Tag Archives: Romans 14:13

Paul’s Religious Mind Revisited, Part 1

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I want to compare and contrast Paul’s teaching in his letter to the Corinthians to Jesus’ letter To the angel of the church in Thyatira[1] under the rubrics: “Paul’s Regime” and “Jesus’ Regime.”

Paul’s Regime

Jesus’ Regime
It is actually reported that sexual immorality (πορνεία) exists among you (ὑμῖν; plural), the kind of immorality (πορνεία) that is not permitted even among the Gentiles, so that someone is cohabiting with (ἔχειν, a form of ἔχω) his father’s wife.

1 Corinthians 5:1 (NET)

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

Revelation 2:20 (NET)
I have given her time to repent, but she is not willing to repent of her sexual immorality (πορνείας, a form of πορνεία).

Revelation 2:21 (NET)

Experiencing these as two distinct regimes is new for me.  As long as I assumed that Jesus’ spoke to the second person plural the two passages seemed virtually identical.  And without doubt I love and respect Paul.  He led me to Jesus, helped me to see Him in a different light.  Apart from Paul’s writing in the New Testament I may never have learned to trust Jesus.  I’ve tried to imagine that the man Paul wrote about had kidnapped his father’s wife, kept her against her will, raped her repeatedly and refused to release her.  But that’s as much, or more, to ask of ἔχειν than the idea that he was pimping her for cultic purposes.

The man who had his father’s wife compares to Jezebel, who by her teaching deceives [Jesus’] servants to commit sexual immorality, as a man who walks into a congregation with a loaded gun compares to an active shooter.  Jesus gave Jezebel time to repent.  Paul didn’t say anything about time to repent, though I’m hard-pressed to determine what form the man’s repentance might have taken.

When I believed that πορνεία meant pre-marital sex[2] repentance seemed fairly straightforward: The man should dump the woman, go to college, get a high-paying job, return home, settle down and marry a nice girl—one who wouldn’t cohabit with her husband’s son.  That changed as I began to take the law (Exodus 22:16, 17, Deuteronomy 22:28-30) more seriously,[3] as a way to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He] sent.[4]  Of course, the woman in this case was or had been married to the man’s father.  By law both should have been condemned to death (Leviticus 20:10, 11).

Paul’s Regime

Jesus’ Regime
And you (ὑμεῖς, a form of ὑμείς) are proud (πεφυσιωμένοι, a form of φυσιόω)!  Shouldn’t you have been deeply sorrowful instead and removed (ἀρθῇ, a form of αἴρω) the one who did this from among you (ὑμῶν)?

1 Corinthians 5:2 (NET) Table

 Look!  I am throwing her onto a bed of violent illness, and those who commit adultery (μοιχεύοντας, a form of μοιχεύω) with her into terrible suffering, unless they repent of her deeds.

Revelation 2:22 (NET)

Paul addressed everyone (ὑμεῖς is second person plural) in the church at Corinth except the man who had his father’s wife, accusing them of being proud.  Of the seven occurrences of forms of φυσιόω in the New Testament, six are found in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians.  (It is at least his second letter.)  Pride or arrogance was a consistent theme in his mind as he wrote.

Paul claimed I became your father (ἐγέννησα, a form of γεννάω) in Christ Jesus through the gospel.[5]  Actually he wrote, For though you may have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers (πατέρας, a form of πατήρ) ἐν γὰρ Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ διὰ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ἐγὼ ὑμᾶς ἐγέννησα (literally, “for in Christ Jesus through the Gospel I gave birth to [KJV: have begotten] you”).  The NET translators shaded the arrogance of that statement a bit.  But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher and you are all brothers, Jesus taught his disciples.  And call no one your ‘father’ (πατέρα, another form of πατήρ) on earth, for you have one Father (πατὴρ, another form of πατήρ), who is in heaven.  Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one teacher, the Christ.[6]

The grandiose claim that the Corinthian believers were born of Paul (John 1:13 NIV ἐγεννήθησαν is another form of γεννάω) was out of character with Paul’s own teaching earlier in the same letter (1 Corinthians 3:6, 7 NET):

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.

I have applied these things to myself and Apollos, Paul wrote, because of you, brothers and sisters, so that through us you may learn “not to go beyond what is written,” so that none of you will be puffed up (φυσιοῦσθε, another form of φυσιόω) in favor of the one against the other.  For who concedes you any superiority?  What do you have that you did not receive?  And if you received it, why do you boast (καυχᾶσαι, a form of καυχάομαι) as though you did not?[7]  Of course, then he wrote (1 Corinthians 4:18-20 NET):

Some have become arrogant (ἐφυσιώθησαν, another form of φυσιόω), as if I were not coming to you.  But I will come to you soon, if the Lord is willing, and I will find out not only the talk of these arrogant (πεφυσιωμένων, another form of φυσιόω) people, but also their power.  For the kingdom of God is demonstrated not in idle talk but with power.

Though God’s power (δυνάμει, a form of δύναμις) would clearly be the truth of his final declaration, in context it doesn’t seem to be the power Paul had in mind.  What do you want? he continued as if the following choice would be made by the Corinthians rather than by Paul himself.  Shall I come to you with a rod of discipline (ράβδῳ, a form of ῥάβδος) or with love (ἀγάπῃ) and a spirit of gentleness (πραΰτητος, a form of πραΰτης)?[8]  (While I assume that Paul’s threat to return to Corinth to beat the arrogant with a stick was bluster, it is heartwarming to find such punishment distinguished from love in the New Testament.)  In the very same letter Paul wrote (1 Corinthians 8:1b-3 NET):

Knowledge puffs up (φυσιοῖ, another form of φυσιόω), but love (ἀγάπη) builds up.  If someone thinks he knows something, he does not yet know to the degree that he needs to know.  But if someone loves (ἀγαπᾷ, a form of ἀγαπάω) God, he is known (ἔγνωσται, a form of γινώσκω) by God.

And (1 Corinthians 13:4-13 NET):

Love is patient, love is kind, it is not envious.  Love does not brag, it is not puffed up (φυσιοῦται, another form of φυσιόω).  It is not rude, it is not self-serving, it is not easily angered or resentful.  It is not glad about injustice, but rejoices in the truth.  It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

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.  For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when what is perfect comes, the partial will be set aside.  When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.  But when I became an adult, I set aside childish ways.  For now we see in a mirror indirectly, but then we will see face to face.  Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, just as I have been fully known.  And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love.  But the greatest of these is love.

Paul formed his conclusion that the Corinthians were proud (πεφυσιωμένοι, a form of φυσιόω), not by direct observation and interaction with them but, by hearsay[9] and by the fact that they had not removed the one who did this from among [them].  Paul had asked rhetorically, Shouldn’t you have been deeply sorrowful instead and removed the one who did this from among you?  The Greek word translated deeply sorrowful is ἐπενθήσατε (a form of πενθέω).

I am afraid, Paul wrote, that when I come again, my God may humiliate me before you, and I will grieve (πενθήσω, another form of πενθέω) for many of those who previously sinned and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality (πορνείᾳ), and licentiousness that they have practiced.[10]  Truly, love is not glad about injustice;[11] it does not rejoice in iniquity.[12]  Grieve, mourn (πενθήσατε, another form of πενθέω), and weep, James wrote.  Turn your laughter into mourning (πένθος) and your joy into despair.  Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.[13]  But I can’t help wondering if this mourning wasn’t more cultural than divinely inspired.

Granted, Jesus said: Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn (πενθήσετε, another form of πενθέω) and weep;[14] and, The wedding guests cannot mourn (πενθεῖν, another form of πενθέω) while the bridegroom is with them, can they?[15]  He also said, Blessed are those who mourn (πενθοῦντες, another form of πενθέω), for they will be comforted.[16]  But I still remember the contrast between Ezra and Malachi:

Ezra

Malachi
While Ezra was praying and confessing, weeping and throwing himself to the ground before the temple of God, a very large crowd of Israelites – men, women, and children alike – gathered around him.  The people wept loudly [Table].  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].”

