The Ohio Independent Baptist, April 1969

(Concluded from page 12) ship putting out to sea upon the deep, and of the rai ing of fortifica– tion . Diodoru u e it of one who is either elated with hope or puffed up '"ith pride. It appears in the \Vritings of Polybius in a similar sen e, i.e. a lifting up of the mind, raising one's pirits, buoying up with hope. Polybius has another very in– tere ting u e of the verb: by a meta– phor taken from a ship being tossed about on the sea by wind and wave he renders: "to cau e one to wave and fluctuate in mind.' ' Philo use it to describe a man who is harassed v.1ith cares and anxieties, and Ari to– phanes ha the word to characterize one '\\'ho become excited in mind. Aristoteles u es a form of the verb in an interesting passage of a ba\\ 1 k flying through the air, while · Sophocles translates it cin one place: · "living in anxious suspense.' ' The Septuagint The use of this word may al o be illustrated. by several example in the Septuagiant Version. Isa. 5: 15 speaks of the eyes of ' 'the lofty" ( meteoroi) ; and the Psalmist, in Psa. 131 : 1, says: ' 'Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty. (emeteoristhei– sa,1) . . ." Micah 4: 1 says the h ouse of the Lord in the kingdom era " h all be exalted (,neteoristheisetai) above the hills,., and Obadiah 4 speaks of Edom "exalting herself ( meteoris– tl1eis) as the eagle." In the P apyri the word occur in some intere ting uses. A man writes to a friend \\ 1 ho has undergone son1e trouble, and exp res es the hope that hi friend can "put on a glad face again oon and go off i,1 /1igh spirits (111eteorros) to Athen ." A Jetter dated 2 A.O. says in palit: "Theon our on i coming to you on ht way o the cit\' of ikias on account of .. 1 pre ing i11co111pleted negotiatio,z (111eteoro11) ..." Another n1an write Lo an a ociate: 'H aving gone to ul1en1eria 011 0111e 1111/ i11is/1e,l ( 111e te– oro11) bu in I an1 entering into ..io11 er , tio11 \\'i 1}1 Onnophri s . . ." A. l ttcr fron1 l\\'O btoll1er to their an1il a} : ' 'Do 1101 lvorr)• (111 1 te- ?1 id zo ,, }, '" e are \l.' \;I 1." rJ h a 1 ject i,,\; or111 111eteo, Ob i u d t cl111icalJy of n ' ' i,1co111p/eted' ' 11t ract , " '11 ich i D t R der . Wh nor ugg !It t o your pastor that ou h " bundle lot" of THE OHIO I I O P f D r T BAPTIST sent to our hu, h ch month? 25 copi s ould ost ut 2o .OO. 50 co1 ies - 50 .00. H Ip us fo g t " bundle lors" into All of our c 1u, cla ! h n . . .. ou, d1tor therefore till in u pense. A rather remarkable note appears in Papyru Oxy VI ( 5 A.D. ), where a certain F.Javiu complains that he has been maltreated in the performance of hi dutie , and says: "I am dail)' si1spend– ed by ropes ( meteoridzortze11on), and my body belaboured with blow ." The Lord's Admon ition From thi background of the word . . ' 1t 1s pos ible to under tand the Lord' ignificant admonition in Luke 12: 29 and it vital meaning for u s. With re– gard to clothing, food, drink, and the other neces itie of this life, and the provi ion for them, the Lord is ay– ing to us: "Do not be continually in a state of uspen e over them." To worry over these things and how they are to be obtained, to brood over the manifold affairs of this life, to be– come over-wrought with anxiety be– cau e of certain large need , and thu to fall prey to the agonies of mental di traction, is to be caught up in mid– air and u pended there wavering be– tween fear and faith, fluctuating be– tween doubt and hope, turning and twi ting between decision and indecis– ion, certainty and uncertainty, be- ,, tween what one know to be r-ight and what one de ires. It i like a hip on the high eas. being driven about b}' one wind current after an– other, in one direction and then an– other. u pended on the great "'ave of an angry un ympathetic sea. It i to be caught in the high flight of fancy, when one create imaginary neces ities for him elf, and for thi reason is not content with reality, o al low him elf to be seduced into wavering, unbel ieving anxiety. Be et by d ifficulities, hara ed by cares, bewildered by circumstances, di - traught by anxietie , and uspended in a tate of doubt. irre olution, mi - giving, and even dread. o facing fir t in one direction and then another - one cannot be engaged in eeking the kingdom of God. and one cannot po sibly p]ea e or erve the Lord. It hould be pointed out finally, that the verb in vs. 29 i in rthe imperative mood. Thi i a command from Chri t Him elf to every b liever. ee to it that you do not become con– tinually u pended in a tate of di - traction over the provi ion for need , with divided thoughts running thi way and that. ,, (MARK • 7:24.) / - - - - ...... - - ~ ....... I • l