But doesn’t 2 Timothy 2:15 tell us to study the bible?

 

 

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But what about the King James Version (KJV) translation of 2 Timothy 2:15 that says: “Spoudazo study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly cutting-straight-along-a-pattern-of (a) the logos message of [singular] Truth.”  Doesn’t this tell ALL Christians to be bible students?  Or at least “serious Christians” and for sure those who want to “serve the Lord?”  After all, haven’t we heard so many pastors tells us this?  We will find out No!  Paul has already told Timothy what “pattern” to “cut-straight-along” in 2 Timothy 1:13 “Follow the hupotuposis pattern (b) of the hugiaino sound logos messages that you have already heard from me:  in/by/with [singular] trusting-relying-faith and/coupled unconditional-love that are in/by/with Christ Jesus,” but more about this below. <Notes> a) cutting a straight road, without deviation, thus handling or teaching straight along ‘pattern’ given to you, b) hupotuposis:  pattern, outline, form, sketch, example, sample, c) hugiaino: sound, in-balance, all-parts-working, healthy condition.

 

First, we know that Timothy was the “workman” or “man of God” (a) that Paul is addressing this to – a pastor-in-training, not the average Christian as so many have erroneously applied this to as is often the problem when you don’t discern the intended audience!  <Notes> a) 1 Timothy 6:11; 2 Timothy 3:17.

 

Second, “the logos message of [singular] Truth” in context has absolutely nothing to do with biblical writings!  Paul clearly defines “the logos message of The Truth” as “the gospel of the salvation of you” (a), “the logos message of The Truth, the gospel” (b), “to us the logos message of this salvation has been sent” (c), just as Peter does:  “God made a choice among you that through-the-realizing-channel-of my mouth the Gentile should hear the logos message of the gospel and/coupled to have trusting-relying-faith” (d). This is particularly obvious when you understand that “The Truth” is gnosis informational-knowledge of the bible at all, but a special NT term used for Jesus Christ as the perfect revelation of the Father (e) and His Spirit (f) – see The Truth page.  Thus the gospel logos message is about Jesus Christ who is The Truth about the Father, and remember that very little of this was even written down for so many years!  The phrase “preach the gospel” is used at least 26 times and so naturally “trusting-relying-faith comes from akouo hearing-to-understand and akouo hearing-to-understand through-the-realizing-channel-of [singular] directly-spoken rhema word of Christ” (g), “but how are they going to akouo hear-to-understand [Christ call them to Himself] without someone preaching” (h)?  There simply isn’t anything here about reading ancient bible writings! <Notes> a) Ephesians 1:13, b) Colossians 1:5, c) Acts 13:26, d) Acts 15:7, e) John 1:14, 17, 8:31, 36, 14:6; Ephesians 4:21, f) John 14:17, 15:26, 16:13; 1 John 4:6, 5:6, g) Romans 10:17, h) Romans 10:14.

 

As we saw in Bible Info – BT1, the NT writers purposely use terms Jews are familiar with, but they use them in a completely-different-in-kind way, almost redefining them based on New Revelation, and they justify this because many verses say that the OT is but “a copy and/coupled shadow of the heavenly things, of the things to come, but the reality belongs to Christ” (a).  The redefinition of “logos Word of God” has been the subject of all these BLOGs, and so this is just another case of it. <Notes> a) Colossians 2:17; Hebrews 8:5, 9:23, 10:1; 1 Peter 3:21.

 

Third, Paul did this so Timothy “won’t neglect his prophetically-received grace-gift” (a) of evangelism or preaching the logos gospel message of trusting-relying-faith in/by/with The Truth, who is Jesus Christ (b) and/coupled Christ’s only entole commandment to unconditionally-love one another as He did us.  As stated earlier in 2 Timothy 1:13, this IS the same as Paul’s advise to “Follow the hupotuposis pattern of hugiaino sound logos messages (c) that you have already heard from me” – not the indiscriminate preaching or teaching of OT scriptures – see also Only 2 Commandments!  Paul would be “having some words” with many pastors today! <Notes> a) 1 Timothy 4:14, b) 2 Timothy 4:2, 5, c) 1 Timothy 1:10, 4:6, 6:3.

 

Fourth, this has nothing to do with “studying” any writings!  The Greek word spoudazo means “endeavor or be so diligent or zealous that it causes you to rush forward.” Www.spoudazogroup.com defines spoudazo as “zealous concentration, earnest, diligent effort – to give maximum effort, do your best, spare no effort, and be eager when pursuing something or carrying out tasks.” Paul was simply telling Timothy to get off his duff and get out there to preach the gospel, to not neglect his grace-gift of evangelism/preaching, lest he “get entangled in civilian pursuits” (a) – preaching the logos gospel message of The Truth based on Paul’s “sound teaching,” not “the irreverent babbling” or “quarreling about words” or “ignorant or foolish controversies” about the Law or “endless genealogies” like the Jewish false teachers did (b)!  <Notes> a) 2 Timothy 2:4, b) 1 Timothy 1:4, 6:4, 20; 2 Timothy 2:14, 16, 23; Titus 3:9 – see Logos Word of God – BT8.

