The Day of the Lord, Part 1

In another essay I quoted Paul: For [the day of the Lord] will not arrive until the rebellion comes and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction ( υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας).1 It rattled my cage more than I realized at first. I didn’t even recognize that cage until it rattled. But now I have to consider whether my assumption that Jesus called Judas Iscariot ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας (NET: the one destined for destruction) is like Jesus’ disciples’ discussion about having2 no bread3 after He said: “Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod!”4

To begin I’ll consider the day of the Lord ( ἡμέρα τοῦ κυρίου). Paul wrote (1 Corinthians 1:4-9 NET):

I always thank my God for you because of the grace of God that was given to you in Christ Jesus. For you were made rich in every way in him, in all your speech and in every kind of knowledge—just as the testimony about Christ has been confirmed among you so that you do not lack any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord (τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν) Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into fellowship with his son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

It seems important to me to simply repeat Paul’s words and let them really sink in: you were called into fellowship with his son, Jesus Christ our Lord by God [who] is faithful. [Y]ou will be blameless on the day of our Lord because He will also strengthen you to the end. [Y]ou do not lack any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ because the grace of God that was given to you in Christ Jesusmade [you] rich in every way in him, in all your speech and in every kind of knowledge—just as the testimony about Christ has been confirmed among you.

Again he wrote (2 Corinthians 1:13, 14 NET):

For we do not write you anything other than what you can read and also understand. But I hope that5 you will understand completely just as also you have partly understood us, that we are your source of pride just as you also are ours in the day of the Lord (τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ κυρίου) Jesus.

While taking nothing away from the fact that God is faithful, by whom you were called (ἐκλήθητε, a form of καλέω) into fellowship with his son, Jesus Christ our Lord,6 Paul, through his letters preserved in the New Testament, led me to Christ. I am a recipient of his ministry as much as anyone in Corinth.

Paul is my καύχημα: “a boast, object of boasting, exultation; glory, honour; pride, object of pride; rejoicing.” But I’ve assumed he wouldn’t care much for me. I am too slow, too hesitant to believe.

Even if that were so, if we were suddenly thrust together as I am now, it will not be so on the day of the Lord, when we both can smile and nod to one another, both made blameless by the same God and Father through the same Lord Jesus Christ. For I am sure of this very thing, Paul wrote, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until7 the day of Christ Jesus.8

Paul wrote (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 NET):

Now on the topic of times and seasons, brothers and sisters, you have no need for anything to be written to you. For you know quite well that the9 day of the Lord (ἡμέρα κυρίου) will come in the same way as a thief in the night. Now10 when they are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction comes on them, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will surely not escape (or, “emerge [like a baby out of the womb];” ἐκφύγωσιν, a form of ἐκφεύγω). But you, brothers and sisters, are not in the darkness for the day to overtake you like a thief would. For11 you all are sons of the light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of the darkness. So then we must not sleep as12 the rest, but must stay alert and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But since we are of the day, we must stay sober by putting on the breastplate of faith and love and as a helmet our hope for salvation. For God did not destine (ἔθετο, a form of τίθημι) us for wrath but for gaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ [Table]. He died for us so that whether we are alert or asleep, we will come to life together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, just as you are in fact doing.

In this context it’s fairly obvious that you, brothers and sisters, are not in the darkness for the day to overtake you like a thief would13 doesn’t mean that you will know when the day of the Lord is any more than they or them. It is simply that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord14 because He will also strengthen you to the end.15

It seems important to pin down who exactly you and they are here. Paul wrote (1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 NET):

Now on the topic of brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another. And indeed you are practicing it toward all the brothers and sisters in all of Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, to aspire to lead a quiet life, to attend to your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you. In this way you will live a decent life before outsiders and not be in need.

So, you yourselves are taught by God to love one another. And indeed you are practicing it toward all the brothers and sisters.16 The outsiders (τοὺς ἔξω), presumably, are [not] taught by God to love one another and are [not] practicing it toward all the brothers and sisters.

Paul also wrote (1 Thessalonians 4:3-5, 7, 8 NET):

For this is God’s will: that you become holy, that you keep away from sexual immorality, that each of you know how to possess his own body in holiness and honor, not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God.

For God did not call us to impurity but in holiness. Consequently the one who rejects this is not rejecting human authority but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you [Table].

They, called the Gentiles who do not know God (τὰ ἔθνη τὰ μὴ εἰδότα τὸν θεόν) here, live in lustful passion. You will become holy; you will keep away from sexual immorality; you will know how to possess [your] own body in holiness and honor because you, presumably, know God and this is God’s will for you. God gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Again, Paul wrote (1 Thessalonians 2:11-16a NET);

As you know, we treated each one of you as a father treats his own children, exhorting and encouraging you17 and insisting that you live18 in a way worthy of God who calls you to his own kingdom and his glory. And19 so we too constantly thank God that when you received God’s message that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human message, but as it truly is, God’s message, which is at work among you who believe. For you became imitators, brothers and sisters, of God’s churches in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, because you too suffered the same things20 from your own countrymen as they in fact did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets21 and persecuted us severely. They are displeasing to God and are opposed to all people because they hinder us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved.

