In recent months I have been re-examining a number of Scriptural doctrines I have held with deep and strong conviction now for thirty or more years. This is not an easy thing to do.
It is not easy, for one thing, because it is hard work. It is hard spiritual (and physical, at least mental) work, which must be done in the face of a myriad of crushing earthly demands on ones time and energy.
It is not easy, for another thing, because it is hard to come to the Bible without an agenda and without bias, both borne out of advocating and contending for these doctrines all these decades. It is easy in this regard, to fall into a pattern of going to the Bible to just confirm my presuppositions.
But I believe that we live in a day in which the "little book" (greek, biblion) of Revelation 10 is being opened. That is, I believe God is opening grand and dreadful truths to our understanding from the Bible; truths which he had sealed away from the understanding of previous generations. This is new revelation; not new revelation in the sense that additional written or spoken words are being added to the Bible, but new revelation in the sense that God is opening our understanding to truths that have been in the Bible all along. These truths, if corroborated, harmonized, and thus validated with all the Bible teaches have the potential to cause a paradigm-shift in some of our previous understandings. Such a paradigm-shift might, on the surface, might seem radical, but in the final analysis, if found true, to be tantamount to "seeing every man clearly"; our previous understandings the equivalent of "seeing men as trees, walking" (Matthew 8:24-25).
So let each one of us go to the Bible with the prayer that God would open the biblion, in all Christ's truth and fidelity, to each one of us.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Ebed-Melech - part 4
There are two outstanding characteristics Ebedmelech demonstrates that we'll note. First is Ebedmelech's compassion. Jeremiah's lot was most desperate.
" And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire." Jer 38:6
"Jeremiah 38:7-9 Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; Ebedmelech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying, My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city." Jeremiah 38:7-9
Note Ebedmelech did not just throw up his hands and say, "Well, things are bad for Jeremiah, but look, it is bad all around. Our city is about to be taken. Times are bad. Too bad for Jeremiah." No, Ebedmelech had compassion on Jeremiah, conpassion which impelled him to action. Action which incurred mortal risk.
So the True Believer of today recognizes that his fellow man is in a pit, that is, under the wrath of God. The true believer knows his fellow man has no spiritual food or drink. He lacks the spiritual water, of the Gospel. Unsaved man lacks the Bread of Life. The true bekliver is gripped with conmpassion for his fellow man.
So Ebedmelech is impelled to action.
But we should also note Ebedmelech's COURAGE. He was impelled to take action on Jeremiah's behalf which all logic would dictate would result in Ebedmelech's death. Jeremiah had a death sentence on him, which is why he was in the dungeon ion the first place. Ebedmelech intervenes on Jeremiah's behalf which should have resulted in Ebedmelech ending up where Jeremiah was; sinking into the mud of the dungeon and dying a slow agonizing death of thirst and starvation.
Ebedmelech rebukes the evil of Zedekiah's men in placing Jeremiah in the dungeon in verse 9. *That, too* well could have resulted in Ebedmelech's summary execution. And Ebedmelech actually coordinated Jeremiahs release out of the dungeon and into the prison court, which could easily have incurred the deadly wrath of Jeremiah's accusers.
So this is a necessary attribute of the true believer of today. He is willing to give his life in service of his saviour. Being a true believer in Christ is this day and age, just as in Jeremiah's day, is a very lonely and solitary business. Not many, if any will be willing to stand with you.
The big requirement for being able to follow through on one's resolve to follow Christ to the death is to be born again. "Ye must be born again" John 3:7. And if you are born again, you WILL stand, even in the face of persection and even death.
" And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire." Jer 38:6
"Jeremiah 38:7-9 Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; Ebedmelech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying, My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city." Jeremiah 38:7-9
Note Ebedmelech did not just throw up his hands and say, "Well, things are bad for Jeremiah, but look, it is bad all around. Our city is about to be taken. Times are bad. Too bad for Jeremiah." No, Ebedmelech had compassion on Jeremiah, conpassion which impelled him to action. Action which incurred mortal risk.
So the True Believer of today recognizes that his fellow man is in a pit, that is, under the wrath of God. The true believer knows his fellow man has no spiritual food or drink. He lacks the spiritual water, of the Gospel. Unsaved man lacks the Bread of Life. The true bekliver is gripped with conmpassion for his fellow man.
