Prior to reading this post, I believe I may owe an explanation as to how it came about. On one of the many times within the past year that I was caring for my Mom, I happened upon a podcast from
The Ramp by Louie Giglio of
Passion City Church in Atlanta, GA. Ever inquisitive, I was intrigued and based on what I heard, I began independent study to see if there was anything at all to the premise he was making on "Ekklesia vs. Church" usage in the King James Bible. I am not, nor have EVER been a King James Only Bible person. I have NEVER believed the Baptist Bride doctrine nor that of Calvinism. I vehemently disagree with the "speaking" in tongues that so many of the Pentecostal denominations practice with impunity. As with many of my, shall we say "religion" posts, this one is also in opposition to the religious status quo. Yes, I'll just admit right now that I must be a rebel at heart who does not like to conform.
"Monarchy is the greatest thing on earth. Kings are
rightly called gods since just like God they have power of life and
death over all their subjects in all things. They are
accountable to God only ... so it is a crime for anyone to
argue about what a king can do." ~King James I
And that statement alone is precisely the reason why the word ekklesia was mistranslated into the word "church" or "kirk" in the "authorized KJV" of the Bible when Jesus said that "upon this rock (meaning Jesus, NOT Peter) I will build my ekklesia (NOT church, or kirk). Peter would have had absolutely NO idea what
"church" or "kirk" meant as the New Testament church had not yet been
established, but he absolutely would have understood ekklesia as it was very relevant to the time in which he lived. The word ekklesia comes from the two Greek words ek, meaning "out" (Strong's #1537) and kaleo (Strong's #2564) which means "to call." However, contrary to what is now taught in church, the ekklesia was much more than just an assembly of like-minded people. The words agora and paneguris as well as heorte, koinon, thiasos, sunagoge and sunago can
all mean an assembly but the Greek language is a very precise
language and the words are very specific to the context in which they
are used. I don't claim to be a Greek scholar by any stretch of the
imagination, but thankfully, I do have the ability to read and study
for myself those who were/are Greek scholars and who have imparted
their knowledge so that others may also learn truth. Yes, I asked my
Pastor (the only person I know who's actually studied Greek) about this
very subject waaaay back on April 18, 2011 and he is very vocal about
how many hours of Greek he studied in seminary, and, honestly, I'm
disappointed to say that I am still waiting for his input, so what I
share here, is pretty much the result of my own independent study.
Why,
you may ask is this such a big deal? Maybe to you, it isn't.
However, to the world at large, and the church in general, it may make
all the difference in the world. Especially if you discover that the modus operandi that
you've been conforming to for the last millennia and a half (1,611
years precisely) is false and not at all what it was designed to be.
Ironic or weirdly coincidental that it's 1,611 years since the 1611
authorized KJV isn't it? I mean if the proof is in the pudding and the
pudding were told it was something else entirely (no longer pudding)
and it's behavior, lifestyle, or belief system became that which is
totally contrary to what it was intended to be....well, then that would
be a tragedy, wouldn't it? It all comes down to the word ekklesia
and if we understand it we will gain an entirely new perspective on
what the church is supposed to be called out from and called out to.
You don't just call out someone to separate them from society. We were
never meant to live outside of the world, but in the world to be light
(truth) and salt (preservative) and "little" Christs which is what
the word "Christian" literally means. As Mufasa in The Lion King
says, "Remember Who You Are." David Platt writes, "The Tragedy of the
cross: over 6000 people groups still haven't heard about it. What in
the world are we doing?" (Mt. 28:19-20) We've forgotten who we are and
what we were called out FROM and what we were called out TO do.
Churches are hoarding up wealth, building kingdoms on earth rather than
laying up treasure in heaven. Oh, so what if you have internet, radio,
or tv broadcasting your services? Fact is the majority of the world is
lacking in the devices with which to receive it. The ekklesia was an equipped body that was "called out" and then "sent out" for a specific purpose.
