 19:3 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:3 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:3 (NET)
Thou shalt prepare thee the way, and divide the borders of thy land, which HaShem thy G-d causeth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every manslayer may flee thither.	Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the coasts of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every slayer may flee thither.	You shall build a roadway and divide into thirds the whole extent of your land that the Lord your God is providing as your inheritance; anyone who kills another person should flee to the closest of these cities.

Deuteronomy 19:3 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:3 (Septuagint Elpenor)
στόχασαί σοι τὴν ὁδὸν καὶ τριμεριεῗς τὰ ὅρια τῆς γῆς σου ἣν καταμερίζει σοι κύριος ὁ θεός σου καὶ ἔσται καταφυγὴ ἐκεῗ παντὶ φονευτῇ	στόχασαί σοι τὴν ὁδὸν καὶ τριμεριεῖς τὰ ὅρια τῆς γῆς σου, ἣν καταμερίζει σοι Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου, καὶ ἔσται ἐκεῖ καταφυγὴ παντὶ φονευτῇ
Deuteronomy 19:3 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:3 (English Elpenor)
Calculate for yourself the distance, and you shall divide into three regions your land that the Lord your God apportions you, and there shall be a refuge there for every murderer.	Take a survey of thy way, and thou shalt divide the coasts of thy land, which the Lord thy God apportions to thee, into three parts, and there shall be there a refuge for every manslayer.

Deuteronomy 19:8 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:8 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:8 (NET)
And if HaShem thy G-d enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which He promised to give unto thy fathers–	And if Jehovah thy God enlarge thy border, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers;	If the Lord your God enlarges your borders as he promised your ancestors and gives you all the land he pledged to them,

Deuteronomy 19:8 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:8 (Septuagint Elpenor)
ἐὰν δὲ ἐμπλατύνῃ κύριος ὁ θεός σου τὰ ὅριά σου ὃν τρόπον ὤμοσεν τοῗς πατράσιν σου καὶ δῷ σοι κύριος πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἣν εἶπεν δοῦναι τοῗς πατράσιν σου	ἐὰν δὲ ἐμπλατύνῃ Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου τὰ ὅριά σου, ὃν τρόπον ὤμοσε τοῖς πατράσι σου, καὶ δῷ σοι Κύριος πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν, ἣν εἶπε δοῦναι τοῖς πατράσι σου,
Deuteronomy 19:8 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:8 (English Elpenor)
But if the Lord your God enlarges your borders, as he swore to your fathers, and he gives you all the land that he said he would give your fathers,	And if the Lord shall enlarge thy borders, as he sware to thy fathers, and the Lord shall give to thee all the land which he said he would give to thy fathers;

Deuteronomy 19:9 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:9 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:9 (NET)
if thou shalt keep all this commandment to do it, which I command thee this day, to love HaShem thy G-d, and to walk ever in His ways–then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three;	If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three:	and then you are careful to observe all these commandments I am giving you today (namely, to love the Lord your God and to always walk in his ways), then you must add three more cities to these three.

Deuteronomy 19:9 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:9 (Septuagint Elpenor)
ἐὰν ἀκούσῃς ποιεῗν πάσας τὰς ἐντολὰς ταύτας ἃς ἐγὼ ἐντέλλομαί σοι σήμερον ἀγαπᾶν κύριον τὸν θεόν σου πορεύεσθαι ἐν πάσαις ταῗς ὁδοῗς αὐτοῦ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας καὶ προσθήσεις σεαυτῷ ἔτι τρεῗς πόλεις πρὸς τὰς τρεῗς ταύτας	ἐὰν ἀκούσῃς ποιεῖν πάσας τὰς ἐντολὰς ταύτας, ἃς ἐγὼ ἐντέλλομαί σοι σήμερον, ἀγαπᾶν Κύριον τὸν Θεόν σου, πορεύεσθαι ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτοῦ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας, προσθήσεις σεαυτῷ ἔτι τρεῖς πόλεις πρὸς τὰς τρεῖς ταύτας,
Deuteronomy 19:9 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:9 (English Elpenor)
—if you give heed to do all these commandments that I command you today, to love the Lord your God and to walk in all his ways all the days—then you shall add for yourself three more cities to these three,	if thou shalt hearken to do all these commands, which I charge thee this day, to love the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways continually; thou shalt add for thyself yet three cities to these three.

Deuteronomy 19:4 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:4 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:4 (NET)
And this is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee thither and live: whoso killeth his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in time past;	And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past;	Now this is the law pertaining to one who flees there in order to live, if he has accidentally killed another without hating him at the time of the accident.

Deuteronomy 19:4 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:4 (Septuagint Elpenor)
τοῦτο δὲ ἔσται τὸ πρόσταγμα τοῦ φονευτοῦ ὃς ἂν φύγῃ ἐκεῗ καὶ ζήσεται ὃς ἂν πατάξῃ τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἀκουσίως καὶ οὗτος οὐ μισῶν αὐτὸν πρὸ τῆς ἐχθὲς καὶ πρὸ τῆς τρίτης	τοῦτο δὲ ἔσται τὸ πρόσταγμα τοῦ φονευτοῦ, ὃς ἂν φύγῃ ἐκεῖ καὶ ζήσεται· ὃς ἂν πατάξῃ τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ οὐκ εἰδὼς καὶ οὗτος οὐ μισῶν αὐτὸν πρὸ τῆς χθὲς καὶ τρίτης
Deuteronomy 19:4 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:4 (English Elpenor)
Now this is the ordinance for a murderer who flees there and shall live: He who strikes his neighbor unintentionally and did not hate him before yesterday or before the third day,	And this shall be the ordinance of the manslayer, who shall flee thither, and shall live, whosoever shall have smitten his neighbour ignorantly, whereas he hated him not in times past.

Deuteronomy 19:5 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:5 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:5 (NET)
as when a man goeth into the forest with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of these cities and live;	As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live:	Suppose he goes with someone else to the forest to cut wood and when he raises the ax to cut the tree, the ax head flies loose from the handle and strikes his fellow worker so hard that he dies. The person responsible may then flee to one of these cities to save himself.

Deuteronomy 19:5 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:5 (Septuagint Elpenor)
καὶ ὃς ἂν εἰσέλθῃ μετὰ τοῦ πλησίον εἰς τὸν δρυμὸν συναγαγεῗν ξύλα καὶ ἐκκρουσθῇ ἡ χεὶρ αὐτοῦ τῇ ἀξίνῃ κόπτοντος τὸ ξύλον καὶ ἐκπεσὸν τὸ σιδήριον ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου τύχῃ τοῦ πλησίον καὶ ἀποθάνῃ οὗτος καταφεύξεται εἰς μίαν τῶν πόλεων τούτων καὶ ζήσεται	καὶ ὃς ἐὰν εἰσέλθῃ μετὰ τοῦ πλησίον εἰς τὸν δρυμὸν συναγαγεῖν ξύλα, καὶ ἐκκρουσθῇ ἡ χεὶρ αὐτοῦ τῇ ἀξίνῃ κόπτοντος τὸ ξύλον, καὶ ἐκπεσὸν τὸ σιδήριον ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου τύχῃ τοῦ πλησίον, καὶ ἀποθάνῃ, οὗτος καταφεύξεται εἰς μίαν τῶν πόλεων τούτων καὶ ζήσεται
Deuteronomy 19:5 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:5 (English Elpenor)
and he who goes into the forest with his neighbor to gather wood and his hand is knocked aside when he cuts the wood with the ax, and the iron slips from the wood and happens to strike his neighbor, and he dies, this one shall flee to one of these cities and live,	And whosoever shall enter with his neighbour into the thicket, to gather wood, if the hand of him that cuts wood with the axe should be violently shaken, and the axe head falling off from the handle should light on his neighbour, and he should die, he shall flee to one of these cities, and live.

Deuteronomy 19:6 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:6 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:6 (NET)
lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and smite him mortally; whereas he was not deserving of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.	Lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.	Otherwise the blood avenger will chase after the killer in the heat of his anger, eventually overtake him, and kill him, though this is not a capital case since he did not hate him at the time of the accident.

Deuteronomy 19:6 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:6 (Septuagint Elpenor)
ἵνα μὴ διώξας ὁ ἀγχιστεύων τοῦ αἵματος ὀπίσω τοῦ φονεύσαντος ὅτι παρατεθέρμανται τῇ καρδίᾳ καὶ καταλάβῃ αὐτόν ἐὰν μακροτέρα ᾖ ἡ ὁδός καὶ πατάξῃ αὐτοῦ τὴν ψυχήν καὶ ἀποθάνῃ καὶ τούτῳ οὐκ ἔστιν κρίσις θανάτου ὅτι οὐ μισῶν ἦν αὐτὸν πρὸ τῆς ἐχθὲς καὶ πρὸ τῆς τρίτης	ἵνα μὴ διώξας ὁ ἀγχιστεύων τοῦ αἵματος ὀπίσω τοῦ φονεύσαντος, ὅτι παρατεθέρμανται τῇ καρδίᾳ, καὶ καταλάβῃ αὐτόν, ἐὰν μακροτέρα ᾖ ἡ ὁδός, καὶ πατάξῃ αὐτοῦ ψυχήν, καὶ ἀποθάνῃ, καὶ τούτῳ οὐκ ἔστι κρίσις θανάτου, ὅτι οὐ μισῶν ἦν αὐτὸν πρὸ τῆς χθές, οὐδὲ πρὸ τῆς τρίτης
Deuteronomy 19:6 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:6 (English Elpenor)
lest the avenger of blood pursue after the murderer, because his heart is hot, and overtake him—if the road was rather long—and he strike his soul, and he dies, and to this one there is not a death sentence, since he did not hate him before yesterday and before the third day.	Lest the avenger of blood pursue after the slayer, because his heart is hot, and overtake him, if the way be too long, and slay him, though there is to this man no sentence of death, because he hated him not in time past.

Deuteronomy 19:7 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:7 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:7 (NET)
Wherefore I command thee, saying: ‘Thou shalt separate three cities for thee.’	Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thee.	Therefore, I am commanding you to set apart for yourselves three cities.

Deuteronomy 19:7 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:7 (Septuagint Elpenor)
διὰ τοῦτο ἐγώ σοι ἐντέλλομαι τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο λέγων τρεῗς πόλεις διαστελεῗς σεαυτῷ	διὰ τοῦτο ἐγώ σοι ἐντέλλομαι τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο λέγων· τρεῖς πόλεις διαστελεῖς σεαυτῷ
Deuteronomy 19:7 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:7 (English Elpenor)
Therefore I command you this thing, saying: You shall set apart three cities for yourself.	Therefore I charge thee, saying, Thou shalt separate for thyself three cities.

Deuteronomy 19:11 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:11 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:11 (NET)
But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die; and he flee into one of these cities;	But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die, and fleeth into one of these cities:	However, suppose a person hates someone else and stalks him, attacks him, kills him, and then flees to one of these cities.

Deuteronomy 19:11 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:11 (Septuagint Elpenor)
ἐὰν δὲ γένηται ἄνθρωπος μισῶν τὸν πλησίον καὶ ἐνεδρεύσῃ αὐτὸν καὶ ἐπαναστῇ ἐπ᾽ αὐτὸν καὶ πατάξῃ αὐτοῦ ψυχήν καὶ ἀπεθάνῃ καὶ φύγῃ εἰς μίαν τῶν πόλεων τούτων	ἐὰ^[8] δὲ γένηται ἐν σοὶ ἄνθρωπος μισῶν τὸν πλησίον καὶ ἐνεδρεύσῃ αὐτὸν καὶ ἐπαναστῇ ἐπ᾿ αὐτὸν καὶ πατάξῃ αὐτοῦ ψυχήν, καὶ ἀποθάνῃ, καὶ φύγῃ εἰς μίαν τῶν πόλεων τούτων
Deuteronomy 19:11 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:11 (English Elpenor)
But if there be a person hating his neighbor and he lies in wait for him and attacks him and strikes his life and he dies and flees into one of these cities,	But if there should be in thee a man hating his neighbour, and he should lay wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him, that he die, and he should flee to one of these cities,

Deuteronomy 19:12 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:12 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:12 (NET)
then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.	Then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.	The elders of his own city must send for him and remove him from there to deliver him over to the blood avenger to die.

Deuteronomy 19:12 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:12 (Septuagint Elpenor)
καὶ ἀποστελοῦσιν ἡ γερουσία τῆς πόλεως αὐτοῦ καὶ λήμψονται αὐτὸν ἐκεῗθεν καὶ παραδώσουσιν αὐτὸν εἰς χεῗρας τῷ ἀγχιστεύοντι τοῦ αἵματος καὶ ἀποθανεῗται	καὶ ἀποστελοῦσιν ἡ γερουσία τῆς πόλεως αὐτοῦ καὶ λήψονται αὐτὸν ἐκεῖθεν καὶ παραδώσουσιν αὐτὸν εἰς χεῖρας τῶν ἀγχιστευόντων τοῦ αἵματος, καὶ ἀποθανεῖται
Deuteronomy 19:12 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:12 (English Elpenor)
then the council of elders of his city shall send and take him from there and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, and he shall die.	then shall the elders of his city send, and take him thence, and they shall deliver him into the hands of the avengers of blood, and he shall die.

Deuteronomy 19:13 (Tanakh)	Deuteronomy 19:13 (KJV)	Deuteronomy 19:13 (NET)
Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the blood of the innocent from Israel, that it may go well with thee.	Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee.	You must not pity him, but purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, so that it may go well with you.

Deuteronomy 19:13 (Septuagint BLB)	Deuteronomy 19:13 (Septuagint Elpenor)
οὐ φείσεται ὁ ὀφθαλμός σου ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ καὶ καθαριεῗς τὸ αἷμα τὸ ἀναίτιον ἐξ Ισραηλ καὶ εὖ σοι ἔσται	οὐ φείσεται ὁ ὀφθαλμός σου ἐπ᾿ αὐτῷ καὶ καθαριεῖς τὸ αἷμα τὸ ἀναίτιον ἐξ ᾿Ισραήλ, καὶ εὖ σοι ἔσται
Deuteronomy 19:13 (NETS)	Deuteronomy 19:13 (English Elpenor)
Your eye shall not be sparing toward him, and you shall cleanse the innocent blood from Israel, and it shall be well with you.	Thine eye shall not spare him; so shalt thou purge innocent blood from Israel, and it shall be well with thee.

Galatians 5:23 (NET)	Galatians 5:23 (KJV)
gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.	Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
πραΰτης ἐγκράτεια· κατὰ τῶν τοιούτων οὐκ ἔστιν νόμος	πραοτης εγκρατεια κατα των τοιουτων ουκ εστιν νομος	πραοτης εγκρατεια κατα των τοιουτων ουκ εστιν νομος

A Monotonous Cycle Revisited, Part 7

Back to Romans, Part 15

Back to A Monotonous Cycle Revisited, Part 1

Back to Paul’s OT Quotes – Romans 3:20

Back to Language

Back to Peter’s Second Gospel Proclamation, Part 3

Back to Funeral, Part 3

Back to Westworld, Part 4

Back to The New Covenant, Part 2

Back to The Book of Life, Part 1

Back to The New Covenant, Part 3

Back to The Lost Son of Perdition, Part 9

Back to Christianity, Part 10

Back to Christianity, Part 13

^[1] John 3:7 (NET)

^[2] John 3:10 (NET) Table

^[3] The NET parallel Greek text had ἀλλὰ here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus, Byzantine Majority Text and NA²⁸ had ἀλλ’.

^[4] The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had πραΰτης here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had πραοτης (KJV: Meekness).

^[5] Romans 13:10 (NET)

^[6] Exodus 20:13 (NET)

^[7] Matthew 5:17 (NET)

^[8] This may be a typo in the Elpenor Septuagint.

Isaiah 53:10-12, Part 1

Posted on August 30, 2020 by admin

This study originated in another essay: “I plan to look at all the differences between the Masoretic text and the Septuagint here.” (My take on Isaiah 53:10a can be found there.) I decided to give Isaiah 53:10-12 its own thread when I felt rushed and unwilling to spend the time it deserved as an aside in another thread.

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Isaiah 53:10b (Tanakh) Table	Isaiah 53:10b (NET)	Isaiah 53:10b (NETS)	Isaiah 53:10b (Elpenor English)
when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin,	once restitution is made,	If you offer for sin,	If ye can give an offering for sin,

A note (28) in the NET after the line—once restitution is made—reads:

The meaning of this line is uncertain. It reads literally, “if you/she makes, a reparation offering, his life.” The verb תָּשִׂים (tasim) could be second masculine singular, in which case it would have to be addressed to the servant or to God. However, the servant is only addressed once in this servant song (see 52:14a), and God either speaks or is spoken about in this servant song; he is never addressed. Furthermore, the idea of God himself making a reparation offering is odd. If the verb is taken as third feminine singular, then the feminine noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) at the end of the line is the likely subject. In this case one can take the suffixed form of the noun as equivalent to a pronoun and translate, “if he [literally, “his life”] makes a reparation offering.”

“Furthermore, the idea of God himself making a reparation offering is odd,” practically leapt off the page at me. Assuming the NET translators considered וַֽיהֹוָ֞ה (y^ehôvâh) here^[1] as the Father and taking Jesus literally—The Father and I are one^[2]—I ask, who but יְהֹוָה (y^ehôvâh) could make a meaningful “reparation offering”? For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.^[3] The writer of Hebrews explained (Hebrews 9:22-26 NET):

Indeed according to the law almost everything was purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. So it was necessary for the sketches of the things in heaven to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves required better sacrifices than these. For Christ^[4] did not enter a sanctuary made with hands—the representation of the true sanctuary—but into heaven itself, and he appears now in God’s presence for us [Table]. And he did not enter to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the sanctuary year after year with blood that is not his own, for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But now^[5] he has appeared once for all at the consummation of the ages to put away sin^[6] by his sacrifice [Table].

Who wrote the letter to the Hebrews? It seems important now to explain what I’m thinking since I can’t calculate how much affect that speculation has on my interpretation.

Matthew 22:34-40 (NET)	Mark 12:28-31 (NET)
	Now one of the experts in the law came and heard them debating.
Now when the Pharisees heard that [Jesus] had silenced the Sadducees, they assembled together.
	When he saw that Jesus answered them well,
And one of them, an expert in religious law, asked him a question to test him:^[7]	he asked him,
“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”	“Which commandment is the most important of all?”
Jesus said^[8] to him,	Jesus answered,
	“The most important is: ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one [Table].
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’	Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength’ [Table].
This is the first and greatest commandment [Table].
The second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’	The second is: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the law and the prophets depend on these two commandments” [Table].
	There is no other commandment greater than these” [Table].

If I had read Matthew’s account only I would have thought this unnamed Pharisee tried to entrap Jesus in his words. Mark pointed out that he saw that Jesus answered [the Sadducees] well. This insight makes me suspect that the unnamed Pharisee became known to Mark or Peter at some later time. At that particular moment he may have hoped his brother Pharisees perceived his question as a test (πειράζων, a form of πειράζω) but I wonder if, secretly, it was more like what John described: Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test (δοκιμάζετε, a form of δοκιμάζω) the spirits to determine if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.^[9]

Mark’s Gospel narrative continued (Mark 12:32-34a NET):

The expert in the law said to him, “That is true, Teacher; you are right to say that he is one, and there is no one else besides him. And to love him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices”^[10] [Table]. When Jesus saw that he had answered thoughtfully, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

Jesus’ affirmation along with this unnamed Pharisee’s desire for a love [that] is the fulfillment of the law^[11] causes me to think he stood in the background among the other disciples as Jesus, after his resurrection, taught them what became the content of the letter to the Hebrews. Though I quoted Paul, I don’t think this unnamed Pharisee was Saul. The Pharisee who became the Apostle Paul was off doing his own thing, advancing in Judaism beyond many of [his] contemporaries in [his] nation, and was extremely zealous for the traditions of [his] ancestors.^[12]

I think the Eleven plus Matthias (Acts 1:15-26) struggled mentally to force Jesus’ death and resurrection into their hypothesis of a political revolutionary who would free Israel from Roman domination. Jesus’ teaching washed over them, virtually unheard and unheeded. It was too technical, too religious, perhaps even too “heretical” to fully sink in.

This is not to say that the unnamed Pharisee was untroubled by Jesus’ teaching. But I think that he was not a zealot in any sense of the word. He was more patient, more thoughtful, more attuned to these particular technicalities and more willing to entertain Jesus’ notions, though he, too, would need time and the indwelling Holy Spirit to fully embrace them.

Sometime prior to the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7:54-8:3) this unnamed Pharisee recalled Jesus’ teaching as a solution to signs of defection he witnessed among his brothers, and he wrote it down. I don’t know if he showed it to anyone or not. To the apostles in Jerusalem, seeing themselves primarily as a Jewish reform movement (Acts 21:18-24), it may have seemed too radical, like pouring fuel on a smoldering fire (Acts 21:26-31).

