Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. — Matthew 19:24  The Eye of the Needle by Karen Moore, from It's Still Possible   Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. — Matthew 19:24
Scholars may debate Jesus' intention with this illustration from Matthew, but if you read the whole passage, you'll see that a rich young ruler in the story was a good man who had been humble and giving. The problem was he wasn't quite ready to give up everything he had to follow Jesus.
So what is your "eye of the needle," that thing you can't quite give up to surrender your whole heart to God? Figuring out what is still possible for you may hinge on those things you aren't quite willing to give up, or at least to give over to God's care and keeping.
The rich young ruler wanted to know what else he needed to do to follow Jesus, but he was disappointed when he heard the answer. What about us? We may imagine we have already done the things that Jesus would require.
We've given to others, applied our hearts to charity, and attended church on a regular basis. As far as we can tell, we've been model citizens. So what stops us from taking that one last step to make a full commitment?
We don't know if the young ruler ever decided to do what Jesus requested, but we know we can decide. We can choose to follow Him so He can lead us into even more amazing possibilities, or we can choose to hold on to what we've got. We might have our own heroic stories, our own prize trophies that we're not willing to risk. After all, we've done enough.
Ah, there's the rub!
Who defines what is enough?
Recall the poor widow who put two mites into the collection box. She was considered extremely generous because she gave everything she had to God. She didn't hold anything back.
The beauty of an open hand is that it most often is accompanied by an open heart. When we want God to give generously to us, we have to make sure we don't hold anything back from Him.
With an open hand and an open heart, we find the way to all that is still possible.
Lord of the Possible, remind me to always be prepared to give up anything You've given me in favor of Your blessing and Your direction. Only You know my whole story and what You've planned for me to do next. I praise Your name! Amen. Excerpted with permission from It's Still Possible by Karen Moore, copyright Karen Moore. Your Turn
When times get tough, it's easy to start squeezing our hands tight and even to start squeezing our hearts tight, too. But, in God's economy, anything we give — whether it's our time, our future, our goals and dreams, our possessions, our space, our money, whatever (!) — He will bless and multiply. Let's open our hearts to whatever He has for us! ~ Devotionals Daily Share this devotion with someone who needs it today. 100 reminders that God can do all things
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God promises us abundant joy—even in the middle of the mess. After all, in God's hands, all things are possible.
 Hardcover, Regular: $17.99 eBook price: $9.99 + free U.S. shipping* on orders $30 or more  Nothing is impossible with God. Whether you are 15 or 85, God is still able to create greatness in your life. Building and mending relationships, navigating major life events, and new beginnings are all possible with Him. God not only knows your longings, He provides for them.
It's Still Possible by award-winning author Karen Moore includes:
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Sunday, August 13, 2023
What us your Eye in the Needle? repost of a popular post on a discontinued blog
a call, calling, invitation Greek Word Study
[3104] κλῆσις klēsis 11× a call, calling, invitation; in NT the call or invitation to the privileges of the Gospel, Rom. 11:29; Eph. 1:18; the favor and privilege of the invitation, 2 Thess. 1:11; 2 Pet. 1:10; the temporal condition in which the call found a person, 1 Cor. 1:26; 7:20 [2821] See calling. [ Goodrick-Kohlenberger number ] Goodrick-Kohlenberger number × the number of times it occurs in the New Testament NT New Testament [ corresponding Strong’s number ] corresponding Strong’s number William D. Mounce, Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2006), 1191. kaléō [to call], klḗsis [calling], klētós [called], antikaléō [to invite back], enkaléō [to accuse], énklēma [accusation], eiskaléō [to invite], metakaléō [to bring], prokaléō [to provoke], synkaléō [to call together], epikaléō [to call out, appeal], proskaléō [to invite, summon], ekklēsía [assembly, church] kaléō. 1. Data. kaléō, meaning “to call,” appears often throughout the NT, especially in Luke and Acts, less frequently in Mark and John. It may always be rendered “to call,” but often has the special nuance of divine calling or vocation. a. In the active with accusative and vocative we find it in Lk. 6:46: “Why do you p 395 call me ‘Lord, Lord’?” With accusative of object and predicative accusative it means “to name” in e.g., Mt. 10:25; Lk 1:59; Mt. 1:21, 23; Lk. 1:13. It also occurs in the passive in this sense in various constructions (cf. Mt. 2:23; Mk. 11:17; Lk. 1:32; Jn. 1:42; Acts 1:12, etc.). b. Another fairly common use is for “to call to,” “to invite,” e.g., in Mt. 20:8; 22:4; Mk. 3:31; Lk. 7:39; Jn. 2:2; Acts 4:18 and 24:2 (in a legal sense); 1 Cor. 10:27. c. Often it is God or Christ who calls. God calls his Son (Mt. 2:15). Jesus calls the disciples (Mt. 4:21). He calls sinners to repentance (Mt. 9:13). God calls us to himself or to salvation (Rom. 8:30). He has called the seed of Abraham (Rom. 9:7). He has called both Jews and Gentiles (Rom. 9:24). He has called Christians to fellowship with his Son (1 Cor. 1:9). He has called us to peace (1 Cor. 7:15), in grace (Gal. 1:6), to freedom (Gal. 5:13), to his kingdom and glory (1 Th. 2:12), in holiness (1 Th. 4:7; cf. 2:13–14), to eternal life (1 Tim. 6:12), to light (1 Pet. 2:9), yet at the same time to suffering (1 Pet. 2:20–21). Christ himself is called (Heb. 5:4). As Abraham is called (11:8), he is a type of Christians, who may simply be described as “the called” (9:15), and who are as such invited to the marriage feast of the Lamb (Rev. 19:9). If Jesus does the calling in the Gospels, he does so in fulfilment of a divine function, and the proper response is faith, which carries with it not only discipleship but also the blessings of salvation. Behind the term, then, stands the whole work of God, through Christ, in judgment and grace. This takes place either directly with Jesus’ own calling or in the gospel ministry (cf. 2 Th. 2:14). In this use of the term there is thus a technical element even where this is not explicit. 2. Parallels. a. For “to name” we find parallels in Gen. 17:19; 1 Sam. 1:20, etc. Names are important in the OT world. To be called something is equal to being it (cf. the parallelism in Lk. 1:32). b. The use of the word for “to invite” is common from Homer and occurs in the papyri and LXX. c. We also find parallels for the idea of God calling us with a view to our obedience (cf. in addition to more general parallels Prov. 1:24; Philo On the Special Laws 4.187; 1 Clem. 32.4 etc.; Hermas Similitudes 9.14.5; Mandates 4.3.4). 3. Origin. a. The main origin of the NT usage is to be sought in the LXX. The richest source is to be found in Is. 40ff. (cf. 41:9; 42:6; 46:11; 48:12; 51:2; cf. also naming in 43:1; 45:3). b. The Hebrew term is usually qārāʾ. The objective force of kaleín may also be seen from its use for words meaning “to take” and “to be.” c. The idea of invitation or summons to salvation is a common one in rabbinic writings. An ordinary word thus acquires special significance through the fact a. that God is the subject and b. that salvation is the goal. klḗsis. 