PAUL’S VIEW OF HIMSELF: “High Self-Esteem?”

“Self-esteem” is a concept that is very popular today, particularly in education. It is interesting to note that the United States is near the bottom in many academic areas compared to the rest of the world, but we rank number one in “self esteem.” In many cases, we are training our young people to know little or nothing but to feel very good about themselves in the process. They are being taught to stand up for their rights when they should be learning to stand up for what is right.

Even in some "Christian" circles, “self-esteem” is taught as a very important component of the Christian life. Some even push the idea that sin is low self-esteem, while salvation is high self-esteem. This is an extreme teaching, and it is far away from Biblical truth, but it is nevertheless out there. Following are a number of quotes from the book, Self-Esteem: The New Reformation, by retired pastor Robert H. Schuller, who ought to know better. 

“…Sin is any act or thought that robs myself or another human being of his or her self-esteem … the core of sin is a lack of self-esteem…”

“Sin is psychological self-abuse ... the most serious sin is one that causes me to say, 'I am unworthy. I may have no claim to divine sonship if you examine me at my worst.' For once a person believes he is an 'unworthy sinner,' it is doubtful if he can really honestly accept the saving grace God offers in Jesus Christ.”

“To be born again means that we must be changed from a negative to a positive self-image – from inferiority to self-esteem, from fear to love, from doubt to trust.”

“Jesus never called a person a sinner.”

“The Cross sanctifies the ego trip. For the Cross protected our Lord's perfect self-esteem from turning into sinful pride.” (What? Jesus could have succumbed to sinful pride?  Heresy!!!)

These statements by Schuller are just the opposite of the truth. A person must recognize his terrible condition as a totally helpless, hopeless, vile sinner BEFORE salvation is possible. We stand before God as guilty, lost sinners, and we have no method of salvation other than to “throw ourselves on the mercy of the court” on the basis of the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. God saves us by his grace, totally without any merit of our own.  "Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Romans 3:19-20, NKJV).

Jesus’ View of Self-Esteem

Jesus said, "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself" (Luke 10:28, NKJV).

Some use this to justify “self-esteem” as Biblical, saying that Jesus was teaching that we must learn to love ourselves first so we can love others. Is this true? Please note the following, based on the Scripture quoted above:

(1)   The emphasis is on loving the Lord first and our neighbor second.

(2)   There is an assumption that we already love ourselves. The reality is that every human is born helplessly and hopelessly in love with himself. This is stated quite well in the following quote from my longtime friend and co-worker, Ed Cardwell:  “I think some people we have known over the years suffer from too much of the world’s ‘self-esteem.’ Just ask any thug, criminal, or general meathead bully. They think they are the most important person in the world, and if they don't get their way you might just suffer severely if you happen to be in their way.” This doesn’t sound like someone who needs to learn to love himself.

(3)   Self-love is not commanded; it is assumed. There is nowhere in the Bible a commandment to learn to love ourselves. That would be like a commandment to teach our children to sin. They will sin by nature. It would be a Biblical absurdity for God to command us to do those things which we will automatically do because of who and what we are. We will love ourselves without any instruction to do so. "For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church" (Ephesians 5:29, NKJV).

(4)   Love for God and love for others is what needs to be learned. These things are what Jesus commanded, and His commands are based on things we otherwise would not do without His instruction to do so.

Paul’s View of Self-Esteem

Some say that Paul was very arrogant because he referred to himself numerous times as worth “imitating” when it comes to spiritual growth and maturity.

"Therefore I urge you, imitate me" (1 Corinthians 4:16, NKJV).

"Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ" (1 Corinthians 11:1, NKJV).

"Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern" (Philippians 3:17, NKJV).

"And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit" (1 Thessalonians 1:6, NKJV).

"For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us, for we were not disorderly among you … to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us" (2 Thessalonians 3:7,9, NKJV).

Paul did not say these things in arrogance. He had grown in the Lord to the point that he recognized he could say these things because he had learned Godly humility. He had matured, he was imitating Christ, and he knew that if others imitated him, they would also be imitating Christ. Maturity according to Paul is boasting in nothing but Christ’s grace and his own weakness. "But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world" (Galatians 6:14, NKJV).