I imagine this unnamed Pharisee standing again in the background at the Jerusalem Council. He sensed a kindred spirit in Paul and handed him a copy, perhaps his only copy, of the manuscript of the letter to the Hebrews. John could have confirmed its contents as Jesus’ teaching if Paul had asked. I don’t know how Paul might have reacted.

He seemed content with the results of the Jerusalem Council initially: As [he and Timothy] went through the towns, they passed on the decrees that had been decided on by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the Gentile believers to obey.^[13]

After Paul journeyed through Athens and Corinth, however, perhaps during the affliction that happened to [him] in the province of Asia,^[14] I think Jesus’ teaching in the unnamed Pharisee’s writing known as Hebrews percolated, along with his recent experience and the Holy Spirit’s answers to the things that had troubled him (Romans 9-11), into that masterful Gospel commentary known today as Paul’s Letter to the Romans. That unnamed Pharisee’s account of Jesus’ teaching had a much better opportunity for widespread circulation in Paul’s traveling library of scrolls and parchments.

This is all conjecture on my part, more like a screenwriter or an actor developing a backstory. I share it here because I promised I would and because it may have some influence on my interpretation of Hebrews.

I searched all the occurrences of אָשָׁם֙ (ʼâshâm), translated offering for sin (Tanakh, KJV) and restitution (NET), and made the following table of those with identical consonants (no prefixes or suffixes) to see how the rabbis translated each of them in the Septuagint.

Reference	Hebrew – Chabad.org	Tanakh	NET	Septuagint BLB	Septuagint Elpenor
Isaiah 53:10	אָשָׁם֙	an offering for sin	restitution	περὶ ἁμαρτίας	περὶ ἁμαρτίας
Genesis 26:10	אָשָֽׁם	guiltiness	guilt	ἄγνοιαν, a form of ἄγνοια	ἄγνοιαν, a form of ἄγνοια
Leviticus 5:19	אָשָׁ֖ם	a guilt-offering	a guilt offering	n/a	n/a
Leviticus 7:5	אָשָׁ֖ם	a guilt-offering	a guilt offering	πλημμελείας, a form of πλημμέλεια	πλημμελείας, a form of πλημμέλεια
Leviticus 14:21	אָשָׁ֛ם	a guilt-offering	a guilt offering	ἐπλημμέλησεν, a form of πλημμελέω	ἐπλημμέλησεν, a form of πλημμελέω
Leviticus 19:21	אָשָֽׁם	a guilt-offering	a guilt-offering	πλημμελείας, a form of πλημμέλεια	πλημμελείας, a form of πλημμέλεια
1 Samuel (Kings) 6:3	אָשָׁ֑ם	a guilt-offering	a guilt offering	ἀποδιδόντες a form of ἀποδίδωμι	ἀποδιδόντες a form of ἀποδίδωμι
1 Samuel (Kings) 6:8	אָשָׁ֔ם	a guilt-offering	a guilt offering	ἀποδώσετε…τῆς βασάνου	ἀποδώσετε…τῆς βασάνου
1 Samuel (Kings) 6:17	אָשָׁ֖ם	a guilt-offering	a guilt offering	ἀπέδωκαν…τῆς βασάνου	ἀπέδωκαν…τῆς βασάνου
2 Kings 12:16 (4 Kings 12:17)	אָשָׁם֙	forfeit	reparation offerings	περὶ ἁμαρτίας	περὶ ἁμαρτίας
Proverbs 14:9	אָשָׁ֑ם	sin	reparation	ὀφειλήσουσιν καθαρισμόν	ὀφειλήσουσι καθαρισμόν
Jeremiah 51:5 (28:5)	אָשָׁ֔ם	sin	guilt	ἀδικίας, a form of ἀδικία	ἀδικίας, a form of ἀδικία

Only 2 Kings 12:16 (4 Kings 12:17) matched the vowel points with the occurrence in Isaiah 53:10. Both were translated περὶ ἁμαρτίας (for sin). A table of the homograph אָשַׁ֥ם (ʼâsham) yielded no additional vowel point matches.

Reference	Hebrew – Chabad.org	Tanakh	NET	Septuagint BLB	Septuagint Elpenor
Leviticus 5:19	אָשֹׁ֥ם	is certainly	was surely	ἐπλημμέλησεν	ἐπλημμέλησε
Leviticus 5:19	אָשַׁ֖ם	guilty	guilty	πλημμέλησιν	πλημμελείᾳ
Numbers 5:7	אָשַׁ֥ם	he hath been guilty	he wronged	ἐπλημμέλησεν	ἐπλημμέλησεν

The exercise persuaded me that אָשָׁם֙ (ʼâshâm) was the Hebrew word the rabbis intended to understand and translate in the Septuagint. Then I searched all occurrences of תָּשִׂ֚ים (suwm), translated thou shalt make (Tanakh, KJV) and is made (NET), and made the following table of those with identical consonants (no prefixes or suffixes).

Reference	Hebrew – Chabad.org	Tanakh	NET	Septuagint BLB	Septuagint Elpenor
Isaiah 53:10	תָּשִׂ֚ים	thou shalt make	is made	δῶτε, a (2^nd person plural) form of δίδωμι	δῶτε, a (2^nd person plural) form of δίδωμι
Genesis 6:16	תָּשִׂ֑ים	shalt thou set	Put	ποιήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of ποιέω	ποιήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of ποιέω
Genesis 44:2	תָּשִׂים֙	put	put	ἐμβάλατε, a (2^nd person plural) form of ἐμβάλλω	ἐμβάλετε, a (2^nd person plural) form of ἐμβάλλω
Exodus 21:1	תָּשִׂ֖ים	thou shalt set	you will set	παραθήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of παρατίθημι	παραθήσῃ, a (2^nd person singular) form of παρατίθημι
Deuteronomy 17:15	תָּשִׂ֤ים	thou shalt…set	you must select	καταστήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of καθίστημι	καταστήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of καθίστημι
Deuteronomy 17:15	תָּשִׂ֤ים	shalt thou set	you must appoint	καταστήσεις	καταστήσεις
Deuteronomy 22:8	תָשִׂ֤ים	thou bring	being	ποιήσεις	ποιήσεις
1 Samuel (Kings) 10:19	תָּשִֹ֣ים	set	Appoint	στήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of ἵστημι	καταστήσεις
1 Kings 20:34 (3 Kings 21:34)	תָּשִֹ֨ים	thou shalt make	You may set up	θήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of τίθημι	θήσεις, a (2^nd person singular) form of τίθημι
Job 7:12	תָשִׂ֖ים	thou settest	you must put	κατέταξας, a (2^nd person singular) form of κατατάσσω	κατέταξας, a (2^nd person singular) form of κατατάσσω
Job 38:33	תָּשִׂ֖ים	thou set	you set up	n/a	n/a
Isaiah 41:15	תָּשִֽׂים	and shalt make	you will make	θήσεις	θήσεις
Ezekiel 21:20 (21:25)	תָּשִׂ֔ים	Appoint	Mark out	n/a	n/a
Ezekiel 24:17	תָּשִׂ֣ים	and put on	and put	n/a	n/a

None of the other occurrences of תָּשִׂ֚ים (suwm) matched the vowel points exactly. All were translated into Greek as 2^nd person verbs, most were singular. The plural exceptions were Isaiah 53:10 [Table] and Genesis 44:2.

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Genesis 44:2 (Tanakh)	Genesis 44:2 (NET)	Genesis 44:2 (NETS)	Genesis 44:2 (Elpenor English)
And put (תָּשִׂים֙) my goblet, the silver goblet, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, and his corn money.’ And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.	Then put (suwm, תשׁים) my cup—the silver cup—in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the money for his grain.” He did as Joseph instructed.	and put (ἐμβάλατε) my silver cup into the bag of the younger one, with the price of his grain.” And it happened according to the word of Joseph, just as he said.	And put (ἐμβάλετε) my silver cup into the sack of the youngest, and the price of his corn. And it was done according to the word of Joseph, as he said.

I don’t see any reason for a plural verb here but its existence gives me pause to consider the similar occurrence in Isaiah 53:10 as the translators’ interpretive choice. Since “third [person] feminine singular” was another option cited in the NET note above I made a table of those occurrences as well.

Reference	Hebrew – Chabad.org	Tanakh	NET	Septuagint BLB	Septuagint Elpenor
Exodus 2:3	וַתָּ֤שֶׂם	put	put	ἐνέβαλεν, a (3^rd person singular) form of ἐμβάλλω	ἐνέβαλε, a (3^rd person singular) form of ἐμβάλλω
Exodus 2:3	וַתָּ֥שֶׂם	laid	set	ἔθηκεν, a (3^rd person singular) form of τίθημι	ἔθηκεν, a (3^rd person singular) form of τίθημι
1 Samuel (Kings) 25:18	וַתָּ֖שֶׂם	and laid	She loaded	ἔθετο, a (3^rd person singular) form of τίθημι	ἔθετο, a (3^rd person singular) form of τίθημι
2 Samuel (Kings) 13:19	וַתָּ֚שֶׂם	and she laid	She put	ἐπέθηκεν, a (3^rd person singular) form of ἐπιτίθημι	ἐπέθηκε, a (3^rd person singular) form of ἐπιτίθημι
2 Kings (4 Kings) 9:30	וַתָּ֨שֶׂם	and she painted	she put on	ἐστιμίσατο, a (3^rd person singular) form of στιμίζω	ἐστιμίσατο, a (3^rd person singular) form of στιμίζω
Esther 8:2	וַתָּ֧שֶׂם	And…set	And…designated	κατέστησεν, a (3^rd person singular) form of καθίστημι	κατέστησεν, a (3^rd person singular) form of καθίστημι
Job 13:27	וְתָ֘שֵׂ֚ם	Thou puttest	And you put	ἔθου, a (2^nd person singular) form of τίθημι	ἔθου, a (2^nd person singular) form of τίθημι

The final occurrence (Job 13:27), though its consonants were identical to the others, was clearly “second [person] masculine singular.” And none of these was an exact match for the occurrence in Isaiah 53:10. I noted one other form which was translated as forms of τίθημι in the Septuagint.

Reference	Hebrew – Chabad.org	Tanakh	NET	Septuagint BLB	Septuagint Elpenor
1 Samuel (Kings) 9:20	תָּ֧שֶׂם	set	be	θῇς, a (2^nd person singular) form of τίθημι	θῇς, a (2^nd person singular) form of τίθημι
Psalm 66:9 (65:9)	הַשָּׂ֣ם	Which holdeth	He preserves	θεμένου, a (singular participle) form of τίθημι	θεμένου, a (singular participle) form of τίθημι
Psalm 104:3 (103:3)	הַשָּֽׂם	who maketh	He makes	τιθεὶς, a (singular participle) form of τίθημι	τιθεὶς, a (singular participle) form of τίθημι
Psalm 147:14 (147:3)	הַשָּׂ֣ם	He maketh	He brings	τιθεὶς	τιθεὶς
Isaiah 63:11	הַשָּׂ֥ם	he that put	who placed	θεὶς, a (singular participle) form of τίθημι	θεὶς, a (singular participle) form of τίθημι

This exercise made me willing to consider that תָּשִׂ֚ים (suwm) might be original to Isaiah 53:10, the Hebrew word the rabbis intended to understand and translate in the Septuagint. Paul, in his greeting to believers in Galatia, had also used a (singular) form of δίδωμι (Galatians 1:3-5 NET):

Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave (δόντος, another form of δίδωμι) himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age according to the will of our God and Father [Table], to whom be glory forever and ever! Amen.

Though I still need to consider נַפְשׁ֔וֹ (nephesh), translated his soul (Tannakh, KJV), I began to consider: if this—when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin—is the more legitimate understanding of this clause, how did God make his soul an offering for sin?

What follows is a fictional explanation from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, offered as the intellectual equivalent of an appetizer, to get the mind warmed up to the taste and smell of this issue:

“It means,” said Aslan, “that though the Witch knew the Deep Magic, there is a magic deeper still which she did not know. Her knowledge goes back only to the dawn of time. But if she could have looked a little further back, into the stillness and the darkness before Time dawned, she would have read there a different incantation. She would have known that when a willing victim who had committed no treachery was killed in a traitor’s stead, the Table would crack and Death itself would start working backward.”^[15]

The understanding that was part of my own socialization is perhaps best exemplified by an excerpt from “The Death of Christ,” a sermon delivered by Charles Haddon Spurgeon on January 24, 1858:

Understand, then, the sense in which Christ was made a sacrifice for sin. But here lies the glory of this matter. It was as a substitute for sin that he did actually and literally suffer punishment for the sin of all his elect. When I say this, I am not to be understood as using any figure whatever, but as saying actually what I mean. Man for his sin was condemned to eternal fire; when God took Christ to be the substitute, it is true, he did not send Christ into eternal fire, but he poured upon him grief so desperate, that it was a valid payment for even an eternity of fire. Man was condemned to live forever in hell. God did not send Christ forever into hell; but he put on Christ, punishment that was equivalent for that. Although he did not give Christ to drink the actual hells of believers, yet he gave him a quid pro quo—something that was equivalent thereunto. He took the cup of Christ’s agony, and he put in there, suffering, misery, and anguish such as only God can imagine or dream of, that was the exact equivalent for all the suffering, all the woe, and all the eternal tortures of every one that shall at last stand in heaven, bought with the blood of Christ.

Both of these explanations share a common theme: God made Christ “a sacrifice for sin” by conforming to something presumed to be innate to the created cosmos. In C.S. Lewis’ fiction He conformed to the “deeper magic” and in Charles Spurgeon’s sermon He conformed to some idea of judicial or commercial equivalence: “something that was equivalent” to “a valid payment for even an eternity of fire” since “Man was condemned to live forever in hell.”

I think God made Christ “a sacrifice for sin” by the truth, power and authority of his word.

God said, Let Christ be the offering for sin. And God made Christ the offering for sin, and it was so (John 3:16 NET Table):

For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

God said, Let Christ be the offering for sin. And it was so (John 11:49-53 NET):

Then one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said, “You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is more to your advantage to have one man die for the people than for the whole nation to perish.” (Now he did not say this on his own, but because he was high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the Jewish nation [Table], and not for the Jewish nation only, but to gather together into one the children of God who are scattered.) So from that day they planned together to kill him [Table].

God said, Let Christ be the offering for sin. And it was so. The Christ obeyed God his Father (John 10:17, 18 NET).

This is why the Father loves me—because I lay down my life, so that I may take it back again. No one takes it away from me, but I lay it down of my own free will. I have the authority to lay it down, and I have the authority to take it back again. This commandment I received from my Father.”

Tables comparing Genesis 44:2 in the Tanakh, KJV and NET, and comparing Genesis 44:2 in the Septuagint (BLB and Elpenor), and a table comparing Matthew 22:35 in the NET and KJV follow.

Genesis 44:2 (Tanakh)	Genesis 44:2 (KJV)	Genesis 44:2 (NET)
And put my goblet, the silver goblet, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, and his corn money.’ And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.	And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.	Then put my cup—the silver cup—in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the money for his grain.” He did as Joseph instructed.

Genesis 44:2 (Septuagint BLB)	Genesis 44:2 (Septuagint Elpenor)
καὶ τὸ κόνδυ μου τὸ ἀργυροῦν ἐμβάλατε εἰς τὸν μάρσιππον τοῦ νεωτέρου καὶ τὴν τιμὴν τοῦ σίτου αὐτοῦ ἐγενήθη δὲ κατὰ τὸ ῥῆμα Ιωσηφ καθὼς εἶπεν	καὶ τὸ κόνδυ μου τὸ ἀργυροῦν ἐμβάλετε εἰς τὸν μάρσιππον τοῦ νεωτέρου καὶ τὴν τιμὴν τοῦ σίτου αὐτοῦ. ἐγενήθη δὲ κατὰ τὸ ρῆμα ᾿Ιωσήφ, καθὼς εἶπε
Genesis 44:2 (NETS)	Genesis 44:2 (English Elpenor)
and put my silver cup into the bag of the younger one, with the price of his grain.” And it happened according to the word of Joseph, just as he said.	And put my silver cup into the sack of the youngest, and the price of his corn. And it was done according to the word of Joseph, as he said.

Matthew 22:35 (NET)	Matthew 22:35 (KJV)
And one of them, an expert in religious law, asked him a question to test him:	Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
καὶ ἐπηρώτησεν εἷς ἐξ αὐτῶν [νομικὸς] πειράζων αὐτόν	και επηρωτησεν εις εξ αυτων νομικος πειραζων αυτον και λεγων	και επηρωτησεν εις εξ αυτων νομικος πειραζων αυτον και λεγων

Isaiah 53:10-12, Part 2

Back to A Shadow of the Good Things, Part 7

^[1] Isaiah 53:10a

^[2] John 10:30 (NET)

^[3] Hebrews 10:4 (NET)

^[4] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had the article ο preceding Christ. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[5] The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had νυνὶ here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had νυν.

^[6] The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had the article τῆς preceding sin. The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text did not.

^[7] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had και λεγων (KJV: and saying) here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[8] The Stephanus Textus Receptus had ιησους ειπεν here. The Byzantine Majority Text had ιησους εφη. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had simply ἔφη.

^[9] 1 John 4:1 (NET)

^[10] The Stephanus Textus Receptus had the article των preceding sacrifices. The NET parallel Greek text, NA²⁸ and Byzantine Majority Text did not.

^[11] Romans 13:10b (NET)

^[12] Galatians 1:14 (NET)

^[13] Acts 16:4 (NET) Table

^[14] 2 Corinthians 1:8a (NET)

^[15] The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Spark Notes

A Door of Hope, Part 1

Posted on July 31, 2019 by admin

The essay Jedidiah, Part 1 was written days before I began to compare Old Testament quotations in the New Testament to the Septuagint, and years before I checked all of the Masoretic text against the Septuagint. I thought of Achan’s confession as the door or opportunity of/for hope promised in Hosea, and related it to John’s letter (1 John 1:5-2:2 NET Table):

Now this is the gospel (NET note 13) message (NET note 14) we have heard from him and announce to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walking in the darkness, we are lying and not practicing the truth. But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. But if we confess (ὁμολογῶμεν, a form of ὁμολογέω) our sins, he is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us.

(My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.) But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous One, and he himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for our sins but also for the whole world.

Revisiting the essay to make Old Testament comparison tables I discovered that the Septuagint was a bit different.

Masoretic Text		Septuagint
Hosea 2:15 (Tanakh)	Hosea 2:15 (NET)	Hosea 2:15 (NETS)	Hosea 2:17 (Elpenor English)
And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.	From there I will give back her vineyards to her, and turn the “Valley of Trouble” into an “Opportunity for Hope.” There she will sing as she did when she was young, when she came up from the land of Egypt.	And from there I will give her her estates and the valley of Achor, to open up her understanding. And there she will be brought low as in the days of her infancy and as in the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt.	And I will give her possessions from thence, and the valley of Achor to open her understanding: and she shall be afflicted there according to the days of her infancy, and according to the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt.

As I began the word studies for this essay I heard a sermon (Hebrews 6:4-6 NET):

For it is impossible (Ἀδύνατον, a form of ἀδύνατος) in the case of those who have once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit, tasted the good word of God and the miracles of the coming age, and then have committed apostasy, to renew them again to repentance, since they are crucifying the Son of God for themselves all over again and holding him up to contempt.

The preacher wanted to comfort his hearers, persuading them they were not of this kind. He described the kind of person the writer intended. It was a fairly accurate description of my life, except that I can’t recall having tasted…the miracles of the coming age before I became an atheist. I realized, especially in retrospect, that the Holy Spirit wanted to focus my attention on the fact that I had been renewed again to repentance, but I began to wonder if that renewal might be suspect.

I imagined standing before Jesus. He determined that for the sake of the veracity of Hebrews 6:4-6 it would be best if I spent eternity in the lake of fire. I was disappointed but willing that his word be true: Let God be proven true, and every human being shown up as a liar, just as it is written: “so that you will be justified in your words and will prevail^[1] when you are judged.”^[2] That reaction, so uncharacteristic of the old human (παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον; Ephesians 4:22-24), calmed my suspicions about my renewed repentance for the moment. I also recalled, but didn’t study, for God all things are possible. I will consider it more thoroughly here (Matthew 19:23-26 NET):

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven! Again I say, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter into the kingdom of God.” The^[3] disciples were greatly astonished when they heard this and said, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and replied, “This is impossible (ἀδύνατον, a form of ἀδύνατος) for mere humans, but for God all things are^[4] possible (δυνατά, a form of δυνατός).”

And again (Mark 10:27 NET):

Jesus^[5] looked at them and replied, “This is impossible (ἀδύνατον, a form of ἀδύνατος) for mere humans, but not for God;^[6] all things are^[7] possible (δυνατὰ, a form of δυνατός) for God.”

