A CORRECTOR OF
THE FOOLISH, A TEACHER OF THE IMMATURE: paideuten aphronon, didaskalon
nepion: (Mt 11:25; 1Co 3:1; Heb 5:13; 1Pe 2:2)
a corrector of those who are without
reflection or intelligence, a teacher of the immature, having the rough
sketch of the experiential knowledge of the truth in the law. (Erdmans)
Corrector (3810)
(paideutes from
paideuo = instruct, correct, chastise from
país = child)
refers to one who disciplines and corrects by punishment or provides
instruction for the purpose of proper behavior. The idea is that of an
instructor, trainer, corrector, discipliner, preceptor. This word group related to
paideuo (word study) denotes the upbringing and handling of the child which is
growing up to maturity and which thus needs direction, teaching,
instruction and a certain measure of compulsion in the form of
discipline or even chastisement.
Wuest adds
that paideutes is...
The word was used by the Greeks of a
slave who had charge of a young child, taking him to school and bringing
him home again. He had the moral and ethical supervision of the child
also. Our word, “pedagogue” comes from this word. The word is used
here of a corrector or chastizer as in Hebrews 12:9.
(Wuest,
K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Studies in the
Vocabulary of the Greek New Testament: Grand Rapids: Eerdmans)
The only other use of paideutes
is in Hebrews...
Hebrews 12:9 (see
notes) Furthermore, we had
earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not
much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?
The
Septuagint (LXX)
has one use in Hosea
And the revolters have gone deep in
depravity, but I will chastise (Heb = muwcar = discipline, correction;
Lxx = paideutes) all of them. (Ho 5:2)
Foolish (878)
(aphron
[see word study] from a = without + phren = understanding;
phren is literally the diaphragm, reflecting that which restrains and
figuratively was considered to be the site of all mental and emotional
activity = the mind)
means literally without reason (without one's mind or intellect),
senseless, foolish, stupid, acting rashly. Vine
writes that the idea is “want of mental sanity and sobriety, a reckless
and inconsiderate habit of mind” (Hort), or “the lack of commonsense
perception of the reality of things natural and spiritual … or the
imprudent ordering of one’s life in regard to salvation” (G. Vos, in
Hastings Bible Dictionary); it is mostly translated “foolish” or
“foolish ones”.
TDNT in the
note on classical Greek uses says aphron was used to mean
"out of one's mind"...Vaunting human
reason is folly (áphrōn, aphrosýnē). The áphrōn is the fool (who denies
God) in the Psalms. In Proverbs áphrōn refers to the simple or
inexperienced person. phrónimos occurs in Prov. 14:17, and aphrosyne is
used for “misdeed” in Jdg. 20:6... (In Josephus) aphron and
aphrosyne denote youthful folly or lack of restraint. (1278).
If you would like
a more expanded definition on the meaning of aphron, consider reading
through the Scriptural uses in the Septuagint (see the uses
below), specifically those in Proverbs (eg, in Pr 10:18 a fool is
one who utters slander). This exercise would give you considerable
insight in what God says about one who is aphron or foolish.
Aphron is not employing one's understanding
especially in regard to practical matters. It is one who is without
reason, senseless, stupid, foolish, without reflection or intelligence.
A T Robertson
adds that,
Aphron is a hard word for the Gentiles, but it is the Jewish
standpoint that Paul gives. Each termed the other ‘dogs.
Vincent
writes that aphron means...
Senseless. In Xenophon’s
“Memorabilia,” Socrates, addressing Aristodemus, says, “Which do you
take to be the more worthy of admiration, those who make images without
sense (aphrona) or motion, or those who make intelligent and active
creations?” (1, 4:4). Sometimes, also, in the sense of crazed, frantic,
but never in New Testament.
NIDNTT adds
that aphron means...
senseless, foolish and aphrosune,
lack of sense, foolishness (both words from Hom. onwards) indicate by
the use of the Alpha-privative that the term is essentially defined by a
lack or a negation, i.e. lack of insight and reason. But the possible
development of a diseased mind is not excluded here either (Homer, Od.
23, 10-14). aphron can thus mean infatuated (Homer, Od. 21, 102) and
aphrosyne can be referred back to mania (Aristotle, Eth. Nic. 7, 6, both
times, incidentally, through active intervention of the gods). But the
words chiefly describe deficient perception of value and truth. The
Hebrew words for fool, foolish and folly are
predominantly rendered in the LXX by aphron (115 times, of which
19 have no equivalent) or aphrosune
Here are the 11
uses of aphron in the NT -
Luke 11:40 "You foolish ones,
did not He who made the outside make the inside also?