Ezra 10:1-3 (NET)

 You also do this: You cover the altar of the Lord with tears as you weep and groan, because he no longer pays any attention to the offering nor accepts it favorably from you [Table].  Yet you ask, “Why?”  The Lord 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.  What did our ancestor do when seeking a child from God?  Be attentive, then, to your own spirit, for one should not be disloyal to the wife he took in his youth [Table].  “I hate divorce,” says the Lord God of Israel, “and the one who is guilty of violence,” says the Lord who rules over all.  “Pay attention to your conscience, and do not be unfaithful” [Table].

Malachi 2:13-16 (NET)

As Jesus’ disciples mourned his death (or perhaps their own loss) they didn’t believe his comfort when it came to them in the form of a woman: Early on the first day of the week, after he arose, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had driven out seven demons.  She went out and told those who were with him, while they were mourning (πενθοῦσι, another form of πενθέω) and weeping.  And when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.[17]  So to the first part of Paul’s rhetorical question I can only give a qualified yes.

The Greek word translated removed in the second part of Paul’s rhetorical question was ἀρθῇ (a form of αἴρω).  “Take this man away (αἶρε, another form of αἴρω)!  Release Barabbas for us!”[18] an angry mob before Pilate rejected Jesus.  “Away (αἶρε, another form of αἴρω) with him!”[19] a mob in Jerusalem rejected Paul.  A crowd listening patiently to Paul’s defense turned ugly when he said that the Lord said to him, Go, because I will send you far away to the Gentiles.[20]  Then they raised their voices and shouted, “Away (αἶρε, another form of αἴρω) with this man from the earth!  For he should not be allowed to live!”[21]

Here again I can’t help wondering if Paul’s reaction wasn’t more cultural than divinely inspired.  But calling it cultural isn’t entirely accurate.  Paul’s reaction was precisely correct for a time under law when yehôvâh was present among his people in a way unknown since the garden of Eden, before He gave his life as an atonement for sin.  Consider Achan (Joshua 7) as a case in point.

Exile for the man who had his father’s wife (and the woman along with him, presumably) would be considered more merciful than death, but Jesus’ parable persuades me to reject the second part of Paul’s rhetorical question—Shouldn’t you have…removed the one who did this from among you?  When Jesus’ slaves asked if they should uproot the weeds planted by the enemy He said, No, since in gathering the weeds you may uproot the wheat with them.  Let both grow together until the harvest.[22]  This is not to say that I know whether the man who had his father’s wife was a weed planted by the enemy or a sinning saint.  It is to say, if this is Jesus’ attitude toward uprooting weeds planted by the enemy I dare not risk uprooting a sinning saint.

Let’s say for the sake of argument that I’m reading too much into Jesus’ parable.  Let’s say that I’m wrong about the angel of the church in Thyatira, that he was a human being rather than a higher order being.  Let’s grant, for the sake of argument, that Paul as an apostle had the authority and God-given wisdom to recognize a weed and uproot it.  Did he have the authority to turn the church of Jesus Christ in Corinth (and any who hear him today) from the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control of the Holy Spirit, and transform them into a paranoid police force?  Rather than knowing no law against loving our neighbor as well as our enemies, does every infraction of any law call us to dam up the fruit of the Holy Spirit?  Must we judge one another constantly lest we be proud for loving one another excessively?  I admit I sat silently through a sermon declaring that, Do not judge so that you will not be judged,[23] meant that we should judge and be judged.[24]

Hear Jesus’ regime by contrast: Look!  I am throwing her onto a bed of violent illness.  That is Jezebel, the one who by her teaching deceives my servants to commit sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols.[25]  Secondly, He is throwing those who commit adultery with her into terrible suffering, unless they repent of her deeds.  But there is not one word to the rest of the church in Thyatira about being proud because they had not removed Jezebel and her followers from their midst.  The criticism—But I have this against you—was laid directly on the angel of the church in Thyatira, whether human or a higher order being. Yes, the letter to the angel of the church in Thyatira was to be read by all the churches, but its content was directed with surgical precision.