[Y]ou live in a way worthy of God who calls you to his own kingdom and his glory.22 They, called Jews (τῶν Ἰουδαίων) here, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and persecuted us severely, are displeasing to God and are opposed to all people because they hinder us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved.23 But here it becomes quite clear that they are neither Jews nor Gentiles per se: For you became imitators, brothers and sisters, of God’s churches in Christ Jesus that are in Judea (e.g., in large part Jews), because you too suffered the same things from your own countrymen (e.g., in large part Gentiles) as they in fact did from the Jews.24

So, what is the salient difference between you and they? [Y]ou received God’s message that you heard from us; you accepted it not as a human message, but as it truly is, God’s message, which is at work among you who believe.25 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord when you received the message with joy that comes from the Holy Spirit, despite great affliction.26 They, presumably, had not received God’s message and had not become imitators (μιμηταὶ, a form of μιμητής) of us and of the Lord.

Paul continued (1 Thessalonians 1:9. 10 NET):

For people everywhere report how you welcomed us27 and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the28 dead, Jesus our deliverer from29 the coming wrath.

How is Jesus our deliverer from the coming wrath? The Greek word translated deliverer was ρυόμενον, a participle of the verb ῥύομαι: “properly, draw (pull) to oneself,” according to the HELPS Word-studies on Bible Hub. [Y]ou turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for his Son from heaven. They, presumably, did not. So this is an indication of how they become you. An example of the inverse, you becoming they, follows:

Masoretic Text

Septuagint

Isaiah 2:6 (Tanakh/KJV)

Isaiah 2:6 (NET)

Isaiah 2:6 (NETS)

Isaiah 2:6 (English Elpenor)

Therefore thou hast forsaken (נָטַ֗שְׁתָּה) thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers. Indeed, O Lord, you have abandoned (nāṭaš, נטשתה) your people, the descendants of Jacob. For diviners from the east are everywhere; they consult omen readers like the Philistines do. Plenty of foreigners are around. For he has abandoned (ἀνῆκεν) his people, the house of Israel, because their country, like that of the allophyles, was filled with divinations as it had been at the beginning, and many allophyle children were born to them. For he has forsaken (ἀνῆκε) his people the house of Israel, because their land is filled as at the beginning with divinations, as the [land] of the Philistines,* and many strange children were born to them.

I want to pause here to consider forsaken (Tanakh, KJV, English Elpenor) and abandoned (NET, NETS). The Hebrew word was נָטַ֗שְׁתָּה (nāṭaš). The Greek word was ἀνῆκε(ν). I’m having a difficult time recalling or articulating what I thought forsaken or abandoned meant.

I’m reasonably convinced it was not “to let loose; to run wild; to let (someone/something) run free without restraint,” the first entry for ἀνῆκε(ν) (a form of ἀνίημι) in the Koine Greek Lexicon online. Staring at that definition, I have to admit it was my experience when I became an atheist. And it is what Paul described as the wrath (ὀργὴ) of Godrevealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who suppress the truth by their unrighteousness.30

Ungodliness and Unrighteousness of People

The Wrath of God Revealed from Heaven

Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for an image resembling mortal human beings or birds or four-footed animals or reptiles.31 Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity, to dishonor their bodies among themselves.32
They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creation rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.33 For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged the natural sexual relations for unnatural ones, and likewise the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed in their passions for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error [Table].34
And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God,35 God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what should not be done. They are filled with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife with envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips [Table], slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, contrivers of all sorts of evil, disobedient to parents, senseless, covenant-breakers, heartless, ruthless [Table]. Although they fully know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.36

So, the opposite of this wrath, of being forsaken or abandoned is the grace of God that was given to you in Christ Jesus. For you were made rich in every way in him, in all your speech and in every kind of knowledge—just as the testimony about Christ has been confirmed among you so that you do not lack any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.37

The Lord continued to describe through Isaiah how you became they:

Masoretic Text

Septuagint

Isaiah 2:7-9 (Tanakh/KJV)

Isaiah 2:7-9 (NET)

Isaiah 2:7-9 (NETS)

Isaiah 2:7-9 (English Elpenor)

Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots: Their land is full of gold and silver; there is no end to their wealth. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots. For their country was filled with silver and gold, and there was no number to their treasures, and the land was filled with horses, and there was no number to their chariots. For their land is filled with silver and gold, and there was no number of their treasures; their land also is filled with horses, and there was no number of chariots.
“Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made: Their land is full of worthless idols; they worship the product of their own hands, what their own fingers have fashioned. And the land is filled with abominations, the works of their hands, and they did obeisance to the things their own fingers had made. And the land is filled with abominations, [even] the works of their hands; and they have worshipped [the works] which their fingers made.
And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive (תִּשָּׂ֖א) them not. Men bow down to them in homage, they lie flat on the ground in worship. Don’t spare (nāśā’, תשׁא) them! And so a person bowed down, and a man was humbled—and I will not forgive (ἀνήσω) them! And the mean man bowed down, and the great man was humbled: and I will not pardon (ἀνήσω) them.

Though the English versions of the Septuagint were translated to match the Masoretic text, the actual Greek word ἀνήσω (another form of ἀνίημι) sounds more like the Lord’s promise not to allow his people “to run wild” in the future, not “to let go,” not “to leave [them] uncared for” or “unattended.” In other words, they will not be forsaken or abandoned forever, nor will God’s wrath remain upon them forever. They will not be they forever, but will be restored to you.

Moses’ promises to Israel and Joshua respectively were translated in the Septuagint with two more forms of ἀνίημι: ἀνῇ and ἀνήσει.

