                   |
-
K -
K&D;
K and D. Keil
and Delitzsch, conservative
co-authors of a classic ten-volume
commentary on the Old Testament.
Karl Friedrich Keil (1807-1888) was a German Protestant exegete who taught for years at Dorpat and later at Leipzig. He belonged to the orthodox and conservative school of Hengstenberg, and fortunately resisted the diabolic and destructive conclusions of modern criticism. His most notable contribution to the kingdom of God was his commentary on the Old Testament, based on the Hebrew text, and in collaboration with Franz Delitzsch (1813-1890). Delitzsch was a German Lutheran of Hebrew parentage, and taught at Leipzig for a number of years. Because of his ethnic heritage he had a burning desire to evangelize Jewish people. He founded a seminary in Leipzig to prepare theological candidates for missionary work among the Jewish people. It is now called Institutum Judaicum Delitzschianum. The monumental commentary on the Old Testament written by Keil and Delitzsch, now referred to simply as K&D, was first published in 1866. It was written in German, but soon translated into English. Keil wrote the commentaries on Genesis through Esther, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and the minor prophets. Delitzsch wrote the commentaries on Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, and Isaiah. The commentary is now apparently public domain, and the complete work appears online at StudyLight.org. One brief caveat. Though Keil and Delitzsch providentially resisted the siren call of modern criticism, they were still products of their own theological background. The vast majority of mainline Protestant as well as Roman Catholic exegetes are afflicted with a non-literal interpretation of OT prophecy. They see the Church as permanently replacing Israel, and interpret OT prophecy metaphorically. To put it another way, they do not interpret prophetic Scriptures dispensationally. Keil and Delitzsch were no exception. WordExplain sees this as a serious deficiency in the prophetic portions of the commentary. Elsewhere, however, the authors' conservatism is a blessing. For example, Keil held to the Mosaic authorship of Genesis and the rest of the Pentateuch. Furthermore, for example, Keil understood Genesis 1 as a historical narrative, and the days of creation as literal solar days, not vast periods of time with which to accommodate the false religion of evolution. Ketiv. That which is written in the Hebrew text. (Alternate English spellings of the Hebrew word include ketiv, ketib, kethib, kethibh, or kethiv.) The designation refers to the word in the Masoretic Text (MT) that is "written". Qere, on the other hand, refers to the variant reading in the margin that is supposed to be read. The reader should understand that the original Hebrew text was written in consonants only. Readers were to understand how a given set of consonants were to be pronounced. The Masoretes, scribes who copied the text, created a system of accents and vowel placement in order to codify explicitly the correct pronunciation. Aaron ben Moses ben Asher, in A.D. 930 produced the first complete Hebrew Bible using Masoretic symbols and ordering. It is called the Allepo Codex. The Masoretes had so much respect for the Word of God as it had been handed down to them that they would not change a single letter. However, variants inevitably crept into some MSS. So a copyist would leave the word has it had been spelled in the text he had received, but he would use the margin to indicate what he thought to be the preferred pronunciation/reading/spelling. That was how it was to be read in synagogue - using the Qere reading. For modern scholars it becomes a matter of textual criticism to determine which is the more accurate reading - the Ketiv or the Qere. There is frequently dispute between scholars as to which is to be preferred. The editors of all modern English versions must also make decisions as to whether to use a Ketiv reading or a Qere reading. Sometimes they use one, sometimes they use another. Even the translators of the original King James Version occasionally used Qere readings as opposed to Ketiv readings. No major doctrine is affected by these differences. However whether one chooses the Ketiv reading or the Qere reading can affect the meaning, and therefore the interpretation of a given passage. The most widely-used printed Hebrew Bible in use today is the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (BHS). In the computer program version of BHS that I use, Bibloi 8.0, the Ketiv reading appears first in the main text and is designated by a single asterisk (*). The Qere reading, that which is to be read, appears next in the text and is indicated by two asterisks (**). There is otherwise no apparatus available in this program. The chief benefit of Bibloi 8.0 is its affordability. Keys of the Kingdom. The authority which Jesus gave to Peter to permit and deny access to Jesus' still future Kingdom of the Heavens (Matt. 16:13-20). Both John the Immerser (Matt. 3:1-2) and Jesus (Matt. 4:17) had preached