To be fair the only reason I have the audacity to make this kind of critique of Paul’s writing in 1 Corinthians 5 is Paul’s extended treatise on love in his later writing to believers in Rome.  Therefore we must not pass judgment (κρίνωμεν, a form of κρίνω) on one another, but rather determine (κρίνατε, another form of κρίνω) never to place an obstacle or a trap before a brother or sister.[26]  Actually, Paul described love this way: Μηκέτι οὖν ἀλλήλους κρίνωμεν[27] (literally, “no longer then one another judge”).

[1] Revelation 2:18a (NET)

[2] An article by Bromleigh McCleneghan, “Sex and the single Christian: Why celibacy isn’t the only option,” was interesting bait for an unsuspecting moralist.  Obviously single people can have sex.  That’s how they become married people in God’s sight.  The rest is ceremony, celebration and government paperwork.  If anyone actually believed that religious leaders knew magical rites that could transmogrify illicit sex into holy matrimony those religious leaders would be compelled by law to perform those rites equally for all in a pluralistic society.  The only thing single people cannot do is fool God into thinking they are not guilty of adultery if they have sex with somebody different tomorrow night, simply because they have not signed government paperwork or had a ceremony or celebrated.

[3] Condemnation or Judgment? – Part 12, Ezra and Divorce

[4] John 17:3b (NET)

[5] 1 Corinthians 4:15b (NET)

[6] Matthew 23:8-10 (NET)

[7] 1 Corinthians 4:6, 7 (NET)

[8] 1 Corinthians 4:21 (NET)

[9] My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. (1 Corinthians 1:11 NIV)

[10] 2 Corinthians 12:21 (NET)

[11] 1 Corinthians 13:6a (NET)

[12] 1 Corinthians 13:6a (NKJV)

[13] James 4:9, 10 (NET)

[14] Luke 6:25b (NET)

[15] Mathew 9:15a (NET)

[16] Matthew 5:4 (NET)

[17] Mark 16:9-11 (NET)

[18] Luke 23:18b (NET)

[19] Acts 21:36b (NET)

[20] Acts 22:21b (NET)

[21] Acts 22:22b (NET)

[22] Matthew 13:29, 30a (NET)

[23] Matthew 7:1 (NET)

[24] This point of view is surprisingly common.   I found the following paraphrase online: “If you don’t want your life to be scrutinized, then don’t judge others.  If you can stand the scrutiny then go ahead.”  I will freely admit to needing as much grace as possible.  There are other voices online.

[25] Revelation 2:20b (NET)

[26] Romans 14:13 (NET)

[27] Romans 14:13a

Romans, Part 82

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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.

[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 81

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As I worked on this essay I read an article by Jeffrey Fleishman, How an angry national mood is reflected in pop culture.  Two sentences really resonated: 1) “Our screens and phones fume with righteousness;” and 2) “Our shared humanity has been demarcated on smaller and smaller screens that often brim more with quicksilver judgment than open-mindedness.”  It struck me as a sort of default position that I quote here as contrast to the righteousness of love Paul described.

One person regards one day holier than other days, and another regards them all alike,[1] Paul continued his discussion of love.  No form of ἅγιος occurs in the text.  The concept holier is derived from κρίνει (a form of κρίνω), “to distinguish, to separate, put asunder, to pick out, select, choose,” translated regards.  I don’t think there is any problem with that translation except that the second regards is also κρίνει, so another regards all days equally holy would be a more balanced translation of the second clause.  A note (3) in the NET acknowledged the literal text: “For one judges day from day, and one judges all days.”

Each must be fully convinced (πληροφορείσθω, a form of πληροφορέω) in his own mind,[2] Paul continued.  He was fully convinced (πληροφορηθεὶς, another form of πληροφορέω) that what God promised he was also able to do, Paul wrote of Abraham.  So indeed it was credited to Abraham as righteousness.[3]  But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message would be fully proclaimed (πληροφορηθῇ, another form of πληροφορέω) for all the Gentiles to hear,[4] he wrote Timothy.  And, You, however, be self-controlled in all things, endure hardship, do an evangelist’s work, fulfill (πληροφόρησον, another form of πληροφορέω) your ministry.  For I am already being poured out as an offering, and the time for me to depart is at hand.[5]  Epaphras, who is one of you, Paul wrote believers in Colossae, and a slave of Christ, greets you.  He is always struggling in prayer on your behalf, so that you may stand mature and fully assured (πεπληροφορημένοι, another form of πληροφορέω) in all the will of God.[6]