1. Data. In Rom. 11:29 God’s klḗsis is his call or calling. In 1 Cor. 1:26 the Corinthians are to consider their call; God “chose” the foolish and weak etc. (v. 27). In 1 Cor. 7:20 they are to remain in the state of their calling. This is not their secular “vocation,” for they were called in the Lord and their klḗsis is with God (vv. 22ff.). In Eph. 1:18 the hope of one’s calling is the hope to which one is called (cf. 4:4). Eph. 4:1 speaks of a life worthy of calling, Phil. 3:14 of a prize of calling, 2 Th. 2:11 of being worthy of God’s call, 2 Tim. 1:9 of a holy calling, Heb. 3:1 of a heavenly p 396 call, and 2 Pet. 1:10 of the confirming of one’s call and election. In all these passages there is a technical nuance, so that “calling” is usually a better rendering than “call,” though call is always possible. The element of grace in calling comes out especially well in 2 Tim. 1:9. 2. Parallels. a. There are a few instances of klḗsis for “naming” or “name.” b. Invitation is more common (cf. Jdt. 12:10; 3 Macc. 5:14; Jer. 31:6 LXX). c. The religious sense of “calling” occurs in Epictetus Dissertationes 1.29.49 (the imposing of a difficult task); Barn. 16.9 (the calling of the promise); Hermas Mandates 4.3.6 (great and august calling, i.e., baptism). [In a distinctive secular usage we find klḗsis or kalḗseis for the Roman classes.] 3. Origin. Since klḗsis as a verbal noun is equivalent to kaleín, the origin of its use in the NT is the same. Its absence from the LXX may be accidental, or may be due to the influence of Hebrew, which has fewer verbal nouns than verbs. klētós. 1. Data. a. This verbal adjective occurs ten or eleven times in the NT. It is sometimes a verb and sometimes a noun referring to Christians. Examples are Rom. 1:1, 6–7; 8:28; 1 Cor. 1:1, 2, 24; Jude 1; Rev. 17:14; Mt. 22:14, and some versions of Mt. 20:16. b. klētós apóstolos in Rom. 1:1 might suggest a call to office, but for Paul calling as a Christian and as an apostle is the same thing. c. Mt. 22:14, unlike other NT passages, seems to distinguish between the called (klētoí) and the elect (eklektoí) (cf. Rev. 17:14). To get the point we really need to know the Aramaic original. The saying may also be dialectical; its aim is perhaps to show that calling cannot be taken for granted, so that there is no real distinction between calling and electing. Similar paradoxes may be found in Jesus’ attitude to prayer and his description of opponents in Mt. 8:12 as sons of the kingdom. 2. Parallels. While the word goes back to Homer, parallels are few. a. The LXX has it for “named” in Ex. 12:16. b. Homer uses it for “invited,” “welcome,” in the Odyssey 17.286. c. “Divinely called” occurs only in the Christian sphere, e.g., 1 Clement. 3. Origin. The origin is similar to that of klḗsis. Ex. 12:16 probably lies behind the combination of klētós and hágios. There is no evidence that klētós was a cultic term in pagan religion. anti-, enkaléō, énklēma, eis-, meta-, pro-, synkaléō. These compounds are not of theological significance in the NT. enkaléō occurs in a legal sense (“to accuse”) in Acts, as does the noun énklēma. meta- for “to have brought” occurs only in Acts, syn- for “to call together” in Mk. 15:16; Lk. 15, 6, 9, eis- for “to invite” in Acts 10:23, anti- for “to invite back” in Lk. 14:12, and pro- (“to provoke”) in Gal. 5:26. epikaléō. 1. Data. a. A first meaning is “to name” (cf. Mt. 10:25 [active]; Lk. 22:3; Acts 1:23, etc.; Heb. 11:16; Jms. 2:7 [passive]). b. The middle use for “to appeal to someone” is a common legal one (cf. Paul’s appeal to Caesar in Acts 25:11–12). Less technically, cf. the appeal to God in 2 Cor. 1:23. Often, too, there is appeal to God in prayer (cf. Acts 2:21; 7:59; 9:21; 22:16; Rom. 10:12; 2 Tim. 2:22: calling on God). p 397 2. Parallels. There are many Greek parallels for the sense a. “to name” and also for b. “to appeal,” whether in literature, the papyri, or Josephus. Calling on God is found in the LXX, but also in classical authors and the papyri. 3. Origin. a. While NT usage reflects the general use, LXX influence is strong. Thus in Acts 15:17 naming the Gentiles by God’s name implies that they are his by his self-revelation to them (cf. Jms. 2:7). b. LXX influence is also strong in the idea of calling on God in prayer (cf. Pss. 50:15; 53:4; 86:5; 89:26; 91:15, etc.). c. The usage in the LXX and NT suggests that calling on the name of the Lord is almost a technical term (cf. Gen. 13:4; 21:33; Ps. 79:6, etc.). d. Often the LXX translates the Hebrew original by krázein, perhaps because of some similarity of sound. That we have in the Hebrew as well as the Greek equivalents a technical term for prayer may be seen from the absolute use. e. In the NT “calling on the name of the Lord” (in prayer) may refer to God the Father (Acts 2:21) but also to God the Son (Acts 7:59; Rom. 10:12ff.; 2 Tim. 2:22). Those who “call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:2) are Christians. Directing prayer to Jesus is a mark of faith in him as the Messiah. proskaléō. 1. Data. Only the middle occurs in the NT and the term rarely has theological significance; it is simply used when people call another, or others, to them (cf. Mk. 15:44; Lk. 7:18; 15:26; Acts 5:40; 6:2; 13:7, etc.; Jms. 5:14). God does the calling in Acts 2:39, the Holy Spirit in Acts 13:2, and Jesus in Mt. 10:1; Mk. 3:13, etc. 2. Parallels. Greek writings show that the middle is preferred, and it may be a legal term for “to bring to judgment” (cf. some of the instances in Acts). 3. Origin. LXX influence is plain in Acts 2:39 (Joel 2:32) and 16:10. In Matthew and Mark the style suggests that when Jesus calls to himself he is fulfilling the divine calling as the Christ (cf. the more or less fixed opening to the accounts). ekklēsía. A. Introduction. General dictionaries define ekklēsía as 1. “assembly” and 2. “church.” NT lexicons then distinguish between church as a. the whole body and b. the local congregation or house church. The emphasis differs according to denomination, although sometimes the basic unity is perceived. Since the NT uses a single term, translations should also try to do so, but this raises the question whether “church” or “congregation” is always suitable, especially in view of the OT use for Israel and the underlying Hebrew and Aramaic. It must also be asked why the NT community avoids a cultic term for itself and selects a more secular one. “Assembly,” then, is perhaps the best single term, particularly as it has both a concrete and an abstract sense, i.e., for the assembling as well as the assembly. B. The NT. An important question is why ekklēsía does not occur in such books as Mark, Luke, John, and 1 and 2 Peter. (Its absence from Jude is less significant, as also that from 2 Timothy and Titus in view of 1 Timothy, and 1 and 2 John in view of 3 John.) 1. Acts. The first passages in Acts (2:47; 5:11; 7:38; 8:1, 3; 9:31) are important in view of the use not only for the Jerusalem church (8:1) but for the church throughout Judea and also for OT Israel (7:38). The singular predominates, but later we also find p 398 the plural (possibly 9:31, probably 15:41, certainly 16:5). A pregnant saying is 20:28: “the ekklēsía of the Lord which he bought with his own blood.” In all these verses the local church is called ekklēsía with no question of precedence or of local emphasis. The singular and plural are interchangeable. Two or more churches do not make the church, nor are there many churches, but one church in many places, whether Jewish, Gentile, or mixed. The only descriptive term that is added is toú theoú (or kýriou), which clearly marks it off from a secular society (denoted in 2:47 by laós). In three instances there is a purely secular use (19:32, 39, 40), which shows that what matters is not assembling as such but who assembles and why. In the case of the church it is God (or the Lord) who assembles his people, so that the church is the ekklēsía of God consisting of all those who belong to him (cf. hólē in 5:11; 15:22). Applied to believers, the term is essentially a qualitative one, the assembly of those whom God himself gathers. 