that the Kingdom of the Heavens had drawn near spatially and chronologically in the Person of the King, Jesus. However, when Israel rejected the King, that message was muted. The Church (ekklesia, 1577) that Jesus predicted He would build (Matt. 16:18) is not the Kingdom of the Heavens. That Kingdom is still future. But all who are genuine believers in Christ in the Church Age will one day participate in the Kingdom of the Heavens. The Kingdom of the Heavens will arrive at Christ's Second Coming. True followers of Christ will be admitted, but unbelievers will be barred from entrance (Matt. 25:31-46). Then it is that God's will will be performed "as in heaven, son on earth" (Matt. 6:10). Satan will be bound in the Abyss during that kingdom (Rev. 20:1-3). At its completion, however, he will be released. When that happens, he will deceive millions of people who were born during the Millennium, who outwardly professed to support the King, but who, inwardly, never did so. Satan will draw them out of the woodwork, so to speak, and they will descend upon Jerusalem to destroy the King and His administration. Fire will come down from heaven and incinerate them (Rev. 20:7-10). God will destroy the existing heavens and earth (2 Pet. 3:7, 10-12; Rev. 20:11) and create New Heavens and New Earth (2 Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21:1). The Capital City of New Jerusalem will be descending from heaven (Rev. 21:2, 10). Then it is that God's will will be done totally and irrevocably on New Earth forever and ever (Matt. 6:10). Where does Peter fit into this? First, he used the keys of the Kingdom to admit believing Israelis into the Church (Acts 2:14-42). He used the keys again when he admitted believing Samaritans into the Church (Acts 8:14-17). Finally, he used the keys yet again when he admitted believing Gentiles into the Church (Acts 10:34-48). Caution: The Church is not the Kingdom. But all who are truly part of the Church will one day participate in the Kingdom. I presume that Peter will yet have an important role exercising the Keys of the Kingdom when the Kingdom finally arrives. What that involves will become apparent when the time actually comes. We get some hint of how that will display itself in Matthew 19:27-30. King. The supreme leader of a country. A king, or monarch, has absolute authority. However he must always retain the confidence of a set of advisors or key supporters, and he must always retain the confidence of the leaders of the military. Kings have life-and-death authority. That is, they can consign people to death. Some kings function also as judges. In some monarchies there is no need for a formal trial outside of the opinion and jurisdiction of the king. Generally, a king passes on his authority to his first-born or most deserving male heir. It is the desire of every king to establish a dynasty, meaning a long succession of kings who are in his direct family line. In a settled form of government, this line of succession gives an orderly transfer of power to the next king by well-established rules. Throughout history, there have been those who have assassinated or otherwise deposed kings and themselves stepped into power. Generally, this revolutionary schemer is more of a dictator than a king. Frequently his reign is cut short, ended by enemies he had created during his coup. In Old Testament understanding, God served as the King of Israel from its very inception as a nation. God presented himself as the invisible king with visible worship aids, such as the tabernacle and its items of furniture. When Israel lusted after a visible, human king, that was painful to God. But He acceded to their demands. In His providence, He had already determined, one day, to marry a God-king with a human king. That came true in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, of the line of David. He was anointed by God (Matt. 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34) to be not only a King, but a King/Priest after the order of Melchizedek. (Gen. 14:17-20; Psa. 110:4; Heb. 5:6, 10; 6:20; 7:17). As Anointed One, Jesus served primarily as Prophet during His earthly Ministry. Having been elevated to the right hand of the Father, Jesus presently serves primarily as Priest. When He returns to earth to rule, He will serve primarily as King. Kingdom. In an abstract sense, the dominion, rulership, and authority of a sovereign, or king (2 Sam. 3:10). In a concrete sense, the territory and the people within it over which a king or sovereign reigns or extends his authority (Num.32:33). The OT word is mamlâkâh (4467); the NT word is basileía (932). According to Friberg basileía means (1) abstractly, the power exercised by a king kingship, royal rule, reign (Acts 1:6); (2) concretely, the territory ruled by a king kingdom, realm (Matt. 4:8); (3) predominately in the NT
the rule of God as promised, prophesied, and fulfilled through the
spiritual rule of God in the hearts of people now (Rom. 14:17) and
ultimately to be fulfilled in the messianic reign of Christ on earth reign, kingdom (Luke 1:33).