Comment: Jesus called the
Pharisees fools for their preoccupation with externals and for their
unconcern with character warped by greed and wickedness
Luke 12:20 "But God said to him (in a
parable about a certain rich man who sought to build bigger barns), 'You
fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who
will own what you have prepared?'
Comment: Richards writes that
" Jesus called the rich farmer a fool for laying up material possessions
and ignoring God, the appellation of fool being especially poignant
because he was to meet God that very night (Lk 12:20). In each case,
willful ignorance is involved. The Pharisees (see Lk 11:40 above) and
this farmer refused to take into account what God had revealed to his OT
people.
(Richards,
L O: Expository Dictionary of Bible Words: Regency)
Romans 2:20 (note)
a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of the immature, having in
the Law the embodiment of knowledge and of the truth,
1Corinthians 15:36 You fool!
That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies;
Comment: I agree with the
comment in TDNT - "In 1Co 15:36, Paul is not pronouncing a definitive
judgement with his aphron. It is a rhetorical appeal for true
understanding. To cling to the negative view is to adopt the position of
the aphron which is close to that of ungodliness" (TDNT, 9:231).
2Corinthians 11:16 Again I say, let
no one think me foolish; but if you do, receive me even as
foolish, that I also may boast a little.
Comment: The key term is
aphron, ‘fool’: not a dim-witted person or clown, a jester (as in
‘play the fool’), but in the technical sense of the person in
Hellenistic-Roman society who had lost the correct measure (metron) of
himself and the world around him (Martin, Ralph P. 2 Corinthians. Word
Biblical Commentary series. Waco: Word Books, 1986)
2Corinthians 11:19 For you, being so
wise, bear with the foolish gladly.
2Corinthians 12:6 For if I do wish to
boast I shall not be foolish, for I shall be speaking the truth;
but I refrain from this, so that no one may credit me with more than he
sees in me or hears from me.
2Corinthians 12:11 I have become
foolish; you yourselves compelled me. Actually I should have been
commended by you, for in no respect was I inferior to the most eminent
apostles, even though I am a nobody.
Ephesians 5:17 (note)
So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the
Lord is.
Comment: So a foolish person
meanders through life with no concept nor desire for the will of God.
1Peter 2:15 (note)
For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the
ignorance of foolish men.
There are about
110 uses of aphron in the non-apocryphal
Septuagint (LXX)
(Note the marked concentration in Proverbs which speaks of wisdom) - 2Sa
13:13; Job 2:10; 5:2, 3; 30:8; 34:36; Ps 14:1; 39:8; 49:10; 53:1; 74:18,
22; 92:6; 94:8; Pr 1:22; 6:12; 7:7; 9:4, 13, 16; 10:1, 4, 18, 21, 23;
11:29; 12:1, 15, 16, 23; 13:16, 20; 14:1, 3, 7, 8, 16, 18, 24, 29, 33;
15:2, 5, 7, 20; 16:22, 27; 17:2, 7, 10, 12, 16, 18, 21, 24, 25 18:6, 7,
22; 19:10, 13, 25, 28, 29; 20:3; 21:20; 22:3; 23:9; 24:9, 30; 26:1, 4,
5, 6; 27:3, 12, 22; 28:26; 29:11, 20; 30:2, 22; Eccl. 2:14, 15, 16, 19;
4:5, 13; 5:1, 3f; 6:8; 7:4, 5, 6, 9; 10:2f, 6, 12, 14, 15; Isa. 59:7;
Jer. 4:22; 17:11. Here are some examples from the
Septuagint (LXX)...
Proverbs 7:7 And I saw among the
naive (Heb = petiy = foolish, simpleminded, naive concerning the
complexities of life; Lxx = aphron), I discerned among the youths, A
young man lacking sense
Proverbs 10:1 The proverbs of
Solomon. A wise son makes a father glad, but a foolish (Heb =
kesiyl = a fool, one unable to deal with life in a wise way); Lxx =
aphron) son is a grief to his mother.