Though my main concern is the contrast between human ἀδύνατον and God’s δυνατὰ, I’ll consider the context here a moment. My Dad told me the story of a small night gate in Jerusalem called “The Needle’s Eye,” but he never showed me any pictures of it. The NET note (32) explained:

The eye of a needle refers to a sewing needle. (Although the story of a small gate in Jerusalem known as “The Needle’s Eye” has been widely circulated and may go back as far as the middle ages, there is no evidence that such a gate ever existed.) Jesus was saying rhetorically that it is impossible for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom, unless God (v. 26) intervenes.

The difficulty a camel would have passing through The Needle’s Eye—“stooped and…its baggage removed”—reinforces Jesus’ point about divesting oneself of (excess?) possessions (ὑπάρχοντα), while the fantastical image of a camel passing through the eye of a sewing needle distracts the rich (and anyone else) from taking Him seriously. Others disagree. But no one of means wants to hear, If you wish to be perfect, go sell your possessions and give the money to the^[8] poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.^[9] Then come, follow me.^[10]

Anyway, I left on a road trip without studying the problem that nagged at me directly. As I drove I began to think about the preacher who taught on Hebrews 6:4-6. In another sermon he had made a fairly serious interpretation mistake, making his own point rather than that of the Scripture. My mind began to argue against his right to confront me with Hebrews 6:4-6. I turned on the radio to drown out my thoughts. Aside from being unloving and unkind, ad hominem arguments aren’t an effective bolster to faith.

What little time I had for study I devoted to לפתח (pethach), translated διανοῖξαι (a form of διανοίγω) in the Septuagint (Table2 below). I was a little embarrassed that it had just occurred to me to search forms of διανοίγω in the Septuagint to see what Hebrew words they translated in the Masoretic text. I wanted to finish the table and move on. The unattended challenge of Hebrews 6:4-6 continued to fester.

While the idea of spending eternity in the lake of fire was unpleasant, it was made bearable if I could face it with Jesus, sustained by his love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. But I define the lake of fire as the place where the omnipresent God is not. If Jesus ripped his Holy Spirit from me, though I wouldn’t be left with anything I care very much about, I realized in a long sleepless night that I really didn’t want to spend eternity there. I began to question the nature and validity of my renewed repentance again.

In the morning it all seemed like a trick to get me frustrated or angry so I would run off, abandon Jesus and live in sin. Heaven or hell aside, I want to be done with sin. It’s not good for me or anyone around me. I began to wonder if my renewed repentance was part of God’s eternal punishment for crucifying the Son of God for [myself] all over again and holding him up to contempt: He gave me this brief taste of eternal life only to snatch his Spirit away at the most inopportune moment.

I deserve it, no question about that, but it doesn’t sound like God to me (John 3:16-18 NET):

For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his^[11] one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his^[12] Son into the world to condemn (κρίνῃ, a form of κρίνω) the world, but that the world should be saved through him. The one who believes in him is not condemned (κρίνεται, another form of κρίνω). The one who does not believe has been condemned (κέκριται, another form of κρίνω) already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.

To think of God’s love (ἠγάπησεν, a form of ἀγαπάω) as primarily a feeling,^[13] a kind of affection for the world, confuses the Scripture. God’s feeling for the world is very clear from the beginning, in the Masoretic text (Table3 below) at least:^[14] The Lord regretted that he had made humankind on the earth, and he was highly offended.^[15] Unlike the Billy Joel song God doesn’t pretend to “want you just the way you are.”^[16]

For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. He delivered us [who have faith in Christ Jesus] from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves (ἀγάπης, a form of ἀγάπη), in whom we have redemption,^[17] the forgiveness of sins.^[18] For this is the way God loved the world: those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image (εἰκόνος, a form of εἰκών) of his Son,^[19] that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.^[20] “Sit at my right hand,” He promised the Son he loves, “until I put your enemies under your feet”’?^[21] All of this is the grace of God received through faith, the faith (πίστις) that is an aspect of the fruit of his Holy Spirit; it is not from works, so that no one can boast.^[22]

Jesus is the way God loved the world, not because of a positive emotion but because God is love (ἀγάπη).^[23] God (ἀγάπη) is patient, God (ἀγάπη) is kind, He is not envious. God (ἀγάπη) does not brag, He is not puffed up. He is not rude, He is not self-serving, He is not easily angered or resentful. He is not glad about injustice, but rejoices in the truth. He bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. He (ἀγάπη) never ends.^[24] For this is the way God loved—and demonstrated his joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control^[25] to—the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

I had a week between work assignments. It was more convenient to drive to my mother’s house than all the way back to my own home. On the drive I began to wonder: if Jesus snatched his Spirit from me, would the new human (καινὸν ἄνθρωπον; Ephesians 4:22-24) cling to his Holy Spirit and bid the chaff of the old human godspeed and good riddance into the lake of fire? I finally decided that this obsession with Jesus snatching his Holy Spirit from me needed to be confronted directly. I planned to look into ἀδύνατον, the Greek word translated impossible in Hebrews 6:4, during the week I spent with my mother.

For God achieved what the law could not (ἀδύνατον, a form of ἀδύνατος) do, Paul wrote believers in Rome, because it was weakened (ἠσθένει, a form of ἀσθενέω) through the flesh. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous requirement of the law may be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.^[26]

In the same way God wanted to demonstrate more clearly to the heirs of the promise that his purpose was unchangeable, and so he intervened with an oath, so that we who have found refuge in him may find strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us through two unchangeable things, since it is impossible (ἀδύνατον, a form of ἀδύνατος) for God to lie.^[27]

This proved to be the dull spot in my sword of the Spirit. I was uncertain whether the infinitive ἀνακαινίζειν (to renew) was impossible for God as well as for human beings. That’s why I had difficulty resting even as the Holy Spirit drew me back to the fact that I had been renewed to repentance. But the writer of Hebrews was not shy about stating explicitly that something was impossible for God when the Holy Spirit meant that something was impossible for God. What is impossible (ἀδύνατα, another form of ἀδύνατος) for mere humans, Jesus said according to Luke’s Gospel narrative, is possible (δυνατὰ, a form of δυνατός) for God.^[28]

I’ll quote the final occurrences of ἀδύνατον for completeness: For it is impossible (ἀδύνατον, a form of ἀδύνατος) for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.^[29] Now without faith it is impossible (ἀδύνατον, a form of ἀδύνατος) to please him, for the one who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.^[30]

It would have been much easier to have taken the few moments this study required in the first place rather than face a week of nagging uncertainty. I’ll trust that this essay will serve as a preface to the word studies to come in A Door of Hope.

Tables comparing Hosea 2:15 and Genesis 6:6 in the Tanakh, KJV and NET; and tables comparing Hosea 2:15 (2:17) and Genesis 6:6 in the Septuagint (BLB and Elpenor) follow. Following those are tables comparing Romans 3:4; Matthew 19:25, 26; 19:21; Mark 10:27; John 3:16, 17; Colossians 1:14 and 1 Corinthians 13:8 in the NET and KJV.

Hosea 2:15 (Tanakh)	Hosea 2:15 (KJV)	Hosea 2:15 (NET)
And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.	And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.	From there I will give back her vineyards to her, and turn the “Valley of Trouble” into an “Opportunity for Hope.” There she will sing as she did when she was young, when she came up from the land of Egypt.

Hosea 2:15 (Septuagint BLB)	Hosea 2:17 (Septuagint Elpenor)
καὶ δώσω αὐτῇ τὰ κτήματα αὐτῆς ἐκεῗθεν καὶ τὴν κοιλάδα Αχωρ διανοῗξαι σύνεσιν αὐτῆς καὶ ταπεινωθήσεται ἐκεῗ κατὰ τὰς ἡμέρας νηπιότητος αὐτῆς καὶ κατὰ τὰς ἡμέρας ἀναβάσεως αὐτῆς ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου	καὶ δώσω αὐτῇ τὰ κτήματα αὐτῆς ἐκεῖθεν καὶ τὴν κοιλάδα ᾿Αχὼρ διανοῖξαι σύνεσιν αὐτῆς, καὶ ταπεινωθήσεται ἐκεῖ κατὰ τὰς ἡμέρας νηπιότητος αὐτῆς καὶ κατὰ τὰς ἡμέρας ἀναβάσεως αὐτῆς ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου.
Hosea 2:15 (NETS)	Hosea 2:17 (English Elpenor)
And from there I will give her her estates and the valley of Achor, to open up her understanding. And there she will be brought low as in the days of her infancy and as in the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt.	And I will give her possessions from thence, and the valley of Achor to open her understanding: and she shall be afflicted there according to the days of her infancy, and according to the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt.

Genesis 6:6 (Tanakh)	Genesis 6:6 (KJV)	Genesis 6:6 (NET)
And it repented HaShem that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart.	And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.	The Lord regretted that he had made humankind on the earth, and he was highly offended.

Genesis 6:6 (Septuagint BLB)	Genesis 6:6 (Septuagint Elpenor)
καὶ ἐνεθυμήθη ὁ θεὸς ὅτι ἐποίησεν τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς καὶ διενοήθη	καὶ ἐνεθυμήθη ὁ Θεὸς ὅτι ἐποίησε τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, καὶ διενοήθη
Genesis 6:6 (NETS)	Genesis 6:6 (English Elpenor)
then God considered that he had made humankind on the earth, and he thought it over.	then God laid it to heart that he had made man upon the earth, and he pondered [it] deeply.

Romans 3:4 (NET)	Romans 3:4 (KJV)
Absolutely not! Let God be proven true, and every human being shown up as a liar, just as it is written: “so that you will be justified in your words and will prevail when you are judged.”	God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
μὴ γένοιτο· γινέσθω δὲ ὁ θεὸς ἀληθής, πᾶς δὲ ἄνθρωπος ψεύστης, \|καθὼς\| γέγραπται ὅπως ἂν δικαιωθῇς ἐν τοῖς λόγοις σου καὶ νικήσεις ἐν τῷ κρίνεσθαι σε	μη γενοιτο γινεσθω δε ο θεος αληθης πας δε ανθρωπος ψευστης καθως γεγραπται οπως αν δικαιωθης εν τοις λογοις σου και νικησης εν τω κρινεσθαι σε	μη γενοιτο γινεσθω δε ο θεος αληθης πας δε ανθρωπος ψευστης καθως γεγραπται οπως αν δικαιωθης εν τοις λογοις σου και νικησης εν τω κρινεσθαι σε

Matthew 19:25, 26 (NET)	Matthew 19:25, 26 (KJV)
The disciples were greatly astonished when they heard this and said, “Then who can be saved?”	When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἀκούσαντες δὲ οἱ μαθηταὶ ἐξεπλήσσοντο σφόδρα λέγοντες· τίς ἄρα δύναται σωθῆναι	ακουσαντες δε οι μαθηται αυτου εξεπλησσοντο σφοδρα λεγοντες τις αρα δυναται σωθηναι	ακουσαντες δε οι μαθηται αυτου εξεπλησσοντο σφοδρα λεγοντες τις αρα δυναται σωθηναι

Jesus looked at them and replied, “This is impossible for mere humans, but for God all things are possible.”

But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἐμβλέψας δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· παρὰ ἀνθρώποις τοῦτο ἀδύνατον ἐστιν, παρὰ δὲ θεῷ πάντα δυνατά	εμβλεψας δε ο ιησους ειπεν αυτοις παρα ανθρωποις τουτο αδυνατον εστιν παρα δε θεω παντα δυνατα εστιν	εμβλεψας δε ο ιησους ειπεν αυτοις παρα ανθρωποις τουτο αδυνατον εστιν παρα δε θεω παντα δυνατα εστιν

Matthew 19:21 (NET)	Matthew 19:21 (KJV)
Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go sell your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”	Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἔφη αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· εἰ θέλεις τέλειος εἶναι, ὕπαγε πώλησον σου τὰ ὑπάρχοντα καὶ δὸς [τοῖς] πτωχοῖς, καὶ ἕξεις θησαυρὸν ἐν οὐρανοῖς, καὶ δεῦρο ἀκολούθει μοι	εφη αυτω ο ιησους ει θελεις τελειος ειναι υπαγε πωλησον σου τα υπαρχοντα και δος πτωχοις και εξεις θησαυρον εν ουρανω και δευρο ακολουθει μοι	εφη αυτω ο ιησους ει θελεις τελειος ειναι υπαγε πωλησον σου τα υπαρχοντα και δος πτωχοις και εξεις θησαυρον εν ουρανω και δευρο ακολουθει μοι

Mark 10:27 (NET)	Mark 10:27 (KJV)
Jesus looked at them and replied, “This is impossible for mere humans, but not for God; all things are possible for God.”	And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἐμβλέψας αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς λέγει· παρὰ ἀνθρώποις ἀδύνατον, ἀλλ᾿ οὐ παρὰ θεῷ· πάντα γὰρ δυνατὰ παρὰ \|τῷ\| θεῷ	εμβλεψας δε αυτοις ο ιησους λεγει παρα ανθρωποις αδυνατον αλλ ου παρα τω θεω παντα γαρ δυνατα εστιν παρα τω θεω	εμβλεψας δε αυτοις ο ιησους λεγει παρα ανθρωποις αδυνατον αλλ ου παρα θεω παντα γαρ δυνατα εστιν παρα τω θεω

John 3:16, 17 (NET)	John 3:16, 17 (KJV)
For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.	For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
οὕτως γὰρ ἠγάπησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται ἀλλ᾿ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον	ουτως γαρ ηγαπησεν ο θεος τον κοσμον ωστε τον υιον αυτου τον μονογενη εδωκεν ινα πας ο πιστευων εις αυτον μη αποληται αλλ εχη ζωην αιωνιον	ουτως γαρ ηγαπησεν ο θεος τον κοσμον ωστε τον υιον αυτου τον μονογενη εδωκεν ινα πας ο πιστευων εις αυτον μη αποληται αλλ εχη ζωην αιωνιον

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him.

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
οὐ γὰρ ἀπέστειλεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν υἱὸν εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἵνα κρίνῃ τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλ᾿ ἵνα σωθῇ ὁ κόσμος δι᾿ αὐτοῦ	ου γαρ απεστειλεν ο θεος τον υιον αυτου εις τον κοσμον ινα κρινη τον κοσμον αλλ ινα σωθη ο κοσμος δι αυτου	ου γαρ απεστειλεν ο θεος τον υιον αυτου εις τον κοσμον ινα κρινη τον κοσμον αλλ ινα σωθη ο κοσμος δι αυτου

Colossians 1:14 (NET)	Colossians 1:14 (KJV)
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.	In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἐν ᾧ ἔχομεν τὴν ἀπολύτρωσιν, τὴν ἄφεσιν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν	εν ω εχομεν την απολυτρωσιν δια του αιματος αυτου την αφεσιν των αμαρτιων	εν ω εχομεν την απολυτρωσιν δια του αιματος αυτου την αφεσιν των αμαρτιων

1 Corinthians 13:8 (NET)	1 Corinthians 13:8 (KJV)
Love never ends. But if there are prophecies, they will be set aside; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be set aside.	Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
Ἡ ἀγάπη οὐδέποτε πίπτει· εἴτε δὲ προφητεῖαι, καταργηθήσονται· εἴτε γλῶσσαι, παύσονται· εἴτε γνῶσις, καταργηθήσεται	η αγαπη ουδεποτε εκπιπτει ειτε δε προφητειαι καταργηθησονται ειτε γλωσσαι παυσονται ειτε γνωσις καταργηθησεται	η αγαπη ουδεποτε εκπιπτει ειτε δε προφητειαι καταργηθησονται ειτε γλωσσαι παυσονται ειτε γνωσις καταργηθησεται

A Door of Hope, Part 2

Back to Hannah’s Prayer, Part 4

Back to Jedidiah, Part 3

Back to Hannah’s Prayer, Part 6

Back to A Shadow of the Good Things, Part 5

Back to To Make Holy, Part 8

Back to Isaiah 53:10-12, Part 1

Back to Psalm 22, Part 5

Back to The Lost Son of Perdition, Part 3

Back to David’s Forgiveness, Part 6

Back to Romans, Part 12

Back to Who Am I? Part 12

Back to Who Am I? Part 13

Back to Romans, Part 13

Back to To Make Holy, Part 9

Back to Romans, Part 14

Back to Psalm 22, Part 8

Back to Westworld, Part 3

Back to The New Covenant, Part 2

Back to The Book of Life, Part 1

Back to The Book of Life, Part 3

Back to Christianity, Part 4

Back to Christianity, Part 8

Back to Who Am I? Part 14

Back to Father, Son and Holy Spirit – Part 10

Back to The Children of Promise, Part 1

Back to Who Am I? Part 17

^[1] The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had νικήσεις in the future tense and indicative mood here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had νικησης in the aorist tense and subjunctive mood (KJV: mightest overcome). For reference purposes all agree on δικαιωθῇς (NET: will be justified; KJV: mightest be justified) in the aorist tense and subjunctive mood.

^[2] Romans 3:4 (NET)

^[3] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had αυτου (KJV: his) here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[4] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had εστιν (KJV: is/are) repeated here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[5] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had δε (KJV: And Jesus) here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[6] The Stephanus Textus Receptus had the article τω preceding God. The NET parallel Greek text, NA²⁸ and Byzantine Majority Text did not.

^[7] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had the verb of being εστιν here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[8] The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had the article τοῖς here. The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text did not.

^[9] The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had the plural οὐρανοῖς here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had the singular ουρανω.

^[10] Mathew 19:21 (NET)

^[11] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had αυτου here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[12] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had αυτου here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not.

^[13] When Jesus met Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, for the first time (Luke 7:36-50), He told his host, Therefore I tell you, her sins, which were many, are forgiven, thus she loved (ἠγάπησεν, a form of ἀγαπάω) much; but the one who is forgiven little loves (ἀγαπᾷ, another form of ἀγαπάω) little (Luke 7:47 NET). There is no way I can look at this story and say that the meaning of ἀγαπάω excludes the complex layering of emotions Mary felt, though Jesus focused primarily on what she did to him (Luke 7:44-46). Crying over, kissing and anointing, Jesus’ feet may have flowed directly from Mary’s emotions, though Jesus said, No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him (John 6:44a NET).

I thought my love and gratitude for Jesus’ salvation were supposed to lead to a life of obedience. My love and gratitude weren’t up to the task. His love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, the fruit of his Holy Spirit, received by faith, is turning the tide. His love [not my emotions] is the fulfillment of the law (Romans 13:10b NET). Now the law came in so that the transgression may increase, but where sin increased, grace multiplied all the more, so that just as sin reigned in death, so also grace will reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 5:20, 21 NET).

^[14] The Septuagint is less clear (Table4 above).

^[15] Genesis 6:6 (NET)

^[16] “Just the Way You Are”

^[17] The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had δια του αιματος αυτου (KJV: through his blood) here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ did not. NET note 26.

^[18] Colossians 1:13, 14 (NET)

^[19] He is the image (εἰκὼν) of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation… (Colossians 1:15 NET)

^[20] Romans 8:29 (NET)

^[21] Matthew 22:44b (NET) Table

^[22] Ephesians 2:9 (NET)

^[23] 1 John 4:8b (NET)

^[24] 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a (NET) The NET parallel Greek text and NA²⁸ had πίπτει here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had εκπιπτει (KJV: faileth).

^[25] Galatians 5:22, 23a (NET) Table

^[26] Romans 8:3, 4 (NET) Table

^[27] Hebrews 6:17, 18 (NET) Table

^[28] Luke 18:27 (NET)

^[29] Hebrews 10:4 (NET) Table

^[30] Hebrews 11:6 (NET)

Romans, Part 90

Posted on May 14, 2018 by admin

Paul wrote believers in Rome (Romans 15:28, 29 NET):

Therefore after I have completed this [contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem^[1]] and have safely delivered this bounty to them, I will set out for Spain by way of you, and I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of Christ’s blessing.

The Greek word translated fullness was πληρώματι (a form of πλήρωμα). Paul had written about his fellow countrymen: Now if their transgression means riches for the world and their defeat means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full restoration (πλήρωμα; KJV: fulness) bring?^[2] For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?^[3]

Elsewhere he wrote, when the appropriate (πλήρωμα; KJV: fulness) time had come, God sent out his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we may be adopted as sons with full rights. And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, who calls “Abba! Father!”^[4] For God was pleased to have all his fullness (πλήρωμα; KJV: fulness) dwell in the Son and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross – through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven.^[5]

Paul continued his letter to the Colossians (Colossians 2:6-14 NET):

Therefore, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and firm in your faith just as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. Be careful not to allow anyone to captivate you through an empty, deceitful philosophy that is according to human traditions and the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him all the fullness (πλήρωμα; KJV: fulness) of deity lives in bodily form, and you have been filled (πεπληρωμένοι, a form of πληρόω) in him, who is the head over every ruler and authority. In him you also were circumcised – not, however, with a circumcision performed by human hands, but by the removal of the fleshly body, that is, through the circumcision done by Christ. Having been buried with him in baptism, you also have been raised with him through your faith in the power of God who raised him from the dead. And even though you were dead in your transgressions and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, he nevertheless made you alive with him, having forgiven all your transgressions. He has destroyed what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness (χειρόγραφον) expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross.

