Theological Term of the Week

the Didache
“An early Christian manual of church practice from around the turn of the century (c. AD 100)”;1 also called the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles or Teaching of the Lord to the Gentiles by the Twelve Apostles.

• From the Didache:

Neither pray ye as the hypocrites, but as the Lord commanded in His Gospel, thus pray ye:

Our Father, which art in heaven,
hallowed be Thy name;
Thy kingdom come;
Thy will be done,
as in heaven, so also on earth;
give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our debt,
as we forgive our debtors;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one;
for Thine is the power and the glory for ever and ever. (Didache 8:2)

• From Canon Revisited by Michael J. Kruger:

[The Didache] states, “Do not abandon the commandments of the Lord, but guard what you have received, neither adding to them or taking away.” It is obvious that the author is drawing an express parallel to Deuteronomy 4:2 (LXX): ” You shall not add to the word that I command you, not take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord.” Most noteworthy, the “commandments of the Lord” in this passage of the Didache no longer refer to the Old Testament commandments as in Deuteronomy 4:2, but now refer to the teachings of Jesus. Therefore, the teachings of Jesus, wherever those may be found, not only bear equal (if not superior) authority to the Old Testament, but now have a new “inscriptional curse” attached to them—the people must be careful that they are “neither adding to them or taking away.” … [The] historical usage [of an inscriptional curse] from Deuteronomy to Josephus, … implies a written text. Given that the Didache likely cites from the written text of Matthew, such language is suggestive that the manual may have viewed Matthew as an authentic writing worthy of its own inscriptional curse.

Learn more:

1. GotQuestions.org: What is the Didache?
2. Theopedia: Didache
3. Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry: Didache
4. Christian History Institute: The Didache
5. Spurgeon.org: J. B. Lightfoot’s translation of the Didache

Related terms:

• canon of scripture
• inscriptional curse

Filed under Person, Work, and Teaching of Christ

1 From Canon Revisited by Michael J. Kruger, p. 232.

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Clicking on the Theological Term graphic at the top of this post will take you to a list of all the previous theological terms in alphabetical order.

Theological Term of the Week

Carmen Christi
The traditional title of the “hymn to Christ” found in Philippians 2:6-11, so named because some believe it was a very early and already existing Christian hymn or poem quoted by Paul in his epistle.

• In scripture:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of aservant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:5-11 ESV)

• From ESV Study Notes:

Philippians 2:6-11 have some clear indications of poetic structure, leading some to believe that this is a pre-Pauline hymn adapted by Paul. It is just as likely, however, that Paul composed the hymn for this setting. In view of the myriad theological questions that arise in these verses, it is critical to keep two things in mind: (1) these verses were written not to spur Christians to theological debate but to encourage greater humility and love; and (2) the summary of Christ’s life and ministry found here is not unique: the same themes are evident throughout the NT.

Learn more:

1. Robert S. Rayburn: Carmen Christi
2. R. C. Sproul: The Form of God
3. James White: Beyond the Veil of Eternity
4. Gordon Fee: Philippians 2:5-11: Hymn or Exalted Pauline Prose? (pdf)
5. R. P. Martin: An Early Christian Confession
6. J. Ligon Duncan: Song of Christ (audio)

Related terms:

• ascension of Jesus
• deity of Christ
• humanity of Christ
• incarnation
• passive obedience of Christ

Filed under Person, Work, and Teaching of Christ

Do you have a term you would like to see featured here as a Theological Term of the Week? If you email it to me, I’ll seriously consider using it, giving you credit for the suggestion and linking back to your blog when I do.

Clicking on the Theological Term graphic at the top of this post will take you to a list of all the previous theological terms in alphabetical order.

Theological Term of the Week

inscriptional curse
A warning included in ancient treaties pronouncing judgment on anyone who changed the wording of a covenant document.

• In scripture:

You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. (Deuteronomy 4:2 ESV)

I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.(Revelation 22:18-19)

• From Canon Revisited by Michael Kruger:

[Meridith Kline argues] that the entire Old Testament structure and all the books therein reflect various aspects of … ancient extrabiblical treaties. In particular, he observes that ancient treaties included an “inscriptional curse,” which pronounced judgment on all those who changed the wording of the covenant documents. Likewise, such an inscriptional curse is evident through the biblical witness from Deuteronomy 4:2 … .

Kline [also] shows that the New Testament documents themselves, from Gospel to epistle to Revelation, all reflect the formal covenantal structure already laid forth in the Old Testament pattern. Moreover, we again see the “inscriptional curse” in Revelation 22:18-19.

… Thus, the New Testament canon, at its core, is a covenantal document.

• From Scripture’s Self-Attestation and the Problem of Formulating A Doctrine of Scripture by Wayne Grudem:

Revelation 22:18-19 contains an inscriptional curse, warning of sever punishment from God for anyone who adds to or takes away from the words of “this book.” In the first instance, this book” refers to the book of Revelation itself, and the prohibition against tampering with the words implies that the writer wants his readers to think of the book as words of God (cf. Deut. 4:2; 12:32; Prov. 30:6).

But perhaps it is possible to make one further observation about this inscriptional curse. For one who believes that God oversaw the compilation of the New Testament, the fact that these verses occur at the end of this particular book cannot be seen as a mere coincidence. Revelation is the book that primarily describes for us the distant future and it most naturally belongs at the end of the canon, just as Genesis, which describes the distant past, belongs at the beginning.. Therefore, it may not be inappropriate to think of Revelation 22:18-19 as having a secondary application to the whole of the Bible that precedes it. Understood in this way, these verse both close the canon and simultaneously warn all future generation that all the words that go before are God’s very words, and to add to them or take from them is to invite eternal death.

Related terms:

• canon of scripture
• covenant

Filed under Scripture

Do you have a term you would like to see featured here as a Theological Term of the Week? If you email it to me, I’ll seriously consider using it, giving you credit for the suggestion and linking back to your blog when I do.

Clicking on the Theological Term graphic at the top of this post will take you to a list of all the previous theological terms in alphabetical order.