Psalm 92:6 (Spurgeon's
note) A senseless (Heb =
baar = a brutish person, one showing little intelligence or
sensibility; Lxx = aphron) man has no knowledge; Nor does a stupid man
understand this:
Teacher (1320)
(didaskalos from
didasko = teach to shape will of one
being taught by content of what is taught) is an instructor. The
Biblical concept of teaching differed quite radically from secular Greek
teaching in the matter of its goal. Whereas the Greek teacher sought to
impart knowledge and skills, teaching for the Jew sought to change one’s
entire life. The ministry of teaching in the OT sense that carried over
to the early Church was therefore concerned “with the whole man and his
education in the deepest sense.” It included the intellect, but its
final goal was the will. It is notable that of the 58 uses in the NT, 41
refer to Jesus as the "Teacher".
41 of 58x = Jesus!
Here are the NT
uses of didaskalos - Mt 8:19; 9:11; 10:24, 25; 12:38; 17:24;
19:16; 22:16, 24, 36; 23:8; 26:18; Mk. 4:38; 5:35; 9:17, 38; 10:17, 20,
35; 12:14, 19, 32; 13:1; 14:14; Lk. 2:46; 3:12; 6:40; 7:40; 8:49; 9:38;
10:25; 11:45; 12:13; 18:18; 19:39; 20:21, 28, 39; 21:7; 22:11; Jn. 1:38;
3:2, 10; 8:4; 11:28; 13:13, 14; 20:16; Acts 13:1; Ro 2:20; 1Co. 12:28,
29; Ep 4:11; 1Ti 2:7; 2Ti 1:11; 4:3; He. 5:12; Jas. 3:1
Immature (3516)
(nepios from nê = negative + epos
= not able to talk) means literally not speaking and thus a small child
above age of a helpless infant but probably not more than three or four
years of age.
Figuratively as
here in Romans nepios refers to a person who lacks experience, is untried or ignorant
or simple-minded.
Nepios is the term used by
the Jews to designate proselytes or novices. Paul uses it of one not
come of legal age (Ga 4:1). The writer to the Hebrews used it of
one spiritually immature (He 5:13) as did Paul (1Co 3:1) for they cannot
eat solid food (spiritually speaking).
Wuest
comments that nepios in Hebrews 5:13 means...
an infant, a little child, a minor,
not of age, and in a metaphorical sense, “untaught, unskilled.” The idea
of immaturity is in the word, and according to the context in which it
is found, it could refer to either mental or spiritual immaturity. Paul
defines the word when he says that the person whom he calls a babe is
“unskillful in the word of righteousness.” Spiritual immaturity is
referred to by the word “babe.” Thus those spoken of as of full age are
spiritually mature (teleios)
TDNT notes that...
in General Greek Usage (nepios) means
“immature,” “foolish.” It is used in medicine for small children in
various stages. We also find it on burial inscriptions for small
children aged 1 to 10. It may also be used for orphans (denoting their
helplessness), and then comes into use for legal minors. It often occurs
for children as members of the family along with the wife or mother. (It
can also be used for the young of animals or plants.) But the main sense
in Greek is “foolish,” “inexperienced,” or “childish” with no necessary
reference to children. A person is nepios who is immature in conduct,
who shows a foolish confidence in fortune, who does not take account of
reality, or who does not heed the advice of philosophers.
(Kittel,
G., Friedrich, G., & Bromiley, G. W. Theological Dictionary of the New
Testament. Eerdmans)
NIDNTT writes that...
nepios denotes an infant,
child or minor in classic Greek. The word can be used in metaphorical
sense, e.g. of young seedlings (Theophrastus, Historia Plantarum, 8, 1,
7). Furthermore, the characteristics of the foolish and inexperienced
child may be so to the fore that the meaning of child recedes in favour
of foolish, inexperienced (cf. Sophocles, Electra, 145 f.). Greek
philosophers who wanted to communicate to men true knowledge of the
world and the life of reason dismissed with biting sarcasm the
unperceptive man with no experience of life as nepios, a fool (cf.
Hesiod, Works, 130, 286 ff.; Epictetus, Dissertations, 3, 24, 53).
The LXX also translates petî, simple
man, by nepios (Ps. 19:8). Whereas the wisdom lit. reproaches the nepios
for being simple, i.e. dull and foolish (Pr. 1:32; cf. also 1:22
Aquila), nepios in the Pss. denotes the man of simple faith (e.g. Ps
116:6; 119:130) who stands under God’s protection and pays attention to
his instruction.
(Brown,
Colin, Editor. New International Dictionary of NT Theology. 1986.
Zondervan)
Detzler writes that nepios...
means "infant." An infant is a young
child who is not yet weaned. The Greeks seem to have taken this word
from the verb nepeleo (to be without power, impotent, or weak). In other
words, an infant is a person who has no power and needs the assistance
of parents or guardians.
