You are viewing a back issue of Darkness to Light Christian Newsletter.
Subscribe to this newsletter to receive future issues. Click here to view additional back issues.
Darkness to Light - Vol. XXII, No. 4
Darkness to Light
Christian Newsletter
Volume XXII, Number 4
2024
Presented by
Darkness to
Light Website
Director: Gary F. Zeolla
In This Issue
Newsletter News/ Audiobooks Project
My
First Audiobook!
Overcoming Back Pain: A Mind-Body Solution
Was the Apostle
Paul Married? Part Two
(Knowing Greek, Accepting the Bible’s Teachings, and Bible Reference Works)
My
First Politics Audiobook!
Alleged Corruption, Bias, and Fraud
You are currently registered to receive this Darkness to Light Christian Newsletter. This newsletter is published every other month, usually during the first week of odd-numbered months. To unsubscribe, use the link at the bottom of this newsletter. To view back issues, click here.
To subscribe to my FitTips for One and All newsletter, click here. It is published every other month, usually during the first week of even-numbered months. To view back issues, click here.
Comments on these newsletters are welcome. Just respond to this email. See the posted Privacy Policy for details on the handling of emails and related details.
Click any picture in this newsletter for a larger image. That is, assuming the pictures appear and work as I intended. If not, then possibly, if all you see is an empty box, clicking it should bring up the larger image.
This book addresses three vital subjects in regards to the Christian faith, as seen in the subtitle. Covering these three subjects makes this book ideal for enabling Christians to understand and defend their faith and for evangelism. It will show seekers and doubters there are answers to their questions on these subjects and their need for salvation. Available in multiple formats. Click here for ordering details.
Newsletter News/ Audiobooks Project
I am over a week late in sending out this issue of Darkness to Light Newsletter. That is because I have been very busy over the past several weeks with my latest project, that of having my books produced in audiobook format through Audio Content Exchange (ACX, a subsidy of Amazon).
I have been wanting to produce my books in audiobook format for some time, but I hesitated as I knew it would be complicated. And that has proven to be the case. I tried to do the recordings myself, but found it was beyond physical and technical capabilities.
I then switched to ACX’s “royalty share”’ program of recruiting others to narrate the books. We will then split the royalties. But that has proven difficult, as I need to review the recordings of each chapter as they upload them, note any needed corrections, then send them the list.
But most of all, this is the first time in my life I have had to “hire” people. In most cases, I am getting multiple auditions for each book, so I need to decide who to hire and who not to hire, then learn to gently tell the latter they would not be hired. I also had to “fire” a person when it was discovered he was using AI to generate the recordings, which is not allowed by ACX’s rules.
In any case, only two books have been finished so far. The first is noted next and the second later in this newsletter. But I have eight other books in production. ACX recommends only having five at a time, but I got impatient. However, I now see why they recommend such, as it has been dizzying trying to keep up with it all.
That has been made more difficult due to recurring health setbacks over the past several weeks since I started this project. But the audiobooks should slowly come out over the next few weeks and months.
My First Audiobook!
Overcoming Back Pain: A Mind-Body Solution
My first audiobook is now available on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. It is the story of how I overcame years of crippling low back pain, so much so that I was able to start powerlifting again. If you suffer from low back pain, this could be the solution to your problem. And even if you do not, this is an interesting story, with lots of twists and turns.
In the coming months, many more of my Christian, fitness, and politics books will be available in audiobook format. But this short book, just one hour and 30 minutes long, was a good book to start with.
For other formats for this book, see the Preview page on my fitness website.
Was the Apostle Paul Married?
(Knowing Greek, Accepting the Bible’s Teachings, and Bible Reference Works)
Part Two
This article is continued from Was the Apostle Paul Married? (Knowing Greek, Accepting the Bible’s Teachings, and Bible Reference Works) Part One. That Part One began with the claim Paul was referring to his wife in Philippians 4:3. It was shown that the grammar of the verse precluded that idea. Claimed supporting verses were also shown to not be applicable nor supportive of the idea of Paul being married, while another verse negated the idea.
This Part Two will begin by looking at another possibly relevant verse. Then it will consider other issues related to the title question. Lastly, it will explain the reasons for the three items in the subtitle.
1Corinthians 9:5,15
5Do we never at all have a right to be taking along [or, traveling around with] a sister, a wife, as also the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? [cp. Mark 1:30; i.e., Simon Peter was married]
15But I have used none of these [things]. Now I did not write these [things] so that it should become in this way in my [case], for [it is] good for me rather to die than that anyone makes my [grounds for] boasting empty (1Cor 9:5,15; ALT3).