Masoretic Text

Septuagint

Deuteronomy 31:6, 8 (Tanakh)

Deuteronomy 31:6, 8 (NET)

Deuteronomy 31:6, 8 (NETS)

Deuteronomy 31:6, 8 (English Elpenor)

Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be affrighted at them; for HaShem thy G-d, He it is that doth go with thee; He will not fail (יַרְפְּךָ֖) thee, nor forsake thee.’ Be strong and courageous! Do not fear or tremble before them, for the Lord your God is the one who is going with you. He will not fail (rāp̄â, ירפך) you or abandon you!” Be manly and strong; have no fear, nor be frightened, nor be terrified from before them, because the Lord your God, he who goes with you among you, will not forsake (ἀνῇ) you or abandon you.” Be courageous and strong, fear not, neither be cowardly neither be afraid before them; for [it is] the Lord your God that advances with you in the midst of you, neither will he by any means forsake (ἀνῇ) thee, nor desert thee.
And HaShem, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will not fail (יַרְפְּךָ֖) thee, neither forsake thee; fear not, neither be dismayed.’ The Lord is indeed going before you—he will be with you; he will not fail (rāp̄â, ירפך) you or abandon you. Do not be afraid or discouraged!” And the Lord, the one who goes with you, will not forsake (ἀνήσει) you or abandon you. Do not fear, nor be frightened. And the Lord that goes with thee shall not forsake (ἀνήσει) thee nor abandon thee; fear not, neither be afraid.

According to a note (9) in the NET 1 Thessalonians 5:8 contained an allusion to Isaiah 59:17. A comparison of the Greek of 1 Thessalonians 5:8 to Isaiah 59:17 in the Septuagint follows.

1 Thessalonians 5:8b (NET Parallel Greek)

Isaiah 59:17a (Septuagint BLB)

Isaiah 59:17a (Septuagint Elpenor)

ἐνδυσάμενοι θώρακα πίστεως καὶ ἀγάπης ἐνεδύσατο δικαιοσύνην ὡς θώρακα ἐνεδύσατο δικαιοσύνην ὡς θώρακα

1 Thessalonians 5:8b (NET)

Isaiah 59:17a (NETS)

Isaiah 59:17a (English Elpenor)

putting on the breastplate of faith and love he put on righteousness like a breastplate he put on righteousness as a breast-plate

In this passage about the Lord bringing salvation, the Lord’s δικαιοσύνην (righteousness) becomes πίστεως καὶ ἀγάπης (faith and love) when applied to human beings. The allusion continued:

1 Thessalonians 5:8c (NET Parallel Greek)

Isaiah 59:17b (Septuagint BLB)

Isaiah 59:17b (Septuagint Elpenor)

περικεφαλαίαν ἐλπίδα σωτηρίας περιέθετο περικεφαλαίαν σωτηρίου ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς περιέθετο περικεφαλαίαν σωτηρίου ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς

1 Thessalonians 5:8c (NET)

Isaiah 59:17b (NETS)

Isaiah 59:17b (English Elpenor)

as a helmet our hope for salvation places a helmet of salvation on his head placed the helmet of salvation on his head

The Lord wears the helmet of salvation on his head (σωτηρίου ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς). Our helmet is our hope (ἐλπίδα), or “confident expectation,” for salvation (σωτηρίας), the very salvation He has acquired for us. What is absent from this allusion, as applied to human beings, is any mention of he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.38

Tables comparing Isaiah 59:17; 2:6; 2:7; 2:8; 2:9; Deuteronomy 31:6 and 31:8 in the Tanakh, KJV and NET, and tables comparing the Greek of Isaiah 59:17; 2:6; 2:7; 2:8; 2:9; Deuteronomy 31:6 and 31:8 in the Septuagint (BLB and Elpenor), and tables comparing Mark 8:16; 2 Corinthians 1:13; Philippians 1:6; 1 Thessalonians 5:2, 3; 5:5, 6; 2:12-15 and 1:9, 10 in the NET and KJV follow.

Isaiah 59:17 (Tanakh)

Isaiah 59:17 (KJV)

Isaiah 59:17 (NET)

For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke. He wears his desire for justice like body armor, and his desire to deliver is like a helmet on his head. He puts on the garments of vengeance and wears zeal like a robe.

Isaiah 59:17 (Septuagint BLB)

Isaiah 59:17 (Septuagint Elpenor)

καὶ ἐνεδύσατο δικαιοσύνην ὡς θώρακα καὶ περιέθετο περικεφαλαίαν σωτηρίου ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς καὶ περιεβάλετο ἱμάτιον ἐκδικήσεως καὶ τὸ περιβόλαιον καὶ ἐνεδύσατο δικαιοσύνην ὡς θώρακα καὶ περιέθετο περικεφαλαίαν σωτηρίου ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς καὶ περιεβάλετο ἱμάτιον ἐκδικήσεως καὶ τὸ περιβόλαιον

Isaiah 59:17 (NETS)

Isaiah 59:17 (English Elpenor)

And he put on righteousness like a breastplate and places a helmet of salvation on his head, and he clothed himself with a garment of vengeance and with his cloak, And he put on righteousness as a breast-plate, and placed the helmet of salvation on his head; and he clothed himself with the garment of vengeance, and with his cloak,

Isaiah 2:6 (Tanakh)

Isaiah 2:6 (KJV)

Isaiah 2:6 (NET)

Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers. Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers. Indeed, O Lord, you have abandoned your people, the descendants of Jacob. For diviners from the east are everywhere; they consult omen readers like the Philistines do. Plenty of foreigners are around.

