In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Judges 21:25 NASB In his own eyes – A recent conversation with the rabbi of Parma caused me to recognize just how much of my Christian theological training affects the way I read a text. We were…
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: Ecclesiastes 3:1 NIV Season – Actually, the Hebrew doesn’t use the word for “season.” It uses ʿēt, meaning “time”—a time for every activity. Where the NIV translates “There is a time,” the Hebrew text uses zĕmān, an “appointed time.” But we…
But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us . . . Titus 3:4-5a NASB Kindness – Syntax, syntax, syntax. You see, the Greek sentence doesn’t actually read the same way as the English translation. In Greek, the literal reading is: “When but the kindness and love…
For we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. Titus 3:3 NASB Spending our life – “To behave in a certain way.” That’s the meaning of Paul’s Greek word diagō. It’s about a lifestyle, a constant behavior, a way of conducting oneself. The verb is…
For we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. Titus 3:3 NASB Lusts and pleasures – What’s the difference between lusts and pleasures? Paul seems to think we need to know both words. Why? The Greek roots are epithymía and hēdonḗ. Epithymía is desire, especially…
For we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. Titus 3:3 NASB Disobedient, deceived, enslaved – “Foolish” keeps company with a host of friends. You remember that Greek term anóētos with all its nuances. Well, Paul provides a list of some of the compatriots of anóētos. The…
For we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. Titus 3:3 NASB Foolish – “No fool like an old fool.” But we were all “old fools” once, weren’t we? Even Paul says so. The Greek term is anóētos. If you look carefully, you’ll see that…
to slander no one, not to be contentious, to be gentle, showing every consideration for all people. Titus 3:2 NASB Consideration – You know, sometimes trying to get Paul’s ideas into English is just such a mess. Here we have a translation that first says “gentle” (epieikḗs) which really should be something like “upright” (doing what is the right…
to slander no one, not to be contentious, to be gentle, showing every consideration for all people. Titus 3:2 NASB Gentle – One of the consistent themes of my Sunday school education was the characterization of Jesus as meek and mild. What did that mean? Well, it meant, of course, that 1) he never did anything wrong, 2) he…