 

Out of 54 (a) bible translations, only 10 (b) got it wrong by saying spoudazo means “study.” So, why did the KJV start a bad precedence for the other 9?  In 1611, when the KJV was written, the 3rd most common definition of “study,” actually the least common, did mean “to endeavor diligently,” so the translators weren’t completely dishonest in choosing “study” for spoudazo.  However, they still were very misleading to even the readers of their day, because the more common meanings were at that time: “1) to fix the mind closely upon a subject; to muse, to dwell upon in thought; and 2) to apply the mind to books.”  Why then would the translators purposely mislead their readers?  Could it have something to do with the fact that their livelihoods as professors and scholars in universities employed under King James relied on students “hitting the books, learning, analyzing, investigating, examining, scrutinizing, and earnestly contemplating?”  Since this is also our modern definition for “study,” can you see how misleading that this would be to a modern reader? <Notes> a) Such as: ASV, CSB, DARBY, DLNT, EXB, HCSB, MOUNCE, NASB, NKJV, NMB, WEB, and YLT, b) KJV, KJ21, AKJV, AMP, AMPC, BRG, DRA, GNV, JUB, and MEV.

 

It seems many translators and Christians have fallen into the same ‘trap’ as the scribes and Pharisees.  They were the expert bible students of Christ’s day, but look what Jesus said of them in John 5:39-40:  “You diligently search/study (a) the scriptures (b) because you suppose (c) that in them you will lay hold of zoe genuine-life everlasting, but instead it is they that bear witness of Me, yet you refuse to COME TO ME that you may have zoe genuine-life.”  Clearly their “supposing” was wrong!  They missed the point of the scriptures – to prepare them for Christ!  In fact, their “tables” for rolling out their scrolls to compare and study them had become a “snare, trap, and stumbling block” and God had cursed their efforts with a “retribution – bend backs forever!” (d) – see New Covenant Ways – BT17. Smart people can really get stuck – bent over!  Paul also warns of people “always learning but never able to arrive at a genuine, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge of The Truth” (e). That’s why Paul rhetorically asks about who really was in the Church:  “For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the sunesis ‘connect-the-dots’ understanding of the understanding-ones I will thwart.’  Where is the wise one?  Where is the scribe?  Where is the debater of this age?  Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world” (f)?  Being a bible student wasn’t the answer!  <Notes> a) ereunao:  diligently search, inquire, seek, examine, or investigate in order to sunesis ‘connect-the-dots’ to understand, a major step for gnosis info-knowledge, b) the bible of their day, c) dokeo:  have the opinion of, seem to think, suppose what seems to be, make a subjective mental estimate, which directly reflects the personal values of the person making this a subjective judgment call.  In other words, it may not be the truth at all, d) Romans 11:7-10 quoting Isaiah 28:13, cf. Romans 11:7-10; 1 Corinthians 3:19; Job 5:13, e) 2 Timothy 3:7, f) 1 Corinthians 1:19-20

 

Reflection:

 

 

As Christian musicians, we have to be careful that we aren’t perpetuating wrong doctrines by preaching/teaching from our English bibles, many of which “mishandle” the original texts.  We need to “cut along the pattern” that was actually given us in the NT, not the traditions of the Catholic and Protestant churches that came much later.  Even if we don’t know how to use the many online tools to access more accurate meanings of Greek and Hebrews words, just reading verses carefully in context can keep you from get side-tracked into error.  Just using www.biblegateway.com to read several more modern accurate translations (see Bible Info) can alert you to a possible problem with the text.  But the best way is still to learn how to really eido mentally ‘see’ to perceive/know and/or akouo listen/hear-to-understand the prophetic-rhema words of God from the “One Teacher” of the Holy Spirit, and this happens in proseuche conversational-prayer.

 

Clearly the Logos Word of God has been redefined from the old covenant scripture to the completely-different-in-kind New Covenant’s Jesus Christ, who is completely The Truth about the Father, and His preached gospel message of unconditional-loving-favor-of-grace which have absolutely nothing to do with even 1 of the 613 commandments, not even the 2 greatest one of “loving God and neighbor” that “sum up The Law and The Prophets.”  The only 2 commandments we have NOW of trusting-relying-faith in Christ and unconditionally-loving others as Christ have absolutely nothing to do with the old covenants commandments.  Christians are set free from “the imprisonment of scripture” to “belong to another – the person of Jesus Christ.”  Now “trusting-relying-faith comes from hearing the prophetic-rhema words of Christ, especially during the preached logos gospel message” – no longer learning about God by reading and studying ancient scrolls as the scribes and Pharisees were “trapped” by.  Let us not fall into the same trap!  We have the promise of the OT – the Holy Spirit Parakletos along-side “One Teacher.”

 

Prayer:

 

Lord, keep us from being “snared and trapped” by the study “tables” of the Jewish scribes and Pharisees, “every leaning but never coming to genuine, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge of The Truth” who is Your Son.  We don’t want their punishment for being so stubborn – “bent backs forever.”  We heed to the purpose of ALL biblical writings and that to be as simple little child or other “least among you” to humble and simply “Come close-beside You so that You will come close-beside us.”  Thank You that we no longer need to read and study in order to sunesis ‘connect-the-dots’ to understand and become wise.  All we need to do is “Come to You and take Your yoke of instructions upon us to learn directly from You” by the “One Teacher” of the Holy Spirit.  Thank You that You have simplified the logos Word of God now to Your Son and His gospel message of only 2 commandments to carefully guard to do:  Ongoing trusting-relying-faith in You and unconditionally-loving others the way You do.  Thank You so much for keeping it simple for us!