G2008 ἐπιτιμάω (epitimáō)

Rebuke (2008) (epitimao from epi = upon + timao = to honour) (here a command in the aorist imperative) means literally to put honor upon and then to mete out due measure and so then to find fault with, to censure severely, to rebuke, to express strong disapproval of, or to denounce (cp the incredible example in Mt 16:22). Note that one may rebuke another without producing conviction of guilt, either because, as in Mt 16:22 (Jesus rebuked by Peter, cp similar uses in Mt19:13; Mk 8:32; 10:13; Lk 18:15; 19:39) the one rebuked is not guilty of any fault or the rebuke may be insufficient to produce acknowledgement of fault by the offender (cp the repentant thief's rebuke of the non-repentant thief on the cross = Lk 23:40).. Epitimao also conveys the sense of to command or warning which includes an implied threat (Lk 8:24; Mt 16:20) Thayer notes other meanings of epitimao in classic Greek writings include (1) to show honor to someone, (2) to "raise the price of" and (3) to "adjudge, award" (from time in the sense of “merited penalty”) (From Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon) Friberg says epitimao means to... strictly appraise someone, assess a penalty, charge someone as being blamable; hence rebuke, reprove (Jude 1:9); warn, strongly admonish, threaten (Mk 3:12, 8:30). Epitimao is stronger than the previous word reprove (elegcho [word study]) implying more authority and less argument, thus conveying the idea of censure, including a sharp, severe reprimand with possibly a suggestion in some cases, of impending penalty. It also is used of speaking seriously or warning in order to prevent an action or bring one to an end. To rebuke in English means to criticize sharply (reprove sternly) while reprove means to scold or correct more gently or with kind intent. BDAG says epitimao means "to speak seriously, warn in order to prevent an action or bring one to an end." Vincent on epitimao writes that... The word implies a sharp, severe rebuke, with, possibly, a suggestion in some cases of impending penalty (time); charge on pain of....To charge on pain of penalty for disobedience implies a menace, in this case of future judgment. NIDNTT notes that epitimao... is found frequently in all three Synoptic Gospels, implying disapproval, but not exaction of a concrete penalty. The sense “censure”, “rebuke,” will suit all instances, but more precise definition is possible. (1) People rebuke one another as a sign of disapproval...(Mk. 10:13, 48, 8:32) and the Pharisees asking Jesus to rebuke the disciples (Lk. 19:39). In each instance Jesus disapproves of the rebuke, but he himself is free to deliver a rebuke (to Peter, Mk. 8:33; to the Sons of Thunder, Lk. 9:55).... (2) Sometimes Jesus rebukes in order to repress, when he casts out demons (Mk. 1:25; 9:25...), dispels a fever (Lk. 4:39), or stills a storm (Mk. 4:39).... (3) At Mk. 3:12; 8:30 and parallels, Jesus does not censure what is happening or has happened, but He rebukes in the sense of forbidding what might happen, when the disciples or cured demoniacs were likely to publish his deeds as Lord of all. ...Otherwise, the verb appears in 2Ti 4:2, where rebuking is a function of the authoritative Christian teacher alongside preaching, convincing and exhorting in “the teaching”; also at Jude 1:9 (cp Zech 3:2). (Brown, Colin, Editor. New International Dictionary of NT Theology. 1986. Zondervan or Computer version) Bishop Trench echoes some of the previous thoughts writing that... One may ‘rebuke’ another without bringing the rebuked to a conviction of any fault on his part; and this, either because there was no fault, and the rebuke was therefore unneeded or unjust; or else because, though there was such fault, the rebuke was ineffectual to bring the offender to own it; and in this possibility of ‘rebuking’ for sin, without ‘convincing’ of sin, lies the distinction between these two words. In epitimao lies simply the notion of rebuking; which word can therefore be used of one unjustly checking or blaming another; in this sense Peter ‘began to rebuke’ his Lord (Mt 16:22; cf. Mt 19:13; Lk 18:39):—or ineffectually, and without any profit to the person rebuked, who is not thereby brought to see his sin; as when the penitent robber ‘rebuked’ (epitimao) his fellow malefactor (Lk 23:40; cf. Mk 9:25). But elegcho [word study] is a much more pregnant word; it is so to rebuke another, with such effectual wielding of the victorious arms of the truth, as to bring him, if not always to a confession, yet at least to a