2. Pauline Episties, I. The usage in Paul is similar; cf. the free use of singular and plural (Rom. 16:23; 16:4, 16; Gal. 1:13, 22), the use of hólē (Rom. 16:23), and the references to a place (Rom. 16:1) or district (1 Cor. 16:19). Occasional omission of the article shows that ekklēsía is almost a proper name (cf. 1 Cor. 14:19; 2 Cor. 8:23). Even a small house church may be called ekklēsía (Rom. 16:5). Each local church represents the whole church (2 Cor. 1:1: “the church which is at Corinth”), so that what applies in it (1 Cor. 6:4; 11:18; 14:34) will apply everywhere. For Paul, too, toú theoú is the main definition, whether in the singular (1 Cor. 1:2) or the plural (1:16). (This shows that he does not differentiate church and churches, as is sometimes done.) Since God acts in Christ, en Christṓ (Gal. 1:22) or toú Christoú (Rom. 16:16) may also occur; “Christian” is too colorless a rendering for this. We also find “churches of the saints” in 1 Cor. 14:33—natural in view of the equation of the ekklēsía with the “sanctified in Christ Jesus” in 1:2. Materially, Paul shares his conception of the church with the early disciples. The church is still the ekklēsía toú theoú as in the OT, but with the new thing that God has fulfilled the covenant in Christ, and that Christ has manifested himself to his disciples and commissioned them to assemble a people in his name. The church is constituted and authorized by the appearances of the risen Lord, not by the charismatic experiences that are also enjoyed by the disciples and Paul. Paul thus recognizes the privileges of the first community and its leaders, as may be seen in his organizing of the collection for Jerusalem (which is not just a matter of benevolence or strategy) and his description of James etc. as “pillars” in Gal. 2:9 (even if there is irony here in view of their human fallibility and the mistaken desire of some to overexalt authoritative persons). Paul has no desire to impose a new view of the church, but rather to protect the original view against incipient innovations. For him the church stands or falls with its sole foundation in Christ, its acknowledgment of him alone as Lord, and the rejection of overemphasis on persons or places. No description of the church is given, but Paul gets to the heart of the matter with his understanding of it (parallel to that of Acts) as an assembly which is the assembly of God in Christ. 3. Pauline Epistles, II: Colossians and Ephesians. A more specific doctrine of the church unfolds in these epistles. It is Christ’s body, with Christ himself as head (Col. 1:18, 24; Eph. 1:22; 5:23). There is a relation of coordination and subordination between it and Christ (Eph. 5:24–25, 29). The church is to be holy and without blemish (5:27). Through it God’s wisdom is to be made known (3:10). The human statements here circle around a divine mystery (3:4–5). All that concerns Christ and the church is God’s doing. The mystery of their union forms a model for that of husband and p 399 wife even as it is also illustrated by this (5:25ff.). The images are taken from the contemporary world: the Redeemer overcomes hostile powers on his heavenly ascent (Eph. 4:8ff.), breaks down the wall of division (2:14ff.), creates the new man (2:15), loves and cherishes the church as his spouse (5:22ff.), and builds it up as his body (2:19ff.). Yet while these ideas are related to the world of Gnostic speculation, and can hardly be either derived from such passages as Rom. 12:4ff. or fused into a consistent picture, their import is practical rather than theoretical or esoteric. For a. they express the strict relation between Christ and the church, and thus serve a christological ecclesiology, and b. they protect an exalted Christology in the difficult situation caused by false teaching and the tensions between Jewish and Gentile Christians. These concerns are wholly Pauline even if a new set of concepts has to be used to meet the Jewish devaluation of the church by focusing on place and person and the Gnostic exaggeration which postulates a marriage between Christ and wisdom rather than between Christ and his people. Indeed, even the ideas of these letters are present materially, if not formally, in epistles like Romans and 1 and 2 Corinthians, where the church is the body in its interrelationships (1 Cor. 12) and Paul’s aim is to present it as a pure bride to her husband (2 Cor. 11:2). The language may be Gnostic, but the point is to show that the church is not just a human society but is defined in terms of Christ. Ecclesiology is Christology and vice versa. All human distinctions are thus transcended (Col. 3:11; cf. Gal. 3:28). Yet this is no Christ mysticism, for the church can be Christ’s body only by obeying God’s call in Christ, and the God who calls in Christ is the God of the old covenant who has now established the new, so that the NT assembly is the fulfilled OT assembly. If holiness is ascribed to this community, it is not as a quality but in virtue of God’s justifying and sanctifying work in Christ, on the basis of which the word of promise to Israel is now the word of fulfilled promise to Christians. 4. The Rest of the NT. The other NT passages add little to what has been said. Revelation uses the plural 13 times and also speaks of the church of Ephesus, Smyrna, etc. 3 John has the term twice with and once without the article. Jms. 5:14 mentions the elders of the church, probably referring to the whole community. Heb. 2:12 quotes Ps. 22:22, and Heb. 12:23 refers to the assembly of the firstborn, probably not in a technical sense, but simply in that of a festal gathering in heaven (cf. v. 22). C. The Greek World. The Greek world uses ekklēsía for a popular assembly (cf. Acts 19:32, 39–40). The OT and NT give it its specific sense by adding toú theoú or en Christṓ. Did they choose this word because it had a cultic sense? It denotes the assembly of ekklētoí in Greek cities, but there is no sure evidence of use for a cultic society. The secular ekklēsía offers a formal parallel, and may have a religious undertone, as in the offering of prayers, but NT usage derives from that of the LXX. This explains why Latin adopts ecclesia rather than such renderings as curia, civitas Dei, or convocatio. The term ekklēsía has a sacred history in the sacred writings. It stresses the distinctiveness of Christianity as compared to cultic societies, for which there are special terms like thíasos. Hellenistic Jews are probably the first to apply the term to the church, preferring it to synagōgḗ because the latter was acquiring a more restricted sense, and perhaps because there is some similarity of sound between ekklēsía and Heb. qāhāl. D. Parallel Expressions. Often ekklēsía may not be present, but the matter itself is presented under different terms. 1 Peter especially offers such expressions as “spiritual house” (2:5), “chosen race” etc. (2:9), and “God’s people” (2:10). Gal. 6:16 p 400 speaks of the “Israel of God,” Gal. 3:29 of “Abraham’s offspring,” and Jms. 1:1 and 1 Pet. 1:1 of the “twelve tribes” or “exiles” in the dispersion. Less closely related terms are the saints, the brethren, disciples, etc. In Jms. 2:2 the church can also call itself synagōgḗ, which also derives from the OT. The question arises which term might have been used by Aramaic-speaking Christians, and before that by Jesus himself. E. Matt. 16:18 and 18:17. 1. The Problem. There are several difficulties relating to these two passages: their coordination with other ekklēsía passages, their authenticity, their Semitic equivalents, and their correct exposition. Complexity arises because the answers to these questions all affect one another. 2. The Relation of the Two Passages. A specific problem is that 16:18 seems to refer to the whole church and 18:17 to the local church, for which we might have expected synagōgḗ. Is qāhāl the underlying term in both instances? 3. Textual and Literary Criticism. Neither verse offers real textual problems. Literary criticism points out that there are no parallels to 16:18 in Mark or Luke, but it can supply no cogent arguments for the theory of interpolation (and in any case even an interpolation might rest on a genuine tradition). 4. Material Criticism. Mt. 16:17ff. has a Semitic flavor, but the two questions of Jesus and the church and the position of Peter involve statistical, eschatological, historical, and psychological problems. a. The statistical problem is the absence of ekklēsía elsewhere in the Gospels, but as in 1 Peter this fact is not decisive in view of the parallel “flock” in Mt. 26:31 and Jn. 10:16, the gathering of the Twelve as the nucleus of the true people of God, and Jesus’ description of himself as the Son of Man, i.e., the representative of the people of the saints (Dan. 7). Furthermore, the messiahship of Jesus and his institution of the covenant (the Lord’s Supper) show that he must be regarded as the founder of what is later most frequently called the ekklēsía. b. The eschatological problem is whether founding an ekklēsía fits in with the preaching of the kingdom. While the ekklēsía is obviously not the basileía, it is itself plainly an eschatological entity, and regards itself as such. c. The historical argument is that Peter does not occupy the position that he is given in 16:18 (cf. 1 Cor. 3:11; 10:4). On the other hand, he plays a part which is hard to explain on purely historical or psychological grounds, and if he may be challenged, as in Gal. 2 or Jn. 20:2ff., it is hard to see how 16:18 can have arisen and established itself if not authentic. d. The psychological objection is that Peter does not prove to be a rock. But this is only a special aspect of the miracle of grace that is seen in the election of Israel, or indeed of the church itself. 5. Hebrew and Aramaic Equivalents. A separate question is whether the Hebrew original of ekklēsía is qāhāl or the corresponding Aramaic loanword, which is in any case rare. Jesus and the disciples must have known Hebrew, but the rabbis do not necessarily use qāhāl for the Jewish congregation, whether national or local, and the normal Aramaic term (keništāʾ) suggests a specific group which might be regarded as a sect. The point, perhaps, is that Jesus might have used this term, but with the clear implication that this separated group represents the true Israel as the people of God. If this is so, in 18:17 the original reference might well be to the OT community, but rightly the church then applies it to itself with the rendering ekklēsía. F. The OT and Judaism. 1. Greek Judaism. a. The LXX uses ekklēsía about 100 times, mostly for qāhāl. The term ekklēsía has the basic sense of “assembly” (cf. Dt. 9:10; 1 Kgs. 8:65); only p 401 the addition kyríou gives it a theological sense (cf. Dt. 23:2ff. etc.), or an expression like “of Israel” (1 Kgs. 8:14) or “of the saints” (Ps. 89:5 etc.). The use of synagōgḗ is similar. It, too, is often used for qāhāl, and it has both a general sense (“assembly”) and a technical sense (“congregation of Israel”). b. In Philo and Josephus the position is much the same, but there is more reference to national assemblies, and the technical sense is also more pronounced. 2. The Hebrew Text. While ekklēsía is almost always used for qāhāl, qāhāl is rendered ekklēsía only in some books (e.g., Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Psalms). Elsewhere synagōgḗ is the equivalent, or occasionally other terms like óchlos or sýstasis. synagōgē, unlike ekklēsía, is also used ʿ ēḏâ, which is common in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. G. Etymology. Since the NT ekklēsía is given its specific impress by the OT, the history is more important than the etymology, especially as neither ekkaleín nor ékklētos occurs in the NT, and both are also very rare in the LXX. The NT writers are unlikely to have had the idea of “called out” in mind when they spoke about the ekklēsía (though cf. Eph. 5:25ff.; 1 Tim. 3:15; Heb. 12:23). If the church does in fact consist of those whom God has called out of the world, this relates to material rather than linguistic considerations. What is always meant is the “assembly (of God).” The word “church” suggests the universal aspect, and etymologically its belonging to the Lord (kyriakón), but it has the disadvantage of having acquired a hierarchical nuance. The word “congregation” makes the point that the small fellowship is already the church, and it stresses the aspect of gathering together, but it has the disadvantage of drawing attention to the individual group, sometimes in a sectarian sense. “Church community” might be commended as a possible alternative to both. H. The Apostolic Fathers and Early Catholicism. In the early church we find signs of a shift in the use of adjectives and the rise of speculation. In the first works ekklēsía is common only in Hermas with its vision of the kyría, who is hagía and presbytéra, the morphḗ of a holy spirit (cf. Visions 1.1ff.). 1 Clement in three instances has a use similar to that of 1 Pet. 1:1 and Jms. 1:1. Ignatius has imposing epithets in his epistles, many of them quite extravagant. In Ephesians 5.5 God, Christ, and the church are presented as one entity to believers. The churches have single bishops, and the word katholikḗ appears in Smyrneans 8.2. In the Martyrdom of Polycarp the church is holy and catholic, sojourning in the different places. In the Didache the church is scattered but is to be gathered into the kingdom (9.4). An obscure phrase here speaks of the worldly mystery of the church enacted by the true prophet (11.11). 