In the past, perhaps even on this site, we have shown the distinct definitions of these words. Of course, modern bibles simply drop stablish and use establish all over. Modern dictionaries are, likewise and predictably, no help. In short, we framed ‘Establish’ with synonyms such as initiate, founded, begin. We often see businesses, churches, even families, that had been established at such and such a date in history. The Apostle Paul will make a reference to his “entranc

These two words that have somewhat similar meanings; but it’s the distinction between the two, the detail of the difference that piques our interest. “None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep…” (Isaiah 5:27). “Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:4). Sleep is ‘deeper’ than slumber; it’s a change of state, a condition where all bodily systems rest. We read where Adam and others were in a deep sleep; never

Why doesn’t the KJV use the word show instead of the not-sure-how-to-pronounce shew? (For the record, shew is only pronounced as "shoe" in America; the English sound is actually the same as show: sho.) Why do most Bibles say “showbread” and yours says “shewbread”? William Shakespeare used both show and shew in his plays—before the KJV was published. Both words were available, and yet, the KJV translators never used show, not once. Perhaps you tossed and turned all night,

Once again we’ve come upon a curious use of words in the Authorized English Bible: Save and Except. Today, the word except is widely used and recognized; however, the word save is not. Not the verb ‘to salvage’ or ‘to keep’ — as in ‘save my soul’; nor ‘save me a seat’; but the preposition (and sometimes conjunction) as in “And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only” (Matt. 17:8). I’m sure, due to familiarity, that if I were to re-write the follo

Once again we come upon an ‘archaic’ word in the Holy Bible: sith. Found in Ezekiel 35:6: “…sith thou hast not hated blood, even blood shall pursue thee.” We can dismiss it as a ‘flyer,’ one of those hold-over words from Old English, and replace it with the commonly used quasi-equivalent, since. Or, we could just read a little and seek to understand, before casting it aside as ‘poetic’ or ‘archaic’. Since (used as reference to time) — between then and now; from that time

From a previous post, I’ve had some feedback about the use of that and which. We automatically and typically use these words in daily conversation: That refers to an event or a noun that may be close in time or proximity, but is not immediately before us. That thing over there, not this thing at my feet. Which refers to a a decision, a choice, a selection of one from several. Which road will you choose, dear brother? Which is also used to introduce a non-essential clause—

How awesome is the King James Text! Once we learn how to read it, we then begin to recognize the power of its accuracy and the wonders of every word and every mark. We (Bible believers) are sitting on a gold mine, and occasionally we discover a bit of gold dust for encouragement. In a recent daily reading, just such a nugget or bit of dust was found: “Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee…” (Genesis 33:11). Initially I noticed brought; for I’m reviewing t

Here is another case where the contemporary theologians, bloggers, dictionaries, et al., face a discrepancy in the KJV text and subsequently fail to exercise faith. However, we believe every word, including even the punctuation marks; therefore, we give the benefit of the doubt to the word of God, and we ‘catch up’ to its wonder. The word example is commonly used and commonly understood to be a pattern, something or some process that is to be noted (and copied if favorable;

“For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren…” (Hebrews 2: 16, 17). While preparing for a Christmas-themed lesson, this one word, from the text above, stood out: behoved. “…it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren.” Behoved, as it’s used here, is synonymous with necessary, required, and appropriately fitting. It was necessary for God’s son, calle

Pastor John Asquith once explained to me the difference between the Holy Ghost and the Holy Spirit. It was a fascinating thesis, for I had long wondered why the KJV translators used HG in one place and HS in another place. They were seemingly interchangeable, but yet clearly different in some way. Let me paraphrase his teaching (and forgive me if it’s not precise or complete): The Holy Ghost: Third member of the Trinity. Used when His person (and the presence of His

Punctuation is like traffic signals: you can ignore them and perhaps make it ok; but pay attention to them and you’ll be much better off. Lately, I’ve been reading the Scriptures with an emphasis on punctuation, and it’s become a refreshing and illuminating exercise. Let’s look at one punctuation mark in particular: the colon. The period stacked on a period, the business end of an over-under shotgun, the wonderful colon (:). We use it all the time and yet we rarely recog

A brief study of gates; my conclusion may be incorrect, but I have shown the steps and the reasoning involved. I hope it makes sense. Recently I heard an awkward (IMO) explanation of iron gates somehow charging a church…. We can agree that we should take the word literally, and give it the benefit of the doubt, unless it is clearly figurative. Such is the case of Matthew chapter 16. Principalities: The realm of a prince. Gates: The place where the power of a principality

Some modern bibles dismiss certain words used in the KJV as archaic. One of these words is mean. “Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men” (Proverbs 22:29). Mean men, used here, indicates ‘middle of the range.’ Kings, on the other hand, are at the upper level. "But Paul said, I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus, a city of Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city...” (Acts 21:39). Paul is not c

Envy “To feel displeasure and ill-will at the superiority of another in happiness, success, and the possession of anything desirable” (OED). In today’s terms “He’s got something better than I got, therefore, I have malice toward him...I hate him.” Malice, despising, and envy go hand-in-hand: “...living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another” (Titus 3: 3). There was David’s bitter wife Michal, despising him on the day of his great success and happiness. S

“...Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness...” (Romans 13:13) The word chambering, as used in Romans 13, refers to bed chambering; specifically it warns of adultery and fornication (going from chamber to chamber). Having that bit of information adds light to another passage—let me set the stage: In Proverbs 5 we are introduced to the ways of the strange woman. In chapter 6 she is called “a whorish woman.” In chapter 7 the warning continues with

To become proficient, and even to excel, in any field or trade, the student must master the terms used in that specific field. When a mechanic hears the term “torque wrench,” he knows exactly what it is and what it does. Someone who practices embroidery both knows and is comfortable with the term “counted cross- stitch.” So also, in the study of language (and in our case, the enjoyable study of Early Modern English) there are terms and jargon we should understand. Ther

Repost Feb 13, 2018: In English, the word most frequently used is the. In Early Modern English (KJV) this one word is classified as a definite article. Two other words, a and an, are indefinite articles: these articles mark a noun for the first time or indicate a group, or non-specific nouns. There are a few biblical exceptions, hold-overs from Norman based Middle English, where an article marks a verb (“...I go a fishing...” —John 21:3). But, for now, our brief discussion is

Those little words (prepositions) reveal direction, the time element, and the location of objects in a sentence. We’ve seen how unto indicates more of a closer, delivered, and sometimes personal relationship, when compared with the ubiquitous to. Jonah In the case of Jonah, God first commissioned him to simply go to Nineveh and cry against it. (Jonah 1:2). Maybe Jonah could stand outside one of the gates, or against the outside wall, and from there he could cry out. Sur

Unto has 29 separate, but related, definitions in the OED (Oxford English Dictionary). Similar to its close preposition cousin, to, the OED initially states this of unto: “Indicating spatial or local relationship.” What distinguishes unto from to, is the following definition: Expressing or denoting motion directed towards and reaching (a place, point, or goal). Ah, reaching the goal. Delivered. “For unto us a son is born…” — a son is delivered, a son has personally reac

According to most definitions, a preposition indicates location. Specifically, a preposition defines the position of its object with other words in a clause or sentence. In the classic English grammatical prose, the object is always immediately after the preposition: Subject + Verb + Prep + Object. He (S) looked (V) at (P) her (O). These typically small words not only tell us where something is, they can also tell us the relationship of time and direction of an object