What exactly, is required for the law to be fulfilled?
Mt 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
This is an extraordinary statement made by the Lord Jesus Himself. The fulfillment of the law is guaranteed, whatever it means, and it must happen before heaven and earth pass. The entire law must be fulfilled before the end of time.
2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, 12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
Before this catastrophic event occurs, EVERY ASPECT OF THE LAW, must be in force and submitted to by everyone otherwise the law is left unfulfilled. This is where the “Power of His Resurrection” comes to play, for without the power to bring back life from the dead, millions would never be able to fulfill the law.
I’d like to bring forward a number of verses that I believe shed light on the requirements of fulfilling the law. First, what do we know about the law which will be in place at the time of the end of the earth and heaven?
Mt 22:36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
How’s that for cutting to the chase? On these two commandments hang ALL the law and the prophets.
Jas 2:8 If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: 9 But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. 10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Any violation of love will be considered breaking the law like having respect of persons as noted above. Also, lack of mercy, Jas 2:13 For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment. putting yourself before others, <>, etcetera!
In order for the whole law to be fulfilled completely, every one must come to the point where they love God above all, and love their neighbor as themselves.
1Jo 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
Jesus is the firstborn and it was incumbent upon him to set the example. Which He did perfectly!
1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:
…that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind....5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Php 2:2,5
Col 1: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: 15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:...18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; 20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
Jesus, as the firstborn is our example. He IS love. This is much deeper than merely having love, or exhibiting love. Love is His very essence… His nature. He loves because He is love. Because He IS love, he fulfills the law. It is impossible for Jesus to work ill towards His neighbor! In fact, if Jesus could work ill towards anyone, He could not fulfill the law!
Ro 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
Here, I must leave it to you who hold to the tradition of eternal damnation to explain how the law will ever be fulfilled, if eternal damnation is true. How can heaven and earth pass away before all creation is submitted to the Royal Law of Love?
This fulfillment is spoken of and described in Scripture, how does it occur?
Re 5:11 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; 12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. 24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. 25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.
This is how the law will be fulfilled, every jot and tittle, before the earth and heaven is destroyed. Everyone from Adam to his last descendant will be in submission to Love by the power of Jesus Christ, who IS Love, that God may be each persons "all" and be dwelling in each person.
ALL IN ALL! Thou shalt Love the Lord thy God with ALL thy heart, and ALL thy soul, and ALL thy strength. That would make Him "your" ALL, wouldn't it? If only one was NOT reconciled to God, then he could only be ALL in Some. Maybe even ALL in MOST! Not good enough, He MUST be...
ALL...... IN.......ALL!
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Faith Test for Christians (answer true or false)
Test prepared by Gary Amirault, Tentmaker Ministries.
For each statement below declare out loud whether YOU PERSONALLY believe the statement is True or False. It is important that you do it verbally, not just in your mind. Or perhaps print it out and then circle the T or F.
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (John 1:1, Mark 20:31) T or F
He was crucified, was buried and rose again on the third day. (Acts 2:23; 4:10) T or F
Jesus Christ's blood was shed for the remission of sins. (Matt. 26:8) T or F
"The Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world." (1 John 4:14) T or F
Jesus is "the Christ, the Savior of the world." (John 4:42) T or F
"This is good and acceptable in the sight of our God our saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus: Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." (1 Tim. 2:3-6, KJV) T or F
Jesus "is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." (1 John 2:2) T or F
Jesus "did not come to judge the world but to save the WORLD." (John 12:47) T or F
"Jesus, was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for EVERYONE." (Heb. 2:9) T or F
"Love NEVER fails." (1 Cor. 13:8) T or F
"With God NOTHING is impossible." (Luke 1:37) T or F
"This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance. For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, Who is the Savior of ALL MEN, especially of those who believe. These things command and teach." (1 Tim. 4:9-11) (Remember, answer OUT LOUD True or False to each of these statements.)
"At the name of Jesus EVERY knee should bow, of those in heaven, and those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that EVERY tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:10:11) T or F
"God was pleased to have all fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself ALL THINGS on earth or in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation." (Col. 1:19, 21, 22) T or F
In Jesus Christ is "the restoration of ALL THINGS, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." (Acts 3:21) T or F
The Gospel is "good tidings of great joy [that] will be to ALL people." (Luke 2:10) T or F
Believers in Christ are "born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:13) T or F
God appointed Jesus "heir of ALL THINGS, and through whom He made the universe." (Heb. 1:2) T or F
"No one can come to Christ unless the Father who sent Him draws him." (John 6:44) T or F
"As God gave Jesus authority over ALL FLESH, that he should give eternal life to as many as God gave Him." (John 17:2) T or F
The Father "has given ALL THINGS into Jesus' hands." (John 13:3) T or F
Jesus "was the true light which gives light to EVERY MAN who comes into the world." (John 1:9) (Remember, answer out loud True or False to each of these statements.)
"Just as the result of one trespass was condemnation of ALL MEN, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for ALL MEN." (Rom. 5:18) T or F
Jesus is "able even to subdue ALL THINGS to Himself." (Phil. 3:21) T or F
Jesus came "that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times he might gather together in one ALL THINGS in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works ALL THINGS according to the counsel of His will." (Eph. 1:10, 11) T or F
"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering towards us, not willing that any should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) T or F
"God was reconciling THE WORLD to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: be reconciled to God." (2 Cor. 5:19, 20) T or F
"ALL the nations shall be blessed." (Gal 3:8) T or F
"The Bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives Life to the WORLD." (John 6:33) T or F
Jesus commanded us to be like Himself and His Father: "Love your enemies, bless those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you that you may be sons of your Father in heaven." (Matt. 5:44, 45) True or False
"And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw (drag in the Greek, helkuo) ALL MANKIND unto Myself." (John 12:32) T or F
"Creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope, because creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God." (Rom. 8:20, 21) T or F
"The Father loves the Son and has given ALL THINGS into His hands." (John 3:35) T or F
"Since by man came death, by man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam ALL died, even so in Christ ALL shall be made alive." (1 Cor. 15:22) T or F
Jesus "is the image of the invisible God, the first born over ALL CREATION. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominions, or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him." (Co. 1:15, 16) True or False
"ALL shall know the Lord, from the least of them to the greatest of them." (Heb. 8:11) T or F
"The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to ALL MEN." (Titus 2:11) T or F
We are not to "repay evil for evil." (Rom. 12:17) True or False
"If anyone's work which he has built endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved yet so as through fire." (1 Cor. 3:14, 15) T or F
"Of Him and through Him and to Him are ALL THINGS, to whom be glory forever. Amen" (Rom. 11:36) T or F
"ALL Israel will be saved." (Rom. 11:26) T or F
"Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for ALL, and therefore all died." (2 Cor. 5:14) True or False.
"The head of EVERY man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." (1 Cor. 11:3) T or F
"ALL nations shall come and worship You, for your judgments have been made manifested." (Rev. 15:4) T or F
"When God's judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the WORLD will learn righteousness." (Isaiah 26:9) T or F
"Mercy shall TRIUMPH OVER (exalt over) judgment." (James 2:13) (Remember, answer out loud True or False to each of these statements.)
"Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more." (Rom. 5:20) T or F
"EVERY CREATURE which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever." (Rev. 5:13) T or F
...
"God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the gentiles, which is Christ in you the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning EVERY MAN and teaching EVERY MAN man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus." (Col. 1: 27, 28) T or F
"ALL nations whom God has made will come and worship before Him" (Psalm 86:9)
God's "mercy endures forever." (1 Chron. 16:34) T or F
God's Spirit "will be poured out on ALL FLESH." (Joel 2:28) T or F
God beckons us: "Come, and let us return to the Lord, for He has torn, but He will heal us. He has stricken, but He will bind us. After 2 days, He will revive us. On the THIRD DAY He will raise us up that we may live in His sight." (Hosea 6:1, 2) T or F
"The Lord had made bare His Holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and ALL the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God." (Isaiah 52:10) T or F
"The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and ALL FLESH shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken." (Isaiah 40:5) T or F
God will "open His hand and satisfy the desire of EVERY living thing." (Psalm 145:16) T or F
God is "gracious in ALL His works." (Psalm 145:17) T or F
"The EARTH is the Lord's and ALL its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein." (Psalm 24:1) T or F
"ALL the kings of the earth shall praise you, 0 Lord, when they hear the words of your mouth." (Psalm 138:4) T or F
God "reveals Himself to those who did not ask for Him: He was found by those who did not seek Him." (Isaiah 65:1) T or F
"The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to ALL, and His tender mercies are over ALL His works. ALL your works shall praise you, 0 Lord." (Psalm 145:8-10) T or F
"ALL the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord, and ALL the families of the nations shall worship before You. ALL those who go down to the dust (death) shall bow before You." (Psalm 22:27, 29) T or F
"0 You Who hear prayer, to you ALL flesh will come. Iniquities prevail against me; as for our transgressions, you will provide atonement for them." (Psalm 65:2-4) T or F
"Through the greatness of your power your enemies shall submit themselves to you. ALL the earth shall worship You and sing praises to you." (Psalm 66:3, 4) T or F
"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions FAIL NOT. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness." (Lam. 3:21-24) T or F
"The Lord will NOT cast off forever. Though He causes grief, yet He will show compassion according to the multitude of His
mercies." (Lam. 3:31, 32) (Remember, answer out loud True or False to each of these statements.)
"For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry; For the spirit would fail before Me, And the souls which I have made." (Isaiah 57:16) T or F
"There is no God besides Me, a just God and Savior; There is none besides Me. Look to Me and be saved, all you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. I have sworn by Myself; the word has gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that to me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall take an oath. He shall say, surely in the Lord I have righteousness and strength. To Him men shall come, and all shall be ashamed who are incensed against Him. In the Lord ALL the descendants of Israel shall be justified and shall glory." (Isaiah 45:21-25) T or F
"In this mountain the Lord of Hosts will make for all people a feast of choice pieces, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of well-refined wines on the lees. And he shall destroy on this mountain the surface of the covering cast over ALL nations. He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord will wipe away tears from all faces." (Isaiah 25:6-8)
"ALL the nations of the earth shall be blessed." (Gen. 18:18) T or F
"ALL the families of the earth shall be blessed." (Gen. 12:3, 28:14) T or F
"It shall come to pass the saying that is written: `death is swallowed up in victory. Oh, Death, where is your sting Oh, Hell (Hades) where is your victory.' The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. 15:54-58) T or F
Of those who crucified Him (which is all of us) Jesus asked: "Father forgive them; for they know not what they do. (Luke 23:34) Did the Father forgive us all? T or F
"It is finished." (John 19:30) T or F
Two Bonus Questions:
Not even death can seperate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. (Rom 8:38,39) T or F
Whoever has died, has been freed from sin. (Rom 6:7) T or F
All the answers are "True" How did you do?
For each statement below declare out loud whether YOU PERSONALLY believe the statement is True or False. It is important that you do it verbally, not just in your mind. Or perhaps print it out and then circle the T or F.
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (John 1:1, Mark 20:31) T or F
He was crucified, was buried and rose again on the third day. (Acts 2:23; 4:10) T or F
Jesus Christ's blood was shed for the remission of sins. (Matt. 26:8) T or F
"The Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world." (1 John 4:14) T or F
Jesus is "the Christ, the Savior of the world." (John 4:42) T or F
"This is good and acceptable in the sight of our God our saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus: Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." (1 Tim. 2:3-6, KJV) T or F
Jesus "is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." (1 John 2:2) T or F
Jesus "did not come to judge the world but to save the WORLD." (John 12:47) T or F
"Jesus, was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for EVERYONE." (Heb. 2:9) T or F
"Love NEVER fails." (1 Cor. 13:8) T or F
"With God NOTHING is impossible." (Luke 1:37) T or F
"This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance. For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, Who is the Savior of ALL MEN, especially of those who believe. These things command and teach." (1 Tim. 4:9-11) (Remember, answer OUT LOUD True or False to each of these statements.)
"At the name of Jesus EVERY knee should bow, of those in heaven, and those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that EVERY tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:10:11) T or F
"God was pleased to have all fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself ALL THINGS on earth or in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation." (Col. 1:19, 21, 22) T or F
In Jesus Christ is "the restoration of ALL THINGS, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." (Acts 3:21) T or F
The Gospel is "good tidings of great joy [that] will be to ALL people." (Luke 2:10) T or F
Believers in Christ are "born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:13) T or F
God appointed Jesus "heir of ALL THINGS, and through whom He made the universe." (Heb. 1:2) T or F
"No one can come to Christ unless the Father who sent Him draws him." (John 6:44) T or F
"As God gave Jesus authority over ALL FLESH, that he should give eternal life to as many as God gave Him." (John 17:2) T or F
The Father "has given ALL THINGS into Jesus' hands." (John 13:3) T or F
Jesus "was the true light which gives light to EVERY MAN who comes into the world." (John 1:9) (Remember, answer out loud True or False to each of these statements.)
"Just as the result of one trespass was condemnation of ALL MEN, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for ALL MEN." (Rom. 5:18) T or F
Jesus is "able even to subdue ALL THINGS to Himself." (Phil. 3:21) T or F
Jesus came "that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times he might gather together in one ALL THINGS in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works ALL THINGS according to the counsel of His will." (Eph. 1:10, 11) T or F
"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering towards us, not willing that any should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) T or F
"God was reconciling THE WORLD to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: be reconciled to God." (2 Cor. 5:19, 20) T or F
"ALL the nations shall be blessed." (Gal 3:8) T or F
"The Bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives Life to the WORLD." (John 6:33) T or F
Jesus commanded us to be like Himself and His Father: "Love your enemies, bless those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you that you may be sons of your Father in heaven." (Matt. 5:44, 45) True or False
"And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw (drag in the Greek, helkuo) ALL MANKIND unto Myself." (John 12:32) T or F
"Creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope, because creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God." (Rom. 8:20, 21) T or F
"The Father loves the Son and has given ALL THINGS into His hands." (John 3:35) T or F
"Since by man came death, by man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam ALL died, even so in Christ ALL shall be made alive." (1 Cor. 15:22) T or F
Jesus "is the image of the invisible God, the first born over ALL CREATION. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominions, or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him." (Co. 1:15, 16) True or False
"ALL shall know the Lord, from the least of them to the greatest of them." (Heb. 8:11) T or F
"The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to ALL MEN." (Titus 2:11) T or F
We are not to "repay evil for evil." (Rom. 12:17) True or False
"If anyone's work which he has built endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved yet so as through fire." (1 Cor. 3:14, 15) T or F
"Of Him and through Him and to Him are ALL THINGS, to whom be glory forever. Amen" (Rom. 11:36) T or F
"ALL Israel will be saved." (Rom. 11:26) T or F
"Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for ALL, and therefore all died." (2 Cor. 5:14) True or False.
"The head of EVERY man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." (1 Cor. 11:3) T or F
"ALL nations shall come and worship You, for your judgments have been made manifested." (Rev. 15:4) T or F
"When God's judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the WORLD will learn righteousness." (Isaiah 26:9) T or F
"Mercy shall TRIUMPH OVER (exalt over) judgment." (James 2:13) (Remember, answer out loud True or False to each of these statements.)
"Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more." (Rom. 5:20) T or F
"EVERY CREATURE which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever." (Rev. 5:13) T or F
...
"God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the gentiles, which is Christ in you the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning EVERY MAN and teaching EVERY MAN man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus." (Col. 1: 27, 28) T or F
"ALL nations whom God has made will come and worship before Him" (Psalm 86:9)
God's "mercy endures forever." (1 Chron. 16:34) T or F
God's Spirit "will be poured out on ALL FLESH." (Joel 2:28) T or F
God beckons us: "Come, and let us return to the Lord, for He has torn, but He will heal us. He has stricken, but He will bind us. After 2 days, He will revive us. On the THIRD DAY He will raise us up that we may live in His sight." (Hosea 6:1, 2) T or F
"The Lord had made bare His Holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and ALL the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God." (Isaiah 52:10) T or F
"The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and ALL FLESH shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken." (Isaiah 40:5) T or F
God will "open His hand and satisfy the desire of EVERY living thing." (Psalm 145:16) T or F
God is "gracious in ALL His works." (Psalm 145:17) T or F
"The EARTH is the Lord's and ALL its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein." (Psalm 24:1) T or F
"ALL the kings of the earth shall praise you, 0 Lord, when they hear the words of your mouth." (Psalm 138:4) T or F
God "reveals Himself to those who did not ask for Him: He was found by those who did not seek Him." (Isaiah 65:1) T or F
"The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to ALL, and His tender mercies are over ALL His works. ALL your works shall praise you, 0 Lord." (Psalm 145:8-10) T or F
"ALL the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord, and ALL the families of the nations shall worship before You. ALL those who go down to the dust (death) shall bow before You." (Psalm 22:27, 29) T or F
"0 You Who hear prayer, to you ALL flesh will come. Iniquities prevail against me; as for our transgressions, you will provide atonement for them." (Psalm 65:2-4) T or F
"Through the greatness of your power your enemies shall submit themselves to you. ALL the earth shall worship You and sing praises to you." (Psalm 66:3, 4) T or F
"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions FAIL NOT. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness." (Lam. 3:21-24) T or F
"The Lord will NOT cast off forever. Though He causes grief, yet He will show compassion according to the multitude of His
mercies." (Lam. 3:31, 32) (Remember, answer out loud True or False to each of these statements.)
"For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry; For the spirit would fail before Me, And the souls which I have made." (Isaiah 57:16) T or F
"There is no God besides Me, a just God and Savior; There is none besides Me. Look to Me and be saved, all you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. I have sworn by Myself; the word has gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that to me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall take an oath. He shall say, surely in the Lord I have righteousness and strength. To Him men shall come, and all shall be ashamed who are incensed against Him. In the Lord ALL the descendants of Israel shall be justified and shall glory." (Isaiah 45:21-25) T or F
"In this mountain the Lord of Hosts will make for all people a feast of choice pieces, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of well-refined wines on the lees. And he shall destroy on this mountain the surface of the covering cast over ALL nations. He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord will wipe away tears from all faces." (Isaiah 25:6-8)
"ALL the nations of the earth shall be blessed." (Gen. 18:18) T or F
"ALL the families of the earth shall be blessed." (Gen. 12:3, 28:14) T or F
"It shall come to pass the saying that is written: `death is swallowed up in victory. Oh, Death, where is your sting Oh, Hell (Hades) where is your victory.' The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. 15:54-58) T or F
Of those who crucified Him (which is all of us) Jesus asked: "Father forgive them; for they know not what they do. (Luke 23:34) Did the Father forgive us all? T or F
"It is finished." (John 19:30) T or F
Two Bonus Questions:
Not even death can seperate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. (Rom 8:38,39) T or F
Whoever has died, has been freed from sin. (Rom 6:7) T or F
All the answers are "True" How did you do?
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Old Lexicography - Exerpt from Aion and Aionios by John Wesley Hanson
You can find this book for free, here!
The oldest lexicographer, Hesychius, (A. D. 400-600,) defines aión thus: "The life of man, the time of life." At this early date no theologian had yet imported into the word the meaning of endless duration. It retained only the sense it had in the classics, and in the Bible.
Theodoret(9) (A. D. 300-400) "Aión is not any existing thing, but an interval denoting time, sometimes infinite when spoken of God, sometimes proportioned to the duration of the creation, and sometimes to the life of man."
John of Damascus (A. D. 750,) says, "1, The life of every man is called aión. . . . 3, The whole duration or life of this world is called aión. 4, The life after the resurrection is called 'the aión to come.' "
But in the sixteenth century Phavorinus was compelled to notice an addition, which subsequently to the time of the famous Council of 544 had been grafted on the word. He says: "Aión, time, also life, also habit, or way of life. Aión is also the eternal and endlessAS IT SEEMS TO THE THEOLOGIAN." Theologians had succeeded in using the word in the sense of endless, and Phavorinus was forced to recognize their usage of it and his phraseology shows conclusively enough that he attributed to theologians the authorship of that use of the word. Alluding to this definition, Rev. Ezra S. Goodwin, one of the ripest scholars and profoundest critics, says,(10) "Here I strongly suspect is the true secret brought to light of the origin of the sense of eternity in aión. The theologian first thought he perceived it, or else he placed it there. The theologian keeps it there, now. And the theologian will probably retain it there longer than any one else. Hence it is that those lexicographers who assign eternity as one of the meanings of aión uniformly appeal for proofs to either theological, Hebrew, or Rabbinical Greek, or some species of Greek subsequent to the age of the Seventy, if not subsequent to the age of the Apostles, so far a I can ascertain."
The second definition by Phavorinus is extracted literally from the "Etymologicon Magnum" of the ninth or tenth century. This gives us the usage from the fourth to the sixteenth century, and shows us that, if the word meant endless at the time of Christ, it must have changed from limited duration in the classics, to unlimited duration, and then back again, at the dates above specified!
From the sixteenth century onward, the word has been defined as used to denote all lengths of duration from brief to endless. We record here such definitions as we have found.
Rost: (German definitions) " Aión, duration, epoch, long time, eternity, memory of man, life-time, life, age of man. Aiónios, continual, always enduring, long continued, eternal."
Hedericus: "An age, eternity, an age as if always being; time of man's life in the memory of men, (wicked men, New Testament,) the spinal marrow. Aiónios, eternal, everlasting, continual."
Schleusner: "Any space of time whether longer or shorter, past, present or future, to be determined by the persons or things spoken of, and the scope of the subjects; the life or age of man. Aiónios, a definite and long period of time, that is, a long enduring, but still definite period of time."
Passow: " Aiónios, long continued, eternal, everlasting, in the classics.
Grove: "Eternity; and age, life, duration, continuance of time; a revolution of ages, a dispensation of Providence, this world or life; the world or life to come. Aiónios, eternal, immortal, perpetual, former, past, ancient."
Donnegan: "Time; space of time; life time and life; the ordinary period of man's life; the age of man; man's estate; a long period of time; eternity; the spinal marrow. Aiónios, of long duration, lasting, eternal, permanent."
Ewing: "Duration, finite or infinite; a period of duration, past or future; an age; duration of the world; ages of the world; human life in this world, or the next; our manner of life in the world; and age of divine dispensation, the ages, generally reckoned three, that before law, that under the law, and that under the Messiah. Aiónios, (from preceding,) ages of the world, periods of the dispensatins since the world began."
Schrevelius: "An age, a long period of time; indefinite duration, time, whether longer or shorter, past, prensent or future; also, in the New Testament, the wicked men of the age, life, the life of man. Aiónios, of long duration, lasting, sometimes everlasting, sometimes lasting through life as æturnus in Latin."
Dr. Taylor, who wrote the Hebrew Bible three times with his own hand, says of Olam, (Greek Aión) it signifies a duration which is concealed, as being of an unknown or great length. "It signifies eternity, not from the proper force of the word, but when the sense of the place or the nature of the subject require it, as God and his attributes."
Pickering: Almost identical with Schrevelius in his definitions.
Hinks: "A period of time; and age, an after time, eternity.Aiónios, lasting, eternal, of old, since the beginning."
Lutz: "An age, time, eternity. Aiónios, durable, eternal."
Macknight: (Scotch Presbyterian.) "These words being ambiguous, are always to be understood according to the nature and circumstances to which they are applied." He thinks the words sustain endless punishment, but adds: "At the same time I must be so candid as to acknowledge that the use of these terms, forever, eternal and everlasting, in other passages of Scripture, shows that they who understand these words in a limited sense, when applied to punishment, put no forced interpretation upon them.
Wright: "Time, age, life-time, period, revolution of ages, dispensation of Providence, present world, or life, world to come, eternity.Aiónios, eternal, ancient."
Robinson: "Life, also an age, that is an indefinite long period of time, perpetuity, ever, forever, eternity, forever, without end, to the remotest time, forever and ever, of old, from everlasting, the world, present or future, this world and the next, present world, men of this world, world itself, advent of Messiah. Aiónios, perpetual, everlasting, eternal, chiefly spoken of future time, ancient."
Jones: "An everlasting age, eternal, forever, a period of time, age, life, the present world, or life; the Jewish dispensation; a good demon, angel as supposed to exist forever . . . Aiónios, everlasting, ancient."
Schweighauser and Valpyv substantially agree.
Maclaine, in his Mosheim: Aión or æon among the ancients, was used to signify the age of man, or the duration of human life."
Cruden: "The words eternal, everlasting, forever, are sometimes taken for a long time, and are not always to be understood strictly, for example, 'Thou shalt be our guide form this time forth, even forever,' that is, during our whole life."
Alex. Campbell: "ITS RADICAL IDEA IS INDEFINITE DURATION."
Whitby: "Nothing is more common and familiar in Scripture than to render a thorough and irreparable vastation, whose effects and signs should be still remaining, by the word aiónios, which we render eternal."Hammond, Benson, and Gilpin, in notes on Jude 7, say the same. Liddell and Scott also give to aión, in the poets the sense of life and lifetime, as also an age or generation.
Pearce (in Matt. vii:33) says: "The Greek word aión, seems to signify age here, as it often does in the New Testament, and according to its most proper signification." Clarke, Wakefield, Boothroyd, Simpson, Lindsey, Mardon, Acton, agree. So do Locke, Hammond, Le Clerc, Beausobre, Lenfant, Dodridge, Paulus, Kenrick and Olshausen.
T. Southwood Smith: "Sometimes it signifies the term of human life; at other times an age, or dispensation of Providence. Its most common signification is that of age or dispensation."
Scarlett: "That aiónion, does not mean endless or eternal, may appear from considering that no adjective can have a greater force than the noun from which it is derived. If aión means age (which none either will or can deny) then aiónion must mean age-lasting, or duration through the age or ages to which the thing spoken or relates."
Even Professor Stuart is obliged to say: "The most common and appropriate meaning of aión in the New Testament, and the one which corresponds with the Hebrew word olam, and which therefore deserves the first rank in regard to order, I put down first: an indefinite period of time; time without limitation; ever, forever, time without end, eternity, all in relation to future time. The different shades by which the word is rendered, depend on the object with which aiónios is associated, or to which it has relation, rather than to any difference in the real meaning of the word."
J. W. Haley *says: "The Hebrew word 'olam' rendered 'forever,' does not imply the metaphysical idea of absolute endlessness, but a period of indefinite length, as Rambach says, a very long time, the end of which is hidden from us." Olam or olim is the Hebrew equivalent of aión.
Dr. Edward Beecher(11) remarks, "It commonly means merely continuity of action . . . all attempts to set forth eternity as the original and primary sense of aión are at war with the facts of the Greek language for five centuries, in which it denoted life and its derivative senses, and the sense eternity was unknown." And he also says what is the undoubted fact, "that the original sense of aión is not eternity. . . . It is conceded on all hands that this (life) was originally the general use of the word. In the Paris edition of Henry Stephens' Lexicon it is affirmed emphatically "that life, or the space of life, is the primitive sense of the word, and that it is always so used by Homer, Hesiod, and the old poets; also by Pindar and the tragic writers, as well as by Herodotus and Xenophon." "Pertaining to the world to come," is the sense given to "These shall go away into everlasting punishment," by Prof. Tayler Lewis, who adds(12) "The preacher in contending with the Universalist and the Restorationist, would commit an error, and it may be suffer a failure in his argument, should he lay the whole stress of it on the etymological of historical significance of the words aión, aiónios, and attempt to prove that of themselves they necessarily carry the meaning of endless duration. 'These shall go away into the restraint, imprisonment of the world to come,' is all we can etymologically or exegetically make of the word in this passage."
* "An Examination of the Alleged Discrepancies of the Bible," p.216.
The oldest lexicographer, Hesychius, (A. D. 400-600,) defines aión thus: "The life of man, the time of life." At this early date no theologian had yet imported into the word the meaning of endless duration. It retained only the sense it had in the classics, and in the Bible.
Theodoret(9) (A. D. 300-400) "Aión is not any existing thing, but an interval denoting time, sometimes infinite when spoken of God, sometimes proportioned to the duration of the creation, and sometimes to the life of man."
John of Damascus (A. D. 750,) says, "1, The life of every man is called aión. . . . 3, The whole duration or life of this world is called aión. 4, The life after the resurrection is called 'the aión to come.' "
But in the sixteenth century Phavorinus was compelled to notice an addition, which subsequently to the time of the famous Council of 544 had been grafted on the word. He says: "Aión, time, also life, also habit, or way of life. Aión is also the eternal and endlessAS IT SEEMS TO THE THEOLOGIAN." Theologians had succeeded in using the word in the sense of endless, and Phavorinus was forced to recognize their usage of it and his phraseology shows conclusively enough that he attributed to theologians the authorship of that use of the word. Alluding to this definition, Rev. Ezra S. Goodwin, one of the ripest scholars and profoundest critics, says,(10) "Here I strongly suspect is the true secret brought to light of the origin of the sense of eternity in aión. The theologian first thought he perceived it, or else he placed it there. The theologian keeps it there, now. And the theologian will probably retain it there longer than any one else. Hence it is that those lexicographers who assign eternity as one of the meanings of aión uniformly appeal for proofs to either theological, Hebrew, or Rabbinical Greek, or some species of Greek subsequent to the age of the Seventy, if not subsequent to the age of the Apostles, so far a I can ascertain."
The second definition by Phavorinus is extracted literally from the "Etymologicon Magnum" of the ninth or tenth century. This gives us the usage from the fourth to the sixteenth century, and shows us that, if the word meant endless at the time of Christ, it must have changed from limited duration in the classics, to unlimited duration, and then back again, at the dates above specified!
From the sixteenth century onward, the word has been defined as used to denote all lengths of duration from brief to endless. We record here such definitions as we have found.
Rost: (German definitions) " Aión, duration, epoch, long time, eternity, memory of man, life-time, life, age of man. Aiónios, continual, always enduring, long continued, eternal."
Hedericus: "An age, eternity, an age as if always being; time of man's life in the memory of men, (wicked men, New Testament,) the spinal marrow. Aiónios, eternal, everlasting, continual."
Schleusner: "Any space of time whether longer or shorter, past, present or future, to be determined by the persons or things spoken of, and the scope of the subjects; the life or age of man. Aiónios, a definite and long period of time, that is, a long enduring, but still definite period of time."
Passow: " Aiónios, long continued, eternal, everlasting, in the classics.
Grove: "Eternity; and age, life, duration, continuance of time; a revolution of ages, a dispensation of Providence, this world or life; the world or life to come. Aiónios, eternal, immortal, perpetual, former, past, ancient."
Donnegan: "Time; space of time; life time and life; the ordinary period of man's life; the age of man; man's estate; a long period of time; eternity; the spinal marrow. Aiónios, of long duration, lasting, eternal, permanent."
Ewing: "Duration, finite or infinite; a period of duration, past or future; an age; duration of the world; ages of the world; human life in this world, or the next; our manner of life in the world; and age of divine dispensation, the ages, generally reckoned three, that before law, that under the law, and that under the Messiah. Aiónios, (from preceding,) ages of the world, periods of the dispensatins since the world began."
Schrevelius: "An age, a long period of time; indefinite duration, time, whether longer or shorter, past, prensent or future; also, in the New Testament, the wicked men of the age, life, the life of man. Aiónios, of long duration, lasting, sometimes everlasting, sometimes lasting through life as æturnus in Latin."
Dr. Taylor, who wrote the Hebrew Bible three times with his own hand, says of Olam, (Greek Aión) it signifies a duration which is concealed, as being of an unknown or great length. "It signifies eternity, not from the proper force of the word, but when the sense of the place or the nature of the subject require it, as God and his attributes."
Pickering: Almost identical with Schrevelius in his definitions.
Hinks: "A period of time; and age, an after time, eternity.Aiónios, lasting, eternal, of old, since the beginning."
Lutz: "An age, time, eternity. Aiónios, durable, eternal."
Macknight: (Scotch Presbyterian.) "These words being ambiguous, are always to be understood according to the nature and circumstances to which they are applied." He thinks the words sustain endless punishment, but adds: "At the same time I must be so candid as to acknowledge that the use of these terms, forever, eternal and everlasting, in other passages of Scripture, shows that they who understand these words in a limited sense, when applied to punishment, put no forced interpretation upon them.
Wright: "Time, age, life-time, period, revolution of ages, dispensation of Providence, present world, or life, world to come, eternity.Aiónios, eternal, ancient."
Robinson: "Life, also an age, that is an indefinite long period of time, perpetuity, ever, forever, eternity, forever, without end, to the remotest time, forever and ever, of old, from everlasting, the world, present or future, this world and the next, present world, men of this world, world itself, advent of Messiah. Aiónios, perpetual, everlasting, eternal, chiefly spoken of future time, ancient."