2 Clement stresses the dimension of mystery in 14.1. With its reference to the preexistence of the church, this links up with speculation about the aeon of the church and statements about the ideal church in contrast to the empirical church (cf. Augustine, and the later distinction between the invisible church and the visible). J. Conclusion. The development of “Catholicism” as distinct from primitive Christianity is plainly apparent in the area of the church with the rise of Gnostic speculation and the influence of Platonism. The NT itself makes no distinction between an invisible triumphant church and a visible militant church. The church, as the individual congregation representing the whole, is always visible, and its righteousness and holiness are always imputed through faith. Luther recognizes this when he prefers the term “congregation” to “church” in his rendering of Scripture. Yet if the ideal is not to be played off against the reality, no more is the whole church against the local congregation. p 402 Every congregation represents the whole church, that at Corinth no less than that at Jerusalem. The development of larger organizations does not alter this basic truth. If there is an element of constitutional change, e.g., with the greater stress on bishops and deacons than on charismatics, this does not in the NT represent an essential change from a pneumatic to a juristic form. Such a change comes only later when lofty speculation about the church attributes divine significance to historical developments and thus makes possible the step from primitive Christianity to early and later “Catholicism.” [K. L. SCHMIDT, III, 487–536] → anénklētos, parakaléō, paráklētos, symparakaléō kalodidáskalos → didáskō LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint LXX Septuagint Gerhard Kittel, Gerhard Friedrich, and Geoffrey William Bromiley, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume (Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans, 1985), 394–402. CALL, CALLED, CALLING A. Verbs. 1. kaleo (καλέω, 2564), derived from the root kal—, whence Eng. “call” and “clamor” (see B and C, below), is used (a) with a personal object, “to call anyone, invite, summon,” e.g., Matt. 20:8; 25:14; it is used particularly of the divine call to partake of the blessings of redemption, e.g., Rom. 8:30; 1 Cor. 1:9; 1 Thess. 2:12; Heb. 9:15; cf. B and C, below; (b) of nomenclature or vocation, “to call by a name, to name”; in the passive voice, “to be called by a name, to bear a name.” Thus it suggests either vocation or destination; the context determines which, e.g., Rom. 9:25–26; “surname,” in Acts 15:37, KJV, is incorrect (RV, “was called”). See BID, NAME. 2. eiskaleo (εἰσκαλέω, 1528), lit., “to call in,” hence, “to invite” (eis, “in,” and No. 1), is found in Acts 10:23.¶ 3. epikaleo (ἐπικαλέομαι, 1941), epi, “upon,” and No. 1., denotes (a) “to surname”; (b) “to be called by a person’s name”; hence it is used of being declared to be dedicated to a person, as to the Lord, Acts 15:17 (from Amos 9:12); Jas. 2:7; (c) “to call a person by a name by charging him with an offense,” as the Pharisees charged Christ with doing His works by the help of Beelzebub, Matt. 10:25 (the most authentic reading has epikaleo, for kaleo); (d) “to call upon, invoke”; in the middle voice, “to call upon for oneself” (i.e., on one’s behalf), Acts 7:59, or “to call upon a person as a witness,” 2 Cor. 1:23, or to appeal to an authority, Acts 25:11, etc.; (e)“to call upon by way of adoration, making use of the Name of the Lord,” Acts 2:21; Rom. 10:12–14; 2 Tim. 2:22. See APPEAL, SURNAME. 4. metakaleo (μετακαλέω, 3333), meta, implying “change,” and No. 1, “to call from one place to another, to summon” (cf. the Sept. of Hos. 11:1), is used in the middle voice only, “to call for oneself, to send for, call hither,” Acts 7:14; 10:32; 20:17; 24:25.¶ 5. proskaleo (προσκαλέομαι, 4341), pros, “to,” and No. 1, signifies (a) “to call to oneself, to bid to come”; it is used only in the middle voice, e.g., Matt. 10:1; Acts 5:40; Jas. 5:14; (b) “God’s call to Gentiles through the gospel,” Acts 2:39; (c) the divine call in entrusting men with the preaching of the gospel,” Acts 13:2; 16:10.¶ 6. sunkaleo (συγκαλέω, 4779) signifies “to call together,” Mark 15:16; Luke 9:1; 15:6, 9; 23:13; Acts 5:21; 10:24; 28:17.¶ Notes: (1) Enkaleo, Acts 19:40, KJV, “called in question,” signifies “to accuse,” as always in the RV. See ACCUSE, IMPLEAD. (2) Parakaleo, “to beseech, intreat,” is rendered “have called for” in Acts 28:20, KJV; RV, “did intreat” (marg., “call for”). It is used only here with this meaning. See BESEECH. 7. ait eo (αἰτέω, 154), “to ask,” is translated “called for” in Acts 16:29 (“he called for lights”). See ASK, A. No. 1. Note: For the RV of Matt. 19:17 (KJV, “callest”), see ASK (A, No. 2, Note). 8. phoneo (φωνέω, 5455), “to sound” (Eng.,“phone”), is used of the crowing of a cock, e.g., Matt. 26:34; John 13:38; of “calling” out with a clear or loud voice, to cry out, e.g. Mark 1:26 (some mss. have krazo here), Acts 16:28; of “calling” to come to oneself, e.g., Matt. 20:32; Luke 19:15; of “calling” forth, as of Christ’s call to Lazarus to come forth from the tomb, John 12:17; of inviting, e.g., Luke 14:12; of “calling” by name, with the implication of the pleasure taken in the possession of those “called,” e.g., John 10:3; 13:13. See CROW, CRY. 9. lego (λέγω, 3004), “to speak,” is used of all kinds of oral communication, e.g. “to call to call by name,” to surname, Matt. 1:16; 26:36; V 2, p 87 John 4:5; 11:54; 15:15; Rev. 2:2, RV, “call themselves,” etc. See ASK. 10. epilego (ἐπιλέγομαι, 1951), epi “upon,” and No. 9, signifies “to call in addition,” i.e., by another name besides that already intimated John 5:2; for its other meaning in Acts 15:40, see CHOOSE.¶ 11. chrēmatizō (χρηματίζω, 5337) occasionally means “to be called or named,” Acts 11:26 (of the name “Christians”) and Rom. 7:3, the only places where it has this meaning. Its primary significance, “to have business dealings with,” led to this. They “were (publicly) called” Christians, because this was their chief business. See ADMONISH, REVEAL, SPEAK, WARN. 12. eipon (λέγω, 3004), “to say, speak,” means “to call by a certain appellation,” John 10:35. See BID, No. 3. 13. krino (κρίνω, 2919), “to judge,” is translated “to call in question,” in Acts 23:6; 24:21. Notes: (1) For onoma, “a name,” translated “called,” KJV, in Luke 24:13; Acts 10:1, onomazo, “to name,” translated “called,” KJV, 1 Cor. 5:11, and eponomazo, “to surname,” translated “art called,” Rom. 2:17, see NAME and SURNAME. (2) Lego, “to say,” is rendered “calleth” in 1 Cor. 12:3, KJV, which the RV corrects to “saith”, what is meant is not calling Christ “Anathema,” but making use of the phrase “Anathema Jesus,” i.e., “Jesus is accursed.” (3) Prosagoreuo, Heb. 5:10, means “to be named.” See NAME.¶ (4) Metapempo, rendered “call for,” in Acts 10:5, KJV, and 11:13, signifies “to fetch,” RV. See FETCH, SEND, No. 9. (5) Sunathroizo, “to assemble,” is translated “he called together,” in the KJV of Acts 19:25; RV, “he gathered together.” (6) Lambano, “to take or receive,” is found with the noun hupomnesis, “remembrance,” in 2 Tim. 1:5; RV, “having been reminded” (lit., “having received remembrance”), for KJV, “when I call to remembrance.” (7) In Acts 10:15 and 11:9, koinoo, “to make common” (RV) is translated “call common” in the KJV. (8) For prosphoneo, “to call unto,” see SPEAK, No. 12. B. Noun. klesis (κλη̂σις, 2821), “a calling” (akin to A, No. 1), is always used in the NT of that “calling” the origin, nature and destiny of which are heavenly (the idea of invitation being implied); it is used especially of God’s invitation to man to accept the benefits of salvation, Rom. 11:29; 1 Cor. 1:26; 7:20 (said there of the condition in which the “calling” finds one); Eph. 1:18, “His calling”; Phil. 3:14, the “high calling”; 2 Thess. 1:11 and 2 Pet. 1:10, “your calling”; 2 Tim. 1:9, a “holy calling”; Heb. 3:1, a “heavenly calling”; Eph. 4:1, “the calling wherewith ye were called”; 4:4, “in one hope of your calling.” See VOCATION.¶ C. Adjective. kletos (κλητός, 2822), “called, invited,” is used, (a) “of the call of the gospel,” Matt. 20:16; 22:14, not there “an effectual call,” as in the Epistles, Rom. 1:1, 6–7; 8:28; 1 Cor. 1:2, 24; Jude 1; Rev. 17:14; in Rom. 1:7 and 1 Cor. 1:2 the meaning is “saints by calling”; (b) of “an appointment to apostleship,” Rom. 1:1; 1 Cor. 1:1.¶ ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. ¶ Indicates that all the NT occurrences of the Greek word under consideration are mentioned under the heading or sub-heading. W. E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger, and William White Jr., Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 1996), 85–87. |
