Determining the Meaning of Words
Do words always mean the same thing? In particular, when we see a word used in scripture, is it always used the same way? This is a critical question, because it determines much about how we interpret scripture. Consider, for example, the word “save”. Many times, when we see the word “save” in scripture, we consider it to refer to our eternal salvation. But look at the following three verses:Matthew 1:21 (NIV) - She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
Matthew 14:30 (NIV) - But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"
Matthew 9:21 – 22 (NIV) - She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed." Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment.
The word “save” in Matthew 1:21 is the Greed word “sozo”. In the context of this verse, it clearly refers to an eternal salvation. However, the same Greek word is used in Matthew 14 for “save”. Is Peter, as he sinks into the ocean, calling out to be saved from his sins? No – he is using the word in the sense of his physical life. Furthermore, in the Matthew 9 passage, the word “sozo” is translated as “healed”. This, too, is clearly not a reference to “save” in the sense of Matthew 1:21.
A single word can have multiple meanings. This is what makes translation of any written work difficult. The context must determine the meaning. As another simple example, consider the sentence “He opened the trunk”. What image comes into your mind? For some people, it is a picture of someone standing in a driveway, opening the trunk of a car. For others, it is a picture of someone standing in an attic, opening a trunk of clothes. Without a context to put it in, we cannot correctly understand the meaning of the sentence.
So it is with scripture. If we pull a particular verse and read it outside of its surrounding context, we may well have a wrong meaning associated with it. A classic example is Revelation 3:20 (NIV) - Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. This verse is one of my pet peeves when it comes to taking things out of context. It generally is used as a passage for eternal salvation. However, when we read the verse in context, we find that Jesus is not talking to the unsaved, but to the church! This verse has NOTHING to do with the unsaved, and EVERYTHING to do with those who are already saved. And yet, we yank it out of context, and apply it to a situation where it does not apply.
So – what am I saying? First of all, we need to be sure that we consider the context of a passage to understand the meaning of words. We need to not just assume that certain words always mean the same thing. And secondly, closely related to this is that we need to be sure we do not yank verses out of scripture and apply them to situations they were never meant to apply to. When we do either of these, we do damage to the interpretation of scripture.
Posted On Sep 21, 2005 at 6:03 AM
On Sep 21, 2005 Doug wrote: This reminds me of a verse I've often wondered about. Or, rather, I've wondered about the assumptions people make based on the verse. Here's the verse:
Revelation 4:10-11
The twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:
"You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they were created
and have their being."
What I wonder about is, why do we, from that verse, assume that whatever crowns we are given in heaven we will also cast before the throne...after all, Revelation 4:4 seems to indicate that the elders' crowns are crowns of authority/kingship...
I have this funny picture in my mind of us getting to heaven, receiving crowns, casting them before the throne, and God saying, "What are you doing? I gave you those to enjoy for all of eternity!"
Of course, I don't know how it will really be, I just think we need to be careful (as you said) to look at context, and be careful not to make too many assumptions.
Brian Replied: Yeah, I've also heard that bit about casting our crowns at the feet of Christ. I agree - the passage in Revelation that you quoted does not seem to indicate that we are doing the casting - it seems that it refers to something else. In addition, crowns are a symbol of authority, or rulership. Doesn't scripture talk about us reigning with him? 2 Timothy 2:11 - 12 (NIV) - Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us;
This will undoubtedly be an upcoming topic here!
On Sep 22, 2005 Ron wrote: I've heard this, too. In some instances, I think that the speaker is simply trying to acknowledge that any crown we earn was done through the power and grace of Christ and therefore really belongs to Him; other times it strikes me a sort of false humility on the part of the speaker.
But, this brings us to an interesting topic. What should be our motivation for service to God? I want to think that our Love for Him and submission to His will are what motivates us, but the Bible has many passages that offer both positive (crowns, rewards) and negative (wrath, judgment) motivations.
Should a Christian serve God in order to win a crown? Should we be faithful to him so that we can have a bigger reward in Heaven? Should we be obedient in order to avoid getting a spanking form Him? Or, should we obey Him because we love Him?
Sorry, Brian, I got a little off-topic there. :-)
Brian Replied: Quote:
| Should a Christian serve God in order to win a crown? |
1 Corinthians 9:24 (NIV) - Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
It seems to me that Paul is telling us that yes, most definitely part of our motivation is the prize we are going to earn. It may not be the only motivation - love of God, desire to please him, and avoiding the "spanking" (as you termed it) may also play a role. I think we deceive ourselves when we try to say that we DON'T serve him out of a desire to receive a reward - after all, we are still human and still wrestle with the human compulsion to please ourselves. I think the motivation of the reward is given to us to help us strive to please God.
There are going to eventually be a whole series of articles that address the issue of judgment, reward, and the like. Stay tuned!
On Oct 6, 2005 simnesan wrote: On Sep 21, 2005 Doug wrote: Quote:
| This reminds me of a verse I've often wondered about. Or, rather, I've wondered about the assumptions people make based on the verse. Here's the verse: Revelation 4:10-11 The twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." |
Brother Doug,
Please consider this explanation by Arlen Chitwood see his writings at: lampbroadcast.org/LAMPBOOK.HTM; also see this article written by: Roel Velema at: http://www.lampbroadcast.org/Velema/Violence.html.
The 24 elders are the two thirds of the original complement of 36 Angles whom God had assigned to Lucifer when He set Lucifer over the domain of the Earth and it's heavens {the kingdom of heaven}. [See Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28] One third of those Angels {the fallen Angels} followed after Lucifer and two thirds did not.
This partial complement of 24 Angels are wearing 'stephanos crowns not 'diadem' crowns. This means that they have no royal power and either once were rulers assigned to one who wore a diadem crown or will at some time in the future become rulers under one who will wear a diadem crown.
Since they are casting their crowns at the foot of the throne of God and therefore to the feet Christ who will reign during the coming millennial age, they are then relinquishing their crowns to the one who will wear the royal diadem crown during that age.
Christ will give these crowns to those whom have overcome at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
The diadem and final 12 stephanos crowns will be taken by force,during the tribulation period, by the Angels of heaven whom have always been faithful to God. [Revelation 12:7-9]. This is when the kingdom of heaven will be ruled over by Christ and the Saints who have inherited this kingdom with Christ for the coming age.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at: simnesan@kjvmail.com
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Brian's BlogMost articles on this blog describe what is known as "Kingdom Theology" - they deal with the doctrine of the Millennial Kingdom.If you are just finding this Blog, I would suggest that you start with the first article, rather than picking up in the middle. Enjoy your reading! ABOUT ME Current PostsA scriptural scavenger huntWhat do we want to be remembered for? How do we measure our churches? The Parable of the Sower What is Worship 
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