Hippocrates, "the father of medicine" used the word nepios to describe
every child from the stage of a fetus to five or six years old. It is
the word used to describe a family relationship: "This is the child of
those parents." Aristotle used the word to describe the entire age of
childhood. In Plato's writings it portrayed a person who lived in a
pretend world of fantasy, in contrast with a realist.
The New Testament uses the word
nepios on two different levels. It speaks of both a physical child and a
spiritual child....
The Apostle Paul used the picture of
a nursing mother to describe the tenderness of his concern for
Christians. He wrote to the Thessalonians that he and his colleagues had
treated them as a mother treats her infants, with love and tenderness
(1Th 2:7). In fact, this verse probably gives one the clearest pictures
of the basic meaning of nepios, that of a child before weaning....
In his first letter to the
Corinthians the apostle warned them that they were still "babes" in
Christ, for they had not grown beyond the basics (1Co 3:1). Paul wanted
them to put away childish ways and live like adult Christians (1Co
13:11).
(Detzler,
Wayne E: New Testament Words in Today's Language. Victor. 1986)
Nepios is
used 15 times in the NT -
Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus
answered and said, "I praise Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
that Thou didst hide these things from the wise and intelligent and
didst reveal them to babes.
Comment: MacArthur explains
that Jesus is referring to "spiritual babes, those who
acknowledge their utter helplessness in themselves, to whom God has
sovereignly chosen to reveal the truths of His kingdom. It is to the
“poor in spirit” who humbly confess their dependency that God makes
the way of salvation clear and understandable. By the Holy Spirit they
recognize they are spiritually empty and bankrupt and they abandon all
dependence on their own resources. They are the cringing spiritual
beggars to whom Jesus refers in the first beatitude-the absolutely
destitute who are ashamed to lift up their head as they hold out their
hands for help. Babes are the exact opposite of the kind of
person the scribes, Pharisees, and rabbis taught was pleasing to God.
They are also the exact opposite of the imagined ideal Christian touted
by many popular preachers and writers who glorify self-assertion and
self-worth. The contrast between wise and intelligent and babes
is not between the knowledgeable and the ignorant, the educated and the
uneducated, the brilliant and the simpleminded. It is a contrast between
those who think they can save themselves by their own human wisdom,
resources, and achievement and those who know they cannot. It is a
comparison between those who rely on themselves and those who rely on
God."
(Matthew
8-15,
Matthew 16-23,
Matthew 24-28
or
Logos)
Matthew 21:16 and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?" And
Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, 'Out of the mouth of
infants and nursing babes Thou hast prepared praise for Thyself'?"
Luke 10:21 At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit,
and said, "I praise Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou
didst hide these things from the wise and intelligent and didst reveal
them to babes. Yes, Father, for thus it was well-pleasing in Thy
sight.
Romans 2:20 a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of the immature,
having in the Law the embodiment of knowledge and of the truth,
1 Corinthians 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to
spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to babes in Christ.
1 Corinthians 13:11 When I was a child, I used to speak as a
child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I
became a man, I did away with childish things.
Comment: Paul uses nepios
literally here referring to those who have not yet learned to speak.
Galatians 4:1 Now I say, as long as the heir is a child, he does
not differ at all from a slave although he is owner of everything,
Galatians 4:3 So also we, while we were children, were held in
bondage under the elemental things of the world.
Comment: Detzler comments that
"To the Galatians Paul compared the Jews to infants. They had an
elemental knowledge of God's plan, but as a nation they did not mature
enough to accept their Messiah (Gal. 4:1). This is not a final stage but
a beginning stage of development (4:3). Paul looked for the day when the
Jews would grow up and grasp their messianic birthright. (Ibid)
Ephesians 4:14 (note)
As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and
there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the
trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming
Comment: Clearly Paul is using
nepios figuratively to encourage his readers to no longer be spiritually
immature saints but to grow in their spiritual maturity. It is good for
a person to be born as a baby, but it is unnatural when one remains as
an infant. By the same token, believers begin as babies, but they should
grow on to maturity in the faith.
1 Thessalonians 2:7 (note)
But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares
for her own children.
Hebrews 5:13 (note)
For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of
righteousness, for he is a babe.
Nepios is used about 26 times
in the non-apocryphal
Septuagint (LXX)
- 1 Sam. 15:3; 22:19; 2 Ki. 8:12; Job 3:16; 24:12; 31:10; 33:25; Ps.
