Eph 4:14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
The Apostle Paul exhorted and taught the church of God in order to perfect/mature the body of Christ. He desired that each member of the body, would eventually come into the unity of faith in love and grow up into the head, which is Christ. But before that happened they, as children, would be tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive. The scope of this article is to point out one way that the doctrine of man lie in wait to deceive and hinder those children, who are being brought into maturity by God. Through the Holy Spirit, Apostle Paul informs us that the love of money is the root of all evil, 1Ti 6:10. I would maintain that money and the love of money was and is behind the Apostasy of the early church and has corrupted the gospel of Christ since. One of the biggest money makers for the various religious denominations over the centuries is the doctrine of eternal hell/damnation. Fear of that outcome has prompted many a man to make donations to religious institution during his life and on his death bed. The cunning craftiness used to support this belief, is how the word of God is translated and appears in modern day translations. Over the centuries, major publishing houses, hand and hand with major religious institutions have deceived their members. Part of the rational behind the deception, is that the major church denominations historically sought to help civil governments maintain a ordered society. The fear of a eternal torment did just that as a cradle to grave indoctrination. Consequently publishing houses and major religious denominations have exerted much control over the words used in bible translation and the doctrines those words support. It is stated six times in the New Testament that all things are of God, 2Co 5:18, and our present day situation we find ourselves in, regarding doctrine, was prophesied by Paul.
2Ti 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
So at this time it behooves us to take to heart what the Apostle Paul urged Timothy to do.
2Ti 1:13 Have a pattern of sound words, which you hear from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.CLV
The definition for the Greek word translated into the English word “pattern” from the Strong’s Concordance.
G5296 hupotuposis hoop-ot-oop’-o-sis
from a compound of G5259 and a derivative of G5179;
typification under (after), i.e. (concretely) a sketch (figuratively) for imitation.
Clearly, the meaning of the word, is to imitate or reproduce precisely from the original words or letters spoken by Paul, regarding the gospel of salvation. If you read 2Ti 1:13 in context you will see that the above verse is talking about the gospel of Jesus Christ and what that gospel has brought to light. And Paul urging Timothy to hold fast a pattern of sound words that Timothy had heard from Paul.
2 Timothy 1:9-10,13 KJVS
[9] Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, [10] But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel: [13] Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
I love the gospel of Jesus Christ, in which the truth is self contained and very difficult to hide or obscure from those who would study to show themselves approved, 2Ti 2:15. So let us take a look at a particular word in regards to how most modern translators, translate a specific Greek word. One of the subtlest mistranslations of words that profoundly changes doctrine is the mistranslation of the Greek words aion and aionios. G165 and G166, as these words appear in the Strong’s Concordance. G165 in the Greek is often mistranslated into English as “for ever” and G166 often appears as the English word “eternal” or “everlasting”. Hence the notion of eternal hell or eternal punishment. Let us look at one such scripture verse where aion, G165 is used and how it is translated.
Jn 8:51 . Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. AV
Most all modern bible translations will read similar to the Authorized Version in regards to this verse. A daily reader of bible verses will know this verse is at odds with other bible verses, a few of which appear below.
Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
Context is one method of understanding the meaning of a word, and since a derivative of the Greek word aion appears in Jn 8:51 as “never”, this presents a problem in terms of consistent translation practices for the men that are translating from the original manuscripts. If aion means “for ever” it can hardly mean “never” as the two words are nearly opposite in meaning. But to support a widely held doctrine, eternal hell, that is what the translators are forced to do, mistranslate the very words of our Lord and savior. Back again to 2Ti 1:13, where Paul urges Timothy to have a pattern of sound words. Words have meanings, precise meanings, otherwise language is not a useful tool. I have looked at how Jn 8:51 reads in the Greek language using a Greek and Hebrew interlinear and very few bible versions have captured the meaning of this verse as it appears in original manuscripts as well as the Concordant Literal NT.
Jn 8:51 Verily, Verily, I am saying to you, If ever anyone should be keeping My word, he should under no circumstances be beholding death for the eon.”
So, it is not that a person who keeps Jesus word will never die, as that is contrary to other bible verses. It is that if a person keeps his word, he will not be seeing death for the aion or eon. That eon or age being referred to is the thousand year Kingdom of God. Often you will see for ever and ever in the King James Version and most all other modern versions, which if properly translated, should appear as ages of the ages. One verse in particular is Re 11:15.