Paul didn't start out as a humble servant. Before his conversion, he was quite proud of himself. …though I also might have confidence in the flesh. "If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so:  circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee;  concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless" (Philippians 3:4-6, NKJV).

He was the overseer at the stoning of Stephen.  "…and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul" (Acts 7:58, NKJV).

He was fanatical and the haughty persecutor of the early church.  "As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison" (Acts 8:3, NKJV).  "Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest  and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem" (Acts 9:1-2, NKJV).

In grace, he was informed of his error by "…Jesus whom you are persecuting" (Acts 9:5, NKJV). Soon Paul recognized the worthlessness of his background and human achievement, and counted all these things "...as rubbish, that I may gain Christ" (Philippians 3:8, NKJV).

Once his view of Christ was proper, Paul's view of himself began to decrease. This continued as he got older. Paul’s view of himself diminished and his dependence on the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ increased. Notice the common thread of GRACE than runs through the three steps in the progression of Paul’s view of himself:

(1)   Paul begins by recognizing himself as the very least of all the apostles. He knew he had persecuted the church “ignorantly in unbelief.”  "And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; (High self-esteem?) but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief (I Timothy 1:12-13, NKJV). "For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me" (1 Corinthians 15:9-10, NKJV).

(2)   Next, he recognized himself as “less than the least of all the saints.” Not only did he see himself as the least of the apostles, but now as less than the least of all believers. "To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ" (Ephesians 3:8, NKJV). He became more and more aware of his own worthlessness as he saw the magnificent grace of God at work in his life. If we humans were already righteous, there would be no need for the grace of God.

(3)   Finally, near the end of his life, Paul recognized himself as “the chief of sinners.” "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief" (1 Timothy 1:15, NKJV). By comparison to the righteousness of God, we are nothing but helpless, vile sinners, and each one of us should see ourselves as “the chief of sinners.” That is quite an indictment of self, but it illustrates the tremendous grace of God. "…But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more…" (Romans 5:20, NKJV).

Only by the grace of God was Paul able to be a humble and effective servant of God, although he was the least of the apostles, the least of all the saints, and the chief of sinners. While in his depravity, man thinks he is higher than the highest, better than the best, greater than the greatest. Paul’s self-evaluation is the exact opposite:  lower than the lowest, worse than the worst, less than the least. 

Other key Scriptures touch on this topic of self-esteem:

"For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith" (Romans 12:3, NKJV).

"For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells…" (Romans 7:18, NKJV).

The only Scripture that has both the word “self” and the word “esteem” in it is Philippians 2:3.  "Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself" (NKJV).

"…He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (I John 4:4, NKJV).

"Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God" (2 Corinthians 3:5, NKJV).

"But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me" (I Corinthians 15:10, NKJV).

Paul knew he could take no credit for what God had made of Him. He was privileged to be a choice servant of the Lord, to lead many to Christ, to pen roughly half of the New Testament, yet he could take no credit. It was all by the grace of God.

Self-esteem is not a Biblical concept. We need Christ-esteem, not self-esteem. Proper “self-esteem” is not self-esteem at all. It is Christ-esteem. Paul did not have “self-esteem,” but he had “Christ-esteem.”

"He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30, NKJV).

"…that in all things He may have the preeminence"  (Colossians 1:18, NKJV).

"Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God" (1 Corinthians 4:1, NKJV).

Paul described himself and others as:

(1)   "servants" - from the Greek word which means "under-rower."  An "under-rower" was a slave and an oarsman who served in the lowest level of a ship.

(2)   "stewards" - from the Greek word for "house manager." The steward of a household supervised the affairs of a household and was held accountable for the affairs of a household by the owner or master of the house. This word emphasizes responsibility.

Jesus Himself, the great Creator-God of the universe, practiced humility. "And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross" (Phil. 2:8, NKJV).