So Ebedmelech is impelled to action.
But we should also note Ebedmelech's COURAGE. He was impelled to take action on Jeremiah's behalf which all logic would dictate would result in Ebedmelech's death. Jeremiah had a death sentence on him, which is why he was in the dungeon ion the first place. Ebedmelech intervenes on Jeremiah's behalf which should have resulted in Ebedmelech ending up where Jeremiah was; sinking into the mud of the dungeon and dying a slow agonizing death of thirst and starvation.
Ebedmelech rebukes the evil of Zedekiah's men in placing Jeremiah in the dungeon in verse 9. *That, too* well could have resulted in Ebedmelech's summary execution. And Ebedmelech actually coordinated Jeremiahs release out of the dungeon and into the prison court, which could easily have incurred the deadly wrath of Jeremiah's accusers.
So this is a necessary attribute of the true believer of today. He is willing to give his life in service of his saviour. Being a true believer in Christ is this day and age, just as in Jeremiah's day, is a very lonely and solitary business. Not many, if any will be willing to stand with you.
The big requirement for being able to follow through on one's resolve to follow Christ to the death is to be born again. "Ye must be born again" John 3:7. And if you are born again, you WILL stand, even in the face of persection and even death.
Ebed-Melech - part 3
Continued from a previous post...
Jeremiah 38:7-9 Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; Ebedmelech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying, My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city.
"Ebedmelech" - in Hebrew, this name means "servant of the King". Thus, Ebedmelech is a type of the true believers in Christ. Remember that Paul, in the New Testmant, referred to himself over and over again as a "servant" of slave of Jesus Christ. [Ron's note: is this MY conscious identity as well?]
"the Ethiopian" - even in the Old Testament, God did not restrict his salvation plan to National Israel, even though it was chiefly identified with that nation. Here Ebedmelech is an Ethiopian, yet he is saved. God's salvation goes to every nation, tongue, tribe and language today. God is not a respecter of persons. Remember the other Ethiopian eunuch of the Bible, recorded in Acts
8:26-40.
Jeremiah 38:7-9 Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; Ebedmelech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying, My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city.
"Ebedmelech" - in Hebrew, this name means "servant of the King". Thus, Ebedmelech is a type of the true believers in Christ. Remember that Paul, in the New Testmant, referred to himself over and over again as a "servant" of slave of Jesus Christ. [Ron's note: is this MY conscious identity as well?]
"the Ethiopian" - even in the Old Testament, God did not restrict his salvation plan to National Israel, even though it was chiefly identified with that nation. Here Ebedmelech is an Ethiopian, yet he is saved. God's salvation goes to every nation, tongue, tribe and language today. God is not a respecter of persons. Remember the other Ethiopian eunuch of the Bible, recorded in Acts
8:26-40.
Ebed-Melech - part 2
Continued from previous post...
The historical context of Jeremiah 38 is the waning days of a besieged Jerusalem just prior to the destruction of the city by the Babylonians in 587 BC.
Recall the history of Israel. After Solomon's death Israel was divided. In 931 BC the division between the Northern ten tribes, collectively referred to as "Israel", and the southern Kingdom of Judah, composed of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. The Northern Kingdom of Israel was apostate from its very beginning. Israel was presided over by a series of twenty kings, and all of those kings were exceedingly wicked. The Southern Kingdom of Judah, on the other hand, while far from perfect, did have some good kings, and in its history did enjoy some times of relative faithfulness to the Lord.
God continually warned the Northern Kingdom to repent of its evil and turn to God. They did not, and were eventually destroyed by God using the instrumentality of the Assyrians in 722 BC. The Southern Kingdom of Judah would also succumb to the apostasy of its sister Kingdom to the north, and came under God's hand of destruction in 587 BC. This account of Ebed-Melech takes place just prior to 587 BC, when the siege had waxed sore, and the residents of Jerusalem were reduced to the desperation, deprivation, and starvation inherent in sieges; even to eating their own children.
We, the professing true believers of today must heed the warning that, while we do have the great privilege of being ambassadors of the Word, we also must be acutely aware that should we depart from faithfulness to God and to the message of the Bible, we, too would come under the wrath of God.