I kneel before the Father, he wrote believers in Ephesus, from whom every family in heaven and on the earth is named. I pray that according to the wealth of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love, you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up (πληρωθῆτε, another form of πληρόω) to all the fullness (πλήρωμα; KJV: fulness) of God.^[6]

The love Paul prayed that they may know (γνῶναι, a form of γινώσκω), that they had been rooted and grounded in, the fruit of the Holy Spirit, all the fullness of God, is the fulfillment (πλήρωμα; KJV: is the fulfilling) of the law.^[7] So I came to Paul’s declaration—I will come in the fullness (πληρώματι, a form of πλήρωμα) of Christ’s blessing—with high expectations. But Paul came to Rome as a prisoner in chains (Acts 26:29-32).

Though the words do not appear in the parallel Greek text of the NET online and Bible Hub doesn’t recognize them,^[8] both the Stephanus Textus Receptus and the Byzantine Majority Text contain the words τοῦ εὐαγγελίου (a form of εὐαγγέλιον) translated of the gospel: And I am sure that, when I come unto you, I shall come in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.^[9]

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that the addition of τοῦ εὐαγγελίου (of the gospel) to this word string lowers my expectations concerning Paul’s triumphal entry into Rome, especially in light of his attitude toward εὐαγγελίου elsewhere (See Table2 below). But my own higher or lower expectations are not very fruitful ways to understand his words. By bringing my attention back to the gospel of Christ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου has refocused my attention on Jesus’ teaching (John 15:20, 21 NET):

Remember what I told you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they obeyed (ἐτήρησαν, a form of τηρέω) my word, they will obey^[10] (τηρήσουσιν, another form of τηρέω) yours too. But they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me.

It opens my ears to Paul’s own assessment of his situation (Philippians 1:12-14 NET):

I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that my situation has actually turned out to advance the gospel (εὐαγγελίου, a form of εὐαγγέλιον): The whole imperial guard and everyone else knows that I am in prison for the sake of Christ, and most of the brothers and sisters, having confidence in the Lord because of my imprisonment, now more than ever dare to speak the word fearlessly.

My young religious mind preferred Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem to his crucifixion, his resurrection notwithstanding. Resurrection never seemed to be quite enough to make up for crucifixion. I wished with all my heart that Jesus’ crucifixion story had turned out differently. Yes, his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, like everything He did and said, fulfilled scripture (See the Gospel Harmony below). But its main tactical achievement was to exacerbate the Pharisees’ fear: Thus the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you can do nothing. Look, the world has run off after him!”^[11]

If Paul had entered triumphantly into Rome would we read about the saints who belong to Caesar’s household or would we read about Paul’s premature death? With my mind set on God’s interests rather than man’s I can see how coming to Rome as a prisoner in chains was in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ. In fact, I can see the same thing for Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem since the fear it caused among the Pharisees made them deaf to his teaching in their streets and in the temple (Matthew 21:12-25:46; Mark 11:12-13:37; Luke 19:45-21:38; John 12:20-50), and strengthened their earlier resolve to kill him (John 11:45-53). As Isaiah prophesied (Isaiah 53 Tanakh):

Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD (y^ehôvâh, ויהוה) hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

Yet it pleased the LORD (y^ehôvâh, ויהוה) to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

As I began to believe^[12] that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is y^ehôvâh^[13] this prophecy took on a whole new life for me. Paul wrote believers in Philippi (Philippians 2:5-11 NET):

You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient (ὑπήκοος, a form ὑπήκοος) to the point of death – even death on a cross! As a result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow – in heaven and on earth and under the earth – and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Considering the Greek word εὐλογίας (a form of εὐλογία), translated blessing, however, another potential interpretation of Paul’s words came to mind. Though blessing seemed to be a perfectly suitable translation for most of the occurrences of forms of εὐλογία in most of Paul’s writings (See Table3 below), it is possible he had something else in mind in his letter to the Romans. Romans 15:29 was one of two occurrences of εὐλογίας (or any form of εὐλογία) in this letter. The other occurred in a description of those Paul wanted Roman believers to avoid (Romans 16:17, 18 NET):

Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who create dissensions and obstacles contrary to the teaching that you learned. Avoid them! For these are the kind who do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By their smooth talk and flattery (εὐλογίας, a form of εὐλογία) they deceive the minds of the naive.

Obviously, this usage of εὐλογίας was on Paul’s mind near the end of his letter to believers in Rome. So I think it is possible that he meant: “I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of ‘fine speaking, fine discourse, polished language, the elegance of language’ of the gospel of Christ,” as opposed to smooth talk and flattery. He was confidant of it. And journeying to Rome as a prisoner in chains didn’t shake his confidence (Acts 27-28).

He was in no way burdened excessively, beyond [his] strength, so that [he] despaired even of living.^[14] He had not decided (ἔκρινα, a form of κρίνω) to be concerned about nothing among [those in Rome] except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.^[15] From morning until evening he explained things to [the local Jewish leaders], testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus from both the law of Moses and the prophets.^[16] This led me to a final insight.

Before I did this study I wondered from time to time if Paul had been too proud to heed the Holy Spirit’s prophecy given to Agabus. And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem without knowing what will happen to me there, Paul told the leaders of the Ephesian church, except that the Holy Spirit warns me in town after town that imprisonment and persecutions are waiting for me.^[17] Agabus came to Paul with explicit insight (Acts 21:10-14 NET):

While we remained [in Caesarea, at the house of Philip the evangelist] for a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. He came to us, took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it, and said, “The Holy Spirit says this: ‘This is the way the Jews in Jerusalem will tie up the man whose belt this is, and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’” When we heard this, both we and the local people begged him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul replied, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be tied up, but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” Because he could not be persuaded, we said no more except, “The Lord’s will be done.”

I can see now that the Holy Spirit’s prophetic word wasn’t given so that Paul might flee and thwart it. It was given so that when it came to pass those in Philip’s house in Caesarea and Paul’s companions and I and anyone else who will hear would know that the Lord’s will had been done.

Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, Paul continued his letter to believers in Rome, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to join fervently with me in prayer to God on my behalf. Pray that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient (ἀπειθούντων, a form of ἀπειθέω) in Judea and that my ministry in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. Now may the God of peace be with all of you. Amen.^[18]

Paul was rescued from the unbelieving in Judea, bent over backwards to make his ministry acceptable to the saints in Jerusalem (Acts 21:17-26) and by God’s will came at last to Rome.

A gospel harmony of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem follows. The temporal arrangement of individual elements may be arguable. Then there are three other tables listing Paul’s usage of forms of πλήρωμα and εὐαγγελίου (a form of εὐαγγέλιον) and forms of εὐλογία with their translations in the KJV and NET. If the parallel Greek of the NET differed from the Stephanus Textus Receptus I broke the tables to contrast those differences, along with the Byzantine Majority Text.

Jesus’ Triumphal Entry Into Jerusalem – Gospel Harmony
Matthew	Mark	Luke	John
			The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. John 12:12 (NET)
Now when they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, telling them, “Go to the village ahead of you. Right away you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you are to say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” Matthew 21:1-3 (NET)	Now as they approached Jerusalem, near Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go to the village ahead of you. As soon as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here soon.’” Mark 11:1-3 (NET)	Now when he approached Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, telling them, “Go to the village ahead of you. When you enter it, you will find a colt tied there that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it.’” Luke 19:29-31 (NET)
This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: “*Tell the people of Zion,* ‘*Look, your king is coming to you, unassuming and seated on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey* (Zechariah 9:9).’” Matthew 21:4, 5 (NET)
So the disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. Matthew 21:6 (NET)	So they went and found a colt tied at a door, outside in the street, and untied it. Mark 11:4 (NET)	So those who were sent ahead found it exactly as he had told them. Luke 19:32 (NET)
	Some people standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” They replied as Jesus had told them, and the bystanders let them go. Mark 11:5, 6 (NET)	As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying that colt?” They replied, “The Lord needs it.” Luke 19:33, 34 (NET)
They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. Matthew 21:7 (NET)	Then they brought the colt to Jesus, threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. Mark 11:7 (NET)	Then they brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt, and had Jesus get on it. Luke 19:35 (NET)	Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it… John 12:14a (NET)
			…just as it is written, “*Do not be afraid, people of Zion;* look, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt (Zechariah 9:9)!” John 12:14b, 15 (NET)
A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road. Matthew 21:8a (NET)	Many spread their cloaks on the road… Mark 11:8a (NET)	As he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. Luke 19:36 (NET)
Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Matthew 21:8b (NET)	…and others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Mark 11:8b (NET)		So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him. John 12:13a (NET)
		As he approached the road leading down from the Mount of Olives… Luke 19:37a (NET)
The crowds that went ahead of him and those following kept shouting… Matthew 21:9a (NET)	Both those who went ahead and those who followed kept shouting… Mark 11:9a (NET)	…the whole crowd of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice… Luke 19:37b (NET)	They began to shout… John 12:13b (NET)
		…for all the mighty works they had seen: Luke 19:37c (NET)
“Hosanna to the Son of David! Matthew 21:9b (NET)
*Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord* (Psalm 118:25, 26)! Matthew 21:9c (NET)	“*Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!* Mark 11:9b (NET)		“*Hosanna!* *Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!* John 12:13c (NET)
	Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Mark 11:10a (NET)
			Blessed is the king of Israel!” John 12:13d (NET)
		“*Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord* (Psalm 118:26)! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” Luke 19:38 (NET)
Hosanna in the highest!” Matthew 21:9d (NET)	Hosanna in the highest!” Mark 11:10b (NET)
			(His disciples did not understand these things when they first happened, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about him and that these things had happened to him.) So the crowd who had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead were continuing to testify about it. Because they had heard that Jesus had performed this miraculous sign, the crowd went out to meet him. John 12:16-18 (NET)
		But some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if they keep silent, the very stones will cry out!” Luke 19:39, 40 (NET)
			Thus the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you can do nothing. Look, the world has run off after him!” John 12:19 (NET)
		Now when Jesus approached and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “If you had only known on this day, even you, the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and surround you and close in on you from every side. They will demolish you – you and your children within your walls – and they will not leave within you one stone on top of another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.” Luke 19:41-44 (NET)
As he entered Jerusalem… Matthew 21:10a (NET)	Then Jesus entered Jerusalem… Mark 11:11a (NET)
…the whole city was thrown into an uproar, saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.” Matthew 21:10b, 11 (NET)
	…and went to the temple. And after looking around at everything, he went out to Bethany with the twelve since it was already late. Mark 11:11b (NET)

Form of πλήρωμα	Reference	KJV	NET
πλήρωμα	Romans 11:12	…how much more their fulness?	…how much more will their full restoration bring?
πλήρωμα	Romans 11:25	…until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.	…until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
Οὐ γὰρ θέλω ὑμᾶς ἀγνοεῖν, ἀδελφοί, τὸ μυστήριον τοῦτο, ἵνα μὴ ἦτε [παρ᾿] ἑαυτοῖς φρόνιμοι, ὅτι πώρωσις ἀπὸ μέρους τῷ Ἰσραὴλ γέγονεν ἄχρι οὗ τὸ πλήρωμα τῶν ἐθνῶν εἰσέλθῃ	ου γαρ θελω υμας αγνοειν αδελφοι το μυστηριον τουτο ινα μη ητε παρ εαυτοις φρονιμοι οτι πωρωσις απο μερους τω ισραηλ γεγονεν αχρις ου το πληρωμα των εθνων εισελθη	ου γαρ θελω υμας αγνοειν αδελφοι το μυστηριον τουτο ινα μη ητε παρ εαυτοις φρονιμοι οτι πωρωσις απο μερους τω ισραηλ γεγονεν αχρις ου το πληρωμα των εθνων εισελθη

πλήρωμα	Romans 13:10	…therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.	Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
	1 Corinthians 10:26	…the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof.	…the earth and its abundance are the Lord’s.
	1 Corinthians 10:28	…for the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof:	Not included

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἐὰν δέ τις ὑμῖν εἴπῃ· τοῦτο ἱερόθυτον ἐστιν, μὴ ἐσθίετε δι᾿ ἐκεῖνον τὸν μηνύσαντα καὶ τὴν συνείδησιν	εαν δε τις υμιν ειπη τουτο ειδωλοθυτον εστιν μη εσθιετε δι εκεινον τον μηνυσαντα και την συνειδησιν του γαρ κυριου η γη και το πληρωμα αυτης	εαν δε τις υμιν ειπη τουτο ειδωλοθυτον εστιν μη εσθιετε δι εκεινον τον μηνυσαντα και την συνειδησιν του γαρ κυριου η γη και το πληρωμα αυτης

πλήρωμα	Galatians 4:4	But when the fulness of the time was come…	But when the appropriate time had come…
πλήρωμα	Ephesians 1:23	…the fulness of him that filleth all in all.	…the fullness of him who fills all in all.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἥτις ἐστὶν τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ, τὸ πλήρωμα τοῦ τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσιν πληρουμένου	ητις εστιν το σωμα αυτου το πληρωμα του παντα εν πασιν πληρουμενου	ητις εστιν το σωμα αυτου το πληρωμα του τα παντα εν πασιν πληρουμενου

πλήρωμα	Ephesians 3:19	…that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.	…that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.
	Colossians 1:19	…that in him should all fulness dwell…	…to have all his fullness dwell in the Son…
	Colossians 2:9	For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.	For in him all the fullness of deity lives in bodily form…
πληρώματι	Romans 15:29	…I shall come in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.	…I will come in the fullness of Christ’s blessing.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
οἶδα δὲ ὅτι ἐρχόμενος πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐν πληρώματι εὐλογίας Χριστοῦ ἐλεύσομαι	οιδα δε οτι ερχομενος προς υμας εν πληρωματι ευλογιας του ευαγγελιου του χριστου ελευσομαι	οιδα δε οτι ερχομενος προς υμας εν πληρωματι ευλογιας του ευαγγελιου του χριστου ελευσομαι

πληρώματος

Ephesians 1:10

That in the dispensation of the fulness of times…

…toward the administration of the fullness of the times…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
εἰς οἰκονομίαν τοῦ πληρώματος τῶν καιρῶν, ἀνακεφαλαιώσασθαι τὰ πάντα ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ, τὰ ἐπὶ τοῖς οὐρανοῖς καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἐν αὐτῷ	εις οικονομιαν του πληρωματος των καιρων ανακεφαλαιωσασθαι τα παντα εν τω χριστω τα τε εν τοις ουρανοις και τα επι της γης (1:11) εν αυτω	εις οικονομιαν του πληρωματος των καιρων ανακεφαλαιωσασθαι τα παντα εν τω χριστω τα επι τοις ουρανοις και τα επι της γης (1:11) εν αυτω

πληρώματος

Ephesians 4:13

…unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

…attaining to the measure of Christ’s full stature.

εὐαγγελίου (a form of εὐαγγέλιον)	Reference	KJV	NET
εὐαγγελίου	1 Corinthians 4:15	…for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.	…I became your father^[19] in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
	1 Corinthians 9:14	…should live of the gospel.	…to receive their living by the gospel.
	2 Corinthians 4:4	…the light of the glorious gospel of Christ…	…the light of the glorious gospel of Christ…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἐν οἷς ὁ θεὸς τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου ἐτύφλωσεν τὰ νοήματα τῶν ἀπίστων εἰς τὸ μὴ αὐγάσαι τὸν φωτισμὸν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου τῆς δόξης τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ	εν οις ο θεος του αιωνος τουτου ετυφλωσεν τα νοηματα των απιστων εις το μη αυγασαι αυτοις τον φωτισμον του ευαγγελιου της δοξης του χριστου ος εστιν εικων του θεου	εν οις ο θεος του αιωνος τουτου ετυφλωσεν τα νοηματα των απιστων εις το μη αυγασαι αυτοις τον φωτισμον του ευαγγελιου της δοξης του χριστου ος εστιν εικων του θεου

εὐαγγελίου	Galatians 2:5	…that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.	…in order that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.
εὐαγγελίου	Galatians 2:14	…they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel…	…they were not behaving consistently with the truth of the gospel…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἀλλ᾿ ὅτε εἶδον ὅτι οὐκ ὀρθοποδοῦσιν πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, εἶπον τῷ Κηφᾷ ἔμπροσθεν πάντων· εἰ σὺ Ἰουδαῖος ὑπάρχων ἐθνικῶς καὶ \|οὐχὶ \| Ἰουδαϊκῶς ζῇς, πῶς τὰ ἔθνη ἀναγκάζεις ἰουδαΐζειν	αλλ οτε ειδον οτι ουκ ορθοποδουσιν προς την αληθειαν του ευαγγελιου ειπον τω πετρω εμπροσθεν παντων ει συ ιουδαιος υπαρχων εθνικως ζης και ουκ ιουδαικως τι τα εθνη αναγκαζεις ιουδαιζειν	αλλ οτε ειδον οτι ουκ ορθοποδουσιν προς την αληθειαν του ευαγγελιου ειπον τω πετρω εμπροσθεν παντων ει συ ιουδαιος υπαρχων εθνικως ζης και ουκ ιουδαικως τι τα εθνη αναγκαζεις ιουδαιζειν

εὐαγγελίου	Ephesians 3:6	…partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:	…through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs…
	Ephesians 6:15	…the preparation of the gospel of peace…	…the preparation that comes from the good news of peace…
	Ephesians 6:19	…to make known the mystery of the gospel…	…that I may confidently make known the mystery of the gospel…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
καὶ ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ, ἵνα μοι δοθῇ λόγος ἐν ἀνοίξει τοῦ στόματος μου, ἐν παρρησίᾳ γνωρίσαι τὸ μυστήριον \|τοῦ εὐαγγελίου\|	και υπερ εμου ινα μοι δοθειη λογος εν ανοιξει του στοματος μου εν παρρησια γνωρισαι το μυστηριον του ευαγγελιου	και υπερ εμου ινα μοι δοθη λογος εν ανοιξει του στοματος μου εν παρρησια γνωρισαι το μυστηριον του ευαγγελιου

εὐαγγελίου

Philippians 1:7

…in the defence and confirmation of the gospel…

…in the defense and confirmation of the gospel…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
Καθώς ἐστιν δίκαιον ἐμοὶ τοῦτο φρονεῖν ὑπὲρ πάντων ὑμῶν διὰ τὸ ἔχειν με ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ὑμᾶς, ἔν τε τοῖς δεσμοῖς μου καὶ ἐν τῇ ἀπολογίᾳ καὶ βεβαιώσει τοῦ εὐαγγελίου συγκοινωνούς μου τῆς χάριτος πάντας ὑμᾶς ὄντας	καθως εστιν δικαιον εμοι τουτο φρονειν υπερ παντων υμων δια το εχειν με εν τη καρδια υμας εν τε τοις δεσμοις μου και τη απολογια και βεβαιωσει του ευαγγελιου συγκοινωνους μου της χαριτος παντας υμας οντας	καθως εστιν δικαιον εμοι τουτο φρονειν υπερ παντων υμων δια το εχειν με εν τη καρδια υμας εν τε τοις δεσμοις μου και εν τη απολογια και βεβαιωσει του ευαγγελιου συγκοινωνους μου της χαριτος παντας υμας οντας

εὐαγγελίου	Philippians 1:12	…the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel…	…my situation has actually turned out to advance the gospel:
	Philippians 1:16 (KJV: verse 17)	…I am set for the defence of the gospel.	…I am placed here for the defense of the gospel.
	Philippians 1:27	…let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ:	…conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ…
	Philippians 1:27	…striving together for the faith of the gospel…	…by contending side by side for the faith of the gospel…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
Μόνον ἀξίως τοῦ εὐαγγελίου τοῦ Χριστοῦ πολιτεύεσθε, ἵνα εἴτε ἐλθὼν καὶ ἰδὼν ὑμᾶς εἴτε ἀπὼν ἀκούω τὰ περὶ ὑμῶν, ὅτι στήκετε ἐν ἑνὶ πνεύματι, μιᾷ ψυχῇ συναθλοῦντες τῇ πίστει τοῦ εὐαγγελίου	μονον αξιως του ευαγγελιου του χριστου πολιτευεσθε ινα ειτε ελθων και ιδων υμας ειτε απων ακουσω τα περι υμων οτι στηκετε εν ενι πνευματι μια ψυχη συναθλουντες τη πιστει του ευαγγελιου	μονον αξιως του ευαγγελιου του χριστου πολιτευεσθε ινα ειτε ελθων και ιδων υμας ειτε απων ακουσω τα περι υμων οτι στηκετε εν ενι πνευματι μια ψυχη συναθλουντες τη πιστει του ευαγγελιου

εὐαγγελίου

Philippians 4:15

…that in the beginning of the gospel…

…at the beginning of my gospel ministry…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
οἴδατε δὲ καὶ ὑμεῖς, Φιλιππήσιοι, ὅτι ἐν ἀρχῇ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, ὅτε ἐξῆλθον ἀπὸ Μακεδονίας, οὐδεμία μοι ἐκκλησία ἐκοινώνησεν εἰς λόγον δόσεως καὶ λήμψεως εἰ μὴ ὑμεῖς μόνοι	οιδατε δε και υμεις φιλιππησιοι οτι εν αρχη του ευαγγελιου οτε εξηλθον απο μακεδονιας ουδεμια μοι εκκλησια εκοινωνησεν εις λογον δοσεως και ληψεως ει μη υμεις μονοι	οιδατε δε και υμεις φιλιππησιοι οτι εν αρχη του ευαγγελιου οτε εξηλθον απο μακεδονιας ουδεμια μοι εκκλησια εκοινωνησεν εις λογον δοσεως και ληψεως ει μη υμεις μονοι

εὐαγγελίου	Colossians1:5	…the word of the truth of the gospel…	…the message of truth, the gospel…
εὐαγγελίου	Colossians 1:23	…and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard…	…without shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
εἴ γε ἐπιμένετε τῇ πίστει τεθεμελιωμένοι καὶ ἑδραῖοι καὶ μὴ μετακινούμενοι ἀπὸ τῆς ἐλπίδος τοῦ εὐαγγελίου οὗ ἠκούσατε, τοῦ κηρυχθέντος ἐν πάσῃ κτίσει τῇ ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανόν, οὗ ἐγενόμην ἐγὼ Παῦλος διάκονος	ειγε επιμενετε τη πιστει τεθεμελιωμενοι και εδραιοι και μη μετακινουμενοι απο της ελπιδος του ευαγγελιου ου ηκουσατε του κηρυχθεντος εν παση τη κτισει τη υπο τον ουρανον ου εγενομην εγω παυλος διακονος	ειγε επιμενετε τη πιστει τεθεμελιωμενοι και εδραιοι και μη μετακινουμενοι απο της ελπιδος του ευαγγελιου ου ηκουσατε του κηρυχθεντος εν παση τη κτισει τη υπο τον ουρανον ου εγενομην εγω παυλος διακονος

εὐαγγελίου

2 Thessalonians 2:14

Whereunto he called you by our gospel…

He called you to this salvation through our gospel…

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
εἰς ὃ [καὶ ]ἐκάλεσεν ὑμᾶς διὰ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ἡμῶν εἰς περιποίησιν δόξης τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ	εις ο εκαλεσεν υμας δια του ευαγγελιου ημων εις περιποιησιν δοξης του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου	εις ο εκαλεσεν υμας δια του ευαγγελιου ημων εις περιποιησιν δοξης του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου

εὐαγγελίου	2 Timothy 1:10	…hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:	…brought life and immortality to light through the gospel!
εὐαγγελίου	Philemon 1:13	…in the bonds of the gospel:	…my imprisonment for the sake of the gospel.