Based on the teachings of Scripture, we need to remove all of this “self-esteem” nonsense from our vocabulary and from our teaching. We need to see that the grace of God is sufficient to deal with all of our sinfulness, and that an emphasis on “self” ultimately results in pride and arrogance, which will lead our Christian lives in the wrong direction.

ANOTHER LOOK AT CHRISTIANITY’S MOST CHERISHED PASSAGES (III):

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

^{NAS JOHN 3:16}

 

Once again, to get a sense of the importance of studying the original languages of Scripture and to look at the great benefits derived from such, I refer to the introductory paragraphs in my original article ‘ANOTHER LOOK AT CHRISTIANITY’S MOST CHERISHED PASSAGES (I)’.

 

I will quote from that article, however, for those who may not have access to that first article:

 

“Greek is the language of specificity.  Greek words are intended to convey a mental picture from the speaker to the hearer.  All language should have this innate ability, but as we can see, English is an agglomeration of languages with words whose meanings have been so obfuscated and diversified that clear communication is almost impossible.  The answer for the serious Bible student is to go to the numerous works available that elucidate the original words and their contextual meanings throughout Scripture.  There is even a better way – study and master the original languages.”

 

“Of course one might be accused of heresy if he were to alter revered translations.  Some might even consider it desecration of the highest order.  But I suggest that looking beyond the musty curtain of the ‘Authorized’ version(s) sometimes allows us to penetrate the limitations that these versions have proscribed to reconsider the intent of the author.”

 

“How much deeper our understanding of the Gospel might be if only we would lay aside the tradition of men (and the bias of the translators) and discover the intent of the true author of Scripture.  How much richer would be our appreciation for the heart and mind of the living God.”

 

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The first half of John 3:16 [For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son ] – probably THE most cherished portion of the New Testament – is the subject of this article.   The last half of John 3:16 [that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life] was addressed in the previous article (II).

 

To grasp the immediate context it is necessary to include verses 14 and 15:

 

“¹⁴And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up;

 

¹⁵that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life.

 

¹⁶For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”  ^NAS

 

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To help in our study John 3:16 is given below in an interlinear style with the Greek text and the identical KJV and NAS translations:

 

Ou[twj      ga.r        hvga,phsen     o` qeo.j        to.n ko,smon(

 So           for          loved          God          the world

 

w[ste          to.n       ui`o.n        to.n       monogenh/              e;dwken(

that         the       son        the     only begotten       he gave

 

*                    *                    *                    *                    *

 

In pursuit of a deeper understanding, a few Greek words need special attention:

 

Ou[twj

 

It is generally agreed that the most important words in a Greek statement tend to appear toward the beginning of a sentence.  Not that the other words in the sentence are unimportant, but the words that are for special emphasis will normally move toward the front.  That could be said of our word Ou[twj, translated here as ‘so’.

 

When we hear the Bible teacher use the word ‘so’ in the context of John 3:16, we normally understand him to mean ‘so much’, implying a strong degree, as is the clear intent of the NIV translation.  But that is not its meaning.  It is an adverb describing the ‘how’ of an action verb.  Its meaning is: ‘in this way’, ‘thus’, ‘likewise’, ‘in the same way’, or ‘like this’.  It appears at least 199 times in the NT, depending on the Greek manuscript group.  When it is translated ‘so’ or ‘even so’, the actual meaning is ‘thus’ or ‘in this way’.   Interestingly in John 3:14, the first verse in the context cited above, the Greek word translated ‘even so’ is this same word Ou[twj.

 

A few other examples will suffice.

 

Matthew 19:8

 

^KJV He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.

 

^NAS Matthew 19:8 He said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart, Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way.

 

^GNT Matthew 19:8 le,gei auvtoi/j o[ti Mwu?sh/j pro.j th.n sklhrokardi,an u`mw/n evpe,treyen u`mi/n avpolu/sai ta.j gunai/kaj u`mw/n( avpV avrch/j de. ouv ge,gonen ou[twjÅ

 

Matthew 24:33

 

^KJV So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

 

^NAS Matthew 24:33 even so you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.

