Archives by date

Archives by date

You are browsing the site archives by date.

The “until” Verses

Published by dadmin on 17 February 2023 Respond

Sometimes the most ordinary words carry a most extraordinary meaning, such as the word until in the Bible. In Matthew 1:25 we see it used concerning Mary, who did not consummate her marriage with Joseph “until” after Jesus was born.

“But he did not consummate their marriage UNTIL she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.” Matt 1:25 (NIV)

The Greek word translated “until” in this verse is ἕως which simply means till or until.  It is used to help determine the timing of when a matter occurs.  A perfect example is that of Christ’s command to his three main disciples on the mountain of transfiguration, where he said, “Tell the vision to no one UNTIL the Son of Man has risen from the dead.” Matt 17:17 (NIV)  So even the other nine disciples did not know about that until later.

The point is that ‘until’ is an ordinary word, and should be understood in the ordinary way, and that is what gives it extraordinary meaning in so many places in the New Testament.  

Consider this verse:

“The Lord said to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand UNTIL I put your enemies under your feet.’” Matthew 22:44 (NIV) Quoting Psalm 110:1

Many Christians think the world is going to get worse and worse and then Jesus will return in person, and after that he will subdue every enemy.  The above verse is the most quoted old testament scripture in the new testament, being referenced (depending on how it is counted) about 24 times.  Rather than agreeing with the idea that the world will get worse, it would appear to be saying that Christ is going to remain in Heaven UNTIL all the enemies are defeated.

1 Corinthians 15:25 (NIV) is another ‘until verse’ that agrees, saying: “For He must reign UNTIL he has put all his enemies under his feet.” 

That idea puts a cat among the pigeons of many end-times theories.  

Or consider this verse:

“Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine UNTIL that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” Mark 14:25 (NIV)  The weird thing about this ‘until,’ is that it was only the very next day that Jesus drank wine-vinegar while dying on the cross.  While I’m not dogmatic about it, I have often pondered the question, “Is that an indicator that Christ’s kingdom began with the atonement?”  

Or consider this set of three verses:

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up UNTIL we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:11-13 (NIV)

The debate about the church having or needing apostles seems to be settled by the ‘until’ here, because Christ gives them to His people to perfect them until they measure up to God’s ultimate standard… which of course hasn’t happened yet.

The ‘until verses’ are among some of the most interesting in the New Testament because they demonstrate that the original apostles thought differently to us on a few points.  So it’s a reason to go to the Bible and get to know it all the more. 

Filed under: , , ,

The Number 1000 in Scripture

Published by dadmin on 3 February 2023 Respond

Source: Aaron Lee on Unsplash

There’s something to know about the interesting number, one thousand in the Bible.

In the Koine Greek language the word used is χιλιάς (kilias) which is where we get the word ‘kilo’ in English, as used in kilometre (a thousand metres) or kilogram. (a thousand grams)  And, in the Hebrew language, which is written mostly using the Aramaic square script, the word for thousand is אֶלֶף (elep).

The word for thousand can be used either literally or figuratively, and is used both ways in both languages in both the Old and the New Testament.  

For example, here is the word a thousand used specifically in the Old Testament, and specifically (that is literally) in the New Testament:

“To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver.” (Gen 20:16)  Literal – Old Testament Hebrew.

“Those who ate were about five thousand men, in addition to women and children.” (Matt 14:21)  Literal – New Testament Greek.

When we read passages like these, the number a ‘thousand’ reads normally.  However at other times the word is non-literal and comes to represent something else, such as in these examples from both the Old and New Testaments.

“For every animal of the forest is mine, and the livestock on a thousand hills.” (Psalm 50:10)  Non-Literal – Old Testament Hebrew.  

Or

“For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.” (Psalm 84:10)  Non-Literal – Old Testament Hebrew.

To read the above two Psalms literally would mean that God only owns the cattle on a thousand hills, but the parallelism of the verse shows us that God is using the word “thousand’ to refer to “everything.”  So he owns the cattle not just on a thousand hills, but on all of the hills.  And in the second psalm, a day in the Lord’s courts is better than all of the days of time anywhere else.  

So when we encounter the word ‘thousand’ in scripture, how do we know if it is literal or non-literal in its usage.  The passage is often the clue.  For example the psalms are poetry, and thus we have poetic language, including the use of many non-literal terms.  Other passages in the Bible like the story of Isaac obtaining a wife in Genesis 20 are narrative, so we have a story with the actual price paid for his wife’s dowry, being a thousand pieces of silver.  

How about the millennium passages from Revelation twenty?

“Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.” (Rev 20:1-2) 

Many people have interpreted the word thousand here literally, but there is a clue that it is in fact non-literal.  Consider the other things in this verse:

  • The Abyss is not a literal abyss.
  • The chain is not a literal chain… 
  • The dragon is not a literal dragon.

If the other elements in these two verses are non-literal, what about the word thousand?  I suggest the word thousand is also non-literal.  

When the book of Revelation says that Christ is going to reign for a thousand years, and the devil is going to be bound for a thousand years, perhaps that is a non-literal expression for a very very long time.  In other words, the Lord will be King of the Earth, not just for a thousand years, but…

Filed under: , ,

What the Bible says about the Effect of Humanity on the Environment.

Published by dadmin on 1 February 2023 Respond
Source: Wikipedia. (User: Diliff)

Standing on the edge of Sydney’s Blue Mountains, it is easy to see that the world is pretty awesome, reminding us of the Creator and what he has done.  However, according to scripture the world we live in is a corrupted version of the original creation.

When Adam sinned, it wasn’t a problem for him alone, but for all humanity after him, and along with it all creation was plunged into pain.  God said, “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life.  It will produce thorns and thistles for you.” (Genesis 3:17-18a) 

Later in the book of Romans, Paul described the fall using these words, “For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own voice, but by the will of the one who subjected it…. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” (Romans 8:20&22) 

The creation we know, the Earth and the Universe as we see it, is like a corrupted hard drive on a computer.  It doesn’t work properly and is not what was originally built.  

One could say that humanity has had a significant impact on the environment.  

There is a lot of debate today about climate change and the environment.  The temperature seems to be gradually warming, and the question is whether this is good or bad, and caused by people or by natural causes.  

But the original environmental devastation was certainly of human origin, and incredibly destructive.  The world we are living in now is a shadow of previous version.  

So… If you ever hear someone say how beautiful the world is, and how finely tuned it is, and how it is evidence of a Creator.  They are speaking the truth.

And… you may also hear someone else say how the world could not have been created because it is full of death, disease, wars, predators, natural disasters and more.  They are kind of telling the truth too, because the world we live in isn’t the world that was created.  So both points of view are correct.

What is left for us to do?  Fall on the mercy of God, and find your way back to Him.  It is the beginning of a wonderful walk with the creator of life. 

Filed under: