The Ohio Independent Baptist, August 1969

Ii np f Trutl, fron1 the , Dr. G orge Lawlor PTOCHOS The word of '"J r1 1e I <J 1 'rtJ' 1111 i11tt.:re ~t1ng C,ree k. \\ rd (pto– c/1(> i;) 1 rendered "p r.. 1 n the . .. \\ hi h 1 a c rrect tran latio n. but th r 1. a d pth f n1eaning be·hind it. tuall\ th r are t\\ o \: ord in Greek • f r "p r." One i the word penei . \ hi h n1 an ·\\·retched. ufferi ng \\ ant, hungr} ." Thi word de cribe th n1an f r \i\ h m living i a truggle, the man \\. ho i the very re, 1 er e of the n1an \\ h Ii" e in affluence. Thi term appear in II Cor. 9.9. Then there i thi \vord ptochos. It i de– ri\·ed from the ve rb ptosso, ' to be thoroughl)' frightened, to cowe r down and hide one elf for fear.' ' o the noun form ptochos describes a man \\ h o links and crouches and cringes. It denote no imply hone t poverty and the truggle of the common labor– ing man to make end meet but it de- • cribe abject poverty~ it indicates one who i reduced to beggary who has nothing and i in imminent danger of tarvation. It designates -,ot genteel poverty, but real acute de~titution. M oulton ays this word ptochos ' 'wa always u ed in a bad ense until it \.\a ennobled in the G ospel ." Ptoc/1os i u ed in Luke 14: 13. ' 'But '.vhen thou make t a feast call t/1e poor (ptochoi,s) . . . ' It appears in John 12: 8, where our Lord's words are: '·F or the poor ( ptochoiis) al– way ye have with you. . . ' 'Paul u e it in Roman 15 : 26, '' tl1e poor ( totts ptochoi,s) sai nts a t Jerusalem.' Jame uses the word everal times. . 2· 1 3 5 6 " a 1 n ._. _, . . - a poor ,na n ( .vtocJ1os) in vile raiment. . ." and ' ' t l1e poor ( to11s ptochoits) of th is world. . . ' etc. John has it in Rev. 3: 17. when he describes tlbe worldly– r1ch apostate church as "poor" (pto– cl1os). i.e. destitute of the Christian virtues and eternal ri ches. The word occurs twire in II Cor. 8: 9 , to de– scribe our Lord's descent out of glory into the realm of human life in the incarnation and His ubsequent death on the cross: ' 'For ye know the grace 10 AUGUST, 1969 l I ()\II" I (\l'li j( S\ IS l1 risl. 111:tl rt,, ltgih l I ' ,, a s ri ' h. ·t frH' \ t)ttr sHkcs 11 · /1('('{./lllt ' f)<Jc ) I' ( C/Jf(){' /tcll\(11), t}l ~ll C rl1 r,)t tgl1 11i·:'I fJ(J\ c' l'fV (fJl<>c,f1ci<1) n1i gl1t 111..;' ricl1 . " \ hc11 tl1c I ()rel J c ti, 111 isl rea<.t t 11 c \ cr i I> t t t r • i r1 t h c ~ \, na g()g uc n t ,lza1ctl1, ti c chtl\C th e J)assagc \\.h1ch ,,\\ \ tl1 ,\t tl1c 1111 it o l the l.Jt1rcl Wd~ 11 cln tt1c er, a11t of the l.-c.) 1 J to prc-.lch tl1c gc) l)cl to Hl hc r or' ' ( fJfo– rl1nt'l). I ttkc ...i.: l . Whc11 the I orcl ic.lcntiftcd llin1 e lf and gave Ht cre– dential t J hn' di . c ipl es who h acl hccn ent l Hin1 to a k if H e reall y \.\ a the noi nted One. Hi an wening la lenient end with the word u t /1e poor ( ptoclz<Jl) have the go pel preach ed to them" (Matt. 11 :5). t o reover it i of great intere t1: to note that the Beatitude in Matthew 5 began with the tatement "Ble ·.,ed a re t li e poor ( ptocl1oi) in spirit . . .' (Matt. 5:13). Two Hebrew Terms At thi point it hould be aid thart behind thi Greek word ptochos in it background, a William Barclay ha po inted out there a re two He– brew term : ebion and ani . These word h ave an in,tere ting and signifi– cant development of m eaning in three s tage : (I) Poor, in the en e of lack– ing in th is world's good (Deu,t. 15:4 11) · (2) Then poor, a down-trodden and oppre ed. (Amos 2:6· 8:4) · (3) Finally the greate t advance in mean– ing: when a man 1 lacking in suf– ficient goods, and is d own-trodden a nd oppressed he has no influence in the world, no power, no prestige, no position and cannot expect help from other men. With all help and re ource of earth clo ed to him he has nothing left but to look to God. So the e words come to describe people who, having nothing on earth have thus come to put their complete trust and hope in God (Amos 5: 11- 12; P alm 10: 2, 12 17; 12: 5: 14: 6). We come back now to M att . 5: 3 "Bles ed are tl1e poor ( ptochoi) ;n pirit ..." with a better under tand– ing of its real meaning. It mean for one thing, that bles ed i tJhe man who is brought to a sense of hi own abject de titution in the ight of God , and who can only cry out "God, be n1erciful to me a sinner! ' But ince this teaching of our Lord Jesus Chri t i addressed to those who are the Lord s own people, it means : blessed is the man who does feel this sen e of destitution and wh o has placed his utter and complete itrust in th e eternal God . Such is 1:h e ' 'poor one ' (ptocJ1os) for he is consciou of h is need and is certain that in the Lord r. George Lawlor Receives Faculty Aw a rd Dr. Lawlor and Dan Stevens Yoitr eclitor feels greatly indebted to Brotl1 er Laivlor for his continued faitl1fi1lness in supplying us witJi these stitdies 111ontl1 fo llowing tnonth. Pas– tors f ro,n all over the State of Ohio ( and OL t t of the State, tool) tell us how 11ii1cJ1 tl1ey appreciate therrz. The.v are a blessing to 1J1any . On "Cedar Day' Weekend'' at Cedar– v ille College, Dr. Lawlor was ho11ored vvith t/1e Facitlt}' A 11·ard. This award ( as shown in acco,npanying picture ) was presented by Dan Stevens, Presi– dent of Stztdent Coitncil. during a special H onors Day '>ervice l1 elci i11 A !ford A i1ditori1,1r1. Brother Lav,}lor has taugl1t in the Bible Depart,nent for ten years. The recognition was for /1is oittsta11ding contribution to stztdents in the areas of co1,1nseling. teaching, and sti,dent activities. Con– gratz1latio11s . .. Dr. La1,vlor! of glory alone that nee<l can be sup– p] ied. The "poor one ·· ( J1oi ptochoi)_ of the ew Testament are those who. belonging to the Lord, realize their own abject helples nes in them elves and the great weal th of the riches of the gr ace of God . The ptochoi kind of poverty con- i ts in being de titute of all con– fidence in the fle h, in cringing at the very thought of total elf-reliance. in h olding back fr om elf-a sert ion. in esteeming others better than our- 5e]ves, in the realization of utter hel ple nes and beggary o far as i~ concerned. It is rto be gratef11ll) 1 dependent t1pon the powe r, provi ion. and prese rvation of the eternal God . Tt i to be thoroughly con cious that we are wh at we are by the grace of God and that without the Lord we (Continued on page 13) THE OHIO INDEPENDENT BAPTIST