^GNT Matthew 24:33 ou[twj kai. u`mei/j( o[tan i;dhte pa,nta tau/ta ginw,skete o[ti evggu,j evstin evpi. qu,raijÅ

 

Matthew 19:12

 

^KJV For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb:

 

^NAS Matthew 19:12 "For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb;

 

^GNT Matthew 19:12 eivsi.n ga.r euvnou/coi oi[tinej evk koili,aj mhtro.j evgennh,qhsan ou[twj(

 

If the translators had been consistent, the ou[twj in John 3:16 would have been translated the same as it was in verse 14, and at least the common misunderstanding mentioned above could have been partially avoided.  Even better, in both instances the word could have been translated with its basic meaning ‘thus’, or ‘in this way’, as it has been correctly done in some other less popular English translations, and the meaning would have been even clearer with further misinterpretations and misapplications reduced to a minimum.

 

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ga.r

 

ga.r is used 1067 times in the NT, and over 96 percent of the time it is translated ‘for’.  It is also translated ‘because’ in John 3:19; 10:26; Romans 3:2; 4:15; and 3 John 1:7.  ga.r is a conjunction, a very common word that connects sentences, clauses, phrases and words. It is used to express:  ground or reason; an explanation; a confirmation or assurance. 

 

The context of the great statement in the first half of John 3:16 can be seen to be connected to verse 15 as the reason, or the explanatory cause of the statement in verse 15.  I believe it can be demonstrated that verse 16 is an explanation as much as a reason for the statement in verse 15.  The final translation offered in the ‘conclusion’ hopefully makes this clearer.

 

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hvga,phsen

 

hvga,phsen is from the verb avgapa,w, meaning ‘ to love’, or ‘show love’.  It is important to note that the tense here is aorist tense, not present tense.  Present tense would indicate an ongoing or continuous action, but the aorist tense gives the sense of action as punctilar – a point.  Such action may be regarded as a single whole, that is, in its entirety, or as a simple act taken place in history.

 

Of course God’s love is eternal and is the very essence of His nature, as John writes in 1 John 4:8 and 16, “God is love” ^KJV, but the aorist tense here in John 3:16 has a different focus – the demonstration of His love at a point in time.  So, this would be in perfect harmony with the statement in Revelation 13:8: “… the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world”^KJV, where we understand that this demonstration of God’s love was eternally in the mind of God before time began and was a fait accompli before the creation of the world.  It is also in harmony with the statement in 1 Corinthians 15:3:  “…that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures”^KJV, where we understand this to be a focus on the historical crucifixion taken place at a point in history some 20 centuries ago.  It is possible that the writer would have us dwell on both aspects:  the eternal and the temporal.

 

It should be emphasized that the emotion of love is not the focal point in John 3:16.  The main focus is the fact of history in which God sent His Only Begotten to Calvary, and that fact is to be the hallmark demonstration, the singular grand declaration to all the world of his infinite love, goodness, and justice. 

 

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w[ste

 

w[ste is a conjunction showing purpose or results and appears 83 times in the NT.  It is translated variously as: ‘so that’, ‘wherefore’, ‘insomuch that’, ‘therefore’, ‘that’, ‘so then’, ‘to’, ‘as’, and ‘insomuch as’.

 

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monogenh

 

This word is from monogenh,j, meaning ‘unique’, ‘only one of its kind’.  It appears 9 times in the NT (Lk. 7:12; 8:42; 9:38; Jn. 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; Heb. 11:17; 1 Jn. 4:9).    Inasmuch as Jesus alone completely reproduces the nature and character of God, the apostle John uses this word in reference only to Jesus.  

 

[Notice how the NAS, using more reliable texts than many earlier translations, translates John 1:18:

 

“No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.” ^NAS

 

“qeo.n ouvdei.j e`w,raken pw,pote\ monogenh.j qeo.j o` w'n eivj to.n ko,lpon tou/ patro.j evkei/noj evxhgh,satoÅ” ^GNT]

 

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e;dwken

 

e;dwken is from the verb di,dwmi, meaning ‘to give’.  The verb is in aorist tense and has the same force of fact of history as the verb hvga,phsen above.  The translation is simply ‘he gave’.