In Part One, 1Corinthians 9:5 was referenced by Jameson Faucet and Brown as indicating Paul was not married. They comment further on this verse:
Paul implies he did not exercise his undoubted right to marry and “lead about” a believer, for the sake of Christian expediency, as well to save the Church the expense of maintaining her in his wide circuits, as also that he might give himself more undistractedly to building up the Church of Christ (1 Cor. 7:26, 32, 35). (p. 4962).
Adding in verse 15, they do seem to indicate that Paul is saying here that he was not married. But it could be argued, as it was on the Facebook thread, that Paul was married but choose not to take his wife with him, as did the other apostles. That is possible, if it were not for 1Cor 7:8-9. Adding in those verses to these ones, and it is clear Paul did not “take along” a wife because he did not have one.
The importance of 1Cor 9:5 is that it shows Peter and the other apostles were married. That goes back to 1Cor 7:8-9 and Paul’s discussion in the following verses about being married versus single and ministry ability. That leads into the next section.
Married Between Epistles?
Since it is clear Paul was not married when he wrote 1Corinthians, those who contend he is referring to his wife in Phil 4:3 try to assert that Paul got married sometime between the time he wrote 1Corinthians and when he wrote Philippians. However, there are three problems with this idea.
First, in the following verses in 1Corinthians 7, Paul argues for being single being a superior state to being married. His reasoning is that those who are married have their attention divided between serving the Lord and pleasing their spouse, while those who are single can devote all of their energies to serving the Lord.
That opens up a whole other discussion that is outside the scope of this article but which I peruse in the chapter mentioned in part One of my God’s Sex Plan book. But here, it would be quite strange for Paul to have argued for singleness then to shortly thereafter to have gotten married.
Second, the quote from John Calvin in Part One comes not from his commentary on 1Cor 7:8 but on Phil 4:3. But he quotes 1Cor 7:8 to contradict the idea of Paul referring to his wife in Phil 4:3. He continues:
He [Paul] wrote that Epistle at Ephesus when he was prepared to leave it. Not long after, he proceeded to Jerusalem, where he was put in prison, and sent to Rome. Every one must perceive how unsuitable a period of time it would have been for marrying a wife, spent by him partly in journeying, and partly in prison. In addition to this, he was even at that time prepared to endure imprisonment and persecutions, as he himself testifies, according to Luke. (Acts 21:13).
I am, at the same time, well aware what objection is usually brought forward in opposition to this — that Paul, though married, refrained from conjugal intercourse. The words, however, convey another meaning, for he is desirous that unmarried persons may have it in their power to remain in the same condition with himself. Now, what is that condition but celibacy?
As to their bringing forward that passage — Is it not lawful for me to lead about a wife (1 Corinthians 9:5) for the purpose of proving he had a wife, it is too silly to require any refutation. But granting that Paul was married, how came his wife to be at Philippi — a city which we do not read of his entering on more than two occasions, and in which it is probable he never remained so much as two whole months? In fine, nothing is more unlikely than that he speaks here of his wife; and to me it does not seem probable that he speaks of any female. I leave it, however, to the judgment of my readers. The word which Paul makes use of here (sullaubavesthai) means, to take hold of a thing and embrace it along with another person, with the view of giving help (pp. 12491-12492).
Calvin's point is there simply is no place for in the recorded history for Paul to have gotten married between the time he wrote the two epistles.
That then leads to the third and most important point—nowhere in Paul’s epistles nor in the Book of Acts is this supposed marriage of Paul mentioned. Given that marriage is such a monumental event, you would think Luke or Paul himself would have mentioned it.
However, given the complete lack of such a mention, those who content he did get married are just making up the idea and inserting it into the history, with no basis in the text itself for doing so. In other words, it is a case of eisegesis, or reading something into a text that is not there. That is opposed to exegesis, getting an idea out of a text that is there.
Must Be Married to Be in the Sanhedrin?
Otherwise, the claim was made in the Facebook thread that Paul was a member of the Sanhedrin, and they had to be married. It is true Paul was a Pharisee (Acts 23:6; 26:5; Phil 3:5), but he never says he was one of the 71 members of the Sanhedrin. In fact, the word “Sanhedrin” does not occur in the New Testament.
It is difficult, however, to substantiate that he had been married on the basis he was a member of the Sanhedrin (Acts 26:10). It is uncertain that he was a member and also uncertain that members had to be married in the period before A.D. 70 (Ryrie Study Bible, p. 1735).
The mention of Paul “voting” with the “chief priests” in Acts 26:10 could indicate Paul was a member of the Sanhedrin, but as Charles Ryrie indicates, that is not certain.
However, Paul was a Pharisee. But I am not sure if you had to be married to be a Pharisee, but I doubt it. There is no mention of such a requirement in the article on “Pharisees” on the Jewish Virtual Library or the Encyclopedia Britannica.
Conclusion on Title Question
Was Paul the apostle married? All of the evidence points to Paul being single during the time of his missionary journeys. And there is no actual evidence he was married at that time. However, it is possible Paul was married but that his wife died before he set out on his travels.
However, whether Paul was married or not is rather inconsequential. It changes nothing about his teachings. But there are three important points to be drawn from this article.
Knowing Greek
Most of the time, a person can come to a proper understand of a verse or passage of Scripture from reading a quality English translation. However, this two-part article should demonstrate that there are times it is vital to know Greek for proper interpretation of the New Testament.
Of course, not every Christian has the time or ability to learn Greek. But you can put yourself under the tutelage of someone who does. That is done first and foremost by attending church regularly. In saying that, I am assuming the pastor/ preacher/ priest knows Greek. In fact, I would say a prerequisite for being such should be to know Greek. And that takes us back to my article Churches Are Essential Revisited that I ran in Volume 22, Number 1 of this newsletter.
You can also listen to preachers and Bible teachers who know Greek via podcasts found on the Bott Radio Network or similar apps. That takes us back to my two-part article Uplifting Apps and Podcasts that I ran in Volume 21, Number 2 and Volume 21, Number 3 of this newsletter.
In addition, you can avail yourself of the myriad of Bible study aids available that are written by those who know Greek, such as The Expositors Bible Commentary I quoted from in this article. I am quoting from the original 12-volume set. But a revised set is now available. The full set for both the Old and New Testaments consists of 13 volumes. But it is also available in a two-volume abridged set.
Any of the other Bible commentaries and other study aids mentioned in this article would also be worthwhile. There are of course many other commentaries, study Bibles, Bible dictionaries, and other Scripture studies aids available. Among these are my various books, including my Analytical-Literal Translation of the Bible. The Preface for the ALT New Testament states, “The purpose of ALT3 is to provide a translation of the Greek New Testament that will enable the reader to come as close to the Greek text as possible without having to be proficient in Greek.”
The current text of In Phil 4:3 does not indicate that “fellow-worker” is masculine, but if I ever come out with a new edition, I will add a note indicating the Greek word is masculine, so a man is being indicated. That then leads to another issue in regard to Phil 4:3 that needs to be addressed before getting to the second important point to be drawn from article.
Reconciliation Not Mentoring
In posting some of what I have presented in this two-part article on the Facebook thread, one person changed his view and accepted that Paul was not married and that he sent a man to mentor the women at Philippi. But the person who posted the original Bible verse with his addition of “Paul’s wife” said he could not accept that Paul would send a man to mentor a group of women, so he clung to his view that Paul was referring to a woman, his wife, in the verse.
The first person stated that he could see that Paul would send a trusted godly man to instruct a group of women in an honorable way. And that is true. In fact, that is done every Sunday when women attend a church with a male pastor or a Bible study during the week led by a man. However, there is more to it than that.
Walvoord and Zuck write in the Bible Knowledge Commentary on this verse:
The exact identity of Paul’s loyal yokefellow is not known. Some say “yokefellow” is a proper name. Paul knew he could count on him to work with the women and bring them back to fellowship with each other and the Lord (Volume Two, p.663).
Jameson Faucet and Brown write similarly,
help those women — rather, as Greek, “help them,” namely, Euodia and Syntyche. “Co-operate with them” [BIRKS]; or as ALFORD, “Help in the work of their reconciliation” (p. 5380).
The issue in Philippi was not the need to mentor a group of women but to reconcile two disputing women. That problem is seen in the preceding verse, “I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be thinking the same [thing] [fig., to be in agreement] in [the] Lord” (Phil 4:2; ALT3).
That reconciliation a man could help bring about. In fact, I would say, in the patriarchal society of the first century, a man would be more suited for the job than a woman. Two disputing women would be more likely to accept the authority of a man over them than that of another woman.