Isaiah 2:6 (Septuagint BLB)

Isaiah 2:6 (Septuagint Elpenor)

ἀνῆκεν γὰρ τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ Ισραηλ ὅτι ἐνεπλήσθη ὡς τὸ ἀπ᾽ ἀρχῆς ἡ χώρα αὐτῶν κληδονισμῶν ὡς ἡ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων καὶ τέκνα πολλὰ ἀλλόφυλα ἐγενήθη αὐτοῖς ἀνῆκε γὰρ τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ ᾿Ισραήλ, ὅτι ἐνεπλήσθη ὡς τὸ ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς ἡ χώρα αὐτῶν κληδονισμῶν, ὡς ἡ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ τέκνα πολλὰ ἀλλόφυλα ἐγενήθη αὐτοῖς

Isaiah 2:6 (NETS)

Isaiah 2:6 (English Elpenor)

For he has abandoned his people, the house of Israel, because their country, like that of the allophyles, was filled with divinations as it had been at the beginning, and many allophyle children were born to them. For he has forsaken his people the house of Israel, because their land is filled as at the beginning with divinations, as the [land] of the Philistines,* and many strange children were born to them.

Isaiah 2:7 (Tanakh)

Isaiah 2:7 (KJV)

Isaiah 2:7 (NET)

Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots: Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots: Their land is full of gold and silver; there is no end to their wealth. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots.

Isaiah 2:7 (Septuagint BLB)

Isaiah 2:7 (Septuagint Elpenor)

ἐνεπλήσθη γὰρ ἡ χώρα αὐτῶν ἀργυρίου καὶ χρυσίου καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμὸς τῶν θησαυρῶν αὐτῶν καὶ ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ γῆ ἵππων καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμὸς τῶν ἁρμάτων αὐτῶν ἐνεπλήσθη γὰρ ἡ χώρα αὐτῶν ἀργυρίου καὶ χρυσίου, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμὸς τῶν θησαυρῶν αὐτῶν· καὶ ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ γῆ ἵππων, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμὸς τῶν ἁρμάτων αὐτῶν

Isaiah 2:7 (NETS)

Isaiah 2:7 (English Elpenor)

For their country was filled with silver and gold, and there was no number to their treasures, and the land was filled with horses, and there was no number to their chariots. For their land is filled with silver and gold, and there was no number of their treasures; their land also is filled with horses, and there was no number of chariots.

Isaiah 2:8 (Tanakh)

Isaiah 2:8 (KJV)

Isaiah 2:8 (NET)

Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made: Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made: Their land is full of worthless idols; they worship the product of their own hands, what their own fingers have fashioned.

Isaiah 2:8 (Septuagint BLB)

Isaiah 2:8 (Septuagint Elpenor)

καὶ ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ γῆ βδελυγμάτων τῶν ἔργων τῶν χειρῶν αὐτῶν καὶ προσεκύνησαν οἷς ἐποίησαν οἱ δάκτυλοι αὐτῶν καὶ ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ γῆ βδελυγμάτων τῶν ἔργων τῶν χειρῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ προσεκύνησαν, οἷς ἐποίησαν οἱ δάκτυλοι αὐτῶν

Isaiah 2:8 (NETS)

Isaiah 2:8 (English Elpenor)

And the land is filled with abominations, the works of their hands, and they did obeisance to the things their own fingers had made. And the land is filled with abominations, [even] the works of their hands; and they have worshipped [the works] which their fingers made.

Isaiah 2:9 (Tanakh)

Isaiah 2:9 (KJV)

Isaiah 2:9 (NET)

And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not. And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not. Men bow down to them in homage, they lie flat on the ground in worship. Don’t spare them!

Isaiah 2:9 (Septuagint BLB)

Isaiah 2:9 (Septuagint Elpenor)

καὶ ἔκυψεν ἄνθρωπος καὶ ἐταπεινώθη ἀνήρ καὶ οὐ μὴ ἀνήσω αὐτούς καὶ ἔκυψεν ἄνθρωπος, καὶ ἐταπεινώθη ἀνήρ, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἀνήσω αὐτούς

Isaiah 2:9 (NETS)

Isaiah 2:9 (English Elpenor)

And so a person bowed down, and a man was humbled—and I will not forgive them! And the mean man bowed down, and the great man was humbled: and I will not pardon them.

Deuteronomy 31:6 (Tanakh)

Deuteronomy 31:6 (KJV)

Deuteronomy 31:6 (NET)

Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be affrighted at them; for HaShem thy G-d, He it is that doth go with thee; He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.’ Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Be strong and courageous! Do not fear or tremble before them, for the Lord your God is the one who is going with you. He will not fail you or abandon you!”

Deuteronomy 31:6 (Septuagint BLB)

Deuteronomy 31:6 (Septuagint Elpenor)

ἀνδρίζου καὶ ἴσχυε μὴ φοβοῦ μηδὲ δειλία μηδὲ πτοηθῇς ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτῶν ὅτι κύριος ὁ θεός σου ὁ προπορευόμενος μεθ᾽ ὑμῶν ἐν ὑμῖν οὐ μή σε ἀνῇ οὔτε μή σε ἐγκαταλίπῃ ἀνδρίζου καὶ ἴσχυε, μὴ φοβοῦ μηδὲ δειλιάσης μηδὲ πτοηθῇς ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτῶν, ὅτι Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου ὁ προπορευόμενος μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν ἐν ὑμῖν, οὔτε μή σε ἀνῇ, οὔτε μή σε ἐγκαταλίπῃ

Deuteronomy 31:6 (NETS)

Deuteronomy 31:6 (English Elpenor)

Be manly and strong; have no fear, nor be frightened, nor be terrified from before them, because the Lord your God, he who goes with you among you, will not forsake you or abandon you.” Be courageous and strong, fear not, neither be cowardly neither be afraid before them; for [it is] the Lord your God that advances with you in the midst of you, neither will he by any means forsake thee, nor desert thee.