In the view of WordExplain, NT scholars frequently confuse the Kingdom of God in which He reigned over the earth as Invisibile King through His people, Israel (Psa. 47:2-3, 6-9) with the present session of Christ at the right hand of the Father (Rom. 8:34; Eph. 1:20). These scholars presume Jesus is seated on the throne of David in heaven and that He has begun His Messianic reign. But the NT does not seem to corroborate their views. Rather, Jesus offered the Messianic Kingdom to Israel repeatedly (Matt. 3:2; 4:17; 10:7), but when the nation's leaders rejected Him by attributing His works to the power of Satan (Matt. 12:22-24), He withdrew the offer. Now He is in heaven sitting at the right hand of the Father, waiting until He is given the Kingdom, and His enemies be made a footstool for His feet (Psa. 110:1-3, 5-7; Luke 19:11-27). Meanwhile He serves as the Great High Priest after the order of Melchizedek (Psalm 110:4; Heb. 5:6, 10; 6:20; 7:17). He sits at the right hand of the Father where as eternal Priest He makes intercession on behalf of all who have placed their trust in Him (Heb. 7:24-25). When He returns to earth in power and great glory (Matt. 24:29-30), He will sit on the throne of David in Jerusalem and as King, will judge the nations (Matt. 25:31-33) preparatory to inaugurating His Kingdom (Matt. 25:34) over the entire earth (Zech. 14:9). King, the Great King. In the terminology of WordExplain, the Great King refers to Jesus Christ seated on the Throne of David, having returned to earth at His Second Advent to take possession of the Kingdom decreed to Him by His Father (2 Sam. 7:16; Psalm 2:4-9; 110:1-3, 5-7; Dan. 7:13-14, 27; Luke 1:26-35). His reign as Great King will last one thousand years (Rev. 20:1-6). We refer to His one-thousand year reign as the Millennium. Jesus Himself predicted His coming reign as the Great King (Matt. 25:31). Zechariah predicted that His reign would be global (Zech. 14:9). At the termination of this present universe and creation of the New Heavens and New Earth, Jesus will hand over the kingdom to God His Father (1 Cor. 15:24-25). Then He will reign as Co-Regent with His Father from their throne in New Jerusalem (Rev. 22:1, 3). Moreover, the slaves of God will see His face, and they will reign forever and ever (Rev. 22:3, 4, 5). Kingdom of God. From a theologically-constructed point of view, the eternal rule of God over all His creatures. A number of times, particularly in the Psalms, God is designated as King (Psa. 10:16; 29:10; 47:2,6, 7; 95:3). The kingdom of God includes His rule over angels, but that is not the primary focus of the Bible. From this point of view the Kingdom of God began at the moment God first created beings of any sort, whether they be angels or the four living creatures described by Ezekiel (Ezek. 1:5-14) and by John in Rev. 4:6-8; 5:6; 6:1, 6; 7:11; 14:3; 15:7; 19:4. Since God is eternal, His Kingdom is eternal. An Exegetically-Constructed View of the Kingdom of God. The story-line of the Bible is much more specific, however. It is God’s establishment of His Kingdom on Earth through Man. In the beginning God assigned man, whom He had just created, to rule over the earth and all its flora and fauna (Gen. 1:26-28). Man was to be King of the Earth. Because of his fall into sin (Gen. 3), man abdicated his ability to rule the earth benevolently. Through Jesus, God’s ultimate King, God redeemed (Tit. 2:14; Heb. 9:12) all who believe in King Jesus (Rom. 3:24, 25). Through King Jesus, God will rule over all the earth (Psa. 2:1-9; 110:1-7; Isa. 2:1-4; 9:6-7; 11:1-10; Zech. 14:9; Rev. 19:11-20:6). And the followers of King Jesus will rule existing Earth under Christ for a thousand years (Rev. 20:6), and New Earth in subservience to Him throughout eternity (Rev. 22:5). An accurate discussion of God as King cannot be divorced from His relationship to the nation of Israel. For example, in the Psalms, God as King is associated with Mount Zion (Ps. 48:2); with the tabernacle ('sanctuary") (Ps. 68:24); and with Israel and the sons of Zion (Ps. 149:2). So again, God's reign over all the nations of the world cannot be disassociated from His reign over Israel, His chosen nation. From the very beginning of God's relationship with Abraham, father by promise of the sons of Israel, He promised to bless all the families