Jeremiah was left in Jerusalem by God to testify against the kingdom, and to report to us the goings-on there. Jeremiah, for his testimony, came under great persecution, to the point of being cast into a dungeon, under the immenent threat of death from starvation, thirst, or exposure at the hands of the palace of Zedekiah, as we read in Jeremiah 38:1-6:
1 Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashur, and Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashur the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken unto all the people, saying, 2 Thus saith the LORD, He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey, and shall live. 3 Thus saith the LORD, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which shall take it. 4 Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man be put to death: for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them: for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people, but the hurt. 5 Then Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hand: for the king is not he that can do any thing against you. 6 Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.
The historical context of Jeremiah 38 is the waning days of a besieged Jerusalem just prior to the destruction of the city by the Babylonians in 587 BC.
Recall the history of Israel. After Solomon's death Israel was divided. In 931 BC the division between the Northern ten tribes, collectively referred to as "Israel", and the southern Kingdom of Judah, composed of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. The Northern Kingdom of Israel was apostate from its very beginning. Israel was presided over by a series of twenty kings, and all of those kings were exceedingly wicked. The Southern Kingdom of Judah, on the other hand, while far from perfect, did have some good kings, and in its history did enjoy some times of relative faithfulness to the Lord.
God continually warned the Northern Kingdom to repent of its evil and turn to God. They did not, and were eventually destroyed by God using the instrumentality of the Assyrians in 722 BC. The Southern Kingdom of Judah would also succumb to the apostasy of its sister Kingdom to the north, and came under God's hand of destruction in 587 BC. This account of Ebed-Melech takes place just prior to 587 BC, when the siege had waxed sore, and the residents of Jerusalem were reduced to the desperation, deprivation, and starvation inherent in sieges; even to eating their own children.
We, the professing true believers of today must heed the warning that, while we do have the great privilege of being ambassadors of the Word, we also must be acutely aware that should we depart from faithfulness to God and to the message of the Bible, we, too would come under the wrath of God.
Jeremiah was left in Jerusalem by God to testify against the kingdom, and to report to us the goings-on there. Jeremiah, for his testimony, came under great persecution, to the point of being cast into a dungeon, under the immenent threat of death from starvation, thirst, or exposure at the hands of the palace of Zedekiah, as we read in Jeremiah 38:1-6:
1 Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashur, and Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashur the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken unto all the people, saying, 2 Thus saith the LORD, He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey, and shall live. 3 Thus saith the LORD, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which shall take it. 4 Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man be put to death: for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them: for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people, but the hurt. 5 Then Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hand: for the king is not he that can do any thing against you. 6 Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.
Ebed-Melech part 1
I listened to this study again today. I had heard it before and recalled it was an excellent study so I wanted to review it again. Here are my notes from the study. I have included some additional thoughts of my own, which are identified as such by means of bracks ([]). Feel free to copy my notes and modify/augment if you wish.
We read in Jeremiah 38:7-13:
7 Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; 8 Ebedmelech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying, 9 My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city. 10 Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die. 11 So Ebedmelech took the men with him, and went into the house of the king under the treasury, and took thence old cast clouts and old rotten rags, and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah. 12 And Ebedmelech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah, Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so. 13 So they drew up Jeremiah with cords, and took him up out of the dungeon: and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
To be continued in next post.
We read in Jeremiah 38:7-13:
7 Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; 8 Ebedmelech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying, 9 My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city. 10 Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die. 11 So Ebedmelech took the men with him, and went into the house of the king under the treasury, and took thence old cast clouts and old rotten rags, and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah. 12 And Ebedmelech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah, Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so. 13 So they drew up Jeremiah with cords, and took him up out of the dungeon: and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
To be continued in next post.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Saturday, February 09, 2008
Hmmm...
Today (Saturday) I sat around loafing on the couch while two of my sons were doing the brakes on one of my cars.
I don't feel guilty. (well, not very.)
Am I a bad parent?
Friday, February 08, 2008
Well, Now that I am on a "Handel's Messiah" Kick...
This is simply dazzling:
I have (somewhere) the VHS tape of this entire performance of Messiah. The program was produced, I believe, in 1983.
I have (somewhere) the VHS tape of this entire performance of Messiah. The program was produced, I believe, in 1983.
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Musically, Though...