Deuteronomy 31:8 (Tanakh)

Deuteronomy 31:8 (KJV)

Deuteronomy 31:8 (NET)

And HaShem, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee; fear not, neither be dismayed.’ And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed. The Lord is indeed going before you—he will be with you; he will not fail you or abandon you. Do not be afraid or discouraged!”

Deuteronomy 31:8 (Septuagint BLB)

Deuteronomy 31:8 (Septuagint Elpenor)

καὶ κύριος ὁ συμπορευόμενος μετὰ σοῦ οὐκ ἀνήσει σε οὐδὲ μὴ ἐγκαταλίπῃ σε μὴ φοβοῦ μηδὲ δειλία καὶ Κύριος ὁ συμπορευόμενος μετὰ σοῦ οὐκ ἀνήσει σε, οὐδὲ μή σε ἐγκαταλίπῃ· μὴ φοβοῦ μηδὲ δειλία

Deuteronomy 31:8 (NETS)

Deuteronomy 31:8 (English Elpenor)

And the Lord, the one who goes with you, will not forsake you or abandon you. Do not fear, nor be frightened. And the Lord that goes with thee shall not forsake thee nor abandon thee; fear not, neither be afraid.

Mark 8:16 (NET)

Mark 8:16 (KJV)

So they began to discuss with one another about having no bread. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread.

Mark 8:16 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 8:16 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 8:16 (Byzantine Majority Text)

καὶ διελογίζοντο πρὸς ἀλλήλους ὅτι ἄρτους οὐκ ἔχουσιν και διελογιζοντο προς αλληλους λεγοντες οτι αρτους ουκ εχομεν και διελογιζοντο προς αλληλους λεγοντες οτι αρτους ουκ εχομεν

2 Corinthians 1:13 (NET)

2 Corinthians 1:13 (KJV)

For we do not write you anything other than what you can read and also understand. But I hope that you will understand completely For we write none other things unto you, than what ye read or acknowledge; and I trust ye shall acknowledge even to the end;

2 Corinthians 1:13 (NET Parallel Greek)

2 Corinthians 1:13 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

2 Corinthians 1:13 (Byzantine Majority Text)

οὐ γὰρ ἄλλα γράφομεν ὑμῖν ἀλλ᾿ ἢ ἃ ἀναγινώσκετε ἢ καὶ ἐπιγινώσκετε· ἐλπίζω δὲ ὅτι ἕως τέλους ἐπιγνώσεσθε ου γαρ αλλα γραφομεν υμιν αλλ η α αναγινωσκετε η και επιγινωσκετε ελπιζω δε οτι και εως τελους επιγνωσεσθε ου γαρ αλλα γραφομεν υμιν αλλ η α αναγινωσκετε η και επιγινωσκετε ελπιζω δε οτι και εως τελους επιγνωσεσθε

Philippians 1:6 (NET)

Philippians 1:6 (KJV)

For I am sure of this very thing, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

Philippians 1:6 (NET Parallel Greek)

Philippians 1:6 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Philippians 1:6 (Byzantine Majority Text)

πεποιθὼς αὐτὸ τοῦτο, ὅτι ὁ ἐναρξάμενος ἐν ὑμῖν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἐπιτελέσει ἄχρι ἡμέρας Χριστοῦ |Ἰησοῦ| πεποιθως αυτο τουτο οτι ο εναρξαμενος εν υμιν εργον αγαθον επιτελεσει αχρις ημερας ιησου χριστου πεποιθως αυτο τουτο οτι ο εναρξαμενος εν υμιν εργον αγαθον επιτελεσει αχρις ημερας χριστου ιησου

1 Thessalonians 5:2, 3 (NET)

1 Thessalonians 5:2, 3 (KJV)

For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come in the same way as a thief in the night. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.

1 Thessalonians 5:2 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 5:2 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 5:2 (Byzantine Majority Text)

αὐτοὶ γὰρ ἀκριβῶς οἴδατε ὅτι ἡμέρα κυρίου ὡς κλέπτης ἐν νυκτὶ οὕτως ἔρχεται αυτοι γαρ ακριβως οιδατε οτι η ημερα κυριου ως κλεπτης εν νυκτι ουτως ερχεται αυτοι γαρ ακριβως οιδατε οτι η ημερα κυριου ως κλεπτης εν νυκτι ουτως ερχεται
Now when they are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction comes on them, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will surely not escape. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

1 Thessalonians 5:3 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 5:3 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 5:3 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὅταν |δὲ| λέγωσιν· εἰρήνη καὶ ἀσφάλεια, τότε αἰφνίδιος αὐτοῖς |ἐφίσταται| ὄλεθρος ὥσπερ ἡ ὠδὶν τῇ ἐν γαστρὶ ἐχούσῃ, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἐκφύγωσιν οταν γαρ λεγωσιν ειρηνη και ασφαλεια τοτε αιφνιδιος αυτοις εφισταται ολεθρος ωσπερ η ωδιν τη εν γαστρι εχουση και ου μη εκφυγωσιν οταν γαρ λεγωσιν ειρηνη και ασφαλεια τοτε αιφνιδιος αυτοις εφισταται ολεθρος ωσπερ η ωδιν τη εν γαστρι εχουση και ου μη εκφυγωσιν