8:2; 17:14; 19:7; 64:7; 116:6; 119:130; 137:9; Prov. 1:32; 23:13; Isa.
11:8; Jer. 6:11; 9:21; 43:6; 44:7; Lam. 1:5; 2:11, 19f; 4:4; Ezek. 9:6;
Hos. 11:1; Joel 2:16; Nah. 3:10
Psalm 8:2 (ESV ) Out of the mouth of
babies and infants, you have established strength because of your
foes, to still the enemy and the avenger.
Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is
perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making
wise the simple (Heb = pethiy = simplicity, naiveté, foolish; Lxx
= nepios).
Leo Burke said that...
"People who say they sleep like a
baby usually don't have one." The spiritual parallel is when immature,
spiritual babes come into a house of God, they require attention. We
cannot just let them go, any more than we can put a baby in a crib and
just let him grow.
Billy Graham spoke to the issue of maturing babes in Christ...
Being a Christian is more than just an instantaneous conversion—it is a
daily process whereby you grow to be more and more like Christ.
Tacitus said,
Among themselves their honesty is inflexible, their compassion quick to
move, but to all other persons they show the hatred of antagonism.
In Alexandria the Jews allegedly took an oath never to show kindness to
a Gentile. The very privileges which should have produced saints
produced arrogant, loveless egotists instead!
HAVING IN THE
LAW THE EMBODIMENT OF KNOWLEDGE AND OF THE TRUTH: echonta (PAPMSA) ten
morphosin tes gnoseos kai tes aletheias en to nomo:
(Ro 6:17; 2Ti1:13;
3:5; Titus 1:16)
Having (2192)
(echo) means to have or to hold in one's possession and the
present tense
indicates this "having"
is their continuous possession.
Embodiment
(3446)
(morphosis from
morphe
= stresses essence of one’s nature)
refers to the to outward shape and appearance, such as that of a
silhouette, which is an outline or shadow of something. The root word
morphe
emphasizes both the
internal and external form and thus refers to the outward display of the
inner reality or the essential form of something which never alters.
Webster says that
to embody is to form or collect into a united mass (a body) and to give
a tangible, concrete form to an abstract concept. The Law is a valid
form in which spiritual knowledge and truth are collected together as a
comprehensive whole.
Vincent
says:
morphe, form is the
expression or embodiment of the essential and permanent being of that
which is expressed... In Ro 2:20, morphosis is the truthful embodiment
of knowledge and truth as contained in the law of God....(He adds that
morphe is) not mere appearance, but the scheme, the correct embodiment
of the lineaments of truth and knowledge in the law.
Paul uses morphosis to
describe the false (spiritually dead) teachers warning Timothy that they
are...
holding to a form of godliness,
although they have denied its power; and avoid such men as these. (2
Timothy 3:5-note)
Knowledge (1108)
(gnosis) refers to “experiential knowledge,” not a mere passing
acquaintance.
Truth (225)
(aletheia from alethes = true in turn from a +
lêthô = that which is hidden or lanthanô = conceal, this
combination meaning out in the open, containing nothing that is hidden)
describes the body of reality (facts, events, etc) or the content which
is true, or which is in accordance to what actually occurred. Truth
is the unveiled reality lying at the basis of and agreeing with an
appearance; the manifested, the veritable essence of matter. Truth
is the correspondence between a reality and a declaration which
professes to set it forth. Words are true when they correspond with
objective reality. Persons and things are true when they correspond with
their profession. Hence a truth is a declaration which has corresponding
reality, or a reality which is correctly set forth. Since God is Himself
the great reality, that which correctly sets forth His nature is
pre-eminently the Truth. Obviously whatever God says is "the truth",
and in fact "the Truth" is actually embodied in the Person of
Christ Jesus!
Paul's religious
readers (and especially the Jews) fancied themselves as guides, lights, correctors,
and
teachers and in so doing they tended to look down with condescension and scorn
upon those who did not have access to the Law. The Gentiles sensed this
"spiritual pride" or "arrogance" and they resented it.
John discusses the Law and Truth in his introductory comments
writing that...
And the Word became flesh (the
incarnation of Jesus), and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory,
glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 John bore witness of Him, and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom
I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed
before me.'" 16 For of His fulness we have all received, and grace upon
grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth
were realized through Jesus Christ. (Jn 1:14, 15, 16, 17)
The truth in its fullness came with
Jesus Christ, (Jn 1:14, 17). The law was the pattern that pointed to
Jesus, but He was the consummation of truth.
