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One is Taken; One is Left By Dr. Stanley M. Horton
A Word Study On Idolatry by David Buttram
Proclaim His Glory By Dr. Stanley M. Horton
Wastebaskets Of Egypt By Lois Hoadley Dick
Word Study On Praise By David Buttram
"ANOTHER WORD STUDY FROM THE GREEK"
40"Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left.
"SEVERAL TIMES RECENTLY it has come to my attention that some are trying to revive an interpretation of
This interpretation, which comes up from time to time, says that when one is taken and the other left, the one taken is the wicked one who is taken away for judgment, while the true believer is left. They refer this to a separation which they say will take place at the end of the Tribulation.
They do not refer these verses to the Rapture as such. Rather they connect it with the parable which speaks of tares first gathered for burning
It is not unusual for scholars to disagree about the meaning of words or passages in this way. But we must remember that scholars sometimes have preconceived ideas, and it is necessary for us to search the Scriptures before coming to a conclusion.
An examination of Matthew chapter 13 shows that the parable fits
Then a careful study of Matthew chapter 24 shows that here Jesus is not primarily concerned with what happens next. He deals with A.D. 70 (the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem), the course of this age, and the end of the age without indicating any step-by-step sequence. The word then in verse 30 is very general and means only that several things will happen in this general period but without indicating the order of their occurrence.
A careful study of the words in Matthew 24:40 shows that taken (Greek, paralambanetai, in the present tense here to show certainty) basically means "to take to oneself, take with, or take along." Some have said it also means "to take prisoner," but this is not a common New Testament usage. When the Bible speaks of solders taking Jesus, He was already arrested, and they were merely taking Him along with them
Usually the word involves taking people and often involves close personal relationship. Joseph was commanded to take the young child and His mother
The word is also translated "received," but with the same personal meaning. We take Christ to ourselves
All this is in strong contrast to Matthew 24:39 where, after Noah entered the ark, the flood came and "took" (Greek, airo) the rest of that generation away. "Airo" is a common word for "take up, take away, carry away, remove." Jesus commanded the paralytic to take up his bed and go home
The proper parallel in Matthew 24:40, 41 then is that one is "taken along" with the multitude who rise for that great meeting with Jesus in the air
The context also shows that the point Jesus is making in
When Jesus comes again for us, people will be going about their ordinary tasks the same as they would any other day. (Jesus means everyday duties when He speaks of going to the field and grinding the little hand mill.) There will be no special warning other than the preaching of the Word. Suddenly one will be taken to be with Jesus and one will be left behind.
Jesus concludes with the warning to watch
This article quoted from the
"What do you talk about when you are with unbelievers?
David called on Israel to declare God's glory
So often God's glory and presence were manifest in the Old Testament as intense and brilliant light, sometimes with the variety of color seen in a rainbow
The word glory (Hebrew, kavod) originally meant "weight." Then it took on the meaning of weightiness and therefore of splendor, magnificence, power, authority, and honor.
But when the Bible speaks of the glory of God, the word still keeps the meaning of weight. His glory is actually the full weight of all that He is.
The manifestations of His glory are manifestations of His presence and power in whatever form they may take. To give Him glory is to honor Him by recognizing the weightiness, the magnificence, the greatness of all that He is.
The greatest manifestation of His glory, a glory full of grace and truth, came when Jesus walked on this earth
Surely if the heavens declare the glory of God (Psalm 19:1), how much more should we!
This article quoted from the
We will help you prepare
"Who would dream that one of the most puzzling mysteries for New Testament students would be solved from a garbage dump outside an ancient Egyptian town?
Human nature was much the same in ancient times as it is today. Schoolboys copied lessons over and over, then tore the papyrus to bits and dropped them into a wastebasket.
Provoked ladies of the house wrote notes to careless maids: "Kindly dust behind the big vases in the hall, since you forgot them last week." And lazy maids shrugged and dropped the notes into wastebaskets.
Lawyers sent bills; citizens figured out their taxes; landlords wrote rent receipts; lovers exchanged poems; teenagers scribbled in diaries. And, of course, there were books of magic� even almanacs. They all ended up in wastebaskets.
Fortunately the ancient Egyptians did not burn their garbage. The contents of wastebaskets were simply collected and dumped over the edge of city walls where the wind-blown sands covered them� and preserved them� in a hot, dry land where rain was unknown. Some layers of the rubbish were hundreds of feet deep.
Meanwhile, Bible scholars puzzled for years over the great difference between the Greek language of the New Testament and other Greek literature. Josephus, the famous historian who lived during New Testament days, wrote in a classical, stilted type of Greek, a style long since outdated. Other literary men used Attic Greek, a language originating in Athens and noted for its elegance, but accessible only to learned persons.
Could it be that God invented a new language expressly for the purpose of giving His written Word to the world?
The garbage dump outside the town of Oxyrhynchus, Egypt, solved the centuries-old mystery. Digging at that spot about 100 miles south-west of Memphis, a pair of archeologists (Dr. Grenfell and Dr. Hunt) in 1896 discovered tons of papyri notes dating from New Testament days. All the scraps and torn bits were carefully sorted, pieced together, photographed, and finally published in volume after volume to amaze and further confuse Bible students.
The contents of Egyptian waste-baskets thus came to be placed on display in the University Library at Heidelberg, Germany.