1 Thessalonians 5:5, 6 (NET)

1 Thessalonians 5:5, 6 (KJV)

For you all are sons of the light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of the darkness. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

1 Thessalonians 5:5 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 5:5 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 5:5 (Byzantine Majority Text)

πάντες γὰρ ὑμεῖς υἱοὶ φωτός ἐστε καὶ υἱοὶ ἡμέρας. Οὐκ ἐσμὲν νυκτὸς οὐδὲ σκότους παντες υμεις υιοι φωτος εστε και υιοι ημερας ουκ εσμεν νυκτος ουδε σκοτους παντες υμεις υιοι φωτος εστε και υιοι ημερας ουκ εσμεν νυκτος ουδε σκοτους
So then we must not sleep as the rest, but must stay alert and sober. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.

1 Thessalonians 5:6 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 5:6 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 5:6 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ἄρα οὖν μὴ καθεύδωμεν ὡς οἱ λοιποί ἀλλὰ γρηγορῶμεν καὶ νήφωμεν αρα ουν μη καθευδωμεν ως και οι λοιποι αλλα γρηγορωμεν και νηφωμεν αρα ουν μη καθευδωμεν ως και οι λοιποι αλλα γρηγορωμεν και νηφωμεν

1 Thessalonians 2:12-15 (NET)

1 Thessalonians 2:12-15 (KJV)

exhorting and encouraging you and insisting that you live in a way worthy of God who calls you to his own kingdom and his glory. That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.

1 Thessalonians 2:12 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 2:12 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 2:12 (Byzantine Majority Text)

παρακαλοῦντες ὑμᾶς καὶ παραμυθούμενοι καὶ μαρτυρόμενοι εἰς τὸ περιπατεῖν ὑμᾶς ἀξίως τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ καλοῦντος ὑμᾶς εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ βασιλείαν καὶ δόξαν και μαρτυρουμενοι εις το περιπατησαι υμας αξιως του θεου του καλουντος υμας εις την εαυτου βασιλειαν και δοξαν και μαρτυρομενοι εις το περιπατησαι υμας αξιως του θεου του καλουντος υμας εις την εαυτου βασιλειαν και δοξαν
And so we too constantly thank God that when you received God’s message that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human message, but as it truly is, God’s message, which is at work among you who believe. For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 2:13 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 2:13 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἡμεῖς εὐχαριστοῦμεν τῷ θεῷ ἀδιαλείπτως, ὅτι παραλαβόντες λόγον ἀκοῆς παρ᾿ ἡμῶν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐδέξασθε οὐ λόγον ἀνθρώπων ἀλλὰ καθώς ἐστιν |ἀληθῶς| λόγον θεοῦ, ὃς καὶ ἐνεργεῖται ἐν ὑμῖν τοῖς πιστεύουσιν δια τουτο και ημεις ευχαριστουμεν τω θεω αδιαλειπτως οτι παραλαβοντες λογον ακοης παρ ημων του θεου εδεξασθε ου λογον ανθρωπων αλλα καθως εστιν αληθως λογον θεου ος και ενεργειται εν υμιν τοις πιστευουσιν δια τουτο και ημεις ευχαριστουμεν τω θεω αδιαλειπτως οτι παραλαβοντες λογον ακοης παρ ημων του θεου εδεξασθε ου λογον ανθρωπων αλλα καθως εστιν αληθως λογον θεου ος και ενεργειται εν υμιν τοις πιστευουσιν
For you became imitators, brothers and sisters, of God’s churches in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, because you too suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they in fact did from the Jews, For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judaea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews:

1 Thessalonians 2:14 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 2:14 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 2:14 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὑμεῖς γὰρ μιμηταὶ ἐγενήθητε, ἀδελφοί, τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν τοῦ θεοῦ τῶν οὐσῶν ἐν τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, ὅτι τὰ αὐτὰ ἐπάθετε καὶ ὑμεῖς ὑπὸ τῶν ἰδίων συμφυλετῶν καθὼς καὶ αὐτοὶ ὑπὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων υμεις γαρ μιμηται εγενηθητε αδελφοι των εκκλησιων του θεου των ουσων εν τη ιουδαια εν χριστω ιησου οτι ταυτα επαθετε και υμεις υπο των ιδιων συμφυλετων καθως και αυτοι υπο των ιουδαιων υμεις γαρ μιμηται εγενηθητε αδελφοι των εκκλησιων του θεου των ουσων εν τη ιουδαια εν χριστω ιησου οτι τα αυτα επαθετε και υμεις υπο των ιδιων συμφυλετων καθως και αυτοι υπο των ιουδαιων
who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and persecuted us severely. They are displeasing to God and are opposed to all people Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men:

1 Thessalonians 2:15 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 2:15 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 2:15 (Byzantine Majority Text)

τῶν καὶ τὸν κύριον ἀποκτεινάντων Ἰησοῦν καὶ τοὺς προφήτας καὶ ἡμᾶς ἐκδιωξάντων καὶ θεῷ μὴ ἀρεσκόντων καὶ πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ἐναντίων των και τον κυριον αποκτειναντων ιησουν και τους ιδιους προφητας και υμας εκδιωξαντων και θεω μη αρεσκοντων και πασιν ανθρωποις εναντιων των και τον κυριον αποκτειναντων ιησουν και τους ιδιους προφητας και ημας εκδιωξαντων και θεω μη αρεσκοντων και πασιν ανθρωποις εναντιων