Form of εὐλογία	Reference	KJV	NET
εὐλογία	Galatians 3:14	That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ…	…that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles…
εὐλογίᾳ	Ephesians 1:3	…who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:	…who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
Εὐλογητὸς ὁ θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὁ εὐλογήσας ἡμᾶς ἐν πάσῃ εὐλογίᾳ πνευματικῇ ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις ἐν Χριστῷ	ευλογητος ο θεος και πατηρ του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου ο ευλογησας ημας εν παση ευλογια πνευματικη εν τοις επουρανιοις χριστω	ευλογητος ο θεος και πατηρ του κυριου ημων ιησου χριστου ο ευλογησας ημας εν παση ευλογια πνευματικη εν τοις επουρανιοις εν χριστω

εὐλογίαις	2 Corinthians 9:6	…he which soweth bountifully…	…the person who sows generously…^[20]
		…shall reap also bountifully.	…will also reap generously.
εὐλογίαν	2 Corinthians 9:5	…make up before hand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before…	…to arrange ahead of time the generous contribution you had promised…
		…that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.	…so this may be ready as a generous gift and not as something you feel forced to do.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
ἀναγκαῖον οὖν ἡγησάμην παρακαλέσαι τοὺς ἀδελφούς, ἵνα προέλθωσιν εἰς ὑμᾶς καὶ προκαταρτίσωσιν τὴν προεπηγγελμένην εὐλογίαν ὑμῶν, ταύτην ἑτοίμην εἶναι οὕτως ὡς εὐλογίαν καὶ μὴ ὡς πλεονεξίαν	αναγκαιον ουν ηγησαμην παρακαλεσαι τους αδελφους ινα προελθωσιν εις υμας και προκαταρτισωσιν την προκατηγγελμενην ευλογιαν υμων ταυτην ετοιμην ειναι ουτως ως ευλογιαν και μη ωσπερ πλεονεξιαν	αναγκαιον ουν ηγησαμην παρακαλεσαι τους αδελφους ινα προελθωσιν εις υμας και προκαταρτισωσιν την προκατηγγελμενην ευλογιαν υμων ταυτην ετοιμην ειναι ουτως ως ευλογιαν και μη ως πλεονεξιαν

εὐλογίας

Romans 15:29

…I shall come in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.

…I will come in the fullness of Christ’s blessing.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
οἶδα δὲ ὅτι ἐρχόμενος πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐν πληρώματι εὐλογίας Χριστοῦ ἐλεύσομαι	οιδα δε οτι ερχομενος προς υμας εν πληρωματι ευλογιας του ευαγγελιου του χριστου ελευσομαι	οιδα δε οτι ερχομενος προς υμας εν πληρωματι ευλογιας του ευαγγελιου του χριστου ελευσομαι

εὐλογίας

Romans 16:18

…by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.

By their smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of the naive.

NET Parallel Greek	Stephanus Textus Receptus	Byzantine Majority Text
οἱ γὰρ τοιοῦτοι τῷ κυρίῳ ἡμῶν Χριστῷ οὐ δουλεύουσιν ἀλλὰ τῇ ἑαυτῶν κοιλίᾳ, καὶ διὰ τῆς χρηστολογίας καὶ εὐλογίας ἐξαπατῶσιν τὰς καρδίας τῶν ἀκάκων	οι γαρ τοιουτοι τω κυριω ημων ιησου χριστω ου δουλευουσιν αλλα τη εαυτων κοιλια και δια της χρηστολογιας και ευλογιας εξαπατωσιν τας καρδιας των ακακων	οι γαρ τοιουτοι τω κυριω ημων ιησου χριστω ου δουλευουσιν αλλα τη εαυτων κοιλια και δια της χρηστολογιας και ευλογιας εξαπατωσιν τας καρδιας των ακακων

εὐλογίας

1 Corinthians 10:16

The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?

Is not the cup of blessing that we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ?

Romans, Part 91

Back to Believers

Back to Forgiven or Passed Over? Part 6

^[1] Romans 15:26b (NET)

^[2] Romans 11:12 (NET)

^[3] Romans 11:15 (NET)

^[4] Galatians 4:4-6 (NET)

^[5] Colossians 1:19, 20 (NET)

^[6] Ephesians 3:14-19 (NET)

^[7] Romans 13:10b (NET)

^[8] This is only partly true: the word εὐαγγελίου doesn’t appear in the list of Greek words in the New Testament but some discussion of its presence in, or absence from, the text does appear in the commentaries.

^[9] Romans 15:29 (KJV)

^[10] Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 3; My Deeds, Part 1

^[11] John 12:19 (NET)

^[12] My Reasons and My Reason, Part 5; Romans, Part 76; Romans, Part 69

^[13] Who Am I? Part 2; My Reasons and My Reason, Part 5

^[14] 2 Corinthians 1:8b (NET)

^[15] 1 Corinthians 2:2 (NET) Table

^[16] Acts 28:23b (NET)

^[17] Acts 20:22, 23 (NET)

^[18] Romans 15:30-33 (NET)

^[19] The NET translation of ἐγέννησα (a form of γεννάω) became…father poses the question in my mind whether Paul overstated his affection and concern: And call no one your ‘father’ (πατέρα, a form of πατήρ) on earth, Jesus said, for you have one Father (πατὴρ), who is in heaven (Matthew 23:9 NET).

^[20] Romans, Part 47

My Deeds, Part 3

Posted on March 7, 2018 by admin

There is a table representing my unstudied view of the relationship of the clauses of Revelation 2:26-29. I’m considering the clause, who continues in my deeds until the end, because it tugs the hardest at me to return to my own works. I’ve begun to try to understand τὰ ἔργα μου, translated my deeds, with a study of τηρῶν (a form of τηρέω), translated who continues. The most basic understanding of τηρῶν is: Blessed is the one who stays alert and does not lose (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his clothes so that he will not have to walk around naked…^[1] It means to keep, not to lose or discard.

To review, the NET translation of John 14:21 confirms both my initial belief and practice, that obeying Jesus’ commands was the path to loving Him, knowing Him and being loved by Him and his Father. Refining the translation obeys to keeps lowers the standard a bit but doesn’t alter the order of events, that Jesus and his Father loved me because I first loved Jesus (by keeping his commandments, not losing or discarding them). But this argument was preceded by another, outlined below:

If you love Me…

John 14:15a (NASB)

…you will keep (τηρήσετε, another form of τηρέω) My commandments.

John 14:15b (NASB)

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides (μένει, a form of μένω; present tense) with you and will be (ἔσται, a form of εἰμί; future tense) in you.

John 14:16, 17 (NASB)

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…

Galatians 5:22, 23a (NASB)

I have not come to abolish [the law or the prophets] but to fulfill them.

Matthew 5:17b (NET)

…love is the fulfillment of the law.

Romans 13:10b (NET)

He who has My commandments and keeps (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) them…

John 14:21a (NASB)

…is the one who loves Me…

John 14:21b (NASB)

I will love Jesus and keep his commandments by the Holy Spirit who abides with me and will be in me. If I concede to the old man (Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:9-11), fighting for its own survival by attempting to lose or discard Jesus’ commandments, though it may not alter God’s love for me, I have ceased to love Him with the love that is the fruit of his Spirit, the love that is the fulfillment of the law, no matter what I tell myself and no matter how much emotion I feel for Him.

In this essay I’ll consider John’s explanation, And the person who keeps (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his commandments resides in God, and God in him,^[2] but I’ll back up first to take a run at it (1 John 2:28, 29 NET):

And now, little children, remain (μένετε, a form of μένω) in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink away from him in shame when he comes back. If you know that he is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) righteousness has been fathered by him.

The Greek word translated fathered was γεγέννηται (a form of γεννάω). John didn’t leave us wondering what he meant by it: Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been fathered (γεγέννηται, a form of γεννάω) by God…^[3] He had a unique understanding of the word μένετε as one of the twelve Jesus sent out with the following instruction (I’ve included Luke 10:7 though it was addressed to the seventy-two others Jesus appointed and sent on ahead of Him).

Mark 6:10 (NET)	Luke 9:4 (NET)	Luke 10:7 (NET)
[Jesus] said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay (μένετε, a form of μένω) there until you leave the area.”	Whatever house you enter, stay (μένετε, a form of μένω) there until you leave the area.	Stay (μένετε, a form of μένω) in that same house, eating and drinking what they give you, for the worker deserves his pay. Do not move around from house to house.

I understand what it means to stay in a house, to not move around from place to place. But what does it mean to stay in God? A few verses prior to this John wrote (1 John 2:24 NET):

As for you, what you have heard from the beginning must remain (μενέτω, another form of μένω) in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains (μείνῃ, another form of μένω) in you, you also will remain (μενεῖτε, another form of μένω) in the Son and in the Father.

So I remain in the Son and in the Father if Jesus’ teaching remains in me. Here is Jesus’ teaching on the subject (John 15:4, 5a NET):

Remain (μείνατε, another form of μένω) in me, and I will remain in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it remains (μένῃ, another form of μένω) in the vine, so neither can you unless you remain (μένητε, another form of μένω) in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains (μένων, another form of μένω) in me – and I in him – bears much fruit…

In other words, remaining in Jesus (and his Father) by remaining in the teaching I have heard from the beginning of my new life in Christ (assuming that teaching was the Gospel of Christ) brings forth the fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control that is the fulfillment of the law. Jesus continued, because apart from me you can accomplish nothing.^[4] I don’t think He meant that I couldn’t become a hypocrite, an actor playing at righteousness more or less skillfully. Jesus warned, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.^[5] But I can’t do the righteousness that fulfills the law apart from remaining in Jesus by remaining in his teaching.

Jesus continued teaching his disciples (John 15:6 NET):

If anyone does not remain (μένῃ, another form of μένω) in me, he is thrown out like a branch, and dries up; and such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and are burned up.

He listed some impediments either to hearing in the beginning or to what was heard from the beginning remaining (Luke 8:11-15 NET):

Now the parable means this: The seed is the word of God (ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ). Those along the path are the ones who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in a time of testing fall away (ἀφίστανται, a form of ἀφίστημι). As for the seed that fell among thorns, these are the ones who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked (συμπνίγονται, a form of συμπνίγω) by the worries and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. But as for the seed that landed on good soil, these are the ones who, after hearing the word, cling (κατέχουσιν, a form of κατέχω) to it with an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with steadfast endurance.

If you remain (μείνητε, another form of μένω) in me and my words remain (μείνῃ, another form of μένω) in you, Jesus continued, ask whatever you want, and it will be done (γενήσεται, a form of γίνομαι) for you. My Father is honored by this, that you bear much fruit and show that you are (γένησθε, another form of γίνομαι) my disciples.^[6] The words if and whatever are the same Greek word ἐὰν. I understand this request as related to, and bracketed by, bearing fruit. I’m unsure about translating ἐὰν whatever. In my case it led to unbelief while—ask [if] you want, and it will be done (or, become) for you—has led to some faith-confirming results. Jesus continued (John 15:9, 10 NET):

Just as the Father has loved me, I have also loved you; remain (μείνατε, another form of μένω) in my love. If you obey (τηρήσητε, another form of τηρέω) my commandments, you will remain (μενεῖτε, another form of μένω) in my love, just as I have obeyed (τετήρηκα, another form of τηρέω) my Father’s commandments and remain (μένω) in his love.

This is how I understood this passage even when the Bible I read translated τηρήσητε keep and τετήρηκα kept. “Jesus promises to love the disciples if they obey his commandments,” reads the sermon notes for John 15:9-17 on Sermon Writer online. Here, and other places like it, I turned from being led by the Holy Spirit, especially if my behavior was too embarrassing too often to confess any longer, to take charge of my own righteousness in my own strength.

See what sort of love the Father has given to us: that we should be called God’s children,^[7] John continued. The note (1) in the NET reads:

The ἵνα (Jina) clause is best understood (1) as epexegetical (or explanatory), clarifying the love (ἀγάπην, agapen) that the Father has given to believers. Although it is possible (2) to regard the ἵνα as indicating result, the use of ποταπήν (potapen, “what sort of”) to modify ἀγάπην suggests that the idea of “love” will be qualified further in the following context, and this qualification is provided by the epexegetical ἵνα clause.

I think option (2) is the better understanding. The sort of love the Father has given to us is not the Father’s feeling for us, but a very practical gift: It is the love that is patient, the love that is kind, the love that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.^[8] This love may be shared in. It is the fruit of his Spirit, the fulfillment of the law. This love may be remained in or may be left behind. If I leave God’s love behind to run ahead in my own strength God’s love has not and does not change. If I do not remain in his love I strive way too hard to become a highly-skilled hypocrite rather than receiving the love he has given us. He gave us this sort of love in order that we should be called God’s children. Paul concurred with John (Romans 5:5b; 7:6b; 8:3, 4, 14 NET):

…the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us…

…so that we may serve in the new life of the Spirit and not under the old written code.

For God achieved what the law could not do because it was weakened through the flesh. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous requirement of the law may be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God.

“To remain in Jesus’ love,” the entry in SermonWriter reads, “suggests being immersed in Jesus’ love—surrounded by Jesus’ love—comforted by Jesus’ love—empowered by Jesus’ love. Imagine a swimming pool filled, not with water, but with Jesus’ love.” All analogies have their problems but this one isn’t too bad. Ordinarily one tries not to drown in a swimming pool. A pool of Jesus’ love is really only threatening to the old man (Ephesians 4:25-5:5; Colossians 3:12-17). The believer lives and breathes in its environs, in fact, only in its environs. This pool travels with the believer, but the believer can leave the pool. A believer leaving the pool of God’s love does not change God’s love at all. Leaving only changes the believer’s access to, and appreciation of, God’s love. Jesus’ and John’s point was, don’t get out of God’s love.

Here is John again (1 John 3:1-10 NET):

(See what sort of love the Father has given to us: that we should be called God’s children – and indeed we are! For this reason the world does not know us: because it did not know him. Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that whenever it is revealed we will be like him, because we will see him just as he is. And everyone who has this hope focused on him purifies himself, just as Jesus is pure).

Everyone who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) sin also practices (ποιεῖ, another form of ποιέω) lawlessness; indeed, sin is lawlessness. And you know that Jesus was revealed to take away (ἄρῃ, a form of αἴρω) sins, and in him there is no sin. Everyone who resides (μένων, another form of μένω) in him does not sin; everyone who sins has neither seen him nor known him. Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) righteousness is righteous, just as Jesus is righteous. The one who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) sin is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was revealed: to destroy the works of the devil. Everyone who has been fathered (γεγεννημένος, another form of γεννάω) by God does not practice (ποιεῖ, another form of ποιέω) sin, because God’s seed resides (μένει, another form of μένω) in him, and thus he is not able to sin, because he has been fathered (γεγέννηται, a form of γεννάω) by God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are revealed: Everyone who does not practice (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) righteousness – the one who does not love his fellow Christian (ἀδελφὸν, a form of ἀδελφός) – is not of God.

Now if I do what I do (ποιῶ, another form of ποιέω) not want, Paul wrote believers in Rome, it is no longer me doing it but sin that lives in me.^[9] It is better to greet John’s and Paul’s explanations with faith than with fear or mockery. But the Spirit of God relentlessly dragged me back when my default position was to “chuck this whole religion thing.” He was kind and patient when my default position became do-it-myself sanctification, when I said in so many words, “I can’t trust You with something as important as MY righteousness.” Jaco Gericke had a very different testimony. I rationalize this difference with Paul’s conclusion: So then, God has mercy on whom he chooses to have mercy, and he hardens whom he chooses to harden.^[10] Others rationalize it as individual free will.

When I was young righteousness was a matter of good habits developed through willpower because Jesus had saved me. Now I can see this as a childish misunderstanding of potentially good teaching. But at the time I saw Jesus’ salvation only as a reason, why I should do righteousness, never as a cause, how I could do righteousness. My willpower proved to be unequal to the task. I am weak-willed vis-à-vis righteousness. So I tend to minimize the effect of my will and magnify the effect of God’s mercy. Now that I understand that Jesus’ salvation causes righteousness I have replaced willpower with the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Of course, I still don’t recognize any habit in me toward the good apart from that daily infusion of his love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

On the other hand, I proved to be quite willful, stubborn, rebellious and stiff-necked regarding my sin. So I tend to see free will as more useful, or more conducive, to sinning. I don’t tend to argue the point because I can see how one who had more success than I did could regard willpower as helpful in the pursuit of righteousness. Still, I keep my mind open to the possibility that the preachers of free will may have taken more credit for that righteousness than they deserve.

Little children, John continued, let us not love with word or with tongue but in deed and truth.^[11] As Jesus tried to teach me about the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe,^[12] I got tripped up here quite often. I thought, especially if my performance was less than perfect when I had attempted to trust Him, that his teaching was not his teaching but me playing word games, loving with word (λόγῳ, a form of λόγος) or with tongue (γλώσσῃ, a form of γλῶσσα). “No, you really have to do it,” I heard many times from my elders if I tried to share what I thought I had been learning. How I ever thought that obeying rules in my own strength might become loving in deed (ἔργῳ, a form of ἔργον) and truth (ἀληθείᾳ, a form of ἀλήθεια), I can’t explain apart from being willful, stubborn, rebellious and stiff-necked. Now I assume that loving with word or with tongue corresponds to my hypocrisy, while loving in deed and truth corresponds to being led by his Holy Spirit.

John continued (1 John 3:19-24 NET):

And by this we will know that we are of the truth (ἀληθείας, another form of ἀλήθεια) and will convince our conscience in his presence, that if (ἐὰν) our conscience condemns us, that God is greater than our conscience and knows all things. Dear friends, if (ἐὰν) our conscience does not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God, and whatever (ἐὰν; or if) we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing to him. Now this is his commandment: that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he gave us the commandment. And the person who keeps his commandments resides (μένει, another form of μένω) in God, and God in him. Now by this we know that God resides (μένει, another form of μένω) in us: by the Spirit he has given us.

I want to conclude this essay by addressing one of the statements in the entry in Sermon Writer directly:

The emphasis is love. Love begins with the Father and flows through the Son to the disciples (v. 9). It is contingent on obedience…Jesus promises to love the disciples if they obey his commandments.