conviction, of his sin (Job 5:17; Pr 19:25), just as in juristic Greek, elegcho [word study] is not merely to reply to, but to refute, an opponent. Steven Cole... a preacher must make an appeal to the conscience of the hearers: “Rebuke.” This moral aspect of preaching says, “You are wrong; you need to repent!” We tend not to like that sort of thing, but it is desperately needed in our day of watered-down, feel good Christianity. William Barclay was right when he wrote (The Daily Study Bible [Westminster Press], p. 207): “Any teacher ... whose teaching tends to make men think less of sin is a menace to Christianity and to mankind.” (2 Timothy 4:1-5 Preaching & Hearing God's Word) Epitimao - 29x in 29v - Mt 8:26; 12:16; 16:22; 17:18; 19:13; 20:31; Mk 1:25; 3:12; 4:39; 8:30, 32f; 9:25; 10:13, 48; Luke 4:35, 39, 41; 8:24; 9:21, 42, 55; 17:3; 18:15, 39; 19:39; 23:40; 2Ti 4:2; Jude 1:9. NAS = rebuke(6), rebuked(13), rebuking(3), sternly telling(2), sternly told(1), warned(5) If you have time ponder the following uses of epitimao - note especially what or who Jesus rebuked! Matthew 8:26 He said to them, "Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?" Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. Matthew 12:16 and warned them not to tell who He was. Matthew 16:22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You." Matthew 17:18 And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured at once. Matthew 19:13 Then some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. Matthew 20:31 The crowd sternly told them to be quiet, but they cried out all the more, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" Mark 1:25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" Mark 3:12 And He earnestly warned them not to tell who He was. Mark 4:39 And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Hush, be still." And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. Mark 8:30 And He warned them to tell no one about Him...32 And He was stating the matter plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. 33 But turning around and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." Mark 9:25 When Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, "You deaf and mute spirit, I command you, come out of him and do not enter him again." Wuest has a great comment: “Rebuke” is epitimao, which refers to a rebuke that is ineffectual, and which does not bring the person to see his sin and confess it. The word elegcho which means “to rebuke a person, which rebuke is followed by that individual’s confession or at least conviction,” is not used here. Observe, if you will, the meticulous accuracy with which the Holy Spirit leads the Bible writers in their choice of synonyms. Demons are incorrigible. They will never repent. Mark 10:13 And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them. Mark 10:48 Many were sternly telling (imperfect tense = over and over) him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" Luke 4:35 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet and come out of him!" And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, he came out of him without doing him any harm...39 And standing over her, He rebuked the fever, and it left her; and she immediately got up and waited on them...41 Demons also were coming out of many, shouting, "You are the Son of God!" But rebuking them, He would not allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ. Luke 8:24 They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!" And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm. Luke 9:21 But He warned them and instructed them not to tell this to anyone,..42 While he was still approaching, the demon slammed him to the ground and threw him into a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy and gave him back to his father....55 But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; Luke 17:3 "Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. Luke 18:15 And they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them...39 Those who led the way were sternly telling him to be quiet; but he kept crying out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" Luke 19:39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples." Luke 23:40 But the other answered, and rebuking him said, "Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 2Timothy 4:2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. Jude 1:9 But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" Epitimao - 7x in the non-apocryphal Septuagint (LXX) - Ge 37:10; Ru 2:16-note; Ps 9:5; 68:30; 106:9; 119:21; Zech 3:2 (see Jude 1:9). Below is a use that gives us a godly man's example of how to "treat a woman"! Ru 2:16-note (Boaz to his laborers) Also you shall purposely pull out for her some grain from the bundles and leave it that she may glean, and do not rebuke her. Epitimao expresses strong disapproval of someone! It also mean to speak seriously or to warn in order to prevent an action or bring one to an end. Epitimao is used of one believer rebuking another who has sinned against him (Lk 17:3). Paul's point is that Timothy (and all those would be a "vessel of honor") must as someone has said "care enough to confront", in so doing being willing to risk a relationship in order to promote godliness. Proverbs records... Open rebuke is better than love carefully concealed. Faithful are the wounds of a friend but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful (Pr 27:5,6) The related noun epitimia is used only in 2Corinthians... Sufficient for such a one is this punishment (epitimia) which was inflicted by the majority so that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him, lest somehow such a one be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. (2Cor 2:6, 7) Comment: Here the noun is a technical term in congregational discipline for the church's “punishment” or “censure.” This use helps one see the force behind the verb epitimao The preacher must reprimand the sinner and not be tempted to "tone down" his sin. When rebuked (epitimao) by Peter, Jesus turned around and rebuked (epitimao) Peter, and said, "Get behind Me, Satan for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's. (Mk 8:32, 33) Jesus also rebuked the wind, demons, and fever in the gospels. Rebuke with gravity and authority, in Christ's name, that men may take this displeasure against them as indicative of God's displeasure. Wuest notes that epitimao... In classical Greek its predominating sense is that of severe, strenuous reproach for unworthy deeds or acts. In this sense, the word carries at bottom, a suggestion of a charge under penalty. Rebuke does not necessarily bring the one rebuked to a conviction of any fault on his part, which stands in contrast to the preceding verb reprove (elegcho) which usually results in a conviction of sin and sometimes a confession of sin on the offender’s part. Therefore, epitimao is merely the rebuke without necessarily producing any result in the person who is being rebuked as when one crucified contrite thief addressed without affect the other unrepentant criminal "rebuking (epitimao) him" saying Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? (Lk 23:40) The man of God must care enough to confront and be willing to risk a relationship in order to expose the deceitfulness of sin (See Related Discussion: The Deceitfulness of Sin) in another person. Better is open rebuke than love that is concealed. Faithful are the wounds of a friend but deceitful are the kisses of an enemy (Pr27:5 27:6 ) Barnes explains rebuke as implying authority or superiority, and means merely that we may say that a thing is wrong, and administer a rebuke for it, as if there were no doubt that it was wrong...The idea is, that the minister is not merely to reason about sin, and convince men that it is wrong, but he may solemnly admonish them not to do it, and warn them of the consequences. Gill says the ready preacher is to chide for sin; some privately, others more publicly, according to the nature and circumstances of the offence; some more gently, others more roughly, as is needful. ><> ><> ><> Spurgeon once said... I am sometimes accused of saying sharp things. The charge does not come home to my conscience with very great power. If anybody said I spoke smooth things, I think it would oppress me a great deal more. As long as there are evils in this world, God's ministers are bound to protest against them. Little is that ministry worth which never chides you. If God never used his minister as a rod, depend on it, he will never use him as a pot of manna, for the rod of Aaron and the pot of manna always go together (Heb 9:4), and he who is God's true servant will be both to your soul. ><> ><> ><> Fruitful rebukes: — The Rev. John Spurgeon was going to preach at his chapel in Tollesbury, Essex. It was the Sabbath morning, and as he passed a cottage garden he saw a man digging potatoes. He stopped and said, “Am I mistaken, or are you? I have come nine miles to preach to-day, thinking it was the Sabbath-day, As I see you are at work, I