1 Thessalonians 1:9, 10 (NET)

1 Thessalonians 1:9, 10 (KJV)

For people everywhere report how you welcomed us and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;

1 Thessalonians 1:9 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 1:9 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 1:9 (Byzantine Majority Text)

αὐτοὶ γὰρ περὶ ἡμῶν ἀπαγγέλλουσιν ὁποίαν εἴσοδον ἔσχομεν πρὸς ὑμᾶς, καὶ πῶς ἐπεστρέψατε πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ἀπὸ τῶν εἰδώλων δουλεύειν θεῷ ζῶντι καὶ ἀληθινῷ αυτοι γαρ περι ημων απαγγελλουσιν οποιαν εισοδον εχομεν προς υμας και πως επεστρεψατε προς τον θεον απο των ειδωλων δουλευειν θεω ζωντι και αληθινω αυτοι γαρ περι ημων απαγγελλουσιν οποιαν εισοδον εσχομεν προς υμας και πως επεστρεψατε προς τον θεον απο των ειδωλων δουλευειν θεω ζωντι και αληθινω
and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus our deliverer from the coming wrath. And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

1 Thessalonians 1:10 (NET Parallel Greek)

1 Thessalonians 1:10 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

1 Thessalonians 1:10 (Byzantine Majority Text)

καὶ ἀναμένειν τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν, ὃν ἤγειρεν ἐκ [τῶν] νεκρῶν, Ἰησοῦν τὸν ρυόμενον ἡμᾶς ἐκ τῆς ὀργῆς τῆς ἐρχομένης και αναμενειν τον υιον αυτου εκ των ουρανων ον ηγειρεν εκ νεκρων ιησουν τον ρυομενον ημας απο της οργης της ερχομενης και αναμενειν τον υιον αυτου εκ των ουρανων ον ηγειρεν εκ των νεκρων ιησουν τον ρυομενον ημας απο της οργης της ερχομενης

1 2 Thessalonians 2:3 (NET)

3 Mark 8:16b (NET)

4 Mark 8:15b (NET)

5 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had και (KJV: even) here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

6 1 Corinthians 1:9 (NET)

8 Philippians 1:6 (NET)

9 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had the article η preceding day. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

10 The NET parallel Greek text had δὲ here. The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had γαρ (KJV: For). The NA28 had neither.

13 1 Thessalonians 5:4 (NET)

14 1 Corinthians 1:8b (NET)

15 1 Corinthians 1:8a (NET)

16 1 Thessalonians 4:9b-10a (NET)

17 The NET parallel Greek text had παρακαλοῦντες ὑμᾶς καὶ παραμυθούμενοι (NET: exhorting and encouraging you) here. The Stephanus Textus Receptus, Byzantine Majority Text and NA28 had it at the end of verse 11.

20 The NET parallel Greek text, NA28 and Byzantine Majority Text had τὰ αὐτὰ here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus had ταυτα (KJV: like things).

21 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had ιδιους (KJV: their own) preceding prophets. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

22 1 Thessalonians 2:12b (NET)

23 1 Thessalonians 2:15 (NET)

24 1 Thessalonians 2:14 (NET)

25 1 Thessalonians 2:13b (NET)

26 1 Thessalonians 1:6 (NET)

27 The NET parallel Greek text, NA28 and Byzantine Majority Text had ἔσχομεν here (NET note 19: “what sort of entrance we had to you”), where the Stephanus Textus Receptus had εχομεν.

28 The NET parallel Greek text, NA28 and Byzantine Majority Text had the article τῶν here. The Stephanus Textus Receptus did not.

30 Romans 1:18 (NET)

31 Romans 1:22, 23 (NET)

32 Romans 1:24 (NET) Table

33 Romans 1:25 (NET)

34 Romans 1:26, 27 (NET)

35 Romans 1:28a (NET)

36 Romans 1:28b-32 (NET)

37 1 Corinthians 1:4b-8 (NET)

38 Isaiah 59:17b (Tanakh)

Conclusion

“Satan deceives people with the Progressive Sanctification heresy, which means that sinners gradually become holy after they believe in Jesus…

The crux of this theory is gradual sanctification. It sounds great that man can believe in Jesus and gradually become a holier Christian. This theory has deceived many Christians over the years, making them feel secure. It sounds almost like we work our way to heaven. That’s one reason why there are so many Pharisaical, holier-than-thou Christians in Christendom.”[1]

I stumbled across this quote on “Denny’s Christian Writings” blog late into writing an essay partially about being deceived by a progressive sanctification heresy.  I believed progressive sanctification was entirely up to me—with Jesus’ help, of course.  But it never made me feel secure because I sucked at it wholesale.  I was definitely Pharisaical but holier-than-no-one.  And I hungered and thirsted for righteousness.