As for the identity of that man, Charles Ryrie puts it best when he writes in his Ryrie Study Bible, “The identity of the true comrade is not revealed” (Ryrie, p. 1795; Note that “true comrade” is how the original NASB renders the adjective and noun in Phil 4:3).
Many guesses have been made as to who this man was, as seen in some of the quotes in this two-part article. But one thing is certain—he was not Paul’s wife. And that leads to the next section.
Accepting the Bible’s Teachings
How do we know Paul sent a man? Because that is what the Greek text says he did! However, some Christians still cling to the idea Paul is referring to his wife, even though they are probably wrong in every assumption underlying that false preconception.
That leads to the second important point. If you believe the Bible is the Word of God, which it is, then if your preconceived notions disagree with what the Bible teaches, then you need to change your ideas to fit with the Biblical teaching. To cling to your preconceived notions and to twist the Scripture to fit them and to make up ideas and insert them into the Bible to support your preconceived notions is a denial of the authority and inspiration of the Bible.
Bible Reference Works
I have all of the books quoted in this two-part article and listed in the following References in hardcopy format, However, due to my multiple chemical sensitivities, I have difficulties reading hardcopy books, so I rarely refer to them and the many other books I have in my library. But I was pleased to find I could repurchase many of them very inexpressibly in Kindle format.
For instance, decades ago, I purchased all 22 volumes of Calvin’s commentaries on sale for I believe about $200. But I just repurchased the entire set for three bucks! The other cited older reference works in this article can also be purchased at such low prices. That is due to them now being in the public domain, so the cost is just for formatting them for the Kindle app or reader.
Newer reference works are not in the public domain, so they are more expensive. But they are helpful when modern-day issues are raised that are not addressed in older reference works. And even with them, the Kindles are much less expensive than the hardcopy versions, so they are still very affordable. That holds true for my books.
That leads to the third important point to be drawn from this article. There is no excuse for Christians today to not have a “library” of Bible reference works on your phone, tablet, computer, or Kindle reader. Having such to check can be very helpful when a questionable Biblical claim like “Paul was married” comes up on social media or elsewhere, with a supposed supporting verse or verses.
Look up the verse or verses in a Bible commentary or other reference work, and you might find the poster is missing some important points. The sheer length of this two-part article should show that sometimes things are not as simple as they initially appear to be. Many relevant issues might be missed in a simple social media post, but which need to be considered before deciding on an issue.
References:
All Scripture references in this article are from Analytical-Literal Translation of the New Testament: Third Edition. Copyright © 2023 by Gary F. Zeolla of Darkness to Light ministry (www.zeolla.org/christian). Previously copyrighted © 1999, 2001, 2005, 2007, 2012 by Gary F. Zeolla.
In the following References, details are for the hardcopy formats that I own. But I am linking to the Kindle editions, when possible, as they are much less expensive. Also, I quoted from the Kindles when I had both due to the increased ease of doing so, so the page numbers are from the Kindles. Bolding and italics in quotes are in the originals.
BibleWorks™. Copyright © 1992-2015 BibleWorks, LLC. All rights reserved. BibleWorks was programmed by Michael S. Bushell, Michael D. Tan, and Glenn L. Weaver. All rights reserved (version 10.0).
Britannica. Pharisee. Sanhedrin
Calvin, John. Calvin’s Commentary on the Bible. Volume 21. Zondervan Corporation. Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted 1979.
Clarke, Adam. Adam Clarke's Bible Commentary. Baker Book House. Reprinted 1971.
Expositors Bible Commentary. Volume 10 (now 11). Zondervan Corporation. Grand Rapids, MI. 1978.
Jameson Faucet and Brown. Zondervan Corporation. Grand Rapids, MI, reprinted 1999.
Jewish Virtual Library. Ancient Jewish History: The Sanhedrin. by Shira Schoenberg.
Jewish Virtual Library. Ancient Jewish History: Pharisees, Sadducees & Essenes.
MacArthur Study Bible (NKJV). Second Edition. Thomas Nelson. 2020.
Reinecker, Fritz and Cleon Rogers. Linguistic Key to the Greek New Testament. Zondervan Corporation. Grand Rapids, MI. 1980
Ryrie, Charles. Ryrie Study Bible. NASB. Moodey Press. Chicago, 1978.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible. Volume 3. Thomas Nelson, reprinted 1979.