Jones: "An everlasting age, eternal, forever, a period of time, age, life, the present world, or life; the Jewish dispensation; a good demon, angel as supposed to exist forever . . . Aiónios, everlasting, ancient."
Schweighauser and Valpyv substantially agree.
Maclaine, in his Mosheim: Aión or æon among the ancients, was used to signify the age of man, or the duration of human life."
Cruden: "The words eternal, everlasting, forever, are sometimes taken for a long time, and are not always to be understood strictly, for example, 'Thou shalt be our guide form this time forth, even forever,' that is, during our whole life."
Alex. Campbell: "ITS RADICAL IDEA IS INDEFINITE DURATION."
Whitby: "Nothing is more common and familiar in Scripture than to render a thorough and irreparable vastation, whose effects and signs should be still remaining, by the word aiónios, which we render eternal."Hammond, Benson, and Gilpin, in notes on Jude 7, say the same. Liddell and Scott also give to aión, in the poets the sense of life and lifetime, as also an age or generation.
Pearce (in Matt. vii:33) says: "The Greek word aión, seems to signify age here, as it often does in the New Testament, and according to its most proper signification." Clarke, Wakefield, Boothroyd, Simpson, Lindsey, Mardon, Acton, agree. So do Locke, Hammond, Le Clerc, Beausobre, Lenfant, Dodridge, Paulus, Kenrick and Olshausen.
T. Southwood Smith: "Sometimes it signifies the term of human life; at other times an age, or dispensation of Providence. Its most common signification is that of age or dispensation."
Scarlett: "That aiónion, does not mean endless or eternal, may appear from considering that no adjective can have a greater force than the noun from which it is derived. If aión means age (which none either will or can deny) then aiónion must mean age-lasting, or duration through the age or ages to which the thing spoken or relates."
Even Professor Stuart is obliged to say: "The most common and appropriate meaning of aión in the New Testament, and the one which corresponds with the Hebrew word olam, and which therefore deserves the first rank in regard to order, I put down first: an indefinite period of time; time without limitation; ever, forever, time without end, eternity, all in relation to future time. The different shades by which the word is rendered, depend on the object with which aiónios is associated, or to which it has relation, rather than to any difference in the real meaning of the word."
J. W. Haley *says: "The Hebrew word 'olam' rendered 'forever,' does not imply the metaphysical idea of absolute endlessness, but a period of indefinite length, as Rambach says, a very long time, the end of which is hidden from us." Olam or olim is the Hebrew equivalent of aión.
Dr. Edward Beecher(11) remarks, "It commonly means merely continuity of action . . . all attempts to set forth eternity as the original and primary sense of aión are at war with the facts of the Greek language for five centuries, in which it denoted life and its derivative senses, and the sense eternity was unknown." And he also says what is the undoubted fact, "that the original sense of aión is not eternity. . . . It is conceded on all hands that this (life) was originally the general use of the word. In the Paris edition of Henry Stephens' Lexicon it is affirmed emphatically "that life, or the space of life, is the primitive sense of the word, and that it is always so used by Homer, Hesiod, and the old poets; also by Pindar and the tragic writers, as well as by Herodotus and Xenophon." "Pertaining to the world to come," is the sense given to "These shall go away into everlasting punishment," by Prof. Tayler Lewis, who adds(12) "The preacher in contending with the Universalist and the Restorationist, would commit an error, and it may be suffer a failure in his argument, should he lay the whole stress of it on the etymological of historical significance of the words aión, aiónios, and attempt to prove that of themselves they necessarily carry the meaning of endless duration. 'These shall go away into the restraint, imprisonment of the world to come,' is all we can etymologically or exegetically make of the word in this passage."
* "An Examination of the Alleged Discrepancies of the Bible," p.216.
Monday, February 8, 2010
To Alfred
Alfred: A clip from your previous response:
[Here is the etymology - again - of our English word "Eternal":"mid-14c. (in variant form eterne), from O.Fr. eternal, from L.L. aeternalis, from L. aeternus contraction of aeviternus "of great age," from aevum "age" (see eon)."Since they point to our English word "Eon", let's look at that:"1640s, from L. aeon, from Gk. aion "age, vital force, lifetime," from PIE base *aiw- "vital force, life, long life, eternity" (cf. Skt. ayu "life," Avestan ayu "age," L. aevum "space of time, eternity," Goth. aiws "age, eternity," O.N. ævi "lifetime," Ger. ewig "everlasting," O.E. a "ever, always")."]
What this says to me, is that the English word eternal actually comes from the Old French word eternal which comes from the Latin word aeternalis which is from Latin aeternus contraction
of aeviternus which actually means “of great age” which is from aevum “age” and to understand which form of age we should look at eon.
The logical conclusion to this etymology that you have presented, is that the English word eternity really means age. So Etymology confirms the definition which has a limit to its duration and is measured by the passage of time. Hense not "without end".
Etymology leads us to the conclusion that the English word eternity did not carry the weight of endless, yet etymology alone is not sufficient to determine the meaning of a word since words change in meaning. Etymology supports my view and is against yours, however, etymology is not conclusive and I don’t rest my case on etymology alone. Two more tools can be employed to determing the meaning of words: lexicography and usage.