A revolving door approach I've heard it called. Instead we are relying
on technology to do what Jesus said we were to do. All other religions
say "work, work, work." Jesus said "love, love, love" and "go."
First of all, the term ekklesia was a political term, not a religious one. Jesus is THE King and the Bible used the term ekklesia because in classical Greek "ekklesia"
meant "an assembly of citizens summoned by the crier, the
legislative assembly." When the Greek city states found their
governments had become too corrupt and oppressive, they would call for
an ekklesia, an assembly outside the civil
authority of the city. If enough people came out and refused to
accept the existing centralized civil authority, that government
would collapse. Non participation has been a successful
and peaceful means to free mankind from oppressive civil authority
throughout history.
- Liddell and Scott define
ekklesia as "an assembly of citizens summoned by the crier, the
legislative assembly." [R. Scott, and H.G. Liddell, A Greek-English
Lexicon, p. 206.]
- Thayer's lexicon says, "an
assembly of the people convened at the public place of council for
the purpose of deliberating" [J. H. Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon
of the New Testament, p. 196].
- Trench gives the
meaning as "the lawful assembly in a free Greek city of all those
possessed of the rights of citizenship, for the transaction of
public affairs" [R.C. Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament, 7th ed.,
pp. 1-2].
- Seyffert's dictionary states, "The
assembly of the people, which in Greek cities had the power of final
decision in public affairs" [Oskar Seyffert, A Dictionary of
Classical Antiquities, pp. 202-203].
John the
Baptist had preached the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Matthew 3:2).
Jesus preached the same method of self government and proclaimed that
right for all who would remain faithful to Him. Jesus' procession
into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday was a call for the people to stand
against a corrupt, oppressive government by offering them a legitimate
government that operated differently than Herod the Great: a
kingdom which was nothing less than a government operating by
freewill offerings (Exodus 35:29), voluntary charitable participation
(Luke 3:11), and the perfect law of liberty (James 1:25). It was a
powerful and non-violent movement of the people, by the people, and
for the people to change the course of history by changing the hearts
and minds of men, by altering their relationship with governments of
the gentiles with their leaders who called themselves benefactors but who exercised authority.
Ekklesia:
principal governmental assembly in Athens, Greece; responsible for
declaring war, military strategy, electing military generals and
magistrates.
The authority and function of the assembly
is fundamental to properly understanding what Jesus inaugurated in
Matthew 16:18 and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The
implications are that every control center of Satan can be
prevailed over by the church if God can find an ekklesia "a ruling body" under His Lordship.
Ekklesia: meaning the "Called out of" is used 118 times in the NT and translated "church" in all but 3 verses. The practice of ekklesia had
been in use 500 years by the time of Christ and had specific,
well-acknowledged connotations. Peter would not have known what "kyriakon (doma)" was since it was not even used until the 14th century, but would have understood ekklesia:
the "Called out" ones were to be the heavenly council above city
council; rules over kings and renegade governments; a governing body
with power. I am reminded of Tolkien's writing in The Lord of the
Rings where Sauruman is touting the combined forces of The Two
Towers of Isengard and Baradur, and Gandalf looks at him and says,
"There is only ONE Lord of the Ring, and he does not share power."
King James was just such a man and may have demanded that the word
be "church" instead of ekklesia because he
didn't want any governing authority over him since he was the "head"
of the Anglican church of England and would not share power with an ekklesia here on earth. In an account corrected with his own hand dated February 10, 1604, he ordained:
"That a translation be made of the whole Bible, as consonant as can
be to the original Hebrew and Greek; and this to be set out and
printed without any marginal notes, and only to be used in all churches
of England in time of divine service." He then set up rules that
made it impossible for anyone involved in the project to make an honest
translation, some of which follow:
1. The ordinary Bible read in the church, commonly called the
Bishop's Bible to be followed and as little altered as the truth of
the original will permit. In other words, since the common people
preferred the Geneva Bible to the existing government publication let's
see if we can slip them a Mickey (a superseding government publication
onto their bookshelves) altered as little as possible.
