11 votes

Should we put God to test or not?

The two scriptures (Deut. 6:16 and Malachi 3:10) should be read differently because the original Hebrew words for "test" are different in the two verses. In the King James version, the words ...
10 votes
Accepted

Concerning the "breastplate".what is the authors intent? Book of Revelation

This answer will serve to substantiate from the Greek text the impression of one commenter: Καὶ οὕτως εἶδον τοὺς ἵππους ἐν τῇ ὁράσει καὶ τοὺς καθημένους ἐπ᾿ αὐτῶν, ἔχοντας θώρακας πυρίνους καὶ ...
  • 26.1k
8 votes

Should we put God to test or not?

Do not try the LORD your God, as you did at Massah. (Deut. 6:16, JPS) לֹ֣א תְנַסּ֔וּ אֶת־יְהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר נִסִּיתֶ֖ם בַּמַּסָּֽה׃ (Deut. 6:16, BHS) Bring the full tithe into the ...
7 votes

Interpreting "psyche" as "soul"?

SOUL, WHAT IS IT? When reading the scriptures , the Hebrew word "ne'phesh" and the Greek word " phy'khe" meaning " Soul", we notice that it is basically used to refer to &...
  • 13.2k
6 votes

Did Matthew intend “evil” or “the evil one” in the Lord’s Prayer?

The tradition that has come down through the Eastern Church is to interpret ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ as "the evil one". That is how the Lord's Prayer appears in every (Eastern) Orthodox Prayer Book and ...
  • 10.2k
6 votes
Accepted

Onesimus was a brother in the flesh of Philemon?

This short little letter, delivered by former runaway slave Onesimus to his master, Philemon, shows relational problems between the slave and his master, then how the slave began to relate to Paul (...
  • 16.7k
6 votes

In Romans, does Paul vary how he identifies "the Gospel" in a way which also identifies "His Son" and "the Christ" as God?

In the words of a famous song, "This land is your land, this land is my land ..." However, that does not make you equivalent to me. It is true that Paul speaks of one faith and Gospel, etc -...
  • 82.4k
6 votes

Does "they neither marry nor are given in marriage" refer to the act of getting married, or the state of being married?

"They neither marry nor are given in marriage" clearly refers to the act of being married. "Marry" and "given" are both verbs(i.e. words used to describe an action, state,...
  • 1,736
5 votes

Did Mark intend to end his gospel at 16:8?

If one discounts the longer or shorter ending of Mark (For why scholars have rejected these endings see this answer.), there are only two explanations for Mark's apparently unresolved ending at 16:8. ...
5 votes

What does Paul mean by "sound doctrine" in Titus 2:1

Paul's letter to Titus is fairly clear end-to-end that its main concern is the behaviour and lifestyle of believers. The surrounding passage makes it clear that 'sound doctrine' or 'healthy teaching' ...
  • 5,430
5 votes

What textual clues are there that the original readers of Genesis would have understood 11:27–50:26 in a different way than Genesis 2:4–11:26?

There are a number of indicators: Themes In the texts in Chapter 11 and earlier, all of the stories are about God's punishment of mankind. While the theme of salvation is present in these texts, ...
  • 7,563
5 votes
Accepted

What sort of phrasing is "the many" in Romans 5?

The Uses All four instances of the adjective πολύς in v.15 and 19 that are used substantively to refer to "the many" people are articular masculine plural forms, three being nominative case (...
  • 19.9k
5 votes

Does Ephesians 5:3 mean that if a person fall into sins "sexual" or "covetous" he/she should not confess it to anyone in the Church?

The above text should really be taken in conjunction with the context which follows in verse 12 of Ephesians 5, namely : ... it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in ...
  • 28.1k
5 votes
Accepted

Does Ephesians 5:3 mean that if a person fall into sins "sexual" or "covetous" he/she should not confess it to anyone in the Church?

The word that the ESV is translating as named is ὀνομαζέσθω (onomazesthō), a passive form of ὀνομάζω (onomazō). In the passive voice, onomazō can mean to be known or be heard of.* An example of ...
  • 10.2k
5 votes
Accepted

What does Revelation 14:11 mean by "they have no rest, day or night"?

'If any man worship the beast' ... 'he shall be tormented in fire and brimstone' ... 'before the holy angels and before the Lamb' ... 'And the smoke of their torment ascends up to ages of ages' ... '...
  • 28.1k
5 votes

According to Romans 1:3-4, did the resurrection "make" the Son of God or "declare" the Son of God?

The answer to this question about when Jesus was declared the "Son of God" can be determined from just two considerations. 1. Grammar of Rom 1:4 The verb ὁρισθέντος = "having declared&...
  • 82.4k
5 votes

What does Jesus mean by "hot", "cold" and "lukewarm" in Revelation 3:16?

The Laodiceans did not have a fresh water supply. They built an aqueduct to bring the cold water down from the mountains, but by the time it got to Laodicea the water was lukewarm, and very ...
  • 9,208
4 votes

What words existed in Greek to express the concept "eternal"?

First, "eternal" is in fact a direct descendent of the Greek word "αἰών" by way of the Latin "aeternus" = "aevum" + "ternus". When you say "eternal", you could also debate on historical grounds ...
4 votes

Meaning(s) of "ἠγέρθη" in Mark 16:6

The word 'ἠγέρθη' transliterates into ēgerthē, meaning in its infinitive form 'to rise'. To understand the intended meaning of the word in a specific case we should look both at how the word is used ...
  • 179
4 votes
Accepted

Does Apostle Paul give a warning against different denominations?

In a word, no. In the passage you cite, Paul is condemning divisiveness and a party spirit within a local church, not denominationalism. From our perspective today, you might say Paul's teaching in ...
  • 7,084
4 votes

What is the purpose of listing two different birds in the curse of Proverbs 30:17?

I am seeing parallelism here. There is a two-fold disobedience; one in disobeying the father by mocking and the other in disobeying the mother by disregarding her direction. I lean towards your ...
  • 41
4 votes

In Hebrews 1:3, to which "purification for sins" does the verse refer?

He refers to the purification of sins later discussed in Hebrews chapters 9 and 10, which is the purification of all believers' sins. Textual Issue As to whose sins is being cleansed, that is only a ...
  • 19.9k
4 votes

Luke 16:19-31 Lazarus and the rich man - literal, allegorical or a mixture of both?

The purpose of this parable is not to convey factual information about Heaven, Hell, or Abraham's bosom. Rather the purpose of this parable of the conscience is to awaken an awareness of the ...
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4 votes

Luke 16:19-31 Lazarus and the rich man - literal, allegorical or a mixture of both?

Positive Argument (Negative arguments in a separate post for readability) The setting of the parable This question is insightful because "Is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus a true story&...
4 votes
Accepted

Is Revelation 19:16 " A slip of the pen" , or worded this way for another reason?

Interesting question! Slater, in the journal article 'King of Kings and Lord of Lords' Revisted, in New Testament Studies 1993 39:159f argues that the origin of the phrase is the Septuagint of Daniel....
4 votes

In 1 Corinthians 10:9 why does Paul say that the Israelites "tested Christ"?

The answer, I believe, is contained in the verse itself. The verse does not refer to Moses, but to God. There may be a little confusion in that some manuscripts read "Christ", some read &...
  • 10.2k
4 votes

Why did Moses use the hebrew word "Miqveh"(meaning hope) to describe the gathering together of the waters in Genesis 1:10

מִקְוֶה is a homograph - it has two different, distinct meanings. Genensius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament explains: מִקְוֶה (from the root קָוָה), [once מִקְוֵח, once מִקְוֵא כ׳]. (1) ...
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