of the earth through Abraham's seed (Gen. 12:1-3, 7; 13:15-16; 15:5, 18-19; 17:18-19; 22:15-18). God reaffirmed this promise to Abraham's son Isaac (Gen. 26:1-5) and to Isaac's son Jacob (Gen. 28:13-14), father of the Nation of Israel. To be candid, the phrase "Kingdom of God" appears only in the NT. But an honest assessment of the Biblically constructed (not theologically-constructed) portrayal of the Kingdom of God, in my opinion, must be associated with the reign of Jesus Christ upon the earth from Jerusalem. In that sense, the kingdom of God is still future. It has not yet arrived. John the Baptist and Jesus Himself stated that it had drawn near (Matt. 3:1-2; 4:17; Mark 1:15). But the kingdom has not arrived because the King is absent from the earth (Luke 19:11, 12-27). The Church Age anticipates, but does not fulfill the Kingdom of God. The first installment of the Kingdom of God will be Christ's 1000-year reign (Rev. 20:16) over this present earth from present-day Jerusalem (Ps. 2:4-9; Isa. 2:1-4; Zech. 14:4, 9). The ultimate manifestation of the Kingdom of God will be upon New Earth, headquartered in its capital city, New Jerusalem (Rev. 21-22). The citizens of the Kingdom of God will reign with Him and Christ, the Messianic King, forever over New Earth (Rev. 22:5). See "Not Already, Not Yet" for a further discussion of this topic. Kingdom
of the Heavens. Jesus’ designation
of the kingdom He
was attempting to institute on earth as found in Matthew.
His point was that
His kingdom originated from above, not from the world, the sphere of
Satan and of fallen man. Because
the phrase is used exclusively in Matthew, discussion of the Kingdom of
the
Heavens here is limited to the events which Jesus described in that
gospel. In reality, there is not
significant difference between the “Kingdom of God” and the “Kingdom of
the
Heavens.” Typically translated “kingdom of heaven,” the phrase appears
in
passages depicting the announcements of John, Jesus, and the twelve
concerning
the impending kingdom (Matt. 3:2; 4:17;
10:7);
in the Beatitudes (Matt. 5:3, 10);
and in certain parables in which
Jesus taught His disciples new truths about His kingdom (Matt. 13:11, 24,
31, 33, 44, 45, 47,
52; 25:1).
Jesus has
not yet begun His kingdom here on earth, for He has not yet returned.
Presently He is seated in heaven at the right hand of the Father
serving as the Anointed High Priest of the order of Melchizedek,
himself a King-Priest (Gen. 14:18-20; Heb. 7:11-27). At Jesus' Second Coming, the
Kingdom of the
Heavens will commence on earth after a 2000 year (and counting) absence
of its
rightful King. His kingdom here on this present earth will last for a
thousand years (Rev. 20:1-6), during which time Satan will be confined in the Abyss, prevented
from deceiving people. At the end of the thousand years, Satan will be
released from the Abyss. He will immediately begin deceiving those who
do not truly believe in the King, and they will rise up in revolt
against Him and His administration in Jerusalem. The rebels will be
incinerated, and Satan will be deposited forever in the Lake of Fire
(Rev. 20:7-10). God will destroy this present sin-cursed earth and
universe (2 Pet. 3:7, 10-12; Rev. 20:11). All the wicked dead will be
judged and cast into the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:11-15).Then God will
create New Heavens and New Earth, with New Jerusalem as its eternal
Capital City (2 Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21:1-4). Only the righteous of all ages
will dwell in this New Earth and Capital City (Rev. 21:7-8, 23-27;
22:14-15). Thus, the Kingdom of the Heavens will, once commenced, be
interminable. Kingdom
Theology. "The
phrase, 'Kingdom Theology,' has a great variety of meanings. Generally
it has to do with the belief that the rule and reign of Christ on the
earth through His church is a present reality and that reality should
be the focus of our endeavors now. With it comes the tendency to reject
a future kingdom on the earth. Thus it is generally opposed to a
premillennial interpretation of Scripture and tends to be either
amillennial or postmilllennial." (Credit for this definition goes
to John
Hannah, Th. D., Ph. D., Research Professor of Theological
Studies, Distinguished Professor of Historical Theology, Dallas Theological Seminary.)