Walvoord and Zuck. Bible Knowledge Commentary. Victor Books, 1983
Zeolla, Gary F. God’s Sex Plan: Volume Two: What the New Testament Teaches About Human Sexuality. Copyright Gary F. Zeolla, 2018.
The preceding links to Amazon are advertising links, for which I receive a commission if a product is purchased after following the link.
My First Politics Audiobook!
Alleged Corruption, Bias, and Fraud
Allegations of the Corruption of Joe Biden, Bias of the Media and Big Tech, and
Fraud in the 2020 Election
My first politics audiobook is now available from Amazon, Audible, and iTunes.
There are many controversies about the 2020 election, with many claims of election fraud. Those need to be remembered, as we head into the 2024 election, as the same shenanigans are sure to occur again. Those fraud claims are said to have led to an insurrection at the US Capitol Building. Biden and Dems are using that event to tarnish Trump. But all is not as they claim about that day.
In addition, Joe. Biden only took office with the help of a biased media and Big Tech. And they are at it again. This book points out what to watch out for this time.
For other formats for this book, see the Preview page on my politics website.
#Trump #Biden #ElectionFraud #BidenCorruption #BiasMedia #BiasBigTech #2020Election #2024Election
New on My Christian Darkness to Light Website
Below are new items on my Christian website that have been posted since the last issue of this newsletter was published.
June
2024 Christian Commentaries is a new page. Pittsburgh Sports and Pride
Month. Sex-change operations lead to suicide. Jill Biden Joins in with
Pittsburgh’s Celebration of Sin.
6/3/24
May 2024
Christian Commentaries is a new page. Confused About Mother's Day and
Abortion. Health Setbacks and Updates.
5/6/24
New on My Fitness for One and All Website
Below are new items on my fitness website that have been posted since the last issue of this newsletter was published.
Powerlifting Workout Posts and Videos: April to June 2024 has been completed with all of my workouts for this time period.
Powerlifting Workout Posts and Videos: July to September 2024 will record my
workouts and videos for the third quarter of 2024.
6/29/24
Vol. XXII, No. 3 is the latest issue of the free FitTips for One and All newsletter.
Comments on Various Health and Fitness News Articles is a new page. News
articles and studies on fish oil, spinach vs. kale, xylitol, the Mediterranean
Diet, olive oil, and slouching.
6/20/24
New on My Biblical and Constitutional Politics Website
Below are new items on my politics website that have been posted since the last issue of this newsletter was published.
First
2024 Presidential Debate is a new article. It
provides my thoughts on the debate, including a list of a dozen Biden lies that
I have previously refuted in my various writings. Many references are included
at the end of the article for further study.
6/29/204
June 2024
Political Commentaries is a new page. Proven correct on the The
Bias J6 Select Committee.
6/11/24
New on My Covid Fearmongering and Lies Website
Below are new items on my Covid website that have been posted since the last issue of this newsletter was published.
Covid Quarterly
Commentaries for Q2 2024 is a new article. Updates on the
effectiveness, or lack thereof, of Pfizer’s Paxlovid, the ongoing problems with
long Covid, Biden still pushing Covid vaccines mandates, the need for Covid
booster shots, the difficulties face masks cause law enforcement and the move
now to ban them, and zero deaths from Covid vaccines.
6/22/24
Overcoming Back Pain: A Mind-Body Solution
My first audio book is now available on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. It is the story of how I overcame years of crippling low back pain, so much so that I was able to start powerlifting again. If you suffer from low back pain, this could be the solution to your problem. And even if you do not, this is an interesting story, with lots of twists and turns. For other formats for this book, see the Preview page on my fitness website.
Also by Gary F. Zeolla:
Zeolla.org
is the personal website for Gary F. Zeolla.
Author of Christian and of fitness books, Web sites, and
newsletters,
and a top ranked and multi-record holding powerlifter.
Fitness
for One and All website and
FitTips
for One and All newsletter.
“Helping people to attain their health, fitness, and performance goals,
with an emphasis on powerlifting.”
Biblical and Constitutional Politics
“Political articles and commentary from a conservative Christian and politically
conservative perspective”
Covid Fearmongering and
Lies
“Coronavirus
Fearmongering on the Left, Covid-19 Lies on the Right”
A Layman's View of What the Authorities Got Correct and Incorrect about
SARS-CoV-2
All material in this newsletter is copyrighted © 2024 by Gary F. Zeolla or as indicated otherwise.
The links to Amazon are advertising links, for which I receive a commission in addition to my royalty if a product is purchased after following the link.
7/1/24