2.
The old Ecclesiastical words to be kept, viz. the word "church" not
to be translated "congregation," etc. That is, if a word should be
translated a certain way, let's deliberately mistranslate it to make the
people think God still belongs to the Anglican Church - exclusively.
3.
No marginal notes at all to be affixed, but only for the
explanation of the Hebrew or Greek words, which cannot without some
circumlocution, so briefly and fitly be expressed in the text.
The KJV was, at the time of its writing, an attempt to deny believers the marginal notes in the Geneva Bible. Good King James was a devout believer in "the divine right of kings" which, simply stated, that since a king's power came from God, the king then had to answer to no one but
God. Our word "church" comes from a different Greek word than ekklesia. The Koine Greek κυριακόν (δωμα) (kyriakon (dōma)) meaning Lord's (house) is the word we get the English word "kirk" or church from, meaning "the house of the Lord." Kirk,
meaning "church" is found in Scots, Scottish English other English
dialects and which was borrowed into Germanic languages in late
antiquity. It is considered a loanword from Old Norse and therefore
retains it's original Germanic consonants.
Joel 2:15 "a solemn assembly" uses the same word ekklesia in Greek Septuagint
Ekklesia declares war on renegade elements of the society in which it assembles:
Psalm 110:1-2
2 Corinthians 10:4
Ephesians 6:12
Jesus
was recognized as the king by the existing world government when
Pontius Pilate nailed his official proclamation of Christ's kingdom to
the cross, which was sealed for all time in the blood of an innocent
man. Jesus and His little flock of followers, the called out ekklesia were persecuted by the apostate church of that day who abandoned the house of David proclaiming they had no king but Caesar. We see ekklesia
throughout the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments. God is the
same, yesterday, today, and forever; He does not change. Mankind is the
same, sin is the same. Abraham was called out and eventually brought
out many souls, both Jew and Gentile. Moses was called back to Egypt
and he and Israel were cast out of Egypt but had to learn the ways of
liberty under God. Yet it wasn't too long before the people returned to
sin with their golden calf and the Levites were called out to become the
tabernacle in the wilderness.
I love the KJV
of the Bible for it's reverence and it is the one that I prefer for
memorization. However, King James was an evil, evil man and strict
adherence to his "authorized" version of the Scriptures is just not
legitimate when studying, considering the "source" as it were. King
James' life was clouded in controversy because of allegations that he
was homosexual. Although he fathered several children by Anne
of Denmark, it would be more accurate to say that he was
allegedly a bi-sexual. While his close relationships with a
number of men were noted, earlier historians questioned their
sexual nature. However, few modern historians cast any doubt on the
King's bisexuality and the fact that his sexuality and
choice of male partners both as King of Scotland then later in
London as King of England were the subject of gossip from
the city taverns to the Privy Council. His relationship as a
teenager with fellow teenager Esmé Stuart, Earl of Lennox was
criticized by Scottish Church leaders, who were part of a conspiracy
to keep the young King and the young French courtier
apart, as the relationship was improper to say the least. Lennox
was forced to leave Scotland due to death threats. In the
1580s, King James openly kissed Francis Stewart Hepburn, Earl of
Bothwell. Contemporary sources of the day clearly stated that their
relationship was a sexual one. When James inherited the
English throne from Queen Elizabeth I in 1603, it was openly
joked of the new English monarch in London that “Elizabeth was
King: now James is Queen!” If there is still any doubt, it should
also be noted that George Villiers, also held an intimate
relationship with King James, about which James himself
was quite open and called Villiers his “wife” and called
himself Villiers' “husband”! King James died in 1625 of gout
and senility. He is buried in the Henry VII chapel in
Westminster Abbey, with one of his favorite male suitors on his
right, and another on his left. Go figure.
1599 Geneva Bible Footnotes:
feeling tired.
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