Re 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
Let us compare this verse with a literal translation.
CLV Re 11:15 And the seventh messenger trumpets. And loud voices occurred~ in *heaven, saying, “The kingdom of *this world became~ our *Lord’s and His *Christ’s, and He shall be reigning intofor the eons of the eons! Amen!”
In terms of context and in agreement with other scriptures, we see in the scriptures that Jesus’s reign is limited, and lasts a thousand years because of 1Co 15:25 and Re 20:6. So his reign is described as the age of the ages which is a superlative. Just as Jesus is Lord of Lords and King of Kings, so to the age he reigns, will be the greatest of all ages. I cannot undo years of indoctrination by religious institutions, and their cunning wind of doctrine in one fell swoop in your minds. It took me years of reading the scriptures and studying them, and praying for wisdom and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, before the scripture verses fell together into a interlocking, unified whole. The New Testament and the gospel of salvation, started coming into focus for me, when I came to accept that the definition for G165 was “age”. The various and conflicting words used, instead of age, leads a person to much confusion and likely that is the intent. I have come to prefer a literal bible translation where the translator endeavors to use only one English word for any Greek word. Notice below the varied words used in the King James Version for the Greek word aion.
G165 aion ahee-ohn’
from the same as G104;
properly, an age; by extension, perpetuity (also past); by implication, the world; specially (Jewish) a Messianic period (present or future). Compare G5550.
KJV: age, course, eternal, (for) ever(-more), (n-)ever, (beginning of the , while the) world (began, without end).
Most modern translations use the same English words, in the various scripture verses, for the Greek word aion. Is that because these translators of the various bible versions are upholding the doctrine of a eternal hell? Keep in mind that G166, aionios, translated as eternal or everlasting, has the root word of G165 and it is used as a adjective, like in the following verse.
Mt 25:46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
Now read this verse from three other bible versions which I personally favor.
Mt 25:46 And, these, shall go away, into, age-abiding, correction, but, the righteous, into, age-abiding, life. Rotherham
Mt 25:46 And these shall go away to punishment age-during, but the righteous to life age-during.’ Young’s
Mt 25:46 And these shall be coming~ away into chastening eonian, yet the just into life eonian.” CLV
Several points should be made. God is love, so why would He save some and not all men? If all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, Ro 3:23, and God Himself justifies the ungodly, Ro 4:5, and no one resists His will, Ro 9:19. Then why would God throw some of mankind into a eternal hell? If you read a couple of the above versions of Mt 25:46, you get the impression from the language that those who are being punished are being punished in light of correction. The Greek word used is kolasis and the Strong’s definition is “penal infliction”. This Greek word is only used one other time in the New Testament, 1 Jn 4:18. In the AV it is translated into the English word “torment”. I prefer the Concordant Literal New Testament rendering of this verse. A penal institution is also known as a correctional institution whose goal is correct a man or woman to make them fit for life in society.
1Jn 4:18 Fear is not in *love, but *perfect love is casting out *fear, thatfor *fear |has chastening. Now he *who is fearing~ is not perfected~ in *love.
You don’t punish a child for no reason and to no end. You punish a child in light of correction, in light of maturing them, in light of preparing them to be productive and peaceful members of society. Why do you suppose God is referred to as, the Father, Mt 6:9? And if God scourges the sons and daughters He receives, Heb 12:6. Is He wrong for inflicting wrath on the unrighteous, Ro 2:8? No, because wrong behavior deserves discipline which is going to ultimately lead to correcting that which is wrong in the unrighteous person. Just like those sons and daughters, who are also being chastised, in light of judgment and correction , 1Co 11:32. The whole point of the New Covenant is that God is going to write His laws on the hearts and minds of mankind. The body of Christ first, then the rest of humanity, 1Ti 2:6. A thousand years in the lake of fire that burns with brimstone is mentioned several times in the book of Revelation. The Strong’s Concordance definition of the Greek word translated into the English word “brimstone” offers insight.
Strong’s Number
G2303
Original Word
θεῖον
Transliterated Word
theion
Phonetic Spelling
thi’-on
Parts of Speech
Noun Neuter
Definition
1. brimstone
a.divine incense, because burning brimstone was regarded as having power to purify, and to ward off disease
Usage by Word
brimstone (7)
Usage by Book
Luke, Revelation