Quote:
Originally Posted by MacDuff
Ohio
Peter’s teaching in 1Pet 5:1-7 has always been sufficient for me to disbelieve in the idea of an authoritative human leadership related to believers.
Perhaps the following will help to clarify my understanding of Hebrews 13:17.
Pistis refers to faith or conviction of the truth of something. Even Atheists have faith, that there is no God. A word derived from peitho, the word translated as “obey” in the English translations of Hebrews 13:17. Peitho refers to confidence or trust in someone or something. Note how the word is translated in other verses in Hebrews.
There is another Greek word that means to obey, or literally to hear under. The word is used in Col 3:20 and 22, for example. It is also used in Heb 5:9. So the writer of Hebrews knew to use that more common word at least once.
|
Thanks MacDuff,
My meager study does not exactly conclude as you have done. The New Test. uses three words for the word "obey." Two are similar, and one is different. Here they are:
- peithomai (Strong's #3982) in Hebrews 13.17 is derived from the root word peitho, which means to convince, to persuade, to seduce, to corrupt dpending on the context. peithomai has the sense to trust, to convince, to follow, and even to obey, depending on the context
- peitharcheo (Strong's #3980) is similar in that it is derived from the same greek root, and it means to obey, to pay heed
- hypakoe (Strongs #5218) and hypakouo (Strongs #5219) literally mean to "hear under" as a subordinate, i.e. to listen attentively, and by implication to heed, to obey, to hearken
To diminish the force of
peithomai-obeying simply because it is derived from the root word for persuasion or trusting is no different than diminishing the force of
hypakouo-
obeying because it is derived from the root word for hearing or listening. This is the very reasoning that both
John and
MacDuff have used. To me it seems flawed, but, of course, I am no Greek scholar.
G. Kittel makes an interesting comment about
hypakouo-
obeying, "
Except in Phlm 21, this word always implies religious decision. What is obeyed may be the truth (I Pt. 1.22) or Christ (2 Cor 10.5). The denotation is not the ethical attitude but the religious act from which it derives. The obedience of faith (Rom 1.5) implies that the message of faith issues in obedience."
I found this to be an important distinction between
peithomai-obeying and
hypakouo-
obeying. Otherwise it is hard to distinguish which is the "real word" for obeying, since the writers of the New Test. apparently use both, seemingly interchangeably. Perhaps a notable scholar could assist us in distinguishing how each of these words is used.