 

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Conclusion

First it would be good to see John 3:16 in its immediate context:

“¹⁴And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up

¹⁵that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life.

¹⁶For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”  ^NAS

And now we can look at an improved translation using colors matching the English words with the Greek words that we have briefly studied:

¹⁴"And (just) as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, Likewise(in the same way) the Son of Man must be lifted up;

¹⁵ in order that everyone believing in Him may have eternal life.

¹⁶ "Because God likewise(in the same way) loved(showed His love for, acted in love for) the world, insomuch that He gave His only begotten Son, in order that everyone believing in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.

^{14 “} kai. kaqw.j Mwu?sh/j u[ywsen to.n o;fin evn th/| evrh,mw|( ou[twj u`ywqh/nai dei/ to.n ui`o.n tou/ avnqrw,pou(

¹⁵  i[na pa/j o` pisteu,wn evn auvtw/| e;ch| zwh.n aivw,nionÅ

¹⁶  Ou[twj ga.r hvga,phsen o` qeo.j to.n ko,smon( w[ste to.n ui`o.n to.n monogenh/ e;dwken( i[na pa/j o` pisteu,wn eivj auvto.n mh. avpo,lhtai avllV e;ch| zwh.n aivw,nionÅ ^GNT

It seems clear that in verse 16 John has given us an explanation, or reason for why the Son of God is to be offered up.   In the divine plan, God’s eternal answer for man’s great need of redemption could only be that God Himself would bear the full brunt of the penalty for sin – His own death – that He might righteously offer His forgiveness to all those who would only look in faith to that wonderful Savior.  And the context here is introduced by the Old Testament type whereby Moses lifted up the serpent for salvation for all those who would look upon it.

Had the many translations been more accurate and consistent in attending to detail, the miscommunications that have arisen over the years could have been minimized, or even eliminated.

Praise Him for His marvelous works!  Amen.

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[Note:  A similar translation of John 3:16 comes from Dr. Kenneth Wuest, a noted Greek scholar who was a professor of New Testament Greek at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago during the mid-20^th century and one of the translators of original New American Standard Bible (NASB).  This translation comes from his ‘New Testament Expanded Translation’:

“For in such a manner did God love the world, insomuch that His Son, the uniquely-begotten One, He gave, in order that everyone who places his trust in Him may not perish but may be having life eternal.”]

ecardwells6@gmail.com
 

ANOTHER LOOK AT CHRISTIANITY’S MOST CHERISHED PASSAGES (II)

By Ed Cardwell


“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” ^{NAS JOHN 3:16}

To get a sense of the importance of studying the original languages of Scripture and to understand the great benefits derived from such, I refer the reader to the introductory paragraphs in my previous article ‘ANOTHER LOOK AT CHRISTIANITY’S MOST CHERISHED PASSAGES(I)’.

In this article we take a look at John 3:16 – probably THE most cherished passage of the New Testament. We will begin by first examining the second half of that verse. “…that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” In a subsequent article we intend to examine the first half.

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Whosoever/whoever vs Everyone Who

‘Whoever/Whosoever’ implies an unknown or unspecified person or persons. It refers to someone whose identity is not necessarily known. It is non-inclusive.

‘Everyone’ is inclusive; it refers to All the people in a group. It counts noses! 

To illustrate the specificity of God’s inclusiveness please note the words of Jesus:

"All that the Father gives Me shall come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.  ^{NAS John 6:37}

"I am the good shepherd; and I know My own, and My own know Me.  ^{NAS John 10:14}

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.”   ^{NAS John 10:27-29}

Both the KJV and the NAS use ‘whosoever’ and ‘whoever’ respectively here in both John 3:15 and 16. Checking a total of 21 translations, 13 out of those 21 use ‘whosoever’ or ‘whoever’.  But 8 out of those 21 translations use ‘everyone who’ or ‘every person who’. So which would be the better translation?  A closer look at the original text reveals that the majority translations are imprecise, or simply inaccurate. No surprise there. Again tradition apparently has won the day for John 3:15 and 16.