Lexicography , like etymology is helpful in gaining insight to the definitions that men have assigned to words, but again, lexicography alone is not sufficient to conclusively determine meaning because meanings change. Like the example you gave of the use of bad, or prevent which used to mean precede, or fag which used to mean a burning stick… then cigarette… and now…? Howevcer, if you check the lexicography of the word aion and aionios in the oldest lexicons, you invariably find the words lack any mention of endless or eternal as in no beginning or no end but always the idea of age, or lifetime etc. Not until the 16th century did the lexicons begin to add the idea of perpetuity to their definitions of aion and aionios. This is a historical fact and can be verified, as I have already shown. IF you missed it I will be most happy to give you the references again. So lexicography confirms my point of view as does etymology, but as I said, I do not allow this to be conclusive evidence. The crux of the matter is, what did the words mean to the authors who penned them. What did the authors intend their readers to understand by their use of the words. This brings us to usage.
Usage- by usage I refer to the use of the words by the authors and their contemporaries. What did the word mean, as it was used at the time of writing. Exhaustive studies have been made searching all the writings of the Greek classics and not once did these words have the meaning of perpetuity, let alone the stricter meaning of no beginning and no end.
In the days in which the new testament was written, usage of the word, that is, the common understanding of the people who read and spoke Greek, did not include the modern understanding of eternal but rather age, aion and age pertaining, aionios. This also is a verifiable historic fact and I will be more than happy to provide you references if you like.
Strike three! Etymology, Lexicography and Usage at the time of the writing of the Scripture all point to aion and aionios having the meaning of age and age pertaining respectively.
The concept of eternal damnation or endless punishment was spread through the church largely through Augustine, a Catholic, and is in actuality a Catholic dogma. Incidentally, the concept of purgatory was invented in an attempt to answer the many verses in Scripture which speak of the reconciliation of all. Consider also, the men who gave us our English translations were trained in the Catholic church and their primary study language was Latin, not Greek and Hebrew. The prevailing doctrine in their day was still that of endless punishment and it influenced their interpretations. Thankfully, as horrible as it is that this has hindered millions from understanding the love of God, at least they still will ultimately enter into His peace, and they will rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory when they discover His perfect love and his enduring mercy to them and their loved ones.
[Here is the etymology - again - of our English word "Eternal":"mid-14c. (in variant form eterne), from O.Fr. eternal, from L.L. aeternalis, from L. aeternus contraction of aeviternus "of great age," from aevum "age" (see eon)."Since they point to our English word "Eon", let's look at that:"1640s, from L. aeon, from Gk. aion "age, vital force, lifetime," from PIE base *aiw- "vital force, life, long life, eternity" (cf. Skt. ayu "life," Avestan ayu "age," L. aevum "space of time, eternity," Goth. aiws "age, eternity," O.N. ævi "lifetime," Ger. ewig "everlasting," O.E. a "ever, always")."]
What this says to me, is that the English word eternal actually comes from the Old French word eternal which comes from the Latin word aeternalis which is from Latin aeternus contraction
of aeviternus which actually means “of great age” which is from aevum “age” and to understand which form of age we should look at eon.
The logical conclusion to this etymology that you have presented, is that the English word eternity really means age. So Etymology confirms the definition which has a limit to its duration and is measured by the passage of time. Hense not "without end".
Etymology leads us to the conclusion that the English word eternity did not carry the weight of endless, yet etymology alone is not sufficient to determine the meaning of a word since words change in meaning. Etymology supports my view and is against yours, however, etymology is not conclusive and I don’t rest my case on etymology alone. Two more tools can be employed to determing the meaning of words: lexicography and usage.
Lexicography , like etymology is helpful in gaining insight to the definitions that men have assigned to words, but again, lexicography alone is not sufficient to conclusively determine meaning because meanings change. Like the example you gave of the use of bad, or prevent which used to mean precede, or fag which used to mean a burning stick… then cigarette… and now…? Howevcer, if you check the lexicography of the word aion and aionios in the oldest lexicons, you invariably find the words lack any mention of endless or eternal as in no beginning or no end but always the idea of age, or lifetime etc. Not until the 16th century did the lexicons begin to add the idea of perpetuity to their definitions of aion and aionios. This is a historical fact and can be verified, as I have already shown. IF you missed it I will be most happy to give you the references again. So lexicography confirms my point of view as does etymology, but as I said, I do not allow this to be conclusive evidence. The crux of the matter is, what did the words mean to the authors who penned them. What did the authors intend their readers to understand by their use of the words. This brings us to usage.
Usage- by usage I refer to the use of the words by the authors and their contemporaries. What did the word mean, as it was used at the time of writing. Exhaustive studies have been made searching all the writings of the Greek classics and not once did these words have the meaning of perpetuity, let alone the stricter meaning of no beginning and no end.
In the days in which the new testament was written, usage of the word, that is, the common understanding of the people who read and spoke Greek, did not include the modern understanding of eternal but rather age, aion and age pertaining, aionios. This also is a verifiable historic fact and I will be more than happy to provide you references if you like.
Strike three! Etymology, Lexicography and Usage at the time of the writing of the Scripture all point to aion and aionios having the meaning of age and age pertaining respectively.
The concept of eternal damnation or endless punishment was spread through the church largely through Augustine, a Catholic, and is in actuality a Catholic dogma. Incidentally, the concept of purgatory was invented in an attempt to answer the many verses in Scripture which speak of the reconciliation of all. Consider also, the men who gave us our English translations were trained in the Catholic church and their primary study language was Latin, not Greek and Hebrew. The prevailing doctrine in their day was still that of endless punishment and it influenced their interpretations. Thankfully, as horrible as it is that this has hindered millions from understanding the love of God, at least they still will ultimately enter into His peace, and they will rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory when they discover His perfect love and his enduring mercy to them and their loved ones.
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