This gives me a good picture of the caliber of conviction Paul addressed.  A Catholic believer may be fully convinced that Sunday, the day Jesus arose from death, is the most holy day of the week.  A Seventh Day Adventist may be fully convinced that Saturday (28 Fundamental Beliefs, The Sabbath 20), the original Sabbath yehôvâh consecrated in the law, is more holy.  And I may be fully convinced that since I began to be led by the Holy Spirit every day is most holy:  Consequently a Sabbath rest remains for the people of God.  For the one who enters God’s rest has also rested from his works, just as God did from his own works.[7]

As I rest from my own works of sin and my own righteousness (likened to used tampons) to rely instead on 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 fruit of the Spirit, I see every day as the Sabbath.  And I  understand why Jesus healed so stubbornly on the Sabbath: to demonstrate beyond the shadow of any doubt that it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath,[9] including by the way serving my employer as a slave of Christ.[10]  But love neither despises nor judges us—the Catholic, the Seventh Day Adventist or me—for our differing convictions concerning holy days.

The one who observes (φρονῶν, a form of φρονέω) the day does (φρονεῖ, another form of φρονέω) it for the Lord, Paul continued.  The one who eats, eats for the Lord because he gives thanks to God, and the one who abstains from eating abstains for the Lord, and he gives thanks to God.  For none of us lives for himself and none dies for himself.  If we live, we live for the Lord; if we die, we die for the Lord.  Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.[11]  Then Paul added a somewhat curious aside about Jesus’ rule (κυριεύσῃ, a form of κυριεύω).  For this reason Christ died and returned to life, so that he may be the Lord (κυριεύσῃ) of both the dead and the living.[12]

My religion has taught me to add “if I allow it” to an assertion such as this.  I’ve learned to assert my will over the lordship of Jesus.  But I notice now that isn’t in the text.  And certainly the assertion of my authority over his was never my elders’ intent but an unintended consequence of what I now see as a defensive posture: If I refuse or fail to believe sufficiently in Jesus in this lifetime and spend eternity in hell it was not that Christ’s death and life failed to make Him Lord of both the dead and the living, but that I didn’t allow his Lordship to be efficacious in my earthly lifetime.  It is a brilliant maneuver.  I’m not convinced it’s true, so I’ll let Paul speak for himself once again: For this reason Christ died and returned to life, so that he may be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

But you who eat vegetables only, Paul continued, why do you judge (κρίνεις, another form of κρίνω) your brother or sister?  And you who eat everything – why do you despise (ἐξουθενεῖς, a form of ἐξουθενέω) your brother or sister?  For we will all stand before the judgment seat (βήματι, a form of βῆμα) of God.  For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.”[13]  I’m not sure about translating ἐξομολογήσεται (a form of ἐξομολογέω) will give praise here, no matter how hopeful it sounds.

Judas agreed (ἐξωμολόγησεν, another form of ἐξομολογέω) and began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus.[14]  Paul wrote the Philippians, that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow – in heaven and on earth and under the earth – and every tongue confess (ἐξομολογήσηται, another form of ἐξομολογέω) that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.[15]  As it is written, Paul quoted Psalm 18:49, “Because of this I will confess (ἐξομολογήσομαι, another form of ἐξομολογέω) you among the Gentiles, and I will sing praises (ψαλῶ, a form of ψάλλω) to your name.”[16]  So confess (ἐξομολογεῖσθε, another form of ἐξομολογέω) your sins to one another,[17] James wrote.  People from Jerusalem…confessed (ἐξομολογούμενοι, another form of ἐξομολογέω) their sins[18] as they were baptized.  And in Ephesus, Many of those who had believed came forward, confessing (ἐξομολογούμενοι, another form of ἐξομολογέω) and making their deeds known.[19]

Paul’s point here was, Therefore, each of us will give an account (λόγον, a form of λόγος) of himself to God.[20]  Of course, if every tongue confesses, what will the outcome be?  To be fair and complete, Jesus said, I praise (ἐξομολογοῦμαι, another form of ἐξομολογέω) you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent, and revealed them to little children.[21]  On that same occasion Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I praise (ἐξομολογοῦμαι, another form of ἐξομολογέω) you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent, and revealed them to little children.  Yes, Father, for this was your gracious will.”[22]  Perhaps this ἐξομολογέω, agreement with God, confession to God, is a form of praise after all.