To illustrate, let’s take a look at the Greek text:

i[na pa/j o` pisteu,wn eivj auvto.n mh. avpo,lhtai avllV e;ch| zwh.n aivw,nionÅ

The phrase pa/j o` pisteu,wn is the phrase in question. pa/j  means ‘all’;  o  means ‘the one who’; and  pisteu,wn is a participle of the verb ‘to believe’ and means ‘believes’ or ‘believing’. This exact wording in Greek appears six times in the NT:  Jn. 3:15,16; 12:46; Acts 13:39; Rom. 10:11; and 1 Jn. 5:1. To show the inconsistency of the KJV, the NAS, the NAU, and the ESV we look at how each has translated that phrase in those verses.

Jn 3:15                

KJV          whosoever believeth

NAS         whoever believes

NAU         whoever believ

ESV          whoever believes

Jn 3:16 

KJV           whosoever believeth

NAS          whoever believes

NAU         whoever believes

ESV          whoever believes

Jn 12:46              

KJV           whosoever believeth

NAS          whoever believes

NAU          everyone who believes

ESV           whoever believes

Acts 13:39          
KJV            all that believe
NAS           everyone who believes
NAU          everyone who believes
ESV           everyone who believes


Rom 10:11         
KJV            Whosoever believeth
NAS            Whoever believes
NAU            whoever believes
ESV             Everyone who believes


1 Jn 5:1               
KJV            Whosoever believeth
NAS           Whoever believes
NAU           Whoever believes
ESV            Everyone who believes


[It should be noted that the NAU is a 1995 update version of the NAS of 1977.]


One might wonder whether it really matters – ‘whoever’ or ‘everyone/all who’. The inconsistencies beg the question. Yes, it does matter. ‘Whosoever’ implies that the identities are not specified, even unknown. And there are many Bible teachers, pastors included, who affirm that God doesn’t know who will be saved – that it is a universal struggle between God and Satan tugging at the souls of men to see who will win, and God is clueless as to the final outcome. This gives the erroneous impression that God is not omniscient, totally contrary to the revelation about His nature, and further it implies that He and Satan are equal in power and influence. And that leads to all kinds of heresies. The nebulous language of the translators may encourage this line of thinking. But a detailed study of the Word of God clearly shows such theology is a perversion of this precious truth:


“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.”   ^{NAS Ephesians 1:3-}

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Wishing to continue the illustration of inconsistencies of translations of this phrase we take a look at ALL the verses throughout the NT where pa/j o  is followed by any verb with the same form where it is translated as ‘whosoever’ or ‘everyone who’. For example,  pisteu,wn in John 3:15 and 16 is a present active nominative masculine singular verb participle and should be translated ‘believe’ or ‘believing’. That’s a mouthful, but serious students of Greek will understand this. There are 30 appearances in 28 verses in the NT of a verb with this exact condition. Notice how the KJV and the NAS translate them, especially the inconsistencies (the GNT, Greek New Testament, is included):