"Scoffer" Greek Word Study
[2970] καταφρονητής kataphronētēs 1× despiser, scorner, Acts 13:41* [2707] [ Goodrick-Kohlenberger number ] Goodrick-Kohlenberger number × the number of times it occurs in the New Testament * all occurrences of the word in the NT [ corresponding Strong’s number ] corresponding Strong’s number William D. Mounce, Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2006), 1186. καταφρονέω, καταφρονητής kataphroneō, to scorn, disdain; kataphronētēs, scoffer →see also περιφρονέω kataphroneō, S 2706; TDNT 3.631–632; EDNT 2.270; NIDNTT 1.461–462; MM 334–335; L&N 88.192; BAGD 420 | kataphronētēs, S 2707; TDNT 3.632; EDNT 2.270; NIDNTT 1.461–462; MM 335; The verb, meaning “scorn, disdain,” connotes a lack of respect or consideration when its object is a person: “Who then would take the risk if he had to see himself surrounded with scorn rather than honor?” (anti tou timasthai kataphronēthēsomenos, Isocrates, Archid. 6.95); “to avoid being scorned and merit public esteem” (mē kataphronēsesthai, all’ eudokimēsein en tois pollois).1 This disdain or irreverence become impiety when directed toward the deity;2 the kataphronountes (Hebrew bāgaḏ) are the ungodly and traitors (Prov 13:15; Hos 6:7). It is in this sense that the Jew takes no account of the treasures of divine goodness which ought to move him to repent: “Have you nothing but scorn for the riches of God’s kindness, patience, longsuffering?” (Rom 2:4); likewise: “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will cleave to (anthexetai) the one and pay no attention to the other (tou heterou kataphronēsei). You cannot serve God and Mammon.”3 To give all one’s attention V 2, p 281 and zeal to one kyrios implies absolute lack of interest toward another master. In the category of the unjust, the most guilty are sensualists, the insolent, and blasphemers, “those who follow the flesh, by covetousness of that which defiles, and scorn lordship” (kyriotētos kataphronountas, 2 Pet 2:11). For the slaves of carnal passions, it is no longer wealth that is sovereign but the sarx (flesh); this being so, they have no use for and thus reject or annul (Jude 8), deny (2 Pet 2:1; Titus 1:16) the yoke of Christ the Lord, his supreme authority, his teachings, his will, and his control. One scorns “the king’s decrees” (4 Macc 4:26, ta dogmata; Dittenberger, Syl. 705, 36; Josephus, Ant. 2.207, a prostagma; 6.331; 10.257; 12.207). Disdain here is refusal and disobedience (Ant. 6.142, 147; 11.130); a common meaning of kataphroneō: “Some are capable of disdaining perversity and cupidity; others are not” (Xenophon, Cyn. 13.16); commonly in Philo.4 In 2 Pet 2:10, not only do those referred to snap their fingers at a prohibition,5 but they treat lightly the kyriotēs (lordship) of Christ; this is an insult,6 a well V 2, p 282 attested meaning of the verb: “He insults me, Thebes” (kataphronei me, Euripides, Bacch. 503). Heb 12:2 exhorts Christians to behold Jesus, who endured the ignominy of the cross,7 “despising the shame” (aischynēs kataphronēsas). The emphasis is not on suffering, but on the humiliation of this punishment, which was reserved for slaves and criminals (cf. oneidismos, 10:33; 11:26; 13:13). It is also an allusion to the mockery, the ridicule, and the insults to which the saint par excellence was subjected by “sinners.” Nothing could be more abject! Precisely: to “scorn”8 is to “laugh at,”9 “mock” (Josephus, Life 337, 347). The meaning “humiliate, shame” is found in 1 Cor 11:22, with regard to participation in the Lord’s Supper, when some have plenty to eat and others have nothing: “Do you scorn the church of God (tēs ekklēsias tou theou kataphroneite) and do you wish to shame (kataischynete) those who have nothing?”10 One cannot take part lightly in a sacred ceremony (Philo, Moses 1.102; Decalogue 85), because that would be to profane it, commit an impiety, and incur mortal punishment.11 “Take care not to scorn one of the least of these little ones (mē kataphronēsēte henos tōn mikrōn toutōn), because their angels in heaven constantly behold the face of my heavenly Father” (Matt 18:10). Scorn is the clear opposite of respect, here powerfully motivated. Not only in judgment but also in conduct it is necessary to take account of these little ones who are so honored by God. These mikroi are not young children (nēpioi) V 2, p 283 but insignificant, negligible Christians12 who are not ordinarily taken into account. In this category we may include the poor,13 the members of an inferior social class in the community, and also the weak, the fragile, those easily offended,14 even the handicapped (cf. Eph 4:22). They must be taken care of because of their great dignity in God’s eyes. Unconditional submission of the young to their elders was common to oriental, Greek, and Roman antiquity.15 So also St. Paul confirms Timothy’s authority at Ephesus with the words, “Let no one despise your youth” (mēdeis sou tēs neotētos kataphroneitō, 1 Tim 4:12). The verb has the sense “treat with disdain, pay no attention to.” The scorn for a person is constantly mentioned in the Hellenistic era16 and is justified in many ways, notably by the youthfulness of the one disdained: “Darius had only scorn for Alexander’s youthfulness” (kataphronēsas tēs Alexandrou neotētos).17 A certain Antinous, a daredevil, “scorns my passivity” (apragmosynēs, P.Ant. 36, 12; P.Oxy. 2410, 3; cf. Josephus, War 6.337: rhathymia = softness), “my mediocrity” (P.Panop.Beatty 1, 173; P.Ryl. 659, 7; P.Oxy. 3126, col. II, 10), because I am a foreigner” (P.Magd. 8, 11), “because my husband is dead” (kataphronōn hoti ho anēr mou tetelytēken, P.Magd. 2, 6; cf. P.Gen 31, 10: kataphronōn mou tēs chēreias); “as a helpless woman” (hōs gynaikos V 2, p 284 aboēthētou, BGU 291, 9), “because I am an orphan,”18 “scorning me because of my weak vision.”19 Hence to “scorn” is to refuse to give justice, to give back a stolen object, a borrowed ass, to pay a servant’s wages; no interest is shown in the complainant because of his or her lack of social, financial, or political status. Here again scorn is a lack of respect and consideration. “Let slaves who have believers as masters not scorn them because they are brothers” (1 Tim 6:2); mē kataphroneitōsan explicates 6:1—masters are worthy of respect (pasēs timēs axious). They must be esteemed. If it is true that spiritually, Christian masters are the equals of Christian slaves, of “brothers,” one must respect the social hierarchy. What is more, agapē, the enemy of arrogance, inspires even more respect and devotion (cf. Phlm 16: adelphos agapētos), so that the servant’s “service” becomes a gracious “benefit” (euergesia) that rules out all negligence.20 As for St. Paul’s apostrophe at Pisidian Antioch, “Behold, scoffers (hoi kataphronētai), wonder and perish” (Acts 13:41), it is a quotation of Hab 1:5, where the prophet threatens Israel with terrible punishment. In the Greek OT this substantive always translates the Hebrew bāgaḏ (Hab 2:5), bōgdîm (1:5), bōgdôt (Zeph 3:4) and thus would mean “arrant traitors.” It is used only once in Philo: “They do not profess scorn for divine things”;21 and it is used in a favorable sense in Josephus and Plutarch.22 S J. Strong. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Reprint. Peabody, n.d. TDNT G. Kittel and G. Friedrich, eds. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Trans. G. W. Bromiley. 10 vols. Grand Rapids, 1964–1976. EDNT H. Balz and G. Schneider, eds. Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids, 1990–1993. NIDNTT Colin Brown, ed. The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology. Grand Rapids, 1986. MM J. H. Moulton and G. Milligan. The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament Illustrated from the Papyri and Other Non-literary Sources. 2 vols. London, 1914–30. Reprint. Grand Rapids, 1985. L&N J. P. Louw and E. A. Nida, eds. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains. 2 d ed. New York, 1989. BAGD W. Bauer. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 2 d ed. Trans. W. F. Arndt and F. W. Gingrich. Revised and edited F. W. Danker. Chicago, 1979. S J. Strong. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Reprint. Peabody, n.d. TDNT G. Kittel and G. Friedrich, eds. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Trans. G. W. Bromiley. 10 vols. Grand Rapids, 1964–1976. EDNT H. Balz and G. Schneider, eds. Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids, 1990–1993. NIDNTT Colin Brown, ed. The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology. Grand Rapids, 1986. MM J. H. Moulton and G. Milligan. The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament Illustrated from the Papyri and Other Non-literary Sources. 2 vols. London, 1914–30. Reprint. Grand Rapids, 1985. Archid. Archidamus 1 Plato, Hp. Ma. 281 c; καταφρονέω is contrasted with τιμάω, “honor” (Josephus, Ant. 6.80), with θαυμάζω, “admire” (Ag. Apion 2.47), with φοβέομαι (Prov 13:13). The verb sometimes has a favorable or neutral meaning: “dream of, think of, aspire to” (to the throne, Herodotus 1.59), “come to one’s senses” upon waking (Hippocrates, Morb. Sac. 15), after a fit of hysteria (Nat. Mul. 3). 2 Euripides, Bacch. 199: οὐ καταφρονῶ τῶν θεῶν (parallel to οὐκ αἰσχύνομαι, 204); a meaning especially frequent in Josephus: one does not snap one’s fingers at God, at his foreknowledge (Ant. 2.329), words (3.16, 85), power (4.215, 217; 9.173; 12.357), commandments (1.43; 6.150; 8.19), worship (1.311; 4.181; 8.251), obligations due him (9.160). PSI 1337, 17: τῶν θείων διατάξεων καταφρονεῖ. 3 Matt 6:24 = Luke 16:13 (the Lucan context is better). A radical decision is forced between two lordships which make a total demand on their slaves and leave no room for other jobs (C. Spicq, Agapè, vol. 1, pp. 28–31). Cf. Eubulus: “The slave of two masters is at each moment the slave of no one” (οὐδαμόθεν οὐδείς, J. M. Edmonds, Attic Comedy, vol. 2, p. 120). In fact slaves were often the property of a number of masters (Acts 16:16—τοῖς κυρίοις), notably because of inheritance (P.Oxy. 1030, 5–6; 1638; BGU 1654; P.Grenf. 21; P.Mert. 123; P.Mich. 317, 326; P.Mil.Vogl. 23; etc.). A half or two-thirds of a slave could be sold (PSI 1228; P.Freib. 8). At Delos, in the first century BC, a slave was owned in common by three brothers (F. Durrbach, Choix, p. 213). Cf. I. Biezunska-Malowist, “Les Esclaves en copropriété dans l’Egypte romaine,” in Aeg, 1968, pp. 116–129. Dittenberger, Sylloge Inscriptionum Graecarum. Ed. W. Dittenberger. 4 vols. 3. Ed. Leipzig, 1915. Reprint Hildesheim-New York, 1982. Syl Sylloge Inscriptionum Graecarum. Ed. W. Dittenberger. 4 vols. 3. Ed. Leipzig, 1915. Reprint Hildesheim-New York, 1982. Ant. Antiquities of the Jews Ant. Antiquities of the Jews Cyn. Cynegeticus 4 One scorns the flesh (Philo, Giants 32), money and pleasure (Flight 33), glory (Flight 35; Rewards 24), human affairs (Dreams 1.218), physical exercises that are opposed to the equilibrium of the soul (Abraham 48), wealth (Moses 1.153, 213), foods and luxury (Moses 2.69; Rewards 17), material goods (Virtues 15), the fruits of pride (17), myths (Contemp. Life 63), honor and power (Drunkennes 57). 5 Inscription from Iasus: the passive ἄν δʼ εἷς καταφρονηθῆ corrected to the active καταφρονήσῃ by L. Robert, Opera Minora Selecta, vol. 3, p. 1516. Cf. Josephus, Ag. Apion 2.264: “scorn the constitution and laws of the country”; P.Mich. 582, col. II, 9–10 (AD 49–50): not fulfilling the obligations of his office (P.Panop.Beatty 1, 172); Josephus, War 1.318) or the stipulations of a contract (SB 9778, 14; P.Oxy. 2730, 15), scorning ancestral customs (Philo, Spec. Laws 4.150). 6 One must not despise anyone (Philo, Dreams 2.141), except enemies, according to Ep. Aristides 225: πῶς ἂν καταφρονοίη τῶν ἐχθρῶν; among nations (Xenophon, Hell. 7.4.30; Josephus, War 6.422; Ant. 5.255, 304; 6.71), for example the Jews’ scorn for the Romans (20.126) or the Syrians (20.175); Jdt 10:19. Cf. Thucydides 6.34.9: “Scorn for the aggressor is shown through acts of resistance”; 2 Macc 7:24—“Antiochus thought that he had been vilified (καταφρονεῖσθαι) and suspected that these words contained an insult (ὀνειδίζουσαν)”; Prov 18:3—“When the wicked comes, scorn comes also.” Bacch. Bacchae 7 Cf. scorn of death = counting it as nothing, Epictetus 4.1.70; Diodorus Siculus 5.29.2: certain Gauls despise death; Philo, Good Man Free 30; To Gaius 236, 249; Josephus, War 2.60: Athrongaeus “had a soul scornful of death”; 2.377; 3.356, 475; 5.458; 6.42; Ag. Apion 2.294. Cf. 4 Macc 13:9—the three young men scorned a furnace. Cf. the scorn of dangers and perils, Josephus, War 5.87; Ant. 9.55, 82; 12.425; 14.380. 8 Musonius, frag. 10, l. 22ff. (ed. C. E. Lutz): “If the philosopher—who ought obviously to despise death itself—cannot scorn blows or insults, what good is he?” 9 Diodorus Siculus 3.50; Plato, Euthd. 273 d: “These words brought me their scorn (κατεφρονήθην); they began to laugh”; Philo, Drunkennes 131: to show a lack of respect for the dignity of one’s superiors is to expose oneself to a mocking laugh; Gen 27:12—Jacob, “In my father’s eyes I will be seen as a mocker” (ὡς καταφρονῶν, pilpel of the Hebrew tāʿaʿ). Life Life of Josephus 10 Τοὺς μὴ ἔχοντας, cf. F. Field, Notes on the Translation, p. 175. Moses On the Life of Moses (De Vita Mosis) Decalogue On the Decalogue (De Decalogo) 11 Cf. Prov 19:16—“The one who scorns (Hebrew bāzâh) his ways shall die”; Wis 14:30—καταφρονήσαντες ὁσιότητος; 2 Macc 4:14—“The priests who scorn the temple and neglect the sacrifices”; 4 Macc 4:9—“the Holy Place, which was treated contemptuously,” means the violated temple. 12 Cf. S. Légasse, Jésus et l’enfant, pp. 51ff., 62ff. 13 Menander, Dysk. 286: “Do not treat us who are poor with disdain”; Plato, Resp. 7.556 d: “In the midst of danger it was not the poor who scorned the rich”; Plutarch, Per. 1.4: “Often we take pleasure in the work while scorning the worker.” Masters scorn their slaves (Philo, Spec. Laws 3.129; Decalogue 40; Flacc. 178). 14 Cf. 1 Thess 5:14—“Encourage the timid, the fearful (τοὺς ὀλιγοψύχους) comfort the feeble (ἀσθενῶν).” Cf. C. Spicq, Théologie morale, vol. 2, p. 792, n. 2. 