I didn’t feel very blessed.  In fact, it reminded me of the pagan myth of the punishment of Tantalus.  I’ve spent as much time, I suppose, as anyone trying to deny or anesthetize that hunger and thirst.  I even wished it away with thoughts like “Denny’s” abandon-hope-all-ye-who-enter-here attitude toward 1 Peter 1:15, 16 (KJV):

“But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” We are told here to be holy, to be Christ-like, but is anyone really Christ-like? Not in this life in the flesh. We should endeavor to be holy as Christ is holy, but Romans 3:12-18 is still in the Bible…

“Denny’s” premise: “Is it possible to have eternal salvation and not be sanctified? Of course not.  Eternal salvation and eternal sanctification go together, one mandates the other. If sanctification required any effort on [our] part, then salvation would not be of grace.”  But how should I “endeavor to be holy as Christ is holy” without hope of success and without doing it by my own efforts?  “We should endeavor to be Christ-like and do good works. However, we are not sanctified by our good works or clean living. Jesus sanctified us.”[2]

Frankly, this sounds like we have moved from a created cosmos where it is hardto enter the kingdom of God[3] to one where it is grammatically impossible.  It doesn’t lead me to faith in Jesus Christ or reliance on the power and presence of his Holy Spirit.  “Denny” quoted Philippians 1:6 (KJV) and Ephesians 3:20 (KJV) and commented on each:

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” This is a very good verse but it has nothing to do with Progressive Sanctification. This verse pertains to our salvation, and our glorious inheritance.

This next verse pertains to the same thing: Ephesians 3:20, “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.” We have Holy Spirit power working in us, convicting us of sin, but Jesus has already sanctified us once for all.

But I didn’t become holy in practice “once for all” the moment I believed in Jesus.  I need something more than “convicting us of sin” because I still hunger and thirst for righteousness.

I believe wholeheartedly that the flesh has desires that are opposed to the Spirit, and the Spirit has desires that are opposed to the flesh, for these are in opposition to each other.[4]  I also believe that—so that you cannot do what you want[5]—cuts both ways, whether I want sin or righteousness.  But I don’t believe for a moment that a grudge-match between the Holy Spirit and my flesh is a fair fight.  My flesh is going to lose.  I can count on it.

I am much less confident, however, in a “church” surrounded by people who don’t believe that righteousness is a basic and urgent need, a hunger and thirst.  I am weak in faith.  In that environment I find it much more difficult to hear the Holy Spirit and much easier to ignore Him.  In many ways traveling for a living and working many weekends has spared me from being overcome by that kind of groupthink.  Jesus promised that those who hunger and thirst for righteousnesswill be satisfied (χορτασθήσονται, a form of χορτάζω).[6]

I may never be fully satisfied until I can leave this cursed flesh behind and see Him face to face, but that doesn’t stop me from hungering and thirsting for every taste and scrap I can get here and now.  And I really don’t care whether we call that satisfaction progressive sanctification (spiritual progress in the Catholic catechism) or not.  I want that satisfaction.  And as I’ve written before,[7] I don’t believe the hunger and thirst for righteousness originates with me.  It is the perseverance of the saints.

And, yes, of course, perseverance of the saints is a terribly misleading phrase.  It’s all an illusion.  Saints don’t persevere in their own strength.  They get sidetracked, confused, give up and quit as often as anyone else, but the Holy Spirit of Almighty God picks them up fills them again with a hunger and thirst for his righteousness and leads them onward.

The word gradual has always bothered me in the context of sanctification.  My experiences of being in the Spirit or in the flesh have seemed more like instantaneous leaps back and forth with truly dizzying effect.  But my desire has been to spend more time in the Spirit than in the flesh, and any success at that over time might be considered gradual or progressive.  Here’s the issue as I see it.

The Greek words translated sanctified, sanctify, or sanctifieth nine times in the King James translation of the New Testament are forms of ἁγιάζω, to make holy.

Reference

Greek NET

KJV

Hebrews 10:10 ἡγιασμένοι made holy sanctified
Hebrews 13:12 ἁγιάσῃ sanctify sanctify
Hebrews 2:11 ἁγιάζων makes holy sanctifieth
ἁγιαζόμενοι being made holy sanctified
Hebrews 10:14 ἁγιαζομένους are made holy sanctified
Hebrews 10:29 ἡγιάσθη madeholy sanctified
Romans 15:16 ἡγιασμένη sanctified sanctified
1 Corinthians 1:2 ἡγιασμένοις sanctified sanctified
1 Corinthians 6:11 ἡγιάσθητε sanctified sanctified

If I were to graph the change over time, God’s holiness would not change.  It’s my resistance to his holiness that changes.  Here I’m picturing the Holy Spirit—that fountain of water springing up to eternal life—more like a water cannon used in surface mining operations, except that this water canon erodes away my ungodliness (ἀσέβεια) from the inside out.  But I think we might choke on calling this satisfaction progressive godliness.  Besides, the process feels more like progressive un-ungodliness to me.

My plan was to use “Denny’s” Scripture references as an outline for one brief essay and move on.  As I began to study the words translated sanctified, sanctify and sanctifieth I decided to slow down and get real pedantic again.  I’ll start with ἁγιάσαι (a form of ἁγιάζω) in another essay for no other reason than it is first in alphabetical order.

To Make Holy, Part 1

Back to Sowing to the Flesh, Part 2

Back to To Make Holy, Part 2

[1] The Progressive Sanctification Heresy, Denny’s Christian Writings

[2] ibid.

[3] Mark 10:24b (NET)

[4] Galatians 5:17a (NET)

[5] Galatians 5:17 (NET)

[6] Matthew 5:6 (NET)

[7] Fear – Deuteronomy, Part 6; Saul and Barnabas, Part 3; Jedidiah, Part 5; Paul in Corinth; Son of God – 1 John, Part 3; Fear – Exodus, Part 8