Greg Boyd (The
Myth of a Christian Nation: How the Quest for Political Power is
Destroying the Church) is a proponent of Kingdom Theology.
Also see the article, "Kingdom
Theology Makes a Comeback" by David Gushee, McAfee School of
Theology. Gushee is also a proponent of Kingdom Theology. WordExplain is not. The Kingdom of the Heavens John the Baptist and Jesus both announced has (Matt. 1:1-2; 4:17) not yet arrived. The offer of the Kingdom was withdrawn when the leaders of Israel voiced their opposition to the King and ultimately had Him executed. Jesus is right now seated at the right hand of the Father, serving as the Great High Priest
(Psa. 110:4; Heb. 5:6, 10; 6:20; 7:17, 21, 23-25), and awaiting the
time when His enemies will be made a footstool for His feet (Psa.
110:1-3, 5-7). The Church is in so sense the Kingdom. The Kingdom will not arrive until the King returns to earth to assert His rightful rule. Meanwhile, among other things, the Church has been assigned to recruit and train people all over the world for the coming Kingdom (Matt. 28:18-20; Acts 1:6-8). KJV, King James Version.
The so-called "Authorized Version," the one authorized by King James I
of England (he had been King of Scotland for 37 years) in 1604 and
finally published in 1611. The English Bible versions most influential
in its publication were the Tyndale translation and the Geneva Bible.
According to Daniel B. Wallace, 90% of the King James New Testament was really Tyndale's translation. The KJV "may properly be regarded as the fifth revision of Tyndale" (Wallace). WordExplain does not support the King James Only movement that has developed in recent years. There is an excellent conservative and scholarly treatment of The History of the English Bible written by Daniel B. Wallace. The four separate articles are entitled 1. From Wycliffe to King James (The Period of Challenge). 2. The Reign of the King James (The Era of Elegance). 3. From the KJV to the RV (from Elegance to Accuracy). 4. Why So Many Versions? (This entry added Dec. 7, 2020.) Koine Greek. The "Common" Greek used in the New Testament. The term Koine is related to the noun koinós (2389), "common, ordinary;" metaphorically, "unclean, impure" (adapted by JTB from OBU).
When Alexander the Great conquered the Mediterranean World, he spread
Greek culture, influence, and the Greek language. In the Roman Empire
which built on the Greek Empire, the common language of the day, the
trade language, if you will, remained Greek. But there were two kinds
of Greek. Classical Greek was spoken and written by the educated and
the ruling class. But Koine Greek was the language of the working class
– farmers, merchants, craftsmen, housewives, and slaves. It is
intriguing that, in the Providence of God, when Jesus began to build His Church,
fully a third of His disciples were fishermen. They all spoke and wrote
common Greek, Koine Greek, not classical Greek. And they wrote the New
Testament documents in Koine Greek, the language of the common people.
The
great works of Greek literature were written in Classical Greek. No
scholar today would care to study anything written in Koine Greek,
except for the fact that it is the language of the New Testament. God wanted His word to be accessible to everyone, and He chose the common language of the day, Koine.
By way of application, there is a cadre of Christians today whom I call "King James Only" Christians. Why would you define Christianity by an English Bible using language from 400 years ago, and not modern day, common language? God chose the common language of the day, Koine Greek, to transmit His truths to the Church for dissemination. Why should we English-speaking Christians not do the same? For more information on Koine Greek, read "What is Koine Greek, and why was the New Testament written in it?" Updated May 25, 2024 |
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