15 Sir 32:9; Plato, Resp. 3.412; Leg. 690 b; 917 a; Xenophon, Mem. 2.3.16 (cf. M. P. Roussel, Etude sur le principe de l’ancienneté dans le monde hellénique, Paris, 1942). Old age alone is respectable (τιμῆς ἄξιος, Philo, Sobr. 16; Decalogue 167), deserving to take precedence (Sacr. Abel and Cain 42). It is in any event to be wished that the presumed wisdom of age will corroborate the prestige of the function. St. Thomas quotes Aristotle: “Nemo juvenes elegit duces.” Timothy, young and timid, lacking in self-confidence (1 Cor 16:10–11) would be paralyzed by the defiance or scorn of his circle (C.Spicq, Epîtres Pastorales, vol. 1, p. 511). 16 4 Macc 5:10—κἀμοῦ καταφρονήσεις; 6:21; P.Col. VII, 169, 13: καταφρονοῦντές μου; P.Yale 46, col. I, 13: καταφρονήσας μου ὅτι Αἰγύπτιός εἰμι (third century BC); P.Mich. 79, 24: “because my father was absent, they treated us with scorn” (memorandum of Artemidorus to Zeno); P.Cair.Isid. 76, 17; P.Mich. 23, 4: a woman who borrowed twenty-four drachmas “does not return them to us … she scorns us” (221 BC); PSI 1344, 2; P.Oxy.Hels. 23, 17. 17 Diodorus Siculus 17.7.1; Josephus, Ant. 12.242; 8.274: διὰ τὴν ἡλικίαν; P.Gen 6, 13. Similarly, the feebleness of the aged is scorned: “Do not scorn your mother when she is old” (Prov 18:3; Josephus, War 1.633; Ant. 5.143; cf. 16.288). P.Ant. The Antinoopolis Papyri. 3 vols. London, 1950–1967. P.Oxy. The Oxyrhynchus Papyri. 51 vols. London, 1898–1984. War The Jewish War P.Panop.Beatty Papyri from Panopolis in the Chester Beatty Library Dublin. Ed. T. C. Skeat. Dublin, 1964. P.Ryl. Catalogue of the Greek Papyri in the John Rylands Library. 4 vols. Manchester, 1911–1952. P.Oxy. The Oxyrhynchus Papyri. 51 vols. London, 1898–1984. P.Magd. Papyrus de Magdola. Ed. J. Lesquier. Lille, 1912. (= P.Lille II) P.Magd. Papyrus de Magdola. Ed. J. Lesquier. Lille, 1912. (= P.Lille II) P.Gen Les Papyrus de Geneve. Ed. J. Nicole. Geneva, 1896–1906. BGU Aegyptische Urkunden aus den Koniglichen (later Staatlichen) Museen zu Berlin, Griechische Urkunden. 15 vols. Berlin, 1895–1983. 18 P.Oxy. 1470, 15. In judicial petitions, the formula occurs almost constantly: “I am wronged because.…”; cf. P.Enteux, Cairo, 1931, n. 9, 6; 25, 8; 26, 9; 41, 5; 48, 7; 68, 11; etc. 19 P.Mich. 422, 29; cf. 425, 11: this person scorns me because of my weakness, because I have only one eye and do not see with it, although it appears that I am sighted …. 20 Μὴ καταφρονήσῃς = do not be negligent; P.Oxy. 2154, 12; P.Yale 83, 10; P.Genova 85, 5; cf. Thucydides 2.11.4; 3.83.4; Xenophon, Hell. 4.5.12; Josephus, Ant. 1.313; 7.313; 12.292; Life 143, 291. 21 To Gaius 322; cf. Epictetus 4.7.33: “It is such principles that cause scorn for the laws.” 22 Josephus, War 2.122: the Essenes despise riches (καταφρονηταὶ πλούτου) and danger (2.151; Ant. 6.347); Plutarch, Brut. 12.1: the conspirators were chosen from among men who scorned death. Ceslas Spicq and James D. Ernest, Theological Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1994), 280–284. kataphronéō [to despise], kataphronētḗs [scoffer], periphronéō [to despise, disregard] kataphronéō. With genitive, double genitive, accusative, or epí, this verb means “to despise,” “to disparage,” “to treat with disinterest.” The NT warns us against despising God’s goodness (Rom. 2:4), the church (1 Cor. 11:22), little ones (Mt. 18:10), younger leaders (1 Tim. 4:12), and masters (1 Tim. 6:2). Positively, Jesus despises the shame of the cross (Heb. 12:2). Common proverbial use underlies Mt. 6:24. In 2 Pet. 2:10 opponents despise angels, or Christ’s lordship. kataphronētḗs. Acts 13:41 quotes Hab 1:5 in a warning to Jewish and proselyte hearers (v. 26) not to be “scoffers” when they hear the gospel of forgiveness through Christ. periphronéō. Originally meaning “to consider,” then “to dismiss,” “to despise,” this word occurs in the NT only in Tit. 2:15. Titus is to let no one disregard or disparage him. [C. SCHNEIDER, III, 631–33] Gerhard Kittel, Gerhard Friedrich, and Geoffrey William Bromiley, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume (Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans, 1985), 421. DESPISE, DESPISER A. Verbs. 1. exoutheneo (ἐξουθενέω, 1848), “to make of no account” (ex, “out,” oudeis, “nobody,” alternatively written, outheis), “to regard as nothing, to despise utterly, to treat with contempt.” This is usually translated to “set at nought,” Luke 18:9, RV, KJV, “despised.” So in Rom. 14:3. Both have “set at nought” in Luke 23:11; Acts 4:11; Rom. 14:10. Both have “despise” in 1 Cor. 16:11; Gal. 4:14, and 1 Thess. 5:20; in 2 Cor. 10:10, RV, “of no account,” for KJV, “contemptible”; in 1 Cor. 1:28, KJV and RV, “despised.” For the important rendering in 1 Cor. 6:4, RV, see ACCOUNT.¶ Note: In Mark 9:12 some mss. have this verb; the most authentic have the alternative spelling exoudeneo, “set at nought.” 2. kataphroneo (καταφρονέω, 2706), lit., “to think down upon or against anyone” (kata, “down,” phren, “the mind”), hence signifies “to think slightly of, to despise,” Matt. 6:24; 18:10; Luke 16:13; Rom. 2:4; 1 Cor. 11:22; 1 Tim. 4:12; 6:2; Heb. 12:2; 2 Pet. 2:10.¶ 3. periphroneo (περιφρονέω, 4065) lit. denotes “to think round a thing, to turn over in the mind”; hence, “to have thoughts beyond, to despise,” Titus 2:15.¶ Notes: The following verbs, translated “to despise, etc.” in the KJV, are given suitable meanings in the RV: (1) Atheteo, lit., “to displace, to set aside,” RV, “to reject,” Luke 10:16; 1 Thess. 4:8; in 1 Tim. 5:12, “rejected,” for KJV, “cast off”; in Heb. 10:28, “hath set at nought”; so Jude 8. See DISANNUL, REJECT, VOID, No. 2. (2) Atimazo, “to dishonor” (a, negative, time, “honor”); in Jas. 2:6, RV, “have dishonored.” See DISHONOR, ENTREAT, SHAME, C, No. 1, SHAMEFULLY. (3) Oligoreo, “to care little for, regard lightly” (oligos, “little”); in Heb. 12:5, RV, “regard lightly. See REGARD.¶ (4) The phrase logizomai eis ouden signifies “to reckon as nothing”; in the passive voice, “to be counted as nothing”; in Acts 19:27, RV, “be made of no account.” B. Adjective. atimos (ἄτιμος, 820), “without honor,” see Note (2), above, is translated as a verb in 1 Cor. 4:10, KJV, “are despised”; RV, “have dishonor,” lit., “(we are) without honor”; “without honor” in Matt. 13:57; Mark 6:4. The comparative degree atimoteros, “less honorable,” is used in 1 Cor. 12:23.¶ Note: Aphilagathos, “not loving the good” (a, negative, phileo, “to love,” agathos, “good”), is used in 2 Tim. 3:3, KJV, “despisers of those that are good,” RV, “no lovers of good.” See LOVER.¶ C. Noun. kataphronetes (καταφροντής, 2707), lit., “one who thinks down against,” hence, “a despiser” (see A, No. 2), is found in Acts 13:41.¶ In the Sept., Hab. 1:5; 2:5 and Zeph. 3:4.¶ W. E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger, and William White Jr., Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 1996), 163.  |
The Two Gates; The Narrow Gate and the Wide Gate
Enter through the narrow gate, because broad is the gate and spacious is the road, the one that leads away to ruin and everlasting misery. And many there are who are constantly entering through it. Because narrow is the gate and compressed is the road, the one which leads away into the life, and few there are who are finding it. Kenneth S. Wuest, The New Testament: An Expanded Translation (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1961), Mt 7:13–14. |
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