One day a German pastor, Dr. Adolf Deissmann, was browsing through the mass of seemingly pointless scraps of ancient trivia. He was struck with the similarity between the type of Greek used and the New Testament Greek he had studied. After further investigation he realized it was a "koine" or "common" type of Greek written and spoken all over the Roman Empire by laborers, housewives, seamen, and children� everyone but scholars.
The koine Greek turned out to be a simple language of many countries, which began during the reign of Alexander the Great when he first started to colonize the known world. The koine was the popular trade lingo, absolutely necessary in international commerce. This common Greek continued to be used under Roman rule into New Testament days.
When God wanted to spread the gospel quickly by word of mouth and by Paul's letters, the koine was already available, understandable by anyone. The nuances and over-delicacy of classic Greek would have been wasted on the so-called "barbarians" whom Paul yearned to bring into the Kingdom of God.
Thanks to the wastebaskets of Egypt emptied outside city and village walls, the first examples of a type of Greek previously known only in the Bible came to light.
Some of the papyri notes were found between cracks in fallen buildings and under ruined cellars. Some were even wrapped around mummies.
Early Christian documents were found, though not added to the canon of Holy Writ. Fragments of the Gospels, portions of Genesis, Second Samuel, Amos, Revelation, and other books were unearthed in Egypt; probably they belonged to an ancient Christian community. These were older than the existing manuscripts. The documents were priceless� but the value of the garbage dump outside Oxyrhynchus lay in the discovery of koine Greek.
Many New Testament phrases became clearer when the koine was understood. For example, "Give us this day our epiousion (daily) bread" always puzzled translators since eminent Greek scholars, including Origen, insisted the word did not exist in the Greek language. The strange word was found on a housewife's grocery list, buried for centuries in the sand. The koine explained that daily bread was given to workmen and soldiers the night before it was needed.
One scholar suggested the meaning should be, "bread for going on, bread for the morrow and afterward." The koine helps us understand the Lord's unfailing provision for His people and His assurance He will not be late with it.
At one time there was a list of no less than 500 New Testament words which remained vague in meaning to translators.
Professor Deissmann, who later held the chair of New Testament exegesis in Berlin, summed up the significance of the discovery of the koine Greek by saying, "The foundations of our historical knowledge of early Christianity are unassailable."
This article quoted from the
In some small way I hope that God has been able to encourage you through these articles.
41Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
42So be prepared, because you don't know what day your Lord is coming."
Matthew 24:40, 41 that has been rejected by many commentaries (such as Pulpit Commentary) and by most Bible scholars.
(Matthew 13:30, 41) and they take Matthew 24:30, 31 to indicate a sequence where the wicked are judged before the elect are gathered.
2 Thessalonians 1:7-9. The armies of Anti-christ must be judged before the shining forth of the believers in the Kingdom. The reference is not to the Rapture but to the time when we return with Christ.
(See Acts 1:7.)
(Matthew 24:27; John 19:16).
(Matthew 2:13, 20). Jesus took Peter, James, and John into the Mount of Transfiguration
(Matthew 17:1). Barnabas took Mark to Cyprus (Acts 15:39).
(Colossians 2:6; John 1:11). We take to ourselves the Word of God as truth
(1 Thessalonians 2:13). Jesus will come again and take us to Himself
(John 14:3).
(Matthew 9:6). The kingdom of God and the talent are taken away from the unfaithful
(Matthew 21:43; 25:28). The stone is taken away from the tomb
(John 20:1). The wicked are taken away and cast into outer darkness
(Matthew 22:13). So Noah goes first into the ark, and then the flood comes and takes away the others.
(1 Thessalonians 4:17), while the other is left behind
(Greek, aphietai, in the sense of being abandoned to the judgments of the Tribulation).
Matthew 24:39-42 is that it will be business as usual at the time He comes for us. It was business as usual for the world as a whole when the flood came. The people who were left outside the ark had their own plans made for the very day the flood came. They had no special warning other than the preaching of Noah.
(Greek, gregoreite, "be on the alert, be wide-awake, vigilant"), for we do not know at what hour our Lord comes
(Matthew 24:42-44). This also fits clearly with the fact that Jesus will come for us before the judgments of the Tribulation begin to fall."
Gospel Tract Harvester Newsletter, July-August 1986, page 6
(1 Chronicles 16:24). This did not mean that everyone had to be an orator or public speaker, however. The basic meaning of "declare" is simply to count in the sense of counting up or checking off. We must be able to tell the world what God's glory includes.
(Ezekiel 1:27,28). Thus as white light is made up of many colors, so God's glory is made up of many components.
He is glorious in His goodness (Exodus 33:18,19),
glorious in His power (Psalm 63:2),
glorious in His grace,
glorious in His holy name (that is, in His holy nature and character),
glorious in His justice and mercy,
glorious in His work of creation,
glorious in His salvation,
glorious in His wisdom and knowledge,
glorious in His love.
(John 1:14). One of the greatest works of the Holy Spirit today is to reveal that glory so we may be continually changed as we begin to partake of it
(2 Corinthians 3:18).
We were created for His glory (Revelation 4:11).
We are going to share His glory (Colossians 3:4).
(See also Matthew 5:14-16.)"
Pentecostal Evangel Magazine, JANUARY 20, 1980, page 21
By Dr. STANLEY HORTON was a Professor at the Assemblies of God Graduate School, Springfield, Missouri, at that time
For your final exams
By Lois Hoadley Dick
PENTECOSTAL EVANGEL, DECEMBER 9, 1979, page 3
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