suppose I must be wrong, and had better go home.” The man colored, and driving his spade into the ground, he said, “No, sir, you are not wrong, but I am: and I will have no more of it. I will be round this afternoon to hear you preach. Nobody has ever spoken to me before, and you’ve only done your duty.” He was at the chapel, and his wife with him. His wife became a member of the church, and he remained a regular attendant upon the means of grace. (C. H. Spurgeon) ><> ><> ><> Personal rebuke best: — Men need to be reminded of their own sins much more than they do of Adam’s sin. The soldier has a deeper sense of danger when the rifle ball rings close by his ears, than by the general roar of the battle; and so a sinner will have a much deeper sense of God’s displeasure, when his own sin is brought home to him, than by listening to general remarks on the sinfulness of the race. (M. Miller.) ><> ><> ><> David Holwick... Rebuke means sin is not only pointed out, it is condemned. The church really doesn’t do this much anymore. We may have the reputation of being condemning, but we rarely do it. Most churches are more concerned about pleasing people and having a good reputation. The early church took sin seriously — no matter who committed it. Ambrose of Milan was a famous bishop in the fourth century. He never wanted to be a bishop, but the people of Milan forced him into it. Because of his position, Ambrose became close friends with Emperor Theodosius. Theodosius was a Christian but had a horrible temper. Ambrose never compromised with the emperor. He would tell him, “If a priest doesn’t tell you the truth, who will?” Theodosius had appointed one of his friends as governor of Thessalonica. This governor made a fatal mistake. He threw a famous charioteer into jail for cheating. Chariot racing was the Super Bowl of the 4th century, so the city rioted and killed the governor. Emperor Theodosius became enraged. Ambrose begged him to cool down, but the Emperor refused. He ordered the whole city to be massacred. Later he tried to change the order, but it was too late. The population had been crammed into the amphitheater and soldiers spent three hours hacking up men, women and children. News of the massacre reached Milan. The next Sunday, when the Emperor came to church, Ambrose wouldn’t let him in. Theodosius pleaded for forgiveness (after all, he had changed the order). Ambrose told him to go away. Eight months later the emperor returned to the church. Again Ambrose wouldn’t let him enter. In the end, the Emperor of Rome had to lie face down in the dirt before he was allowed to worship with the church again. Sin was taken that seriously. What would happen today? Chuck Colson used to work closely with President Nixon. He said, “Of all the groups who were easiest to influence, Christians took the prize.” (Our Charge 2Timothy 4:1-5) EXHORT: parakaleson (2SAAM): Similar to Paul's command to Timothy in the first epistle... Until I come, give attention (prosecho in the present imperative = command to keep on remaining on course, taking heed) to the public (added by translators) reading of Scripture (added by translators), to exhortation (paraklesis) and teaching (didaskalia). (1Ti 4:13) Other translations: give comfort (BBE); encourage (DNT); give encouragement (NJB); warning and urging and encouraging them (Amp); But also cheer Robert Murray McCheyne commenting on exhort writes that... The original word means to comfort,—to speak as the Comforter does (Jn 14:26KJV). This is the second part of the Spirit’s work, to lead to Christ, to speak good news to the soul. This is the most difficult part of the Christian ministry. Thus did John: “Behold the Lamb of God.” (Jn 1:29) Thus did Isaiah: “Comfort ye, comfort ye.” (Isa 40:1KJV) Thus did our Lord command: “Go, preach the gospel to every creature.” (Mk16:15KJV) It is true this makes the feet of the gospel messenger beautiful on the mountains (Ro 10:14 15-note). He has to tell of a full, free, Divine Saviour. And here I would observe what appears to me a fault in the preaching of our beloved Scotland. Most ministers are accustomed to set Christ before the people. They lay down the Gospel clearly and beautifully, but they do not urge men to enter in. Now God says, Exhort,—beseech men,—persuade men; not only point to the open door (cp Jn 10:9, 14:6 Mt 7:13, 14-note, Lk 13:24-note), but compel them to come in. Oh to be more merciful to souls, that we would lay hands on men and draw them in to the Lord Jesus! 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