Therefore we must not pass judgment on one another,[23] Paul concluded, Μηκέτι οὖν ἀλλήλους κρίνωμεν (literally, “no longer therefore one another judge” or “therefore we no longer judge one another”).  I don’t understand why the NET translators turned this simple declarative statement into a rule, beyond the social construction of our shared religious reality.  Most translations adopted some form of let us stop here. Though I remain the locus of control in both translations, one might argue that in let us stop I have repented and am heading in the right direction, not-doing as opposed to doing.  But neither translation conveys being the love with which Christ’s Spirit fills us.

Before I was focused on the fruit of the Spirit I was like a fat ugly woman–or an old poor powerless man for that matter–priding myself in my celibacy.  But seeing righteousness as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control has put me in direct conflict with how sinful the sin in my flesh actually is.  It is utterly opposed to love or joy or peace or patience or kindness or goodness or faithfulness or gentleness or any and every form of control.  This conflict, mostly losing it, has taught me to stop trusting in myself but in God who raises the dead.

We know that our old man was crucified with him so that the body of sin would no longer dominate us, so that we would no longer (μηκέτι) be enslaved to sin.[24]  This is the same word as Μηκέτι in “therefore we no longer judge one another” above.  And [Jesus] died for all so that those who live should no longer (μηκέτι) live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised.[25]  So we are no longer (μηκέτι) to be children, tossed back and forth by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching by the trickery of people who craftily carry out their deceitful schemes.  But practicing the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ, who is the head.  From him the whole body grows, fitted and held together through every supporting ligament.  As each one does its part, the body grows in love.  So I say this, and insist in the Lord, that you no longer (μηκέτι) live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.[26]

In other words, this κρίνωμεν (another form of κρίνω; translated pass judgment) is from the old human.  We judge no longer if we are no longer the old human, if we are led by Spirit, but rather determine (κρίνατε, another form of κρίνω) never to place an obstacle or a trap before a brother or sister, Paul continued.  I know (οἶδα, a form of εἴδω) and am convinced (πέπεισμαι, a form of πείθω) in the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean (κοινὸν, a form of κοινός) in itself,[27] the former Pharisee agreed and confessed with (and so praised?) Jesus (Mark 7:1-8 NET).

Now the Pharisees and some of the experts in the law who came from Jerusalem gathered around him.  And they saw that some of Jesus’ disciples ate their bread with unclean (κοιναῖς, another form of κοινός) hands, that is, unwashed (ἀνίπτοις, a form of ἄνιπτος).  (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they perform a ritual washing, holding fast to the tradition of the elders.  And when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.  They hold fast to many other traditions: the washing of cups, pots, kettles, and dining couches.)  The Pharisees and the experts in the law asked him, “Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with unwashed (κοιναῖς, another form of κοινός) hands?”  He said to them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.  They worship me in vain, teaching as doctrine the commandments of men.’  Having no regard for the command of God, you hold fast to human tradition.”

Born the son of a scrubby dutch mother with an obsessive personality of my own, I have a serious hand-washing fetish.  It has become apparent that applying the sterile conditions of the operating room to all of life is detrimental to human health.  At the Institute for Functional Medicine conferences I record I’m learning that our overly cleanly habits may be part of the cause of our maladaptive immune systems.  Children need dirt as much as mother’s milk to jump-start their immune and digestive systems.  Jesus said (Mark 7:14, 15 NET):

Listen to me, everyone, and understand.  There is nothing outside of a person that can defile (κοινῶσαι, a form of κοινόω) him by going into him.  Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles (κοινοῦντα, another form of κοινόω) him.