The demonstrably false statement—“Jesus promises to love the disciples if they obey his commandments”—mischaracterizes God’s love and remaining in his love. First, consider Jesus’ teaching on the nature of the Father’s love (Matthew 5:43-48 NET):

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor’ and ‘hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be like your Father in heaven, since he causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Even the tax collectors do the same, don’t they? And if you only greet your brothers, what more do you do? Even the Gentiles do the same, don’t they? So then, be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Jesus’ love for me is not equivalent to, or contingent upon, my remaining in his love. Jesus loves me because God is love and Jesus remains in his Father’s love. If and only if I remain in his love I will bear the fruit of his Spirit, the love which is the fulfillment of the law, and obey him thereby. It is not that his love, or even remaining in his love, is contingent upon some open-ended obedience of mine but that my obedience is contingent upon his love and my remaining in his love.

Here the misdirection of translating forms of τηρέω with forms of obey becomes evident. To keep Jesus’ commandments, not to lose or discard them, has much more in common with his words remaining in us than it does with any form of obey. Even as I write this I hear the quibble in my head: “But you have obeyed: you have remained in his love by clinging to his teaching.” I write this quibble off to the religious mind.

I acknowledged the religious mind as nothing more than the carnal mind or the outlook of the flesh, but the term still serves a useful purpose for me. I expect the carnal mind or the outlook of the flesh to be focused directly on sin. The pretense of the religious mind is its focus on righteousness, albeit a righteousness of its own derived from the law with a keen desire to justify itself by law. Consider Jesus’ teaching on the subject (Luke 17:10 NET):

“So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.’”

As I’ve written before, we have this attitude not because we are in some wretched social condition but because our deeds have been done in (or, by) God^[13]…for the one bringing forth (ἐνεργῶν, a form of ἐνεργέω) in you both the desire (θέλειν, a form of θέλω) and the effort (ἐνεργεῖν, another form of ἐνεργέω) – for the sake of his good pleasure – is God.^[14]

Back to Father, Forgive Them, Part 3

Back to To Make Holy, Part 5

Back to Atonement, Part 3

^[1] Revelation 16:15b (NET)

^[2] 1 John 3:24a (NET)

^[3] 1 John 5:1a (NET)

^[4] John 15:5b (NET)

^[5] Matthew 5:20 (NET)

^[6] John 15:7, 8 (NET) Table

^[7] 1 John 3:1a (NET)

^[8] 1 Corinthians 13:7 (NET)

^[9] Romans 7:20 (NET)

^[10] Romans 9:18 (NET)

^[11] 1 John 3:18 (NET)

^[12] Romans 3:22a (NET)

^[13] John 3:21b (NET)

^[14] Philippians 2:13 (NET)

Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 10

Posted on October 25, 2017 by admin

“Because you obeyed (shâmaʽ, שמעת; Septuagint: ἤκουσας, a form of ἀκούω) your wife, the Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) God (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) said to Adam, and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ cursed is the ground thanks to you; in painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.”^[1]

The Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) God (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) had commanded Adam: “You may freely eat fruit from every tree of the orchard, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will surely die.”^[2] Eve saw that the tree produced fruit that was good for food, was attractive to the eye, and was desirable for making one wise, so she took some of its fruit and ate it.^[3] When she brought some to Adam she brought not only her recommendation but empirical evidence that she had both touched it and eaten it and had not died.

Adam preferred the voice of his wife to the voice of y^ehôvâh. When Jacob preferred the beautiful Rachel over Leah the Lord saw that Leah was unloved (śânêʼ).^[4] In other words Adam hated the voice of God relative to that of his wife, the voice of God was unloved. For the sake of argument I’ll describe Adam’s iniquity as defiance: Adam was not deceived,^[5] Paul assured Timothy.

Adam’s defiance visited upon Cain became a murderous rage: Cain became very angry [Table]…Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.^[6] Cain’s murderous rage combined with the memory of the mercy y^ehôvâh showed him became a defiant self-righteousness in his descendant Lamech, perhaps even incipient tribal law (Genesis 4:23, 24 NET):

Lamech said to his wives, “Adah and Zillah! Listen (shâmaʽ, שמען; Septuagint: ἀκούσατέ, another form of ἀκούω) to me! You wives of Lamech, hear my words! I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for hurting me. If Cain is to be avenged seven times as much, then Lamech seventy-seven times!”

The upshot of this relatively unhindered visiting of fathers’ iniquity upon the sons was: The earth was ruined in the sight of God; the earth was filled with violence.^[7] So God said to Noah, “I have decided that all living creatures must die, for the earth is filled with violence because of them.”^[8]

I began this portion of my study of fear to understand how the translators of the NET “arrived at I punish as a translation of the Hebrew word pâqad (פקד)” in Deuteronomy 5:9. If punishment could arrest this relatively unhindered visiting of fathers’ iniquity upon the sons before it culminated in a death sentence for all living creatures it would be a welcome relief. This brings me to the third occurrence of ואפקד (pâqad) translated punish or punishment (and I have brought the punishment) in the NET (Leviticus 18:25 NET):

Therefore the land has become unclean and I have brought the punishment for its iniquity upon it, so that the land has vomited out its inhabitants.

This was not a reference to the violence of the antediluvian world but to the worship/sexual practices of the inhabitants of Canaan before Israel entered the promised land. But first I need to consider whether the visiting of the fathers’ iniquity upon the sons was quite as unhindered as I have imagined it.

I was born and raised in the latter half of the twentieth century near the northern edge of the Bible belt in the United States of America. I am a hardcore materialist with some Jesus jelly smeared on top. I acknowledge this to confess the iniquity of my fathers, not to blame them or excuse myself, but to begin to claim my freedom from my own acceptance of that iniquity as my truth.

The voice of your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground (ʼădâmâh)!^[9] y^ehôvâh told Cain. I hear this as a poetic reference to y^ehôvâh’s omniscience (Psalm 139:1-12). These days I’m not unwilling to take it literally, that Abel’s blood had a voice that y^ehôvâh could hear crying out from the ground, but it’s not natural to me. I am the dark side of, Train a child in the way that he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.^[10] Still, opening myself to its possibility gives me a different perspective.

So now, you are banished (ʼârar, ארור) from the ground (ʼădâmâh, האדמה: NET footnote 28): Heb “cursed are you from the ground”), y^ehôvâh continued, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand [Table]. When you try to cultivate the ground (ʼădâmâh, האדמה) it will no longer yield its best for you. You will be a homeless wanderer on the earth [Table].^[11] To Adam He had already said, cursed (ʼârar, ארורה) is the ground (ʼădâmâh, האדמה) thanks to you; in painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, but you will eat the grain of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat food until you return to the ground (ʼădâmâh, האדמה), for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you will return.^[12]

I can begin to accept these as revelation of the very nature of the ground created by a loving, gracious and holy God, how the earth itself responds to its sinful inhabitants, rather than as post hoc punishments invented in the moment. And I can begin to see the nature of the earth, the ground we live on, as a deterrent to the unhindered visiting of the fathers’ iniquity upon the sons.

Cain couldn’t supply himself with food by his own cultivation of the ground; the ground would no longer yield its best for him. Cain built a city, a place where people could live in community and trade with one another for things they all needed. Did he honor those still righteous enough to cultivate the ground that would not yield its best to him? Did he learn from them?

The text doesn’t say. It says, The earth (ʼerets, הארץ) was ruined in the sight of God; the earth (ʼerets, הארץ) was filled with violence. If I accept that the blood of victims has a voice that y^ehôvâh can hear crying out from the ground, crying out to Him to act, and multiply that by the increase of population over the many generations I can at least imagine the cacophony in his ears and begin to appreciate his choices (Genesis 6:6, 7 NET):

The Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) regretted that he had made humankind on the earth (ʼerets, בארץ), and he was highly offended. So the Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) said, “I will wipe humankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth (ʼădâmâh, האדמה) – everything from humankind to animals, including creatures that move on the ground and birds of the air, for I regret that I have made them.”

The religious mind must sit quietly here to meditate that at this moment in history y^ehôvâh preferred to destroy all life (air and ground) but that which could be saved in a boat and to start over again rather than to establish a law or a religion (aside from the rudiments of animal sacrifice handed down from Adam, Cain and Abel). One might say that y^ehôvâh hated law and religion, law and religion were unloved relative to starting over again with a remnant of the former world. But after the flood (Genesis 8:20-22 NET):

Noah built an altar to the Lord (y^ehôvâh, ליהוה). He then took some of every kind of clean animal and clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) smelled the soothing aroma and (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) said to himself, “I will never again curse the ground (ʼădâmâh, האדמה) because of humankind, even though the inclination of their minds (lêb, לב) is evil from childhood on. I will never again destroy everything that lives, as I have just done. While the earth continues to exist, planting time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night will not cease.”

God (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) spoke one law to address violence, “Whoever sheds human blood, by other humans must his blood be shed; for in God’s image God (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהים) has made humankind”^[13] and one revised dietary law: Everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea are under your authority. You may eat any moving thing that lives. As I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.^[14] I assume that the trees of life and of the knowledge of good and evil did not survive the flood and had become a nonissue (Genesis 3:22). But in Leviticus y^ehôvâh was establishing both a law and a religion in clear contrast to those originated by men. Now that will have to wait for another essay.

In my first draft of this essay I had hoped to avoid Noah’s curse: Cursed (ʼârar, ארור; Septuagint: ἐπικατάρατος) be Canaan!^[15] But I couldn’t get away with it. And I have to admit it is more germane than I want it to be. If Noah’s story (Genesis 9:20-27) were about almost anyone else we would take it simply as James’ source text (James 3:7-12 NET):

For every kind of animal, bird, reptile, and sea creature is subdued and has been subdued by humankind. But no human being can subdue the tongue; it is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse (καταρώμεθα, a form of καταράομαι) people made in God’s image. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing (κατάρα). These things should not be so, my brothers and sisters. A spring does not pour out fresh water and bitter water from the same opening, does it? Can a fig tree produce olives, my brothers and sisters, or a vine produce figs? Neither can a salt water spring produce fresh water.

But it was Noah, the heir of the world, who spoke this curse and this blessing so we are taught: “God’s blessing is going to rest directly on Shem, indirectly on Japheth, and His cursing is going to rest upon Ham’s son Canaan.”^[16] “So Ham was cursed and Shem and Japheth were blessed in cooperative unity. The problem which must arise from the cursing of Canaan is this: Why did God curse Canaan for the sin of Ham? Beyond this, why did God curse the Canaanites, a nation, for the sin of one man?”^[17] The text is fairly clear that Noah not God spoke both the curse and the blessing. To this point Moses had been very explicit when ʼĕlôhı̂ym or y^ehôvâh spoke. Why do we want to believe that Noah spoke for Him here?

Noah was a godly man; he was blameless (tâmı̂ym, תמים; Septuagint: τέλειος) among his contemporaries. He walked with God.^[18] Perhaps we want tâmı̂ym to be an absolute term. But this was not Paul writing, According to the righteousness stipulated in the law [as understood by first century Pharisees] I was blameless (ἄμεμπτος).^[19] Noah was blameless (KJV: perfect) among his contemporaries^[20] (dôr, בדרתיו; Septuagint: γενεᾷ), those condemned to death for their violence: Every inclination of the thoughts of their minds was only evil all the time.^[21] About all one can say for sure about Noah is that he wasn’t a murderer and perhaps not every inclination of the thoughts of [his mind] was only evil all the time.

God said to Noah, Make for yourself an ark of cypress wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it with pitch inside and out.^[22] And Noah did all that God commanded him – he did indeed.^[23] Through his faithfulness Noah was declared a herald of righteousness: and if [God] did not spare the ancient world, but did protect Noah, a herald of righteousness, along with seven others, when God brought a flood on an ungodly world…then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from their trials, and to reserve the unrighteous for punishment at the day of judgment…^[24] By faith Noah, when he was warned about things not yet seen, with reverent regard constructed an ark for the deliverance of his family. Through faith he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.^[25]

But Noah found favor (chên, חן; Septuagint: χάριν) in the sight of the Lord.^[26] As followers of Jesus it is more prudent to believe that Noah’s faithfulness was on account of y^ehôvâh’s grace rather than due to some inherent quality of Noah’s: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.^[27] There is no one righteous, not even one…^[28] [i.e., in and of himself] there is no one who shows kindness, not even one,^[29] Paul quoted the Psalm of David (Psalm 14:2, 3 Tanakh):

The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Jesus’ assessment of Noah and of the entire Old Testament is very helpful here: Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must all be born from above.’^[30] Noah didn’t miraculously escape the corruption of the flesh of Adam. Noah didn’t speak for God unless the text had said that Noah spoke the word of God.

Noah’s “words came to pass, so we believe he was inspired by God.”^[31] I know of no place in Scripture where it is written, “this took place to fulfill Noah’s prophecy.” Generations of Bible expositors would surely have quoted it if they had found it, so the contention that Noah’s curse and blessing “came to pass” is in the eye of the beholder.

“The act of Ham could not go unpunished. In the curse of Noah upon Canaan, he was not punishing him personally for something his father Ham had done. The words of Noah refer not to Canaan himself, but to the nation that would come from him…Though we are not told the exact sin of Ham, we do know that it was reprehensible enough for God to curse the line of his son Canaan. The judgment was not directed to Canaan personally but rather to his descendants.”^[32] As prophecies go, then—and the Scriptures do not record that Canaan himself was ever enslaved to his brothers—one need not fear Noah as a prophet (Deuteronomy 18:21, 22 NET):

“Now if you say to yourselves, ‘How can we tell that a message is not from the Lord?’ – whenever a prophet speaks in my name and the prediction is not fulfilled, then I have not spoken it; the prophet has presumed to speak it, so you need not fear him.”

“Noah’s words did come to pass in the future, as we read that many of Canaan’s descendants were either killed or put under tribute by Israel (descendants of Shem) during the times of Joshua and the Judges, and later by King Solomon.” God’s words will come to pass but the simple fact that a man’s words come to pass doesn’t make them God’s words (Deuteronomy 13:1-4 NET):

Suppose a prophet or one who foretells by dreams should appear among you and show you a sign or wonder, and the sign or wonder should come to pass concerning what he said to you, namely, “Let us follow other gods” – gods whom you have not previously known – “and let us serve them.” You must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer, for the Lord your God will be testing you to see if you love him with all your mind and being. You must follow the Lord your God and revere only him; and you must observe his commandments, obey him, serve him, and remain loyal to him.

I’m not accusing Noah of being a false prophet. I’m not accusing Noah of being any kind of prophet at all. If I’m accusing Noah of anything it is that he spoke angrily, self-righteously, with a hangover. But what I must believe about God to believe that He cursed a nation of people for something a man did many generations before those people were even born is a very different god than the One I am knowing through the Scriptures.

I concede that one who believes this is God because “many of Canaan’s descendants were either killed or put under tribute by Israel (descendants of Shem) during the times of Joshua and the Judges, and later by King Solomon” may also believe that He will punish the sons, grandsons, and great-grandsons for the sin of the fathers who reject (śânêʼ, לשׁנאי) me…^[33] Still, I hope that one may be willing to concede that Noah’s curse was not the love that does no wrong to a neighbor, not the love that is the fulfillment of the law.^[34]

While I don’t believe that Noah’s curse, or his blessing, were the immutable Word of God I do think his curse is a terrifying example of God visiting Noah’s iniquity upon Canaan, terrifying precisely because the effect of Noah’s iniquity^[35] has seemed so sure and certain that so many have assumed it was divine prophecy. We’re not told how Canaan reacted to Noah’s curse. I know how I would react to Noah’s “godliness,” “blamelessness,” and his “walk” with God unless I were willing to forgive him for his drunken rant. And I know that Canaan’s descendants practiced a law and religion inimical to y^ehôvâh.

I’ll return to Leviticus 18 in another essay.

Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 11

Back to To Make Holy, Part 3

Back to Who Am I? Part 8

Back to Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 12

Back to Forgiven or Passed Over? Part 6

Back to Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 13

Back to Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 14

Back to A Monotonous Cycle Revisited, Part 3

Back to Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 15

Back to A Monotonous Cycle Revisited, Part 5

Back to The Children of Promise, Part 1

Back to Paul’s Religious Mind

^[1] Genesis 3:17 (NET)

^[2] Genesis 2:16, 17 (NET)

^[3] Genesis 3:6a (NET)

^[4] Genesis 29:31a (NET)

^[5] 1 Timothy 2:14a (NET)

^[6] Genesis 4:5b, 8 (NET)

^[7] Genesis 6:11 (NET)

^[8] Genesis 6:13a (NET)

^[9] Genesis 4:10b (NET) Table

^[10] Proverbs 22:6 (NET)

^[11] Genesis 4:11, 12 (NET)

^[12] Genesis 3:17b-19 (NET)

^[13] Genesis 9:6 (NET)

^[14] Genesis 9:2b, 3 (NET)

^[15] Genesis 9:25a (NET)

^[16] J. Ligon Duncan, “The Cursing of Canaan,” Sermon on Genesis 9:18-29, November 22, 1998, First Presbyterian Church, Jackson, Mississippi

^[17] Bob Deffinbaugh, “10. The Nakedness of Noah and the Cursing of Canaan (Genesis 9:18-10:32),” Bible.org

^[18] Genesis 6:9b (NET)

^[19] Philippians 3:6b (NET)

^[20] NET note 32: Heb “Noah was a godly man, blameless in his generations.” The singular “generation” can refer to one’s contemporaries, i.e., those living at a particular point in time. The plural “generations” can refer to successive generations in the past or the future. Here, where it is qualified by “his” (i.e., Noah’s), it refers to Noah’s contemporaries, comprised of the preceding generation (his father’s generation), those of Noah’s generation, and the next generation (those the same age as his children). In other words, “his generations” means the generations contemporary with him. See BDB 190 s.v. דוֹר.

^[21] Genesis 6:5b (NET)

^[22] Genesis 6:14 (NET)

^[23] Genesis 6:22 (NET)

^[24] 2 Peter 2:5, 9 (NET)

^[25] Hebrews 11:7 (NET)

^[26] Genesis 6:8 (NET)

^[27] Genesis 6:9 (KJV)

^[28] Romans 3:10b (NET)

^[29] Romans 3:12b (NET)

^[30] John 3:7 (NET)

^[31] Troy Lacey, “The Curse of Canaan,” October 12, 2012, Answers In Genesis

^[32] Don Stewart, “Why Was Canaan Cursed Instead of Ham?,” Blue Letter Bible

^[33] Deuteronomy 5:9b (NET)

^[34] Romans 13:10 (NET)

^[35] To those who hold that the fourth generation is a limit to Noah’s iniquity, I concede the point. It would not be accurate to blame Noah’s iniquity for the sins of Canaanites in the time of Israel’s conquest. My point is that iniquity is like a snowball rolling downhill, gaining mass and momentum, as long as people continue to reject, hate, prefer something other than, y^ehôvâh.

Sexual Immorality Revisited, Part 2

Posted on November 18, 2016 by admin

The exercise of revisiting Paul’s Religious Mind and the meaning of Sexual Immorality has clarified a few things that were right in front of me all along. I considered again the list of sins that described the former lives of some who were called to faith in Corinth:

1 Corinthians 6:9b, 10 (NET) Table	Parallel Greek
The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, practicing homosexuals, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God.	οὔτε πόρνοι (another form of πόρνος) οὔτε εἰδωλολάτραι οὔτε μοιχοὶ οὔτε μαλακοὶ οὔτε ἀρσενοκοῖται οὔτε κλέπται οὔτε πλεονέκται, οὐ μέθυσοι, οὐ λοίδοροι, οὐχ ἅρπαγες βασιλείαν θεοῦ κληρονομήσουσιν

Each word preceded by οὔτε, οὐ or οὐχ (a form of οὐ) gives a strong indication that Paul did not consider πόρνοι the one word that included all of the others. In other words the list is not to be understood as, The πόρνοι: idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, practicing homosexuals, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, and swindlers. I’ve considered this option, by the way, given the shorter list in Ephesians.

Ephesians 5:5 (NET)	Parallel Greek
For you can be confident of this one thing: that no person who is immoral, impure, or greedy (such a person is an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.	τοῦτο γὰρ ἴστε γινώσκοντες, ὅτι πᾶς πόρνος ἢ ἀκάθαρτος ἢ πλεονέκτης οὐκ ἔχει κληρονομίαν ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ θεοῦ

So I began a subtractive process, trying to determine what πόρνοι did not mean. As I studied ἀρσενοκοῖται (a form of ἀρσενοκοίτης; translated, practicing homosexuals) the obvious became more clear. The Greek word ἀρσενοκοίτης is a compound of two words: 1) αρσην, male, and 2) κοίτη, couch, bed.

Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator made them male (ἄρσεν, a form of αρσην) and female,^[1] Jesus answered the Pharisees who asked Him about divorce. The men (ἄρσενες, another form of αρσην) also abandoned natural relations with women, Paul wrote the Roman believers, and were inflamed in their passions for one another. Men (ἄρσενες, another form of αρσην) committed shameless acts with men (ἄρσεσιν, another form of αρσην) and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.^[2] The Greek is a bit more graphic: ἄρσενες ἐν ἄρσεσιν τὴν ἀσχημοσύνην κατεργαζόμενοι (literally, “male in male this unseemliness performing”). The writer of Hebrews penned: Marriage must be honored among all and the marriage bed (κοίτη) kept undefiled, for God will judge sexually immoral people (πόρνους, another form of πόρνος) and adulterers (μοιχοὺς, a form of μοιχός).^[3] I can’t imagine one word better than ἀρσενοκοίτης (male marriage bed) to describe You must not have sexual intercourse with a male as one has sexual intercourse with a woman.^[4]

I combined this with the fact that Paul’s particular usage of πορνεία in 1 Corinthians 5:1 is a fairly clear reference to You must not have sexual intercourse with your father’s wife; she is your father’s nakedness.^[5] And I came to one inescapable conclusion irrespective of whether Paul used πορνεία because he thought it meant anything and everything that was not sex between one man and one woman or because it was the only word he had had to use when he arrived in Corinth, constrained by his reliance on James’ abbreviated version of the law:

James’ abbreviated version of the law

…to abstain from things defiled by idols and from sexual immorality and from what has been strangled and from blood…

Acts 15:20 (NET) Table

ἀπέχεσθαι τῶν ἀλισγημάτων τῶν εἰδώλων καὶ τῆς πορνείας (a form of πορνεία) καὶ |τοῦ| πνικτοῦ καὶ τοῦ αἵματος

…that you abstain from meat that has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what has been strangled and from sexual immorality…

Acts 15:29a (NET) Table

ἀπέχεσθαι εἰδωλοθύτων καὶ αἵματος καὶ πνικτῶν καὶ πορνείας (a form of πορνεία)

The inescapable conclusion is: in the letter called 1 Corinthians Paul taught Levitical law (as knowledge of sin not as a path of salvation) to Gentiles (1 Timothy 1:8-10 NET).

But we know that the law is good if someone uses it legitimately, realizing that law is not intended for a righteous person, but for lawless and rebellious people, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, sexually immoral people (πόρνοις, another form of πόρνος), practicing homosexuals (ἀρσενοκοίταις, another form of ἀρσενοκοίτης), kidnappers, liars, perjurers – in fact, for any who live contrary to sound teaching.

Gone was any pretense to be concerned about nothing among [them] except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.^[6] More importantly, perhaps, the pretense of not placing on the neck of the [Gentile] disciples a yoke that neither [Peter’s] ancestors nor [his contemporaries had] been able to bear^[7] was utterly gone from Paul’s thinking. That yoke would not be borne by the works of the flesh. That is true. But it would not be shirked either. The yoke would be borne by the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe,^[8] the fruit of the Spirit, the love [that] is the fulfillment of the law.^[9] Jesus said (Matthew 11:28-30; 5:17-20 NET):

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke on you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and my load is not hard to carry.

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish these things but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place. So anyone who breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever obeys them and teaches others to do so will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Do we then nullify the law through faith? Paul asked rhetorically. Absolutely not! Instead we uphold the law.^[10] Have I just made the case for πορνεία as a violation of Leviticus 18 or 20? But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful [πορνείας, a form of πορνεία]) causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.^[11] I don’t think so.

I might have made that case. I have a philosophical bent to my mind; I am a legalist in theory and in practice. Why not see Matthew 5:32 as Jesus’ instruction to governor-priests and as vindication or exoneration of Ezra the priest? Ancient Roman legislators had articulated concepts of lawful connubium. The priests and bishops Constantine left to govern Rome when he abandoned it for Byzantium heard Jesus’ words as Roman law. Wouldn’t Jesus follow Roman law? It’s certainly more in line with the way my mind works. Until, that is, I heard y^ehôvâh in the prophet Malachi (2:14b, 15a, 16 NET):

The Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) is testifying against you on behalf of the wife you married when you were young, to whom you have become unfaithful even though she is your companion and wife by law [Table]. No one who has even a small portion of the Spirit in him does this [Table]…

“I hate divorce,” says the Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) God (ʼĕlôhı̂ym, אלהי) of Israel, “and the one who is guilty of violence,” says the Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) who rules over all. “Pay attention to your conscience, and do not be unfaithful” [Table].

This is the intellectual and spiritual equivalent of a ratchet, and I cannot go back. Now I hear, For God has consigned (συνέκλεισεν, a form of συγκλείω) all people to disobedience (ἀπείθειαν, a form of ἀπείθεια; literally, disbelief) so that he may show mercy to them all.^[12] We are all like fish caught in a net of disobedience. Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under (ἐν; literally, in) the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world may be held accountable (ὑπόδικος; literally, under sentence, under judgment) to God.^[13]

Ezra was exactly where y^ehôvâh wanted him to be when he said: O Lord (y^ehôvâh, יהוה) God of Israel, you are righteous, for we are left as a remnant this day. Indeed, we stand before you in our guilt. However, because of this guilt no one can really stand before you.^[14] Who knows what would have happened if Ezra had stayed there, waiting on y^ehôvâh, instead of chasing after Shecaniah’s get-righteous-quick scheme (Ezra 10:2-4 NET).

Then Shecaniah son of Jehiel, from the descendants of Elam, addressed Ezra: “We have been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the local peoples. Nonetheless, there is still hope for Israel in this regard [Table]. Therefore let us enact a covenant with our God to send away all these women and their offspring, in keeping with your counsel, my lord, and that of those who respect the commandments of our God. And let it be done according to the law [Table]. Get up, for this matter concerns you. We are with you, so be strong and act decisively [Table]!”

I want to make this as clear as I possibly can. If a man has married the wrong sort of woman he cannot redeem himself in God’s eyes, he cannot make himself righteous again, by divorcing her and sending their children away. The religious mind encourages us to change our own behavior, to conform us to some image of righteousness derived from the law (or some lesser doctrine) by that religious mind. The mind of Christ speaks to the wriggling soul caught in a net of disbelief, saying, Stop your striving (râphâh, הרפו) and recognize (yâdaʽ, ודעו) that I am God! I will be exalted over the nations! I will be exalted over the earth!^[15] Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must all be born from above.’^[16]

I don’t live in Rome in the first half of the fourth century. I don’t hear Jesus speaking to Roman legislators about external controls. I hear Him speaking to the ἐκκλησία, those called by God the Father through Jesus Christ to be led by his Holy Spirit. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God.^[17] For this and other reasons I still hear Jesus’ use of πορνείας (a form of πορνεία) in Matthew 5:32 and πορνείᾳ in Matthew 19:9 as a reference to the same πορνεῦσαι (a form of πορνεύω, e.g., sexualized worship) He condemned in Revelation 2:20 (NET):

But I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and by her teaching deceives my servants to commit sexual immorality (πορνεῦσαι) and to eat food sacrificed to idols (εἰδωλόθυτα, a form of εἰδωλόθυτον).

Such sexualized worship was the bane of Israel’s descendents from the beginning of their existence as a nation: So do not be idolaters (εἰδωλολάτραι, a form of εἰδωλολάτρης), as some of them were. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.” And let us not be immoral (πορνεύωμεν, another form of πορνεύω), as some of them were (ἐπόρνευσαν, another form of πορνεύω), and twenty-three thousand died in a single day.^[18] Rather than thinking of it as an abbreviated version of the law it would be far more charitable to assume that sexualized worship was what James had in mind at the Jerusalem Council:

Jesus (NET)

Parallel Greek

James (NET)

Parallel Greek

…to commit sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols…

Revelation 2:20b

πορνεῦσαι καὶ φαγεῖν εἰδωλόθυτα

…to abstain from things defiled by idols and from sexual immorality and from what has been strangled and from blood…

Acts 15:20 Table

ἀπέχεσθαι τῶν ἀλισγημάτων τῶν εἰδώλων καὶ τῆς πορνείας (a form of πορνεία) καὶ |τοῦ| πνικτοῦ καὶ τοῦ αἵματος

…that you abstain from meat that has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what has been strangled and from sexual immorality…

Acts 15:29a

ἀπέχεσθαι εἰδωλοθύτων (another form of εἰδωλόθυτον) καὶ αἵματος καὶ πνικτῶν καὶ πορνείας (a form of πορνεία)

I want to substitute a more literal understanding of ὁμολογεῖ (a form of ὁμολογέω) translated confesses and confess respectively in 1 John 4:1-3 (NET):

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to determine if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that [speaks the same as] Jesus as the Christ who has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not [speak the same as] Jesus is not from God, and this is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and now is already in the world.

To that extent that the religious mind encourages us to reform our own behavior rather than to rely on the fruit of the Holy Spirit, it is the spirit of antichrist no matter how well-intentioned the mouthpiece. Suspicious of the Gospel I tried to be good first to prove that I was, failing that, I tried because “God will get you if you don’t watch out.” My fear was flight from rather than toward God. And yet, in that dark foreboding I became most aware of His forgiveness and patience. Paul put it this way for Timothy (1 Timothy 1:15, 16 NET):

This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” – and I am the worst of them! But here is why I was treated with mercy: so that in me as the worst, Christ Jesus could demonstrate his utmost patience, as an example for those who are going to believe in him for eternal life [Table].

Amanda Bynes delivers one of the funniest and most poignant lines in the movie Easy A: “Jesus tells us to love everyone. I mean, even the whores and the homosexuals, but it’s just so hard. It’s so hard because they keep doing it over and over again.” An attitude of forgiveness toward others flows from the love that comes from the Holy Spirit. Still, Jesus said, the one who is forgiven little loves little.^[19] One who is forgiven much is forgiven often for the same offense, sometimes many more than seven times a day. And that experience is far more persuasive than any threat (Matthew 18:34, 35 NET):

And in anger his lord turned him over to the prison guards to torture [the unforgiving slave] until he repaid all he owed. So also my heavenly Father will do to you, if each of you does not forgive your brother from your heart.

In that sacred space of loving forgiveness the truth began to dawn on me that not only the desire and effort were God’s but the fulfillment of his desire and his effort was his as well, the kingdom, the power and the glory. I’ll substitute the same literal understanding I used above for ὁμολογήσῃς (another form of ὁμολογέω) translated confess, and ὁμολογεῖται (another form of ὁμολογέω) translated confesses in Romans 10:9, 10 (NET):

…if you [speak the same as Jesus] with your mouth that Jesus is Lord^[20] [e.g., y^ehôvâh as opposed to a Lord or Sir] and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and thus has righteousness [πιστεύεται εἰς δικαιοσύνην; literally, “believes unto righteousness”] and with the mouth one [speaks the same as Jesus] and thus has salvation [ὁμολογεῖται εἰς σωτηρίαν; literally, “speaks the same as Jesus unto salvation”].

Sexual Immorality Revisited, Part 3

Back to Paul’s Religious Mind Revisited, Part 6

Back to Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 11

Back to Who Am I? Part 8

Back to Romans, Part 90

Back to A Door of Hope, Part 1

Back to Christianity, Part 13

^[1] Matthew 19:4 (NET) Table

^[2] Romans 1:27 (NET) Table

^[3] Hebrews 13:4 (NET)

^[4] Leviticus 18:22a (NET) Table

^[5] Leviticus 18:8 (NET) Table

^[6] 1 Corinthians 2:2 (NET) Table

^[7] Acts 15:10 (NET)

^[8] Romans 3:22 (NET)

^[9] Romans 13:10b (NET)

^[10] Romans 3:31 (NET)

^[11] Matthew 5:32b (NAB) Table

^[12] Romans 11:32 (NET)

^[13] Romans 3:19 (NET)

^[14] Ezra 9:15 (NET)

^[15] Psalm 46:10 (NET)

^[16] John 3:7 (NET)

^[17] Romans 8:14 (NET)

^[18] 1 Corinthians 10:7, 8 (NET)

^[19] Luke 7:47b (NET)

^[20] NET note 10: Or “the Lord.” The Greek construction, along with the quotation from Joel 2:32 in v. 13 (in which the same “Lord” seems to be in view) suggests that κύριον (kurion) is to be taken as “the Lord,” that is, Yahweh. Cf. D. B. Wallace, “The Semantics and Exegetical Significance of the Object-Complement Construction in the New Testament,” GTJ 6 (1985): 91-112.

Romans, Part 82

Posted on July 30, 2016 by admin

I took a tangent from Paul’s teaching in the previous essay—I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean in itself^[1]—to convince myself it was in line with Jesus’ teaching in Mark 7 since his criticism rang in my ears. In Revelation Jesus criticized the angel of the church in Pergamum^[2] and the angel of the church in Thyatira^[3] because certain people under their authority were eating εἰδωλόθυτα (a form of εἰδωλόθυτον; translated, food sacrificed to idols) and for πορνεῦσαι (a form of πορνεύω; translated, commit sexual immorality).

Here, too, teaching against πορνείᾳ (the offense of the πορνεύων, another form of πορνεύω) Paul agreed with Jesus (1 Corinthians 6:12-20; 10:7, 8 NET):

“All things are lawful for me” – but not everything is beneficial. “All things are lawful for me” – but I will not be controlled by anything. “Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both.” The body is not for sexual immorality (πορνείᾳ), but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. Now God indeed raised the Lord and he will raise us by his power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Should I take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute (πόρνης, a form of πόρνη)? Never! Or do you not know that anyone who is united with a prostitute (πόρνῃ) is one body with her? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” But the one united with the Lord is one spirit with him. Flee sexual immorality (πορνείαν, another form of πορνεία)! “Every sin a person commits is outside of the body” – but the immoral person (πορνεύων, another form of πορνεύω) sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body [Table].

So do not be idolaters (εἰδωλολάτραι, a form of εἰδωλολάτρης), as some of them were. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.”^[4] And let us not be immoral (πορνεύωμεν, another form of πορνεύω), as some of them were (ἐπόρνευσαν, another form of πορνεύω), and twenty-three thousand died in a single day.^[5]

In an article on a different but related topic Robert A. J. Gagnon wrote of Romans 1:

If the wrath of God manifested in this age involves, in part, God permitting people to engage in such self-dishonoring, shameful behavior, with death resulting, then the saving righteousness of God must mean not merely forgiveness of sins but empowerment, through the Spirit, to be delivered from the primary control of such shameful impulses.

Accordingly, “sin shall not be lord over you, for you are not under the law but under grace” (6:14). To be “under the law” is to be dominated by sinful passions that “bear fruit for death” (7:5). To be “under grace” is to be Spirit-controlled and thus bearing fruit for life (7:6).

While that was exciting to me, he then paraphrased Romans 8:12-14 as follows: “In other words, a profession of faith void of a transformed life is worthless and will not save a person from divine wrath.” And he turned to John Calvin to further emphasize his point: “Those in whom the Spirit does not reign do not belong to Christ; therefore those who serve the flesh are not Christians…” This kind of fear always led me back to myself, trusting my own works at reform, rather than trusting Christ and the Holy Spirit’s transforming power. Masters, treat your slaves the same way, Paul wrote believers in Ephesus, giving up the use of threats (ἀπειλήν, a form of ἀπειλή), because you know that both you and they have the same master in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.^[6] Surely we could practice this among the slaves of Christ.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,^[7] Paul wrote. If we must threaten, the legitimate threats are sickness and death: Look! I am throwing [Jezebel] onto a bed of violent illness, and those who commit adultery with her into terrible suffering, unless they repent of her deeds. Furthermore, I will strike her followers with a deadly disease, and then all the churches will know that I am the one who searches minds and hearts. I will repay each one of you what your deeds deserve.^[8] So if Jesus doesn’t sicken or kill enough church-folk to suit me, I’m the one with the problem. (That is not to say that my health or my life is proof of my righteousness. Even Jezebel was given time to repent.)

Therefore we must not pass judgment on one another, Paul continued his discourse on love, but rather determine never to place an obstacle or a trap before a brother or sister. I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean in itself; still, it is unclean to the one who considers it unclean. For if your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy by your food someone for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let what you consider good be spoken of as evil (βλασφημείσθω, a form of βλασφημέω).^[9]

Several American college campuses “fume with righteousness” these days; students, faculty, administration and benefactors silence anyone who disagrees with them. I sincerely doubt that is what Paul meant by μὴ βλασφημείσθω οὖν ὑμῶν τὸ ἀγαθόν (translated, Therefore do not let what you consider good be spoken of as evil). In fact, Paul was much more explicit about his meaning in his letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 10:23-11:1 NET):

“Everything is lawful,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is lawful,” but not everything builds others up. Do not seek your own good, but the good of the other person. Eat anything that is sold in the marketplace without questions of conscience, for the earth and its abundance are the Lord’s. If an unbeliever invites you to dinner and you want to go, eat whatever is served without asking questions of conscience. But if someone says to you, “This is from a sacrifice,” do not eat, because of the one who told you and because of conscience – I do not mean yours but the other person’s. For why is my freedom being judged by another’s conscience? If I partake with thankfulness, why am I blamed (βλασφημοῦμαι, another form of βλασφημέω) for the food that I give thanks for? So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. Do not give offense to Jews or Greeks or to the church of God, just as I also try to please everyone in all things. I do not seek my own benefit, but the benefit of many, so that they may be saved. Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

For the kingdom of God does not consist of food and drink, Paul continued his discourse on love, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. For the one who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by people. So then, let us pursue what makes for peace and for building up one another. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. For although all things are clean, it is wrong to cause anyone to stumble by what you eat.^[10]

The Greek word translated wrong is κακὸν (a form of κακός). Love does no wrong (κακὸν, a form of κακός) to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.^[11] But I think it worth noting that κακὸν might have been translated evil in both instances. There will be affliction and distress on everyone who does evil^[12] (κακόν). Do not repay anyone evil (κακὸν) for evil; consider what is good before all people.^[13] Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil (κακόν) with good.^[14]

It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything that causes your brother to stumble, Paul continued. The faith you have, keep to yourself before God. Blessed is the one who does not judge (κρίνων, a form of κρίνω) himself by what he approves.^[15] I would read this last statement as “in” (ἐν) what he approves. He does not judge himself by not despising the faith-weak by not placing an obstacle or a trap before a brother or sister.^[16] And so I read the final verse—But the man who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not do so from faith, and whatever is not from faith is sin^[17]—differently.

The Greek word translated doubts is διακρινόμενος (a form of διακρίνω) rather than a form of διστάζω.^[18] But Michael the archangel, when he disputed (διακρινόμενος; NET: debating) with the devil and argued about the body of Moses…^[19] I think all of the English translations of διακρινόμενος could be improved by some form of dispute. But get up, go down, and accompany them without^[20] dispute (διακρινόμενος; NET: hesitation), the Spirit said to Peter. To dispute was exactly what Peter began to do in the vision of an object something like a large sheet filled with all kinds of four-footed animals and reptiles of the earth and wild birds.^[21] Certainly not, Lord, he disputed the command to slaughter and eat, for I have never eaten anything defiled and ritually unclean!^[22]

But if anyone is deficient in wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without reprimand, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without disputing (διακρινόμενος; NET: doubting), for the one who disputes (διακρινόμενος; NET: doubts) is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed around by the wind.^[23] If James meant to say that God’s generous wisdom without reprimand is given only after I achieve a faith of some measure of purity—without doubting—he was wrong. But if he meant that the wisdom given would be of no value to me if I disputed it, he was absolutely correct. For although wisdom was given by the generosity of God it will not be received by the one who disputes it. For that person must not suppose that he will receive (λήμψεται, a form of λαμβάνω) anything from the Lord, since he is a double-minded (δίψυχος) individual, unstable in all his ways.^[24] I’ve spent years being double-minded, asking for wisdom and disputing his answers, and He has been nothing but patient throughout: If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, since he cannot deny himself.^[25]

And so I think—But the man who disputes (διακρινόμενος, a form of διακρίνω; NET: doubts) is condemned if he eats—refers back to one who abstains [who] must not judge (κρινέτω, another form of κρίνω) the one who eats everything.^[26] This is the one who will be condemned by his own conscience if he eats, because he does not do so from faith, but by provocation, and whatever is not from faith is sin.^[27] So love will not goad the faith-weak by flagrant displays of knowledge. But we who are strong (δυνατοὶ, a form of δυνατός) ought to bear with the failings (ἀσθενήματα, a form of ἀσθένημα) of the weak (ἀδυνάτων, a form of ἀδύνατος), Paul continued, and not just please ourselves.^[28]

Paul inhabited a world where God has placed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, gifts of healing, helps, gifts of leadership, different kinds of tongues.^[29] He could write about the δυνατοὶ. I grew up in a world where men who hadn’t taken one step on water criticized one who had for his lack of faith, and this before the Holy Spirit was even given, before Peter received his daily ration of faithfulness. That’s why the one man who noticed that Jesus had the faith to stand on the water and hold Peter up as well was such a God-send. So I’ll continue to write about the less faith-weak rather than the strong.