Musically, (not spiritually) the video below of the Hallelujah Chorus left a bit to be desired.
The tempo was a bit fast, and the style was a bit too martial. Yes, this work needs to be performed with the appropriate grandeur, but it also needs to flow. It needs to live. It needs to breathe. The Chorus is what it is, it needs no veneer.
Also, when performed by professionals, as it was in the video, the singers approach it as a professional job, while the audience member looks for some personal connection to the truths of the work on the part of the performers. Or at least some sense wonderment on their part. There is little if any to be found here. I guess though I have digressed into spiritual analysis. That is hard to avoid with any part of Handel's Messiah.
However, none of this prevented the sheer beauty of the voices from shining through. The tenors, especially on the buildup of For the Lord God Omnipotent Reigneth were just, were just, -- oh, words fail so miserably at times like this -- heart-meltingly magnificent. The sopranos soared supremely, especially on The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.
The glory of this most beautiful piece of music ever written cannot be completely obscured by mans devices or failings.
The tempo was a bit fast, and the style was a bit too martial. Yes, this work needs to be performed with the appropriate grandeur, but it also needs to flow. It needs to live. It needs to breathe. The Chorus is what it is, it needs no veneer.
Also, when performed by professionals, as it was in the video, the singers approach it as a professional job, while the audience member looks for some personal connection to the truths of the work on the part of the performers. Or at least some sense wonderment on their part. There is little if any to be found here. I guess though I have digressed into spiritual analysis. That is hard to avoid with any part of Handel's Messiah.
However, none of this prevented the sheer beauty of the voices from shining through. The tenors, especially on the buildup of For the Lord God Omnipotent Reigneth were just, were just, -- oh, words fail so miserably at times like this -- heart-meltingly magnificent. The sopranos soared supremely, especially on The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.
The glory of this most beautiful piece of music ever written cannot be completely obscured by mans devices or failings.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
I should add ...
to my previous post that this reminds us that word studies alone do not always lead us to the whole truth. If the grammar of the verse in the translation is not correct, then word studies will of course shed light on individual words but we will still miss the overall meaning of the verse, and end up thinking the verse says something it does not in fact say.
Unfortunately checking the translation of a verse is not usually very easy. This is because analytical concordances (hardbound or computer programs) do not give visibility into the part of speech. It simply gives a Strongs number that corresponds to the most general form of a word. For example, a reference of "he runneth", "you run", or "they run" will all give the same Strongs number -- for the verb "to run". This visibility is not always sufficient.
An interlinear can be very helpful. But we still need to be careful even with this tool. When I was checking out Zechariah 14:6 in my interlinear, it had "precious ones" listed as Strongs# 6918. It is actually Strongs# 3368. When I cross-checked 3368 against 1 Kings 5:17 to verify it was indeed the plural form, I found that the verses in the interlinear's english baseline for 1 Kings 5 in my interlinear were misnumbered.
Unfortunately checking the translation of a verse is not usually very easy. This is because analytical concordances (hardbound or computer programs) do not give visibility into the part of speech. It simply gives a Strongs number that corresponds to the most general form of a word. For example, a reference of "he runneth", "you run", or "they run" will all give the same Strongs number -- for the verb "to run". This visibility is not always sufficient.
An interlinear can be very helpful. But we still need to be careful even with this tool. When I was checking out Zechariah 14:6 in my interlinear, it had "precious ones" listed as Strongs# 6918. It is actually Strongs# 3368. When I cross-checked 3368 against 1 Kings 5:17 to verify it was indeed the plural form, I found that the verses in the interlinear's english baseline for 1 Kings 5 in my interlinear were misnumbered.
Upon Further Review
I double-checked the Hebrew very closely, and I am now even more convinced that my grammatical analysis of Zechariah 14:6 is correct. The Hebrew of the verse says,
"And it shall be in that day, there shall not be light; the precious [ones] shall thicken (or congeal, or settle out)"
The word "light" is a singular noun. The word "precious" is plural, not singular. The verb "thicken" is plural. Thus "precious" agrees grammatically with "precious ones"; and the singular "light" agrees with "there shall not be".