Matthew 5:28

KJV    whosoever looketh

NAS    everyone who looks

GNT   pa/j o` ble,pwn

Matthew 5:32

KJV    whosoever shall put

NAS    everyone who divorces

GNT   pa/j o` avpolu,wn

Matthew 7:21

KJV    every one that saith

NAS    everyone who says

GNT   pa/j o` le,gwn

Matthew 7:26

KJV    every one that heareth

NAS    everyone who hears

GNT   pa/j o` avkou,wn

Luke 14:11

KJV    whosoever exalteth

NAS    everyone who exalts

GNT   pa/j o` u`yw/n

Luke 16:18

KJV    Whosoever putteth away

NAS    Everyone who divorces

GNT   Pa/j o` avpolu,wn

Luke 18:14

KJV    every one that exalteth

NAS    everyone who exalts

GNT   pa/j o` u`yw/n

Luke 20:18

KJV    Whosoever shall fall

NAS    Everyone who falls

GNT   pa/j o` pesw.n

John 3:15

KJV    whosoever believeth

NAS    whoever believes

GNT   pa/j o` pisteu,wn

John 3:16

KJV    whosoever believeth

NAS    whoever believes

GNT   pa/j o` pisteu,wn

John 4:13

KJV    Whosoever drinketh

NAS    Everyone who drinks

GNT   Pa/j o` pi,nwn

John 6:40

KJV    every one which seeth

NAS    everyone who beholds

GNT   pa/j o` qewrw/n

John 8:34

KJV    Whosoever committeth

NAS    everyone who commits

GNT   pa/j o` poiw/n

John 11:26

KJV    whosoever liveth

NAS    everyone who lives

GNT   pa/j o` zw/n

John 12:46

KJV    whosoever believeth

NAS    everyone who believes

GNT   pa/j o` pisteu,wn

John 18:37

KJV    Every one that is

NAS    Everyone who is

GNT   pa/j o` w'n

Acts 13:39

KJV    all that believe

NAS    everyone who believes

GNT   pa/j o` pisteu,wn

Romans 2:1

KJV    whosoever thou art that judgest

NAS    every man of you who passes judgment

GNT   pa/j o` kri,nwn

Romans 10:11

KJV    Whosoever believeth

NAS    Whoever believes

GNT   Pa/j o` pisteu,wn

2 Timothy 2:19

KJV    every one that nameth

NAS    everyone who names

GNT   pa/j o` ovnoma,zwn

1 John 2:29

KJV    every one that doeth

NAS    everyone also who practices

GNT   pa/j o` poiw/n

1 John 3:3

KJV    every man that hath

NAS    everyone who has

GNT   pa/j o` e;cwn

1 John 3:4

KJV    Whosoever committeth

NAS    Everyone who practices

GNT   Pa/j o` poiw/n

1 John 3:6

KJV    Whosoever abideth; whosoever sinneth

NAS    No one who abides; no one who sins

GNT   pa/j o` me,nwn; pa/j o` a`marta,nwn  [The phrase ‘in him’ (evn auvtw/|) appears here between pa/j o` and me,nwn.]

1 John 3:15

KJV    Whosoever hateth

NAS    Everyone who hates

GNT   pa/j o` misw/n

1 John 4:7

KJV    every one that loveth

NAS    everyone who loves

GNT   pa/j o` avgapw/n

1 John 5:1

KJV    Whosoever believeth; every one that loveth

NAS    Whoever believes; whoever loves

GNT   Pa/j o` pisteu,wn; pa/j o` avgapw/n

2 John 1:9

KJV    Whosoever transgresseth

NAS    Anyone who goes too far

GNT   pa/j o` proa,gwn

One could easily conclude that the inconsistencies in the various translations are simply an arbitrary matter. But arbitrariness has no place when ‘dividing rightly’ the word of God. Suspicion arises, however, that here in one of Christianity’s favorite passages, namely John 3:15 and 16, one’s theology has had a great part in determining the choice of wording.

In our passage in John 3:16 no other translation than “that everyone who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life” seems justifiable.

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Notes:  1. There is a Greek phrase which is appropriate to translate ‘whosoever’ or ‘whoever’. It is oj a'n, and its variations  o]j eva.n and  o]j dV a'n appearing some 52 times in 49 verses. It is always* used with the main verb in the subjunctive mood. Students of grammar will recall that the subjunctive is the mood of possibility/uncertainty. That is not the condition nor tenor of the participial verbs in the phrases in question in John 3:15,16.

*The singular apparent exception is in Mark 8:35 where the indicative mood is used, but in closer inspection we find there is a textual variation among manuscripts where the Koine class of Greek manuscripts use the subjunctive.

2. It will be observed that the main verbs in the 2^nd half of John 3:16 are in the subjunctive, but that is because the clause is introduced by the conjunction i[na, meaning ‘in order that’. i[na always introduces a purpose clause and requires the subjunctive (or the optative in a very few cases) for the main verb/s in that clause.]