Jesus’ disciples were as surprised by this as we may be, so he explained (Mark 7:18-23 NET):

“Are you so foolish?  Don’t you understand that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile (κοινῶσαι, another form of κοινόω) him?  For it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and then goes out into the sewer.”  (This means all foods are clean.)  He said, “What comes out of a person defiles (κοινοῖ, another form of κοινόω) him.  For from within, out of the human heart, come evil ideas, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, evil (πονηρίαι, a form of πονηρία), deceit, debauchery, envy (ὀφθαλμὸς πονηρός), slander, pride, and folly.  All these evils come from within and defile (κοινοῖ, another form of κοινόω) a person.”

By the way, another tidbit I’ve gleaned from IFM conferences is that inflammation caused by stress impairs the healthy functioning of all our biological systems.  I imagine the stress of all these evils (πονηρὰ, a form of πονηρός, “hurtful, full of labours, annoyances, hardships”) and know firsthand the stress of attempting to overcome them in my own strength rather than receiving the righteousness that comes by way of Christ’s faithfulness – a righteousness from God that is in fact based on Christ’s faithfulness, the fruit of his Spirit.  I’ll pick this up again later.

Below is a comparison of Paul’s Old Testament quotations with the Septuagint, the NET and the KJV.

NET

 Parallel Greek

Septuagint
every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.

Romans 14:11b

 ὅτι ἐμοὶ κάμψει πᾶν γόνυ καὶ πᾶσα γλῶσσα ἐξομολογήσεται τῷ θεῷ

Romans 14:11b

 ὅτι ἐμοὶ κάμψει πᾶν γόνυ καὶ ἐξομολογήσεται πᾶσα γλῶσσα τῷ θεῷ

Isaiah 45:23b

NET

 NET

KJV
every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.

Romans 14:11b

 Surely every knee will bow to me, every tongue will solemnly affirm

Isaiah 45:23b

 That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear

Isaiah 45:23b
NET Parallel Greek

Septuagint
Because of this I will confess you among the Gentiles, and I will sing praises to your name.

Romans 15:9b

 διὰ τοῦτο ἐξομολογήσομαι σοι ἐν ἔθνεσιν καὶ τῷ ὀνόματι σου ψαλῶ

Romans 15:9b

 διὰ τοῦτο ἐξομολογήσομαί σοι ἐν ἔθνεσιν κύριε καὶ τῷ ὀνόματί σου ψαλῶ

Psalm 18:49

NET

 NET

KJV
Because of this I will confess you among the Gentiles, and I will sing praises to your name.

Romans 15:9b

 So I will give you thanks before the nations, O Lord!  I will sing praises to you!

Psalm 18:49

 Therefore will I give thanks unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises unto thy name.

Psalm 18:49

Romans, Part 82

[1] Romans 14:5a (NET)

[2] Romans 14:5b (NET)

[3] Romans 4:21, 22 (NET)

[4] 2 Timothy 4:17a (NET)

[5] 2 Timothy 4:5, 6 (NET)

[6] Colossians 4:12 (NET)

[7] Hebrews 4:9, 10 (NET)

[8] Philippians 3:9b (NET)

[9] Matthew 12:12b (NET)

[10] Ephesians 6:5-8 (NET)  I certainly relate to having difficulty with this passage.  If you find it impossible to serve your employer as a slave of Christ, perhaps you are not being led by the Holy Spirit or perhaps you need to seek a new job, assuming you are free to do so.

[11] Romans 14:6-8 (NET)

[12] Romans 14:9 (NET)

[13] Romans 14:10, 11 (NET)

[14] Luke 22:6 (NET)

[15] Philippians 2:10, 11 (NET)

[16] Romans 15:9b (NET)

[17] James 5:16a (NET)

[18] Matthew 3:5, 6 (NET); Mark 1:5 (NET)

[19] Acts 19:18 (NET)

[20] Romans 14:12 (NET) Table

[21] Matthew 11:25 (NET)

[22] Luke 10:21 (NET)

[23] Romans 14:13a (NET)

[24] Romans 6:6 (NET)

[25] 2 Corinthians 5:15 (NET)

[26] Ephesians 4:14-17 (NET) Table

[27] Romans 14:13b, 14a (NET)