"And it shall be in that day, there shall not be light; the precious [ones] shall thicken (or congeal, or settle out)"
The word "light" is a singular noun. The word "precious" is plural, not singular. The verb "thicken" is plural. Thus "precious" agrees grammatically with "precious ones"; and the singular "light" agrees with "there shall not be".
Sunday, December 30, 2007
God Preserves His Word
"For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." Matthew 5:18
The word translated "jot" is the greek word "iota", which often transliterates into the english letter "i". The word"tittle" appears only here and in Luke 16:17. Significantly it appears without connection to "jot" in the Luke passage.
Iota, as a greek letter, thus identifies with the New Testament. "Tittle, by virtue of its being featured alone in Luke 16 and in connection with the phrase "the law" identifies with the Old Testament.
Since these two words are brought together in Matthew 5, we can see God emphasizing here that BOTH the Old and New Testaments are the LAW of God. And as the law of God, the divine promise is that the record of God's law will not fall victim to corruption to the point that the perfectly preserved Word of God will no longer exist in the world. What a precous promise this is.
"7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward."
Psalm 19:7-11
The word translated "jot" is the greek word "iota", which often transliterates into the english letter "i". The word"tittle" appears only here and in Luke 16:17. Significantly it appears without connection to "jot" in the Luke passage.
Iota, as a greek letter, thus identifies with the New Testament. "Tittle, by virtue of its being featured alone in Luke 16 and in connection with the phrase "the law" identifies with the Old Testament.
Since these two words are brought together in Matthew 5, we can see God emphasizing here that BOTH the Old and New Testaments are the LAW of God. And as the law of God, the divine promise is that the record of God's law will not fall victim to corruption to the point that the perfectly preserved Word of God will no longer exist in the world. What a precous promise this is.
"7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward."
Psalm 19:7-11
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Biblical Hebrew
Just to clarify an earlier post a bit:
I am not necessarily advocating beating your way through the recommended Hebrew book and learning the language. Rather, I suggest getting the Hebrew grammar book to have handy on your shelf as a research tool. If you know the Hebrew alphabet, then you can use the book to find out if Hebrew word(s) is/are nouns, verbs, singular, plural, etc. Sometimes these distinctions are quite significant, and you can't discern them by looking at Strong's numbers. And sometimes the interlinear rendering is off, too, so you can't just assume that is always correct.
While I am thinking about it, I would also like to heartily recommend the hardbound Englishman's Concordances (two volumes, one for NT one for OT) by Wigram. These volumes are organized by Strong's numbers, and, significantly, many concordance computer programs are based on the information set forth in these books. However, sometimes cracking these volumes open allows you to discover important closely related word(s) to the one(s) you are studying. Every computer program I have ever tried almost always miss such relations, so it is good when to have these additional tools also on your Bible Study bookshelf.
I am not necessarily advocating beating your way through the recommended Hebrew book and learning the language. Rather, I suggest getting the Hebrew grammar book to have handy on your shelf as a research tool. If you know the Hebrew alphabet, then you can use the book to find out if Hebrew word(s) is/are nouns, verbs, singular, plural, etc. Sometimes these distinctions are quite significant, and you can't discern them by looking at Strong's numbers. And sometimes the interlinear rendering is off, too, so you can't just assume that is always correct.
While I am thinking about it, I would also like to heartily recommend the hardbound Englishman's Concordances (two volumes, one for NT one for OT) by Wigram. These volumes are organized by Strong's numbers, and, significantly, many concordance computer programs are based on the information set forth in these books. However, sometimes cracking these volumes open allows you to discover important closely related word(s) to the one(s) you are studying. Every computer program I have ever tried almost always miss such relations, so it is good when to have these additional tools also on your Bible Study bookshelf.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Thelo, Strongs Greek Word# 2309
This word means "to will". In contexts where the will cannot be immediately be exercised, then the idea conveyed is one of potential exercise of the will, or desire. Anyway, I recommend you spend some time this Sunday reading through each and every use of this word in the Bible. This is an exercise that is very, VERY revealing.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Phillipians 2:13
"For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of [his] good pleasure."
The word, "to will" is the greek thelo (Strongs 2309) which has to do literally with the exercising of the will.
God works in the true believer to incline the believer to WILL and thus consequently to DO of God's pleasure. That is why the true believer rightly gives God all the glory and all the praise for anything the true believer might do in his life that might align at all with the will of God.
