Featured Word Study G2525 kathistemi

1) Other translations translate G2525 as "put in charge" in various verses.

2) We have 17 out of 22 usages where put in charge clearly conveys the intended message.

3) Rippon has redefined "frequently" to mesh with his agenda, just like Calvinism. Go figure.

 

So in 22 occurrences, eleven would be half. And more than half of 11 would be six. Thus if the NASB uses "put in charge" eight times to translate "Kathistemi" that would fit a dictionary definition of often or its synonym, frequently. Then if you stick with put in charge, rather than appoint in accordance with the goals of fidelity and concordance, you have 14 usages where "put in charge" seems best. Now if we add it the three more examples where "put in charge" seems better than "make" you have 17 out of 22 usages where "put in charge" provides a translation choice that comes closer to the goals of fidelity and concordance.

 

More than 25% of the time is frequently, is often, and is spot on.
As Jesus said, who put you in charge?

 

Your percentages are arbitrary and absurd. Put in charge is frequently used to translate 2525 in the NASB.

 

Yet another off topic post, from a person is quibbles over the meaning of words.

Your percentages are arbitrary and absurd. Put in charge is frequently used to translate 2525 in the NASB.

 

More quibbling over the meaning of "frequently" but no discussion of the topic.

 

The Greek compound word ( G2525 kathistemi) literally means to set someone or something down over something else. Frequently it is translated as to “put in charge.” The word appears 22 times in scripture. Lets look at some of those cases where it is not translated “put in charge.”

In six of these alternate translation choices, our word is translated as “appointed” and thus could also be translated as “put in charge.” Therefore, in 14 verses, the idea is clearly someone or some group puts someone in charge of something. I see no need to pull off the most frequent and literal translation choice.

However, lets look at the eight remaining cases, where our word is translated as “made” or “set” or “render” or “escorted.”

In three of the verses where our word is translated “made” the idea again is being “put in charge.” (Acts 7:10, 7:27 and 7:35). So now we have 17 out of 22 usages where put in charge clearly conveys the intended message.

Now to the verses where it seems another shade of meaning is intended. To be “put in charge” is to change a person’s status, and thus a shade of meaning is to change a person’s status. For example, if you are friends with the world, you render yourself an enemy of God. Or, as in Romans 5:19 by one man’s disobedience, many were rendered sinners, but by One man’s obedience, many will be rendered righteous.

And so our word has the intended meaning of altering, i.e. rendering a person as such and such, and this is the meaning found in Romans 5:19, James 4:4 and 2 Peter 1:8.

One pesky problem when suggesting better translation choices to improve transparency and concordance, is that often when reducing overlap by avoiding words that translate other Greek words, the alternate may also be used to translate other Greek words. The old out of the frying pan, into the fire dilemma. The NASB translates other words as “render.” But, happily in this case, only in four verses (Matthew 22:21, Romans 2:6, Romans 13:7 and Revelation 22:12) with other versions translating those verses with repay or give repayment and the like.) And so, if we change Romans 5:19, James 4:4 and 2 Peter 1:8 to render, and then change Matthew 22:21, Romans 2:6, Romans 13:7 and Revelation 22:12 to repay or give repayment, then the overlap is eliminated.

Which brings us to our last two verses, Acts 17:15 and James 3:6.

Acts 17:15, Now those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left.

Most translations I looked at either go with escorted or conducted. Apparently, our Greek word is used elsewhere to indicate bringing someone or something through something, thus escorted or conducted is a lexicon meaning. However, it occurs to me, and to no other published source that I have found, that “put in charge” was the intended meaning. Those who had put Paul in charge brought him as far as Athens; and after receiving a command [from Paul who is in charge] for Silas and Timothy to come to him [Paul] as soon as possible, they left. It is probably best to stick with “escorted” but the other possibility is intriguing. Word Study can bring questions to mind, for which more study, prayer and meditation is required.

James 3:6, And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.

Here our word is translated as set. Other verses have placed. So our tongue is set or placed or put in an adversarial position with our other body parts or members. Every once in a while I come across a wing-ding of a verse that cries out for serious and deep study. This is such a verse. Lets just leave it that the tongue, or the tongue’s fire which spreads injustice, can alter the course of our life, taking us into the lake of fire in Gehenna.

 

Word study is not difficult, but it takes a few tools, such as a study bible, like the NASB95, an exhaustive concordance, comparison bible versions like the NET, HCSB, NKJV, and WEB, prayer and thoughtful consideration of the range of possible meanings in light of context.

 

Rippon thinks of himself as judge over what others should do. I have addressed discerning the shade of meaning using context from the get go, but it seems the concept was not grasped by Rippon until recently.

Liberals say words have no inherent meanings, and thus feel free to redefine words and translate "since or after" as "before."

 

Folks, note I said "meanings" thus referring to the fact one must chose from among the range of meanings based on context.