The two academic processes used to research and write The End Times Passover and Why
Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation included the grammatical science of Etymology and Figures of Speech!
In order to best understand the two
processes we used to examine deeply key words and phrases in the Bible, one has
to know the precise meaning of “Etymology” and “Figures of Speech.”
When we began the research needed to
accurately write our two books, The End
Times Passover and Why Christians
Will Suffer Great Tribulation, we were neither content nor satisfied with
just reading the Bible and hundreds of commentaries. Nor did we simply use just
one or two versions of the Bible, but actually had a dozen or so available,
even though we mostly wrote the verses contained in the King James and the New
International Bible, which are probably the most quoted.
Not resting solely on the understanding
these versions conveyed to us, we undertook an expanded study approach to not
only glean the meaning of key words and phrases found in the Bible (with such
tools and Greek and Hebrew dictionaries and concordances) we sought out the
wisdom of several great bible scholars who wrote many of these useful books as
well as other academic processes to gain deeper insights to God’s word and the
initial intent of scripture. These great scholars included hundreds of today’s
contemporary writers and authors, but also much of the writings from the early
fathers of the church to classical theologians such as Matthew Henry, W.E.
Vine, Francis Brown, S.R. Driver, Charles A. Briggs, Ungers & White, E.W.
Bullinger and others from times gone by.
One of these academic tools we used is the
study of ‘Figures of Speech’ as presented by one of the greatest theologians of
antiquity, E.W.Bullinger (December 15, 1837 – June 6, 1913). While Bullinger
himself adopted the premillennialist dispensational doctrine, he is recognized
by many scholars and students of theology as one of the most prolific
theologians in recent history. In addition to his many books and articles
(including his Commentary on Revelation),
Bullinger also wrote two great books on the subjects of numbers and the astrology
as it relates to scripture and their significance in the Bible, “Numbers in Scripture” and “Witness to the Stars.” Whether people
believe or accepted his thesis on these matters, one could not question the
accepted grammatical science he utilized to arrive at his conclusions.
However, one of his most renowned and
prolific works was his book “Figures of Speech Used in the Bible,”
which is a work based not on theory nor conjecture, but solely in the science
of proper English grammar. This is a book that neither serious Bible scholar
nor student should be without, for the wealth and breadth of academic acumen it
contains as it relates to theological topics. It is ironic that albeit
Bullinger was an avowed dispensationalist, his academic work actually refutes
his premillennialist conclusions. Nevertheless, in his book, Bullinger examined
carefully almost every phrase written in the Bible and provided deeper insights
to the intent of the words and phrases used by the writers (the translators of
the Bible into English from both Greek and Hebrew text) of that period of time.
It is obvious that the English language used today has evolved from its
contextual origins into a form that would appear not only odd to its inventors,
but blasphemous in its usage. To best grasp the many conclusions we arrive at
in my two books, having a better understanding of the English language of that
period compared to what we use today is crucial in determining more
specifically the true meaning of key words in the Bible. Please click on the
Figure of Speech for the more concise insight to the process used
throughout the writing of these two books.
The other scientific approach we took in
our extensive research, to best understand the true meaning of key words in the
Bible, is Etymology. Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how
their form and meaning have
changed over time.
The word "etymology" (/ɛtɨˈmɒlədʒi/) derives from Greek ἐτυμολογία (etumologíā);
from ἔτυμον (étumon),
meaning "true sense", and -λογία (-logía), meaning
"study"; from λόγος (lógos), meaning
"speech, account, reason."
While the majority of writers and authors
of prophecy books have (as they claim) used a literal translation of the Bible
(supposedly being in accordance with, conforming to, or upholding the exactness
or primary meaning of a word or words), they have failed to arrive at a much
deeper meaning of key words in the Bible due to interpreting the specific word that
are contained solely in whatever Bible version they used to arrive at their
“literal” translation.
Whereas a Greek or Hebrew word can be found in their respective
dictionaries to provide its literal interpretation, the science of Etymology and Figures of Speech provide the student with a more in depth meaning
to words and phrases. For example The Greek word for mansions in John 14:2 is the Greek noun mone
which is used only twice in the entire Bible, found in both John 14:2 and John
14:23, and it is a noun translated as a staying, an abiding,
denoting an abode. It is strange
that if (as Bible scholars and theorists interpret) our final destination is a
mansion or an abode in the sky, implying it is a heavenly
compartment of sorts, that it is mentioned only twice in the entire Bible.
As we further examine the
word mone, it is the Greek noun used here for mansions or abodes,
as we read in W. E. Vine’s great book, An Expository Dictionary of Bible
Words:
The Greek word for mansions
or abode used in John 14:2 and 23, is a noun, and W. E. Vine states that
it is: “primarily "a staying, abiding" (akin to meno, "to
abide"), denotes an "abode" (Eng., "manor,"
"manse," etc.), translated "mansions" in John 14:2;
"abode" in John 14:23. There
is nothing in the word to indicate separate compartments in heaven; neither
does it suggest temporary resting places on the road.” (W. E.
Vine, An Expository Dictionary of Bible Words”, Thomas Nelson
Publishers, pages 711, 712.) [Bold and underline is by the author solely for
emphasis]
The Greek word mone
(remember, translated as mansions in John 14:2 in several versions)
is the same word rendered abode in John 14:23. An important question needs to be asked here.
If Vine and other Greek translators interpret the Greek noun mone as “a
staying, an abiding, an abode” in John 14:2, and translators believe that mone
can be translated to mean a mansion (or many mansions), then
surely we could view this Greek noun mone to also mean mansion in
John 14:23. If this exegesis is correct, then in John 14:23 it appears that
Jesus is telling us that He and the Father are planning to come to earth
to make their heavenly abode
with those who love and keep His word.
Obviously, having a greater understanding as to the etymology of a word
can present an entirely different picture of what the Bible is trying to tell
us, other than what we instantly interpret what other theorists contend.
Therefore, whereas many critics of varying eschatological data have
termed our work as “self-interpreting,” the information we present in The End Times Passover and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation
is actually derived from what a myriad of scholars and academicians have
presented for centuries based on their own empirical research rather than our
own speculation, assumption, conjecture, inference and or our suggestion.
At its worst, what can be said about our presentation is that it’s a
work of sheer plagiarism and nothing new or novel whatsoever. We just connected
the dots.
To access the author's blog sites and more information about his two books, please click on Joe Ortiz.
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