How can it be then, that UNSAVED man can do things that are "pleasing to God" all by himself, without the inworking of God, as we are told repeatedly man can do and does do in IHGWSM?
I am vexed beyond words about this; hence the somewhat off-beat (though some might say not offbeat for me) posts of the last two days. I had to get my mind off it for a while...
The word, "to will" is the greek thelo (Strongs 2309) which has to do literally with the exercising of the will.
God works in the true believer to incline the believer to WILL and thus consequently to DO of God's pleasure. That is why the true believer rightly gives God all the glory and all the praise for anything the true believer might do in his life that might align at all with the will of God.
How can it be then, that UNSAVED man can do things that are "pleasing to God" all by himself, without the inworking of God, as we are told repeatedly man can do and does do in IHGWSM?
I am vexed beyond words about this; hence the somewhat off-beat (though some might say not offbeat for me) posts of the last two days. I had to get my mind off it for a while...
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Observation on John 8
D-----,
I think you are quite possibly correct. Jesus is also the "first", as in the "first and the last". And the stone was thrown, in the woman's case, at Calvary, and in her case Jesus was struck by the the stone in her stead, because He said, "Neither do I condemn thee" John 8:11. See also 2 Corinthians 5:21.
Ron
>From: "-----.com" >>To: QuitChurchFlee2Christ@hotmail.com>
Subject: Observation in John 8>Date: Tue, 12 Jun 2007 16:41:05 GMT>>
Ron,
a while back I noticed something in John 8 (woman caught in adultery) that I had never thought about or been taught about. Almost everyone, even out in the world, has heard this famous story and appreciated the principle of not throwing the first stone since we are all sinners etc etc. Historically we know that they were trying to trap Jesus, thinking that regardless of what he said about the death penalty, they would have a reason to find fault with him. But one day it occured to me, when Jesus said, "let him among you that is without sin cast the first stone at her", could it be that he is effectively saying....."Only I am qualified to stone her." Referring to the phrase, "let him among you that is without sin...." Could it be that Jesus' usage of the word 'him" is a reference to himself? Any thoughts?>D-----
I think you are quite possibly correct. Jesus is also the "first", as in the "first and the last". And the stone was thrown, in the woman's case, at Calvary, and in her case Jesus was struck by the the stone in her stead, because He said, "Neither do I condemn thee" John 8:11. See also 2 Corinthians 5:21.
Ron
>From: "-----.com" >>To: QuitChurchFlee2Christ@hotmail.com>
Subject: Observation in John 8>Date: Tue, 12 Jun 2007 16:41:05 GMT>>
Ron,
a while back I noticed something in John 8 (woman caught in adultery) that I had never thought about or been taught about. Almost everyone, even out in the world, has heard this famous story and appreciated the principle of not throwing the first stone since we are all sinners etc etc. Historically we know that they were trying to trap Jesus, thinking that regardless of what he said about the death penalty, they would have a reason to find fault with him. But one day it occured to me, when Jesus said, "let him among you that is without sin cast the first stone at her", could it be that he is effectively saying....."Only I am qualified to stone her." Referring to the phrase, "let him among you that is without sin...." Could it be that Jesus' usage of the word 'him" is a reference to himself? Any thoughts?>D-----
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Friday, June 01, 2007
Christ My Strength
Sing aloud unto God our *strength*: make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob. Psalms 81:1
Monday, February 06, 2006
GOD'S WORD, THE BIBLE: THERE ARE NO GROUNDS FOR DIVORCE. EVER.
There are NO Biblical Grounds for divorce WHATSOEVER. Divorce = SIN, and SIN sends you to HELL to suffer under God's wrath forevermore!
See: a post in this blog about the impossibility of divorce. Or, check out Nails in the Coffin, Chapter 6. For a full treatise, see What God Hath Joined Together.
Mortal man, on the other hand, has other ideas. Guess who is right?
There are NO Biblical Grounds for divorce WHATSOEVER. Divorce = SIN, and SIN sends you to HELL to suffer under God's wrath forevermore!
See: a post in this blog about the impossibility of divorce. Or, check out Nails in the Coffin, Chapter 6. For a full treatise, see What God Hath Joined Together.
Mortal man, on the other hand, has other ideas. Guess who is right?
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