Rulers (ἄρχοντες, a form of ἄρχων) are God’s servant (διάκονος) for your good and God’s servant (διάκονος) to administer retribution on the wrongdoer.^[30] They utilize external controls, laws and punishments for infractions, “sin” taxes, tax breaks, etc. What is Apollos, really? Or what is Paul? Servants (διάκονοι, a form of διάκονος) through whom you came to believe, and each of us in the ministry the Lord gave us. I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused it to grow. So neither the one who plants counts for anything, nor the one who waters, but God who causes the growth.^[31] The love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control of the Holy Spirit are God’s internal controls. What we believe, what we teach, determines whether we are just another layer of government, another layer of external controls, or followers of Jesus, sometimes stumbling and falling but, living an eternal life led by his Holy Spirit.

Romans, Part 83

The Angels Will Gather

Back to Sexual Immorality Revisited, Part 2

Back to Forgiven or Passed Over? Part 6

Back to Atonement, Part 2

^[1] Romans 14:14a (NET)

^[2] Revelation 2:12a (NET)

^[3] Revelation 2:18a (NET)

^[4] Exodus 32 (NET); NET note (4): “The term ‘play’ may refer to idolatrous, sexual play here, although that is determined by the context rather than the meaning of the word itself (cf. BDAG 750 s.v. παίζω).”

^[5] Numbers 25 (NET) I’m not ignoring the discrepancy (23 or 24 thousand) here but will take it up in another essay.

^[6] Ephesians 6:9 (NET)

^[7] Romans 8:1 (NET) I still “want to call this the absolute baseline of faith in Jesus Christ.” See the NET note (1) about the addition to the text: “who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” (Romans 8:1 KJV).

^[8] Revelation 2:22, 23 (NET)

^[9] Romans 14:13-16 (NET)

^[10] Romans 14:17-20 (NET)

^[11] Romans 13:10 (NET)

^[12] Romans 2:9a (NET)

^[13] Romans 12:17 (NET)

^[14] Romans 12:21 (NET)

^[15] Romans 14:21, 22 (NET)

^[16] Romans 14:13b (NET)

^[17] Romans 14:23 (NET)

^[18] http://biblehub.com/greek/1365.htm

^[19] Jude 1:9a (NASB)

^[20] Acts 10:20a (NET) Table

^[21] Acts 10:11, 12 (NET) Table

^[22] Acts 10:14 (NET) Table

^[23] James 1:5, 6 (NET)

^[24] James 1:7, 8 (NET)

^[25] 2 Timothy 2:13 (NET)

^[26] Romans 14:3 (NET)

^[27] Romans 14:23b

^[28] Romans 15:1 (NET)

^[29] 1 Corinthians 12:28 (NET)

^[30] Romans 13:4 (NET)

^[31] 1 Corinthians 3:5-7 (NET)

Romans, Part 78

Posted on June 24, 2016 by admin

And do this because we know the time…^[1] The words because we know are a way the NET translators translated the Greek word εἰδότες (a form of εἴδω; also, 2 Corinthians 5:11). They translated it because you…know (Matthew 22:29; Mark 12:24; 1 Peter 5:9), when you did…know (Galatians 4:8), and we know (1 Thessalonians 1:4). More often than not εἰδότες occurs in the New Testament as εἰδότες ὅτι; because is a legitimate translation of ὅτι.

Greek	NET	References
εἰδότες ὅτι	because they knew that	Luke 8:53
εἰδότες ὅτι	because they knew	John 21:12
εἰδότες ὅτι	knowing that	Romans 5:3; 1 Corinthians 15:58
εἰδότες ὅτι	we know that	Romans 6:9; 2 Corinthians 5:6; Galatians 2:16
εἰδότες ὅτι	because we know that	2 Corinthians 1:7
εἰδότες ὅτι	because we know	2 Corinthians 4:14
εἰδότες ὅτι	because you know that	Ephesians 6:8; Ephesians 6:9; Colossians 3:24; Colossians 4:1; James 3:1
εἰδότες ὅτι	because they know that	Philippians 1:16
εἰδότες ὅτι	you know that	1 Peter 1:18

So I question the wisdom of translating εἰδότες “as a causal adverbial participle” (NET note 11), adding because when ὅτι is not present. But I question even more the wisdom of translating nothing, no Greek word at all, as do (NET note 10). That one word shifts the focus of the text from the phenomenal revelation that love is the fulfillment of the law^[2] to a list of works that I must do. The verse continues, [because (ὅτι)] it is already the hour for us to awake from sleep.^[3]

The word translated us is ὑμᾶς —you. So Paul was very direct: And this, he wrote highlighting and accentuating that love is the fulfillment of the law, knowing the time, because it is already the hour for you to awake from sleep… and one extraneous word turned my attention from God reconciling the world to himself in Christ, from the power of his resurrection, from the fruit of his Holy Spirit to my own puny efforts to do rules, to love like God in my own strength.

I’m not angry with the NET translators, I’m grateful. Their footnotes, revealing their thought processes, have disabused me of my notion that Bible translators are something more than human beings doing the best they can—given their beliefs. I didn’t even read the NET back when I had most of my difficulties. I read the NASB and then the NIV.

NASB

NIV

Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now [a] salvation is nearer to us than when we believed.

Romans 13:11

And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.

Romans 13:11

The NIV has no footnote here. My NASB fell apart years ago, but it has the telltale italics. Do in italics didn’t alert my Bible-believing heart to dig deeper, not like a footnote did (10): “Grk ‘and this,’ probably referring to the command to love (13:8-10); hence, ‘do’ is implied from the previous verses.” Unless, of course, one believes that Paul and the Holy Spirit intended to accentuate the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise, as it pertains to the law, through faith rather than works (Matthew 5:17-20 NET):

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish these things but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place. So anyone who breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever obeys them and teaches others to do so will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, Paul wrote believers in Rome, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night has advanced toward dawn; the day is near. So then we must lay aside the works of darkness, and put on the weapons of light. Let us live decently as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in discord and jealousy.^[4]

The Greek word translated darkness is σκότους (a form of σκότος). Paul wrote believers in Ephesus, for you were at one time darkness (σκότος), but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light – for the fruit (καρπὸς) of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth – trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Do not participate in the unfruitful (ἀκάρποις, a form of ἄκαρπος) deeds of darkness (σκότους, a form of σκότος), but rather expose them. For the things they do in secret are shameful even to mention. But all things being exposed by the light are made evident. For everything made evident is light, and for this reason it says: “Awake, O sleeper! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you!”^[5]

To the Romans Paul stressed carousing and drunkenness…sexual immorality and sensuality…discord and jealousy as works of darkness. The list stressed in Ephesians included sexual immorality, impurity of any kind, or greed…vulgar speech, foolish talk, or coarse jesting.^[6] But I don’t think I’m stretching his words at all to include 1) attempts to be righteous by obeying rules in one’s own strength, or 2) attempts to share credit for the fruit of the Spirit, among the unfruitful deeds of darkness. For ignoring the righteousness that comes from God, and seeking instead to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit to God’s righteousness,^[7] Paul summed up the righteousness of the Pharisees. He wrote believers in Philippi, that I may gain Christ, and be found in him, not because I have my own righteousness derived from the law, but because I have the righteousness that comes by way of Christ’s faithfulness – a righteousness from God that is in fact based on Christ’s faithfulness.^[8]

The Greek work translated light in the phrase weapons of light is φωτός (a form of φῶς). Jesus is the light (John 1:6-9 NET):

A man came, sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify about the light (φωτός, a form of φῶς), so that everyone might believe through him. He himself was not the light (φῶς), but he came to testify about the light (φωτός, a form of φῶς). The true light (φῶς), who gives light (φωτίζει, a form of φωτίζω) to everyone, was coming into the world.

Instead, put on (ἐνδύσασθε, a form of ἐνδύω) the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to arouse its desires,^[9] Paul concluded. Here the new human is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ (Galatians 2:20, 21 NET):

I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So the life I now live in the body, I live because of the faithfulness of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside God’s grace, because if righteousness could come through the law, then Christ died for nothing!

I’ll conclude this essay by quoting from four commentaries. My purpose is to show the decline in enthusiasm for the power of God’s love as a function of time. First, Matthew Henry (1662-1714):

Love intends and designs no ill to any body, is utterly against the doing of that which may turn to the prejudice, offence, or grief of any. It worketh no ill that is, it prohibits the working of any ill: more is implied than is expressed it not only worketh no ill, but it worketh all the good that may be, deviseth liberal things. For it is a sin not only to devise evil against thy neighbour, but to withhold good from those to whom it is due both are forbidden together, Proverbs 3:27-29. This proves that love is the fulfilling of the law, answers all the end of it for what else is that but to restrain us from evil-doing, and to constrain us to well-doing? Love is a living active principle of obedience to the whole law. The whole law is written in the heart, if the law of love be there.

Second, John Gill (1697-1771):

therefore love is the fulfilling of the law: so far as a man loves his neighbour, he acts agreeably to the law, and the particular precepts of it above mentioned: what the apostle says of love to the neighbour, the Jews frequently say of love to God; “he that loveth God (they say^F4) מקיים עשר אמירן, “hath fulfilled the decalogue”, both above and below. And again^F5, “there is no service like the love of God, R. Abba saith it is כללא דאורייתא, “the sum of the law”; for the ten words of the law הכא אתכלילו, “are herein comprehended”, or “fulfilled”:’ and elsewhere^F6 they observe, “that כל התורה כלולה באהבה, “the whole law is comprehended”, or fulfilled “in love”.’

Third, Albert Barnes (1798-1870):

Therefore … – “Because” love does no harm to another, it is “therefore” the fulfilling of the Law, implying that all that the Law requires is to “love” others.

Is the fulfilling – Is the “completion,” or meets the requirements of the Law. The Law of God on this “head,” or in regard to our duty to our neighbor, requires us to do justice toward him, to observe truth, etc. “All” this will be met by “love;” and if people truly “loved” others, all the demands of the Law would be satisfied.

Of the law – Of the Law of Moses, but particularly the Ten Commandments.

Fourth, the Pulpit Commentary (1884):

From specific admonitions on this subject, the apostle passes naturally to the principle which, in these regards as well as others, should inspire all our dealings with our fellow-men. Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loveth another (literally, the other, meaning the same as his neighbour) hath fulfilled law. νόμον here is anarthrous, denoting law in general, not the Mosaic Law in particular, though the instances of transgression that follow are from the Decalogue. The idea of the passage is but a carrying out of our Lord’s saying, Matthew 22:39, Matthew 22:40. We find it also in Galatians 5:14 more shortly expressed. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended (or, summed up) in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of law.

No one mentioned the fruit of the Spirit directly, that this is God’s love rather than ours. But from Matthew Henry’s “more is implied than is expressed [love] not only worketh no ill, but it worketh all the good that may be” to the Pulpit Commentary’s assessment that love is a “principle which…should inspire all our dealings with our fellow-men,” confidence in the love that God has in us took a nose dive in about two centuries. Listen to John (1 John 4:16, 17 NET):

And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has in (ἐν) us. God is love, and the one who resides in love resides in God, and God resides in him [Table]. By this [e.g., God’s residence, his possession of us through the Holy Spirit] love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because just as Jesus is, so also are we in this world.

Romans, Part 79

^[1] Romans 13:11a (NET)

^[2] Romans 13:10 (NET)

^[3] Romans 13:11b (NET)

^[4] Romans 13:11b-13 (NIV)

^[5] Ephesians 5:8-14 (NET)

^[6] Ephesians 5:3, 4 (NET)

^[7] Romans 10:3 (NET)

^[8] Philippians 3:8b, 9 (NET)

^[9] Romans 13:14 (NET)

Romans, Part 76

Posted on June 4, 2016 by admin

Do not repay anyone evil for evil; consider what is good before all people.^[1] The words translated evil for evil are κακὸν ἀντὶ κακοῦ in Greek. Both κακὸν and κακοῦ are forms of κακός. Love is οὐ λογίζεται τὸ κακόν (literally, “not counting” or “not reckoning the evil”) Paul wrote believers in Corinth. Love is not resentful (NET), does not take into account a wrong suffered (NASB), keeps no record of wrongs (NIV), are a few English translations. Love does no wrong (κακὸν, a form of κακός) to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.^[2] So the love that is an aspect of the fruit of the Spirit (along with joy, peace, patience, etc.) fulfills μηδενὶ κακὸν ἀντὶ κακοῦ ἀποδιδόντες (literally, “no one evil against evil deliver”), part of the definition of love in Paul’s letter to the Romans, translated Do not repay anyone evil for evil in the NET.

The next clause, consider what is good before all people, while accurate mostly seems to me to have been toned down some to become a rule I might obey in my own strength. The word translated consider is προνοούμενοι (a form of προνοέω), “to perceive before, foresee” in the definition in the NET. In other words, demonstrate this foresight (apart from the Holy Spirit) at the very moment I am most offended at having been wronged (or burn in hell for all eternity). Have I belabored this point enough yet? And as I’ve said over and over, I belabor it mostly for my own benefit since I’m the one who seems most hell-bent on perceiving the Bible as a book of rules rather than as a Gospel of salvation!

The word translated good is καλὰ (a form of καλός). I’ve written elsewhere contrasting the beautiful good of Jesus to the pious good of religious people. You are the light of the world, Jesus said. A city located on a hill cannot be hidden. People do not light a lamp and put it under a basket but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good (καλὰ, a form of καλός) deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.^[3]

The Jewish leaders picked up rocks again to stone him to death. Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good (καλὰ, a form of καλός) deeds from the Father. For which one of them are you going to stone me?” The Jewish leaders replied, “We are not going to stone you for a good (καλοῦ, another form of καλός) deed but for blasphemy, because you, a man, are claiming to be God.”^[4] It is probably worth noting that Jesus didn’t turn to Genesis 1:26 and say, “God said, ‘we will be made man.’” So the difficult (NET notes 84 and 85) answer recorded in John 10:34-36 may serve as circumstantial evidence for an early date for vowel points. But Jesus turned his listeners’ attention back toward his beautiful good deeds (John 10:37, 38 NET):

If I do not perform the deeds of my Father, do not believe me. But if I do them, even if you do not believe me, believe the deeds, so that you may come to know and understand that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.

Jesus’ beautiful good deeds recorded in John 1-9 are listed below:

2:1-11	Jesus turned water into wine after his host ran out of wine
2:14-22	Jesus cleansed the temple of thieves and profiteers
2:23	Other unspecified miraculous signs prompted many to believe in his Name
4:4-42	Jesus prophesied to a Samaritan woman
4:46-54	Jesus healed the son of the royal official of Capernaum
5:1-15	Jesus healed a disabled man who did not believe
6:1-15	Jesus fed more than 5,000 people, many of whom did not believe (John 6:26)
7:31	The preponderance of miraculous signs persuaded many
8:3-11	Jesus’ gracious answer to an angry mob dissuaded them from violence
9	Jesus healed a man born blind

I debated whether I considered the cleansing of the temple a beautiful or pious good, but decided that the worthiness of the goal overshadowed the violence of the act. I included John 8:3-11 because it is still in the text, it is beautiful, I believe it is true, and otherwise don’t have a dog in this fight (John 7:53 NET note 139). But this exercise put something into focus for me I hadn’t fully appreciated before. The religious minds of the religious leaders wanted to kill Jesus not so much for his words but for his beautiful good deeds which gave those words such weight with the people relative to their own teachings. “No one ever spoke^[5] like this man,”^[6] the officers excused themselves for failing to arrest Jesus.

The Holy Spirit does no miraculous signs through me, whether it is my disobedience, disbelief or that the people who raised me are correct that miraculous signs are no longer necessary because we have the New Testament. (I haven’t found the latter in the Bible myself.) Paul described a non-miraculous way to consider what is good before all people as it pertained to financial matters (2 Corinthians 8:18-21 NET):

And we are sending along with [Titus] the brother who is praised by all the churches for his work in spreading the gospel. In addition, this brother has also been chosen by the churches as our traveling companion as we administer this generous gift to the glory of the Lord himself and to show our readiness to help. We did this as a precaution so that no one should blame us in regard to this generous gift we are administering. For we are concerned (προνοοῦμεν, another form of προνοέω) about what is right (καλὰ, a form of καλός) not only before the Lord but also before men.

The sins of some people are obvious, Paul wrote Timothy, going before them into judgment, but for others, they show up later. Similarly good (καλὰ, a form of καλός) works are also obvious, and the ones that are not cannot remain hidden.^[7] And he contrasted beautiful good deeds with those which are not for Titus.

Beautiful Good Deeds

Those Which Are Not

This saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on such truths, so that those who have placed their faith in God may be intent on engaging in good (καλῶν, another form of καλός) works. These things are good (καλὰ, a form of καλός) and beneficial for all people.

Titus 3:8 (NET) Table

But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, quarrels, and fights about the law, because they are useless and empty.

Titus 3:9 (NET)

If possible, Paul continued in Romans, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people.^[8] The Greek word translated live peaceably is εἰρηνεύοντες (a form of εἰρηνεύω). The all people part of this will be difficult for a soldier in battle. As for the rest of us: Salt is good (καλὸν, another form of καλός), but if it loses its saltiness, how can you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace (εἰρηνεύετε, another form of εἰρηνεύω) with each other.^[9] Paul added, live in peace (εἰρηνεύετε, another form of εἰρηνεύω), and the God of love and peace (εἰρήνης, a form of εἰρήνη) will be with you,^[10] and, Be at peace (εἰρηνεύετε, another form of εἰρηνεύω) among yourselves.^[11]

How do we fulfill these commands, admonitions, rules or laws? The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace (εἰρήνη), patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.^[12] What I didn’t say in the previous essay because of my own phobia of turning these verses back into rules I strive to obey in my own strength, I will say now since my phobia is so out in the open: We are given permission here to live as the Holy Spirit is prompting us to live. We are free to believe that, Against such things [e.g., love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control] there is no law.^[13]

Where the NET translators chose You must put away for ἀρθήτω ἀφ᾿ ὑμῶν, Young’s Literal Translation reads: Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil-speaking, be put away from you, with all malice, and become one to another kind, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, according as also God in Christ did forgive you.^[14] The verb ἀρθήτω (a form of αἴρω) means to lift. Let all of this be lifted from you by the mighty carrying capacity of that river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High,^[15] that fountain of water springing up to eternal life,^[16] the Holy Spirit who produces his fruit within me when I get out of his way and stop making sinful, theological or ecclesiastical excuses. John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away (αἴρων, another form of αἴρω) the sin of the world!”^[17]

Do not avenge yourselves, dear friends, Paul continued in his letter to the Romans, but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.^[18] I want to pause here briefly to highlight how God’s sense of justice may differ from our own (Revelation 16:4-7 NET):

Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and the springs of water, and they turned into blood. Now I heard the angel of the waters saying: “You are just – the one who is and who was, the Holy One – because you have passed these judgments, because they poured out the blood of your saints and prophets, so you have given them blood to drink. They got what they deserved!” Then I heard the altar reply, “Yes, Lord God, the All-Powerful, your judgments are true and just!”

Rather, Paul continued, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing this you will be heaping burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.^[19] The good with which we overcome evil is ἀγαθῷ (a form of ἀγαθός) in Greek. According to Jesus, No one is good (ἀγαθὸς) except God alone.^[20] The good with which we overcome evil is God alone: for by grace ye are having been saved, through faith, and this not of you—of God the gift, not of works, that no one may boast; for of Him we are workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good (ἀγαθοῖς, another form of ἀγαθός) works, which God did before prepare, that in them we may walk (περιπατήσωμεν, a form of περιπατέω).^[21] In the Spirit walk (περιπατεῖτε, another form of περιπατέω) ye, and the desire of the flesh ye may not complete.^[22]

Romans, Part 77

Back to Romans, Part 90

^[1] Romans 12:17 (NET)

^[2] Romans 13:10 (NET)

^[3] Matthew 5:14-16 (NET)

^[4] John 10:31-33 (NET)

^[5] See: Matthew 9:1-8 (NET)

^[6] John 7:46b (NET)

^[7] 1 Timothy 5:24, 25 (NET)

^[8] Romans 12:18 (NET)

^[9] Mark 9:50 (NET)

^[10] 2 Corithians 13:11b (NET)

^[11] 1 Thessalonians 5:13b (NET)

^[12] Galatians 5:22, 23a (NET)

^[13] Galatians 5:23b (NET)

^[14] Ephesians 4:31, 32 (YLT)

^[15] Psalm 46:4 (ESV)

^[16] John 4:14b (NET)

^[17] John 1:29 (NET)

^[18] Romans 12:19 (NET)

^[19] Romans 12:20, 21 (NET) Table

^[20] Mark 10:18b (NET)

^[21] Ephesians 2:8-10 (YLT)

^[22] Galatians 5:16 (YLT)

The Gospel and the Religious Mind

An attempt to distinguish the mind of Christ from the ordinary religious mind.

Tag Archives: Romans 13:10

A Monotonous Cycle Revisited, Part 6

Isaiah 53:10-12, Part 1

A Door of Hope, Part 1

Romans, Part 90

My Deeds, Part 3

Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 10

Sexual Immorality Revisited, Part 2

Romans, Part 82

Romans, Part 78

Romans, Part 76